Month: August 2021

Concrete blocks are the foundations of the modern world but they could be greener. Tom Heap meets Colin Hills and his team turning waste dust and carbon dioxide into building materials.

Professor Hills of the University of Greenwich has developed a technique that mimics natural processes, using carbon dioxide as a glue to form stone aggregates from waste dust left behind by heavy industry. The spin-off company, Carbon 8 Systems, has compressed the process into a shipping container and now makes building materials in the UK and France with this clever carbon-munching technique. Colin's colleague, Nimisha Tripathi wants to adapt the system for the developing world, choosing waste from her native India- things like pistachio shells and banana skin- to make a tailored range of building products relevant to the region in which they're made.

Tamsin Edwards of King's College London joins Tom to consider just how much carbon dioxide we can remove from the atmosphere by developing this new generation of bricks and mortar. Producer: Alasdair Cross Series Researcher: Sarah Goodman

Produced in association with the Royal Geographical Society. Special thanks for this episode to Professor Paul Fennell and Dr Rupert Myers of Imperial College London and to Professor Karen Scrivener of École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne.

How to improve mass catering for the planet. Tom Heap considers how changing the menus in schools, hospitals and the armed forces could help in the fight against climate change.

Andy Jones, chair of the Public Sector Catering 100 Group, explains how his own farming family background informs his drive to reduce the amount of meat served in canteens and increase the choice of vegan and vegetarian options. Tom visits hospitals in Nottingham to see the drive in action and joins climate scientist, Dr Tamsin Edwards to consider the carbon impact of a broader shift from beef to beans.

Producer: Anne-Marie Bullock Researcher: Sarah Goodman

Produced in association with the Royal Geographical Society. Special thanks for this episode to Dr Rosie Robison from Anglia Ruskin University and to Dr Tara Garnett and Dr Peter Scarborough from the University of Oxford.

From clothes to cars and buildings, all our new 'stuff' takes energy and resources to produce. If we want to cut down the use of high carbon materials like steel and cement then we need a new attitude. We need to think about sharing more and valuing what we have, we need products that are designed to last longer.

Tom Heap meets Aisling Byrne from clothing app NUW. Concerned about the impact of fast-fashion on the environment, she found that lecturing friends who loved fashion didn't change their minds or behaviour, so she's designed a clothes-sharing app for people to put unwanted clothes into new hands and get the excitement of something 'new' in return. It can stop the demand for brand new products at the top end and avoid landfill at the other end. Professor Julian Allwood of Cambridge University expands on how much our desire for bigger and better is impacting on resources and how behaviour change needs to come sooner rather than later.

Producer: Anne-Marie Bullock Researcher: Sarah Goodman

Produced in association with the Royal Geographical Society. Special thanks for this episode to Dr Mike Tennant of Imperial College London, Dr Sonali Diddi of Colorado State University, Professor Jana Hawley of the University of North Texas and Professor Sandy Black of the London College of Fashion.