Our future depends on bold ideas that improve our natural environment while driving innovation.
Eco Futurists is more than a podcast, it’s a platform for conversation, bringing together people with fresh perspectives, innovative solutions, and a shared commitment to a sustainable tomorrow.
From scientific experts and industry pioneers to artists, adventurers, and community leaders, we spotlight those making a difference locally and globally. These are the voices of Eco Futurists working to create a greener, brighter future for our planet.
Supported by The Environment Institute, Adelaide Uni
Scientific experts, industry leaders, artists and adventurers, people leading the way, talk about providing solutions to making a sustainable future their priority because they know what it means if we don’t.
To listen and subscribe, search ‘Eco Futurists’ on your podcast platform of choice. Here it is on Spotify: https://lnkd.in/giyXDEzV
Episode 14. Music, the language of inspiration
Hear from Felix Riebl, lead singer of The Cat Empire and creative force behind Spinifex Gum, on how music connects with people, describes the stories and experiences of cultures and can be used to motivate environmental action. Find out more about Felix’s work at The Cat Empire and Spinifex Gum
Episode 13. Festivals, a platform for fun and knowledge
Hear from Ian Scobie, event and theatre producer, on developing the highly successful formula for WOMAD, a heady mix of world music, artistic staging, and cultural immersion to support sustainability demonstration and discussion. Find out more about Ian at https://www.artsprojects.com.au/about/ian-scobie
Episode 12. As the world tipped
With COP 26 ending in political stalemate, hear from Nigel Jamieson, theatre and outdoor installation producer, on his use of physical theatre to communicate the problems and inaction around climate change. Understand how art can help tackle one of the greatest moral challenges of our time. Check out Nigel’s work at As The World Tipped and Performing Lines
Episode 11. Reaching a sustainable future
In this thought provoking episode hear from director of the 2040 Film, Damon Gameau, about looking into the future to develop paths to sustainability, making that journey simple and easy to adopt, and providing motivation through hope messaging. This bite sized episode of the #EcoFuturists #podcast has plenty of interesting examples of what we can all do. The 2040 movement has really gathered pace since this episode was recorded at WOMADelaide early last year. Check out what Damon is up to at: FaceBook Twitter Instagram or IMDB
Episode 10. Rewilding a City
In this highly entertaining episode, hear from conservation scientist and urban nature futurist, Chris Daniels, on the importance of making room for biodiversity in our cityscapes and harnessing people power to connect with nature and promote species survival on our planet. Find out more about Chris and his work on LinkedIn and at Green Adelaide and Koala Life.
Episode 9 – Leading for Sustainability
In this convivial chat, hear from leadership and sustainability facilitator, Matthew Wright-Simon, about how fun and creative collaboration bring new energy to all-too-familiar problems – like plastics waste and climate change. Find out more about Matt and his work on LinkedIn, Instagram and at Newday Leadership
Episode 8 – Monuments in the forest
Hear from installation artist Craig Walsh, about using the projection of images, or projection mapping, to animate the natural world, provide an engaging interactive experience and bring a forest to life with living faces. Find out more about Craig’s work at craigwalsh.net
Episode 7 – Capturing peoples’ spark
In a very human and engaging interview hear from filmmaker Paul Ryan on communicating people’s passion and essence in film and documentary, from indigenous rights and polar explorers to environmentalists and footy players. See some of Paul’s work on this show show real or at the 57films website
Episode 6 – Restoring Australia’s native oyster reefs
Hear from marine conservationist Heidi Alleway about the problem with shifting baselines, using music to attract oyster larvae, and designing and delivering an award-winning oyster habitat restoration global partnership. Find out more about Heidi on LinkedIn. Here is a short video of the Eureka Awards, highlighting some of the key partners associated with the work: https://youtu.be/Drkl61DGqcM
Episode 5 – The state of the world’s forests
Hear from leading ecosystem scientist, Jean-Francois Bastin, on using satellites to find millions of hectares of unrecognised forest, modelling a zero impact earth to find the best places to replant forest and achieve planetary healing. Find out more about JF on LinkedIn, see JF’s TedX presentation or read about the global landscapes forum presentation
Episode 4 – Cool bees and Air Bee ‘n’ Bee
Hear from Katja Hogendoorn, bee scientist, on the natural wonder of bees, their importance to our diet and designing plantings that everyone can use, from gardeners to farmers, to encourage bees back into our landscapes. Some more info on Katja and cool bee projects: Bee BnB, pollinator reserves (including some cool videos and cartoons) and pollin8.
