Robert Macfarlane joins us in the studio to talk about the world outside, the climate emergency and how the landscape has shaped his writing and thought over the years. With climate strikes becoming a regular feature we also speak to veteran activist and essayist, Rebecca Solnit, about whether we should be hopeful about the future of the planet. And we actually head outside with the microphone to speak to Professor Shane O’Mara about why the act of walking is far more miraculous and fundamental to being human than we may have imagined. Books mentioned: Underland, Ness, Whose Story Is This?, In Praise of Walking, Modern Nature, Haunts of the Black Masseur, The Secret Garden.

Ask this episode

“What did the council decide on item 42?” — answered with the speaker and the moment.