Depending on where you get your news, 2024 probably sounded like a complete disaster. And while a lot of terrible things happened, not everything that happened in the world was terrible. From breakthrough treatments for HIV and obesity, to the rise in global happiness and the decline in deforestation in the Amazon – there were a lot of bright glimmers of progress that you just didn’t hear about. Go to our website to read the full list of our 86 Stories of Progress from 2024. Other topics discuss...
Dec 18, 2024•44 min•Transcript available on Metacast Meet Steven Pinker, a cognitive psychologist and public intellectual who is one of the world’s greatest thinkers on the topic of progress. He is the author of 12 books, including ‘Better Angels of Our Nature,’ which played a key role in the origin story of Fix The News. After five years of email correspondence between Steven and Gus, this is their first face to face conversation. From progress to politics and the rise of tattoos, this episode offers a big dose of perspective about the current st...
Nov 05, 2024•45 min•Ep 11•Transcript available on Metacast Meet Ncazelo Ncube-Mlilo, a psychologist and narrative therapist who uses a travelling caravan to bring mental health services to townships on the outskirts of Johannesburg. Tackling gender-based violence and high rates of youth depression, Ncazelo’s cutting edge methods for healing trauma are now being used across the globe. We are proud to support Ncazelo’s organisation, Phola , as one of our charity partners at Fix The News . Find out more about Ncazelo: https://phola.org https://www.y...
Oct 30, 2024•30 min•Ep 10•Transcript available on Metacast Meet Sonia Vallabh, a lawyer turned scientist with one of the most compelling stories we have ever heard. In 2011, Sonia was diagnosed with prion disease, a rare and fatal genetic illness with no viable treatment. Against all odds, Sonia and her husband retrained as a patient–scientists and set out to cure the disease before Sonia misses her window. Thirteen years later, they've found a way to shut off enough genetic signals to halt the disease - and save hundreds of thousands of lives around th...
Oct 21, 2024•37 min•Ep 9•Transcript available on Metacast Two weeks ago, Amy attended the Clinton Global Initiative in New York, where she met some incredible change makers who are driving solutions across healthcare, water access, food security, conservation and scientific discovery. In this episode we'll take you behind the scenes of the two-day event and introduce you to some of the people she met in the corridors, including her interview with the legendary Dr Jane Goodall. Correction: Coalition for Mental Health Investment Five organisations are pa...
Oct 09, 2024•47 min•Ep 8•Transcript available on Metacast Meet Sigrid van Aken, the CEO of Postcode Lottery Group, the world's 3rd largest private charity donor, after the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation & the Wellcome Trust. To date, the organisation has given €13.5 to charities that are driving significant social and environmental change. With over 14 million subscriptions and record turnover of €2.5 billion in 2023, it’s one of the greatest philanthropy stories, you probably haven’t heard about. Find out more: www.postcodelotterygroup.co...
Sep 19, 2024•29 min•Ep 7•Transcript available on Metacast We cover a lot of conversation stories about the Amazon at Fix The News, but it’s not often that we get the chance to talk with someone who is driving these efforts. Meet Fernando Trujillo, a marine scientist who is fighting to save the Pink River Dolphins of the Amazon River. Over the past 30 years Fernando and his team have scaled a small research project in Colombia into a global mission to protect river dolphins and their waterways around the world. Find out more: https://omacha.org This pod...
Sep 13, 2024•29 min•Ep 6•Transcript available on Metacast Meet Valery Wichman, a leading LGBTQI+ activist and lawyer in the Cook Islands who was on the forefront of the fight to decriminalise homosexuality in her country. This conversation explores the 13-year journey behind the landmark victory and the power of faith, love and kindness to change the law, and the world. Find out more: RNZ Pink News Cook Island News This podcast is hosted by Angus Hervey and Amy Davoren-Rose from Fix The News . Audio sweeting by Anthony Badolato at Ai3 – audio and voi...
Sep 06, 2024•30 min•Ep 5•Transcript available on Metacast Meet Ada Palmer, a historian and science fiction author who believes that when we zoom out to a centuries scale, humanity has a lot to be hopeful about. This conversation is a time-travelling adventure, that explores how far we’ve come since the1600s, where we might end up in 2454 and why Shakespeare was worried about fake news too. Find out more about Ada: www.AdaPalmer.com www.ExUrbe.com Twitter: @Ada_Palmer Metaverse: @adapalmer@wandering.shop Bluesky: @adapalmer.bsky.social This podcast is h...
Aug 30, 2024•37 min•Ep 4•Transcript available on Metacast Meet Ron Davis Alvarez, a musician, teacher and conductor who created The Dream Orchestra to help refugee children and teenagers forge connections in their host country. This is a story about the power of music to bring people together, to open our hearts and to believe in the possibility of a better future. To find out more: Website: https://dreamorchestra.se/ Go-Fund-Me: https://www.gofundme.com/f/ron-davis-alvarez-dream-orchestra Video: https://youtu.be/7i63Kqulb-w?si=arT6lbJ4iXH2EdUZ CNN Her...