Episode 3 – Discovering and protecting Africa’s lost virgin rainforest
Hear from Julian Bayliss, conservation scientist and eco adventurer, on using Google Earth to find lost forests, discovering and describing new species, and protecting the world’s most valuable forest blocks through community support. Find out more about Julian at JulianBayliss.co.uk, LinkedIn and Twitter. Doco promo on YouTube
Episode 2 – Motivating a community to plant 35 million trees
Hear from Natasha Davis, CEO Trees for Life and restoration leader, on the importance of maintaining focus, engaging with people, building effective partnerships and being adaptable. Find out more about Natasha on LinkedIn or FaceBook, and about Trees For Life here
Episode 1 – Turning adventure into conservation
Hear from Tim Jarvis AM, conservation scientist and explorer, on adventuring in the natural world, capturing these moments to deliver conservation by stealth and realising the difference we can all make in our own backyard. Find out more about Tim at TimJarvis.org, The Australian Museum, Quark Expeditions and LinkedIn.
Hosted by Prof Andy Lowe, Director of the Environment Institute, at Adelaide University. Andy is a British-Australian scientist. He solves some of the most pressing global resource, production and landscape sustainability challenges through the application of technology innovations delivered in responsible and economically realistic frameworks.
—— Credits ——
This podcast is produced in partnership with Adelaide University, the Environment Institute and BASEM3NT Studios. The Eco-Futurists concept is a multimedia platform developed by Andrew Lowe, Nicole Miller, Ramona Dalton and Paul Ryan – 57 Films. The Eco-Futurists logo was developed by Nicole Miller, Andrew Lowe, Corinna McLaine, Paul Ryan and Ramona Dalton.
Food Futurists
A podcast to really sink your teeth into! Ensuring we have access to healthy and tasty food for the future means lots of people are working hard across food industry supply chains on a global scale. Agtech, food origins, alternative proteins, native foods, food waste, personal food choices, and more are up for discussion. Prof Andy Lowe examines the solutions being put in place today to put tomorrow’s meal on your table.
Season 2
EvokeAG is the Asia Pacific region’s largest agrifood tech event and is an excellent place to gather, share and be inspired about food, farm, and future. Prof Andy Lowe’s interviews at evokeAG 2020 open you up to the boundless possibilities of a healthy and sustainable food future. Listen to conversations with the likes of Hungry Jacks CEO Jack Cowin, filmmaker Damon Gameau of the renowned films 2040 and That Sugar Film, and Microsoft Azure Chief Scientist Ranveer Chandra.
These Season 2 interviews were recorded at evokeAG 2020 in Melbourne, brought to you by AgriFutures Australia. This podcast is produced in association with AgriFutures Australia, and in partnership with the University of Adelaide, Ramona Dalton Communications and Basem3nt Enterprises.
Episode 22 – A taste across the Agrifood Tech space
Host Prof Andy Lowe speaks with Food Futurists producer Ramona Dalton picking out some of the bits that make season 2 interviews so fascinating and promising for the entire food industry supply chain and consumers globally. Highlights include season 2 interviews with the likes of film maker Damon Gameau, Hungry Jack’s CEO Jack Cowin, and Microsoft Azure Chief Scientist Ranveer Chandra.
Listen here on Anchor.FM Spotify
Episode 21 – Why telling the story of a better tomorrow makes sense
It’s easy to get bogged down by what’s not working in the world’s approach to environmental sustainability, agriculture and food production. Film maker Damon Gameau (2040) chooses to look at the solutions and people making waves in today’s industries that promise to radically change the world as we know it, making life better for people and planet.
