In Conversation with Nathalie Nahai

Today I speak with Ebony Bailey, the Communications Manager for EcoCiv, an organisation whose mission is to promote civilizational change for the long-term wellbeing of people and the planet. Working with allies and global leaders to design solutions for the well-being of the entire web of life, Eco Civ have been able to catalyse groundbreaking explorations of the ways that current systems and structures need to be transformed. Ebony is a researcher, photographer and filmmaker whose work explores cultural intersections, diaspora and food justice, whose interest lies in using communications as a means of telling stories that weave together diverse social causes. She received a B.A. in journalism at USC and recently completed her Master’s thesis documentary project at the National Autonomous University of Mexico. In this conversation, we explore what changes we can make to our existing systems so as to live more sustainably, in a way that supports not only our local ecologies, but also the rich, diverse communities to which we belong. Join in the conversation #hivepodcast, and find out more at www.nathalienahai.com/the-hive-podcast/ Recorded on 30th November 2020.

In this episode, the first of the new year, I had the pleasure of speaking with Tessa Clarke - CEO and co-founder of Olio, a food-sharing app between neighbours designed to help eliminate food waste. What started out as a local initiative in North London back in 2015 has since grown into a phenomenally popular app, serving over 2.5 million users in 4 years. To date, Olio has shared 9 million portions of food, saved 1.3 billion litres of water and 8168 tonnes of carbon that would otherwise have been emitted. A champion of businesses that combine profit with purpose, Tessa and her co-founder, Saasha Celestial-One, are vocal advocates of sustainability, the circular economy and zero waste, and Olio’s impact has been widely recognised, most notably by the United Nations who highlighted Olio as a "beacon” for the world, and by Vivatech who awarded them the "Next European Unicorn". If you’re looking for ways to make a difference and work towards a more equitable, sustainable and just society, this action-packed conversation is for you. Join in the conversation #hivepodcast, and find out more at www.nathalienahai.com/the-hive-podcast/ Recorded on 16th December 2020.

With the deepest night of the year upon us, today’s rather special conversation comes as a celebration of solstice and the turning of the year, as a joint offering from The Hive, Accidental Gods, and the Upstream Podcast. We wanted to take a moment to reflect on the challenges we’ve faced and what they’ve taught us, share some the inspiring gifts that have gotten us through, and offer our visions for what we might create together as we move into 2021. For those of you who are as yet unacquainted, Manda Scott is a podcaster, screenwriter and trainee homeopath. In her past, she’s been a veterinary surgeon, an award-winning novelist, columnist and political activist. These days, she teaches shamanic dreaming and is doing her utmost to facilitate conscious evolution. She’s host and co-founder of Accidental Gods and - newly - is one part of Narrative Ark. She’s looking forward to a transformative year in 2021. My second conversation partner, Della Duncan, is a renegade economist dedicated to the just transition to a more sustainable and equitable world. From sharing stories of economic system change through the Upstream Podcast, to her workshops and consultancy work with communities and organizations, she helps people to better align their work with alternative economics movements. I really enjoyed being a part of this conversation with these two formidable women, and as we look to the year ahead, I hope this episode may serve as a companion to you. Join in the conversation #hivepodcast, and find out more at www.nathalienahai.com/the-hive-podcast/ Recorded on 9th December 2020.