Aug 23, 2024•30 min•Ep 3•Transcript available on Metacast Meet Peta & Marwa, two women from opposite sides of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict who are working together to create a shared and peaceful future for their families. Their sister organisations, Women Wage Peace and Women of the Sun, have received a joint Nobel Peace Prize nomination this year. This is a story of hope against all odds, and the bonds that unite mothers, regardless of background. The intention of this conversation is to widen the lens of media coverage and to share a story f...
Aug 16, 2024•30 min•Ep 2•Transcript available on Metacast Meet Kris Tompkins, a rewilding legend who, alongside her late husband Doug, has helped protect over 14 million acres of biodiverse landscape across Chile and Argentina. This is a story of great love, great loss and what it takes to create a living legacy, against the headwinds of great odds. To find out more about Tompkins Conservation: www.tompkinsconservation.org If you would like to contact us directly, send an email to: amy@fixthenews.com
Aug 08, 2024•35 min•Ep 1•Transcript available on Metacast This new chapter of stories begins August 9th, 2024. Please join us by subscribing to Hope Is A Verb where ever you listen to your podcasts.
Jul 28, 2024•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast It's no secret that the news media is in crisis: sweeping layoffs across newsrooms, consumer disengagement and stories of doom and destruction on loop 24/7. But what if we could fix it? In this bonus episode Angus Hervey chats about his mission to highlight stories of progress and to prove that another form of journalism is possible - one that not only informs us about the world, but inspires real hope for the future of our planet. Find out more: https://fixthenews.com/ This episode of Hope ...
Mar 12, 2024•33 min•Ep 10•Transcript available on Metacast Meet Yasmeen Lari, 'starchitect' turned humanitarian who in the wake of the 2022 floods in Pakistan, vowed to build one million zero-carbon, disaster-resistant homes for displaced families. It's an astounding feat and one that she is bringing to life, thanks to a zero-dollar, zero-charity model. Find out more: https://www.heritagefoundationpak.org/Hf This episode of Hope Is A Verb was hosted by Angus Hervey and Amy Davoren-Rose. The soundtrack for this podcast is "Rain" com...
Feb 16, 2024•34 min•Ep 9•Transcript available on Metacast Meet 'Tino' Aucca Chutas, a biologist in Peru who has worked with communities across the Andes to plant almost 10 million trees to combat climate change. Reviving the practices of his Inca ancestors, he has secured local water supplies and empowered people to create change. Find out more: https://accion-andina.org/?doing_wp_cron=1706209982.1546800136566162109375 This episode of Hope Is A Verb was hosted by Angus Hervey and Amy Davoren-Rose. The soundtrack for this podcast is "Rain&q...
Jan 25, 2024•28 min•Ep 8•Transcript available on Metacast Meet Hannah Ritchie, a data scientist and author of Not the End of the World , a book that makes the radically hopeful argument that we may be on track to create true sustainability for the first time in history. This is data driven, qualified optimism at its best! Find out more: https://ourworldindata.org/ https://www.sustainabilitybynumbers.com/ (Photo credit: Angela Catlin) This episode of Hope Is A Verb was hosted by Angus Hervey and Amy Davoren-Rose. The soundtrack for this podcast is "...
Jan 19, 2024•36 min•Ep 7•Transcript available on Metacast Meet Eden Tadesse, a social entrepreneur and digital innovator from Ethiopia who created Invicta, a social impact platform that connects refugees and internally displaced youth with courses, skills training, and job opportunities online. FIND OUT MORE: https://invictaorg-2.web.app/ This episode of Hope Is A Verb was hosted by Angus Hervey and Amy Davoren-Rose. The soundtrack for this podcast is "Rain" composed and performed by El Rey Miel from their album "Sea the Sky...
Jan 12, 2024•28 min•Ep 6•Transcript available on Metacast Meet Johannes Fritz, a maverick biologist and conservationist who is reintroducing the endangered Northern Bald Ibis across Europe. Using an ultralight aircraft, Johannes has taught the birds new migration routes to mitigate the impact of climate change. FIND OUT MORE ABOUT JOHANNES: http://alt.waldrapp.eu/index.php/en/en-home This episode of Hope Is A Verb was hosted by Angus Hervey and Amy Davoren-Rose. The soundtrack for this podcast is "Rain" composed and performed by El Rey M...
Jan 04, 2024•31 min•Ep 5•Transcript available on Metacast Meet Chesca Colloredo Mansfeld, a social entrepreneur who co-founded Miracle Feet: a low-cost, non-surgical treatment that has made an extraordinary impact on the lives of over 80,000 children born with clubfoot in low and middle income countries. FIND OUT MORE ABOUT MIRACLE FEET: https://www.miraclefeet.org/ https://www.instagram.com/miraclefeet/ This episode of Hope Is A Verb was hosted by Angus Hervey, cofounder of Future Crunch and Amy Davoren-Rose, creative director. The soundtrack for this...