Listen here on Anchor.FM Spotify
Episode 20 – Whats really driving change in the food industry?
Tony Hunter is an expert forecaster of possible long-term futures of the food industry. Personlised wellness, eating for medicine, feeding the planet – it’s all up for discussion.
Listen here on Anchor.FM Spotify
Episode 19 – Bringing AI to agriculture for world’s poorest farmers
Ranveer Chandra, Chief Scientist Microsoft Azure and FarmBeats researcher, is looking towards a not-too-distant future where some of the world’s poorest farmers can access low cost data-capture technology using something as ubiquitous as a mobile phone. And how about those old TV aerials? Turns out they’re really handy too.
Listen here on Anchor.FM Spotify
Episode 18 – Bananas for change
With 40% of what growers produce not making it to the shops, Krista Watkins Managing Director of Natural Evolution has dedicated herself to finding new uses for unsaleable produce. Our farmers are growing 100%, let’s use 100%! Krista knows how.
Listen here on Anchor.FM Spotify
Episode 17 – Is carbon neutral meat the holy grail of the livestock industry
“It’s not just meat=bad and plants=good”. Meat producers have a massive potential of being part of the environmental solution. Andy speaks with James Madden MD of family business Flinders +Co, the first meat company in the world to fully off-set all carbon emissions from their business and every kilogram of meat they sell.
Listen here on Anchor.FM Spotify
Episode 16 – Next level innovation in global Agrifood Tech
Ethy Levy CEO Bridge Hub talks to Andy Lowe about how Israeli-Australian connections are taking the global Agrifood Tech Industry to the next level of innovating, thanks to a special focus on researchers and early-stage start-ups.
Listen here on Anchor.FM Spotify
Episode 15 – Policy around food products is no piece of cake
Policy and regulations around new plant-based food products, health claims of functional foods, and how millennials purchasing choices aren’t necessary what they seem. This and more with Matt Kovac Executive Director Food Industry Asia in this jam-packed bite-sized episode!
Listen here on Anchor.FM Spotify
Episode 14 – Going crackers – where the food we actually eat meets the real needs of future food production
Mike Lee, Co-Founder and CEO of Alpha Food Labs, wants to make it easy for people and businesses to support biodiversity in food production. Also, find out why this big-picture thinker refuses to answer questions about the next big future food trend.
Listen here on Anchor.FM Spotify
Episode 13 – Is plant based meat part of the solution? – Hungry Jacks CEO thinks so
Hungry Jacks CEO Jack Cowin speaks with Andy Lowe about why the meat industry is not going to go away, and how plant-based meats can help feed the world’s growing population.
Listen here on Anchor.FM Spotify
Episode 12 – This is what it takes to change a generation of farmers for the better
Callan Daley evokeAG 2019’s Future Young Leader, and Field Technician at MEQ Probe, is walking the talk of a new generation of Australian farmers.. He talks with Andy Lowe about consumer demand, supply chains, agtech, marketing, engineering, lasers, and the huge correlation between inter-muscular fat and the eating quality of meat.
Listen here on Anchor.FM Spotify
Episode 11 – Connecting with success in the Agrifood tech industry
EvokeAG was created for the purpose of connecting people, organisations and businesses in the agricultural industry. Kay Hull AM, former Member of Parliament in Australia, makes no mistake that she expects delegates at this AgriFutures event to listen, learn, connect, network, and open their minds to further opportunities in the agricultural sector. And whatever you do, don’t be afraid of failure; celebrate failure and move forward!
Listen here on Anchor.FM Spotfiy
Embed URL
Paste a link to the content you want to display on your site.Embed URLEmbed
Sorry, this content could not be embedded.Try againConvert to link
Season 1
Find out more about season 1 and Andy’s conversations with the likes of Howard Yana-Shapiro of Mars Inc., Marco Gualtieri of Seeds&Chips, Kylie Porter of Global Compact Network Australia, and more.
