Planet Possible

New York City is the most densely populated city in the USA and, famously the "concrete jungle" of all those famous movies and TV shows. Surrounded by water on 3 sides and with old infrastructure, how does the Big Apple cope with rising sea levels, pressure on water quality and very little room for nature? Vincent worked on high profile projects like Hunter's Point and Little Island - pairing beautiful design with futureproof sustainability functions. Sarah was involved in a decades long project to lower the levels of nutrients in the water surrounding Manhattan. Both native New Yorkers, what are their professional and personal takes on how New York is doing? Are there lessons for other cities around the world? Credits Presented & Produced by Niki RoachExecutive Producer Andy Taylor - Bwlb LimitedWith thanks to Alastair ChisholmHonorary Executive Producer Jane Boland 

Al Chisholm is CIWEM's Director of Policy, though he will be soon be leaving to take on a new role at a different organisation. In his last appearance on the podcast in his current role, he gives his thoughts on 3 big current nature, climate and water news stories. Niki and Alastair discuss: The new strategic policy statement for the Environment Agency and Natural England. How citizen science is being carried out in one of London’s rivers. The National Emergency briefing. Find out more about the stories Niki and Al discussed here... Strategic Policy Statement Citizen Science Project National Emergency Briefing Join the Planet Possible mailing list to hear first about new episode releases… Click here to subscribe Credits Presented & Produced by Niki RoachExecutive Producer Andy Taylor - Bwlb LimitedWith thanks to Alastair ChisholmHonorary Executive Producer Jane Boland 

The King’s Foundation, founded by His Majesty King Charles III in 1990, was inspired by his philosophy of Harmony: that by understanding the balance, order and relationships between ourselves and the natural world, we can create a more sustainable future. Niki heads to Dumfries House, home of The King’s Foundation, to see how the concept of Harmony comes to life. Hear from Dr Simon Sadinsky, Executive Director of Education at the Foundation about the impacts both locally and internationally of the work happening on site and how the principle of interconnectedness is at the heart of their work. The episode accompanies the recent release of Finding Harmony: A King’s Vision - available now on Prime Video. Find out more here. Credits Presented & Produced by Niki RoachExecutive Producer Andy Taylor - Bwlb LimitedWith thanks to Alastair ChisholmHonorary Executive Producer Jane Boland 

On this MiniPod episode, Niki Roach is joined by The Guardian’s Biodiversity correspondent - Phoebe Weston. Together, they discuss: 1) Why honey bees aren’t necessarily good for ecosystems and the Italian island that’s banned them. 2) China’s carbon dioxide emissions fall by 1% in the final quarter of 2025. 3) And a radical project in Belgium that’s turning off street lights to preserve wildlife. Thanks to our sponsors BMA, Mackley and MWH Treatment for their support of Planet Possible. Credits Presented & Produced by Niki RoachExecutive Producer Andy Taylor - Bwlb LimitedWith thanks to Alastair ChisholmHonorary Executive Producer Jane Boland 

To meet future water demands we will have to embrace water reuse and advanced water recycling. What's possible? What's best practice? What do the public think? Traditionally there has been a public perception challenge over reusing water (the so-called "yuck factor") - how do we get past that?The UK is just starting to really get going on water reuse, while in the USA they're further ahead. So, in this episode we talk to experts on both sides of the pond to get the latest thinking...UK Experts:Simon Langley from MWH Treatment and Heather Smith from Cranfield UniversityUS Experts:Paul Pitt and Gaya Ram Mohan from Hazen and Sawyer Credits Presented & Produced by Niki RoachExecutive Producer Andy Taylor - Bwlb LimitedWith thanks to Alastair ChisholmHonorary Executive Producer Jane Boland 

The Planet Possible MiniPod focuses on big current stories in climate, water and nature, providing a detailed update in just 15 mins. Our guest on this episode is Lee Pitcher, the Labour MP for Doncaster East and the Isle of Axholme, who also chairs the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Water. Water is firmly in the spotlight in the UK, with recent supply outages in the South East Water region making headlines. Alongside this, and following last year's Cunliffe Review, the government has published a white paper called 'A New Vision For Water'.Lee, who previously worked in the water sector before becoming an MP, joins host Niki Roach to unpack both of these topics. Credits Presented & Produced by Niki RoachExecutive Producer Andy Taylor - Bwlb LimitedWith thanks to Alastair ChisholmHonorary Executive Producer Jane Boland 

In this month’s Planet Possible, Niki Roach is joined by Ruth Chambers OBE - a Senior Fellow at Green Alliance, and honorary professor of practice at the UCL Centre for law and the environment.Ruth, and host Niki, metaphorically travel around the nations of the UK - identifying what will be making the headlines in UK environmental policy, in 2026.In Wales, the Environmental Governance Bill will be a new legislation allowing future Welsh governments to set long-term environmental targets.The Environment Minister of Northern Ireland, Andrew Muir, has outlined how environmental governance is currently operating, highlighting implementation.The Natural Environment (Scotland) Bill - Introduces statutory environmental targets that politicians will be required to meet in the future.The UK Government has added 13 new deliverables, expanding the scope and ambition of environmental action at UK-wide level. Credits Presented & Produced by Niki RoachExecutive Producer Andy Taylor - Bwlb LimitedWith thanks to Alastair ChisholmHonorary Executive Producer Jane Boland 

Our last Minipod of 2025 welcomes John Curtin, the president of CIWEM. John joins Niki Roach in this 15 minute episode, to discuss the following 3 current stories in Water, Climate and Nature:Infrastructure Risks - How should we approach building new infrastructure in a world shaped by climate change, and shifting environmental issues and politics? And how do we move beyond short-term fixes and improve our acceptance of the need to build for 2050 and beyond?A piece of research, supported by the natural science foundation of China, shows a new technique that could let us generate electricity from water in an entirely new way. With the potential to scale, and real promise for countries with large water masses, such as the UK.John Curtin explains the new CIWEM presidential theme of “Green Roots, Growing Prosperity” policy and why protecting the environment, and growing the economy, don’t have to be opposing forces despite how they’re often framed in politics and the media. Credits Presented & Produced by Niki RoachExecutive Producer Andy Taylor - Bwlb LimitedWith thanks to Alastair ChisholmHonorary Executive Producer Jane Boland 

In this month’s Planet Possible, we’re going beyond the specifics of COP30 and reflect on the shifting geo politics of climate leadership, and what it could mean for our future generations.Niki Roach is joined by two experts in this field - Dr Clare Richardson-Barlow, a Political Economist with a focus on the Asia specific region, and Professor of International Politics at the University of Leeds - Richard Beardsworth.Together, they discuss:COP30 - The climate change conference that has just taken place in Brazil, why it matters so much and the context in which it’s happening, as emissions continue to rise. How are the road maps going to be implemented, and where are the delivery on targets that have been set for the countries in attendance?China - The world’s largest emitter and how its leadership responds to those emissions. The country is also the largest investor in renewables, and the largest manufacturer of clean technology.The challenges around a just transition here in the UK, from fossil fuels, and the political recognition required regarding how difficult it will be to move towards a greener future. Credits Presented & Produced by Niki RoachExecutive Producer Andy Taylor - Bwlb LimitedWith thanks to Alastair ChisholmHonorary Executive Producer Jane Boland