EcoDoc Podcast

Jun 08 2022 16 ep. 49 mins 1

A series of podcasts hosted by Dr Will Liddell, family doctor and ecologist, comprising conversations about biodiversity, health and the environment. Contributors include healthcare professionals, farmers, scientists and conservationists and the content explores their work, their careers and their thoughts about environmental issues. Sound enginering is by Rob Wynne-Griffiths.

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An interview with Dr Jonny Groome about greening anaesthesia with GASP

Jun 08 2022 46 mins

The healthcare sector is a major contributor of greenhouse gases and plastic waste. GASP (the Greener Anaesthesia and Sustainability Project) is a collaboration between anaesthetists and a range of NHS workers, who want to reduce the environmental impact of surgery and anaesthesia. Working on environmental impact in the health care sector is complex, because of the wide range of di

Andy Byfield discusses the conservation of wild flowers and the work of Plant Life

Aug 19 2021 50 mins

Andy Byfield has a long-standing interest in botany, including the flowering plants traditionally associated with arable farming, some of which have become very scarce due to changes in agricultural practices. He has been involved in botanical research and conservation for many years and helped found the charity Plant Life. Recent years have seen increasing interest in our native f

John Cherry on regenerative farming and the Groundswell Conference

Jul 25 2021 53 mins

Regenerative Agriculture aims to put soil health and sustainability at the heart of farming practices. John Cherry has spent his career farming in Hertfordshire. He became aware of the importance of looking after soil when he noticed farm production was plateauing despite increasing inputs. After a trip to the USA , John was inspired to learn more about regenerative agriculture and

Dr Alan Kellas on how climate change is affecting our mental health

Jul 19 2021 45 mins

Dr Alan Kellas is a psychiatrist with an interest in environmental issues and sutainability. He discusses the current and future impacts of global warming on our mental health and how psychiatry can be made greener with GP Dr Will LIddell.Sound Engineer: Rob Wynne-Griffiths.

Prof Chris Reynolds on how we can cut the environmental impacts of animal production

Jun 25 2021 49 mins

Farming is a major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions and global warming. Farm animals play a big role in these emissions. At the same time we increasingly recognise the importance of animals to soil health and therefore the long term sustainability of food production. Chris Reynolds and his team at Reading University are researching how we can reduce the environmental impact

Helen Browning OBE on organic food production

Jun 21 2021 50 mins

Will Liddell talks to Helen Browning OBE, CEO of the Soil Association, about the origins of the organic movement, her career in farming and campaigning and the role of the Soil Association. Support for the principles of the organic movement has gathered a lot of momentum with increased concern about climate change, the carbon footprint of food production and the challenges we face

Hendrikus van Hensbergen on Action for Conservation and bringing on the next generation of environmentalists

Jun 21 2021 56 mins

Will Liddell in conversation with Hendrikus van Hensbergen, the founder of a remarkable charity, Action for Conservation, which has developed a programme for inspiring young environmentalists and equipping them with the knowledge and skills they need to help us save the planet.

The Marlborough Downs Space for Nature project with Dr Jemma Batten

Jun 21 2021 49 mins

Will Liddell talks to Jemma Batten about how a group of farmers on the Marlborough Downs started working together on wildlife conservation at landscape scale. The collaboration has been a great success and includes restoration of a network of dew ponds, connecting communities with pollinator friendly Bee Roadzz, restoring chalk grassland habitats and the construction of tree sparro

Dr Sue Stuart Smith discusses how gardening can help our mental health

Jun 21 2021 51 mins

GP Will Liddell talks to Dr Sue Stuart Smith, consulant psychiatrist and psychotherapist, about her best-selling book exploring the links between gardening and our mental and physical health. There is a long history of gardens as places of healing and spiritual nourishment, while modern research in neuroscience is shedding more light on how working with soil and caring for plants h

Dr Richard Summers on the evolution and domestication of wheat and the potential of GM and gene editing

Jun 01 2021 45 mins

Will Liddell discusses the science behind plant breeding with Dr Richard Summers . We discuss the origins of wheat as a hybrid of wild grasses, its subsequent domestication by early farmers and the techniques of modern wheat breeding which have shaped modern what varieties. This includes some of the controversies regarding genetic modification (GM) and gene editing and the techniqu

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