All interviews were recorded at Global Table Seeds&Chips in Melbourne 3-6 September 2019. Podcast produced In partnership with the University of Adelaide, Ramona Dalton Communications and Basem3nt Enterprises.
Episode 10 – The minds and innovation behind a renowned global food summit
In this last episode of series 1, Prof Andy Lowe is interviewed by Food Futurists producer Roman Dalton. We get to the heart of the brilliant minds and innovation behind Global Table Seeds&Chips Melbouren 2019. The phenomenal leaders and speakers, thought proving podcast guests, providing solutions today to put tomorrow’s meal on your table.
Listen on Spotify
Episode 9 – Nutrition of protein alternatives
Talking with Dr Sandro Demaio, CEO of EAT, about the nutritional issues surrounding alternative protein choices.
Episode 8 – Hosting Global Table in Melbourne
Talking with the CEO of the Royal Agricultural Society of Victoria, Paul Guerra, about hosting Global Table at Melbourne Showgrounds and its journey from Seeds&Chips in Milan.
Episode 7 – Carbon neutral meat
Talking with Paul Wood, Director of Dairy Australia, about protein options that recognise the importance of sustainably and ethically produced Australian beef and its potential in global markets.
Episode 6 – Alternative proteins
Talking with Thomas King, CEO of Food Frontier, about alternative protein options, the future global market for plant-based protein products and food sustainability.
Episode 5 – Food insecurity and waste
Talking with the CEO of SecondBite, Jim Mullan, about tackling food insecurity and waste through food rescue programs in Australia
Episode 4 – United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
Talking with the Executive Director of Global Compact Network Australia, Kylie Porter, about the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals, and their support and uptake here in Australia.
Episode 3 – Agtech opportunities
Talking with Matthew Pryor, Partner of AgThentic, about AgTech opportunities and investment and Australia’s place in this massive global market.
Episode 2 – Orphan crops
Talking with the Chief Agricultural Officer of Mars Incorporated, Howard-Yana Shapiro, about orphan crops – the next wave of food plants to come out of Africa augmented for nutrition to help tackle hunger and malnutrition.
Episode 1 – The future of food
Talking to the Founder and Chairman of Seeds&Chips Marco Gualtieri about the unique and energising format of Seeds&Chips and its journey from Milan to Global Table Melbourne Australia.
A podcast series talking to leading experts about solutions to society’s most pressing challenges.
For more information visit The Discovery Pod brought to you by the University of Adelaide with host Andy Lowe
Episode 10 – Genetically modified foods
Unnatural, Harmful and Unsafe? – Does genetic modification have a role to play in our food futures.
We’ve been changing our food to suit our needs for generations, but controversy has surrounded genetically modified foods since they were first introduced in the late 20th century. Why has there been such a strong backlash to GM? Are they really that bad or can they help us improve food production in the face of a changing climate and shifting nutritional demands? And how do we help people make informed food choices?
Join us this episode to discuss genetically modified foods with Matt Tucker (Deputy Director of Waite Research Institute, Associate Professor, and leading plant scientist).
Episode 9: Cyber security
Cybercrime and Digital Warfare – how do we get tech savvy to secure our lives online?
Technology around us continues to evolve and now more than ever, the way we behave online can have drastic consequences. So who can we trust online and how do we prevent our information falling into the wrong hands in this new digital world? Can we be doing more to prevent cybercrime and for those of us with kids, how do we protect them in their online lives? Join us this episode to discuss Cyber Security with Yuval Yarom (Senior Lecturer and expert in creating trustworthy computer systems), Russell Brewer (Senior Lecturer in criminology and investigator with the Digital Youth Laboratory).
Episode 8: Music and technology
The Power of Music. How technology is helping us immerse, interact, and discover music’s benefit.
Music is a universal language, evoking our emotions and strengthening our connections to the past. So what is it about music that makes us feel things? And how is music changing since the introduction of modern technology?
Join us this episode to discuss Music with Luke Harrald (composer, performer and producer of interactive computer music), and Steve Cook (specialist in immersive sound spaces and audio engineering).
