Planet Beyond

Short: Ross MacFarlane – Turning Challenges into Triumphs

Every challenge is an opportunity for growth: that’s a key takeaway from Ross MacFarlane and Hidayat Alizada. Both of our interviewees have achieved personal sporting success, while supporting good causes. Ross, Remote Operations Centre Manager at Fugro in Dubai, shares insights into resilience and determination. He discusses his passion for triathlons and marathons, overcoming setbacks…

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Episode 34: A globe-spanning eye into the deep past

The SKAO, or Square Kilometre Array Observatory, will allow scientists to peer through time into the universe’s distant past. Its telescope arrays in South Africa and Australia, along with its HQ at Jodrell Bank in the UK, have been designed to capture a picture of the universe as the first galaxies formed, the so-called ‘epoch…

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Short: Dakota Peebler on youth activism in ocean conservation

What will be the future of our planet? Dakota Peebler, an 18-year-old leader in ocean conservation, emphasises the crucial role of collective youth action in shaping a better future for our planet. Dakota, co-founder of Heirs To Our Ocean, shares her incredible journey from childhood fascination to leading a movement for ocean preservation. She discusses…

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Episode 33: Epic Swim Maui and the value of our ocean

In a little over a week, Planet Beyond will be recording live at the UN Ocean Decade conference in Barcelona. In the run up to the event, we’re considering the value of oceans. In our last episode, we looked at the value of the ocean as a way to store carbon and mitigate the effects…

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Episode 32: Mangroves, drones, and data

We need to manage our coast lines to reduce the impact of climate change. But coastal areas, and mangroves in particular, also offer one of the most effective naturebased mechanisms for capturing carbon. At COP 28 in the UAE last November, the importance of the oceans to climate change was a key focus, and the…

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Episode 30: Cutting Carbon at sea

As we travel through the energy transition, we must rapidly develop new forms of propulsion that reduce or eliminate carbon emissions. This has been a key driver of research and development at vessel builder SEA-KIT International. Jon Baston-Pitt first spoke to SEA-KIT CEO Ben Simpson almost two years ago, for Episode 16 of the Planet…

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Short: Paul Lawrie – Learning and Mentoring

Paul Lawrie has had an impressive career as a golf pro, with 19 professional wins to his name. But he was a latecomer to the game. He only focussed on golf once he had accepted he wasn’t going to make it as a professional footballer. The secret to his success was the hard work of…

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Short: Daniela Taliana – Spreading the art bug

Daniela Taliana is geoscience manager at Fugro in Italy. Like our host, Jon, she has a passion for rocks. But in this episode she tells us about another passion: for art. Daniela is president of the volunteer arts association, Spazi all’Arte, or ‘Spaces for Art’, which seeks to foster collaborative and inclusive public art in…

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