Dec 28, 2023•30 min•Ep 4•Transcript available on Metacast Meet Ronni Abergel, founder of the Human Library Organisation where, instead of books, real people are on loan to readers. For over two decades, this global movement has created a safe space to talk openly about taboo topics. At Ronni’s library, a conversation with a refugee, a transgender or a bipolar person is equally possible, open, and informative. Find out more about the Human Library: https://humanlibrary.org/ https://www.instagram.com/humanlibraryorganization/ https://www.facebook.com/hum...
Dec 21, 2023•30 min•Ep 3•Transcript available on Metacast Meet Flora Vano, a climate activist who has rallied a female-led response to the climate crisis in Vanuatu. Fighting climate change with female empowerment, Flora has taken her mission to the global stage, including the recent COP28. FIND OUT MORE ABOUT FLORA'S WORK: help.actionaid.org.au/vanuatu This episode of Hope Is A Verb was hosted by Angus Hervey, cofounder of Future Crunch and Amy Davoren-Rose, creative director. The soundtrack for this podcast is "Rain" composed and perfor...
Dec 19, 2023•31 min•Ep 2•Transcript available on Metacast Meet Aidan Reilly, one of the cofounders of the Farmlink Project. In 2020, Aidan and his friends rented a U-haul with an idea to help their local food bank. Today, their 'one truck' mission has flourished into a movement, spanning the North American continent and delivering recovered food to people in need. FIND OUT MORE ABOUT FARMLINK: Website: https://www.farmlinkproject.org/ Movie: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jZYkyNHFb3I This episode of Hope Is A Verb was hosted by Angus Hervey, c...
Dec 07, 2023•30 min•Ep 1•Transcript available on Metacast Welcome back to Hope Is A Verb! This season we'll bring you a new chapter of stories from the people who are mending our planet and tending to some of our biggest global problems. Episodes will be released weekly from 8th December, 2023. Hosted by Angus Hervey and Amy Davoren-Rose.
Nov 28, 2023•2 min•Transcript available on Metacast To celebrate the end of our first season of this podcast, we're delighted to share this conversation with Rutger Bregman- the person who inspired this project. Rutger is a journalist, historian, and the author of Humankind: A Hopeful History, in which he challenges the assumption that people are inherently selfish and competitive. Instead, he argues that we are hard-wired for kindness and collaboration, and this is what has led to our flourishing as a species. In this conversation we dive in...
Sep 21, 2023•44 min•Transcript available on Metacast Meet Bala Amarasekaran, an accountant turned conservationist who founded the Tacugama Chimpanzee Sanctuary in Sierra Leone and empowered local communities to play their part in protecting native forests and wildlife. In this conversation, Bala shares his extraordinary story about how a chance encounter with a baby Chimpanzee led to an epic conservation mission that’s spanned more than three decades, saved countless chimps and connected him with the legendary Dr Jane Goodall. This episode is a ma...
Aug 22, 2023•31 min•Ep 8•Transcript available on Metacast Meet Christine Figgener, a marine biologist who sparked a global movement against single-use plastic when her YouTube video of a turtle having a straw removed from its nose went viral in 2015. In this conversation, Christine shares her journey from growing up in an industrial town in Germany to running conservation programs in Costa Rica, where she first fell in love with leatherback turtles over 17 years ago. Reflecting on the eight years since her video “accidentally” fuelled a global debate o...
Aug 15, 2023•31 min•Ep 7•Transcript available on Metacast Meet Tarek Loubani, an emergency doctor who has created open-source, 3D printed medical supplies to solve critical shortages in war zones like Gaza and Ukraine. In this conversation, Tarek shares his journey as a Palestinian refugee - the powerful moments that have shaped the trajectory of his life and inspired his mission to create high quality and open source medical hardware and make it accessible and affordable to those who need it most. Giving us a rare insight into the crisis zones we hear...
Jul 30, 2023•34 min•Ep 6•Transcript available on Metacast Meet Wanjira Mathai, the Managing Director for Africa at the World Resources Institute who is empowering communities to restore landscapes and local economies through Restore Local, a project that is creating a new story for Africa one acre at a time. In this inspiring conversation, Wanjira shares her story of growing up in Kenya and how she "basks in the light" of her mother, Wangari Maathai, the first African woman and environmentalist to win the Nobel Peace Prize for her work with t...
Jul 21, 2023•34 min•Ep 5•Transcript available on Metacast Meet Tony Rinaudo, an agronomist who has helped local communities in Niger reforest six million hectares of desert, without planting a single tree. It's one of the greatest environmental transformations on the planet that has led to the restoration of land, livelihoods and dignity. In this conversation Tony shares his incredible journey from growing up in the Australian countryside to working in Niger during the famine of the 1980s, the moment of "divine intervention" that seeded t...
Jul 07, 2023•32 min•Ep 4•Transcript available on Metacast 