Episode 7: Food and water security
Access to food and water is set to become the next conflict horizon. So how do we secure the future of food and water for all?
Join us this episode to discuss Food and Water security with Martin Cole (Head of School of Agriculture, Food and Wine), Mike Young (Research Chair in Water and Environmental Policy), and Georgina Drew (Senior Lecturer with the School of Social Sciences).
Episode 6: Renewable energy
Cracking the code – finding new ways to power our nation and drive the manufacturing economy.
Australia is mineral rich and our weather patterns lend themselves to renewable energy production. And yet, our mineral extraction and exports contribute significantly to our carbon emissions as a nation. So how do we decarbonise heavy industry and find better renewable solutions?
Join us this episode to discuss Renewable Energies with Gus Nathan (leading researcher in energy technology and decarbonisation of heavy industry) and Yan Jiao (Senior Lecturer and investigator of new catalyst materials for better energy storage and production).
Episode 5: Pregnancy and parental health
The gift of life – how do we build healthy habits today to give the children of tomorrow the best start in life.
For the first time in modern history, children in developed countries may not live as long as their parents, due to diet-associated health problems like heart disease, stroke, and cancer. It’s a shocking prediction, and one which could be avoided, as we continue to discover more about pregnancy and parental health. So where we are going wrong and what we can do about it?
Join us this episode to discuss Pregnancy and Parental Health with Jodie Dodd (obstetrician and internationally recognised expert on mother’s and children’s health) and Alison Care (Heart Foundation Future Fellow, investigating pregnancy complications and health outcomes in children).
Episode 4: Artificial intelligence
The rise of the machines – what does it mean for us today? And how will it change the way we live tomorrow?
We hear the terms artificial intelligence, machine learning and the internet of things thrown around a lot, but what do they actually mean? We have a mini computer in our pockets, smart homes and offices, and the rise of the digital era. This technology is already taking over our lives – will it take our jobs and our futures? Join us this episode to discuss Artificial Intelligence with Johan Verjans (leading cardiologist and Deputy Director of the Australia Institute for Machine Learning).
Episode 3: Nutrition
Forget fad diets – what should we be eating, and does this need to change as we journey through life?
With an obesity epidemic across lifestages and a rise in non-communicable disease such as heart attacks, strokes and cancer increasingly being linked to poor diet – how do we eat well across our life span? Should we be varying what we eat as we get older?
Join us this episode to discuss Nutrition with Paula Moynihan(Professor and internationally renowned researcher of nutrition and oral health), Jess Greiger (investigator of nutrition’s role in pregnancy and birth outcomes), Lenka Malek (Research Fellow exploring nutrition, food choice and human behaviour in relation to food) and Leonie Heilbronn (Associate Professor and researcher of calorie restriction, intermittent fasting’s role in reducing chronic disease).
Episode 2: Climate change
Climate change is here to stay. From devastating drought and bushfires, to floods and rising sea temperatures and levels – Australia is all too familiar with the extreme impacts of climate change. So what should we be doing today to live for tomorrow?
Join us this episode to discuss Climate Change with Douglas Bardsley (Associate Professor and expert in climate change adaptation), Melissa Nursey-Bray (Head of Social Sciences and specialist in urban adaptation and Indigenous resource management) and Adriana Milazzo (Senior Lecturer and investigator of the relationship between heatwaves and infectious disease).
Episode 1: COVID-19
Pandemic panic – is there a light at the end of the tunnel or will we find a new normal?
It’s the elephant in the room, but COVID-19 is something we will be living with for the foreseeable future. Suddenly, we were thrust into a new way to living – home schooling, working from home, and social distancing. So why has this particular pandemic been so widespread and devastating across the globe? And how has this move to virtual connection impacted our lives and our children? Join us this episode to discuss COVID-19 with Faye McCallum (Professor and expert in teacher and student wellbeing in the face of uncertainty) and Michael Beard (Associate Professor and specialist in viral pathogens).
Prof Andy Lowe 