What Planet Are We On? ...with Liz Bonnin

COP26: Your climate questions answered!

In this special episode ahead of the COP26 climate summit in Glasgow, Liz Bonnin puts your questions to the BBC’s environment correspondent Matt McGrath, science correspondent Victoria Gill, and energy policy expert Professor Jim Watson. With contributions from Sir Ranulph Fiennes, Mya-Rose Craig and Chris Packham, questions tackled include how much carbon does it take to melt a cubic metre of sea ice, why is a new coal mine in Cumbria even up for discussion and how will we make sure countries stick to the pledges they make at the talks?We also bust some jargon and give you a complete rundown on all the key issues ahead of the critical climate summit.

What do YOU want to ask the experts?

A quick hello from the team of ‘What Planet Are We On?’ to tell you about a special episode we’re making this autumn to answer YOUR climate questions. We’ll be back with our host Liz Bonnin alongside the BBC’s environment correspondent Matt McGrath and science correspondent Victoria Gill.Plus, we’ll be joined by Professor Jim Watson from UCL’s Institute of Sustainable Resources.So send us your question about climate change or the UN’s major conference, COP26, to what.planet@bbc.co.uk and we’ll try to answer as many of them as we can. What do you want to ask the experts?

Bonus content: Brian Eno and James Thornton - ‘Changing The System’

This is a bonus episode recorded at the Manchester Science Festival. Liz Bonnin talks to the acclaimed musician, Brian Eno, and environmental lawyer, James Thornton, along with a virtual audience about how our legal system can help tackle climate change and protect all life on earth. They also get into art, philosophy and creating an ecological civilization too! James is chief executive of ClientEarth, an environmental charity using the law to bring about systemic change and Brian is a trustee of the group. The event was part of a series of ‘Climate Talks’ from the Science Museum Group taking place throughout 2021. For more information, please visit this website, https://www.scienceandindustrymuseum.org.uk/.

Bonus content: Our 10 favourite climate solutions

In this bonus clip, Liz Bonnin, Matt McGrath and Victoria Gill talk about their favourite climate solutions from this series. We’ve heard over 100 solutions, tips or ideas from our guests - so we've put the longlist on the 'What Planet Are We On?' website so you can see them all.

Ep 10. Christiana Figueres – Stubborn optimism and leadership

This episode is about leadership. The team are joined by the UN’s former top climate diplomat, Christiana Figueres, and her political strategist, Tom Rivett-Carnac, who helped bring together world leaders for the historic Paris Agreement to combat climate change in 2015. They host the ‘Outrage and Optimism’ pod and they’ve written a book called ‘The Future We Choose’. Liz Bonnin, Victoria Gill and Matt McGrath discuss the challenges and opportunities for leaders acting to bring down emissions and hear why Christiana remains stubbornly optimistic for the future.