In today’s episode, I speak with Alex Edmans, the professor of Finance at London Business School. He has a PhD from MIT as a Fulbright Scholar, and was previously a tenured professor at Wharton and an investment banker at Morgan Stanley. Alex has spoken at the World Economic Forum in Davos, testified in the UK Parliament, and given the TED talk What to Trust in a Post-Truth World and the TEDx talk The Social Responsibility of Business with a combined 2 million views. He serves as Mercers School Memorial Professor of Business at Gresham College, giving a series of lectures to the public, and on Royal London Asset Management’s Responsible Investment Advisory Committee. His book, Grow the Pie: How Great Companies Deliver Both Purpose and Profit, headed the Financial Times list of Business Books of the Month for March 2020 and was featured in the FT’s Summer Books of 2020. He has been named to Poets and Quants Best 40 Professors Under 40 and Thinkers50 Radar. In this conversation, we dismantle some of the misconceptions about purpose-driven businesses, and explore how enterprises of any size can begin to connect more deeply with their values to meaningfully contribute to society. From how we define purpose, to focussing on what is in our hands to change, Alex offers a refreshing and accessible way of re-appraising what we can offer to the world. Join in the conversation #hivepodcast, and find out more at www.nathalienahai.com/the-hive-podcast/ Recorded on 19th October 2020.

In this opening episode of season five, I had the pleasure of speaking with Alan Watson Featherstone, an ecologist, nature photographer and inspirational public speaker. The founder of Trees for Life, an award-winning Scottish conservation charity for which he was executive director for almost 30 years, Alan's pioneering work to restore the Caledonian Forest in Scotland and the 10,000 acre Dundreggan Estate in Glenmoriston, has become a flagship project for native woodland recovery. Alan's photographs have appeared in publications such as Time magazine and Encyclopedia Britannica, and he has given lectures at events and conferences in more than 20 countries worldwide. His pioneering work has been recognised through a number of awards, from the UK Conservation Project of the Year awarded to Trees For Life in 1991, to the Schumacher Award in 2001, the Spirit of Scotland Environment Award in 2012 and the RSPB Nature of Scotland Outstanding Contribution Award in 2013. In this conversation, we explore some of the unexpected paths that can lead us towards regenerating the natural world, and what can be achieved even in the absence of any physical resources. From finding ways to harness our inner power, to the journey of transformation within our personal lives, we explore how we can start to create the kind of worlds our hearts can believe in - from the inside out. Join in the conversation #hivepodcast, and find out more at www.nathalienahai.com/the-hive-podcast/ Recorded on 30th October 2020.

In this final episode of the season, I had the pleasure of speaking with the wonderful Caroline Webb - an executive coach, international speaker, and author of the best-selling book, How To Have A Good Day: Harness the Power of Behavioural Science to Transform Your Working Life. A Senior Advisor to McKinsey, where she was previously a Partner, Caroline specialises in teaching people how to apply behavioural science insights to improve their professional lives. She’s worked with hundreds of organisations to help their employees become more productive, energised, and successful, first as a Partner at McKinsey, where she continues to serve as a Senior Advisor, and now as CEO of her own firm, Sevenshift. Her book has been published in 14 languages in over 60 countries so far, and has been hailed by Forbes as one of their “must-read business books,” and described by Fortune as one of their top “self-improvement through data” books. From managing uncertainty by reconnecting with those things of which we can be sure, to working with self-compassion and conscious attention, we discuss what it might look like to regain a sense of control and competence in uncertain times, and how through noticing moments fo aliveness, joy and energy, we can start to tune into what gives us a greater sense of depth and meaning in our lives. Join in the conversation #hivepodcast, and find out more at www.nathalienahai.com/the-hive-podcast/

On today’s show, I have the privilege of speaking with Jennifer Morgan, the International Executive Director of Greenpeace International. Jennifer is the former Global Director of the Climate Program at the World Resources Institute (WRI), Global Climate Change Director at Third Generation Environmentalism (E3G) and she also led the Global Climate Change Program of the Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF). She has published widely on international climate policy issues, and Jennifer recently addressed the 2020 World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, calling upon global leaders to recognise this moment, as we recover from the impacts of the pandemic, as an unmissable chance to put people and the planet first. In our conversation, we explore what actions, large and small, we can take to come together and create a future we want to inhabit. We look at how the interpersonal values of compassion, courage, cooperation and kindness, can be used as a basis upon which to redesign the world in which we live, and we consider the choice we have of using wellbeing as the primary lens through which we make our decisions, both now, and as we emerge into the next chapter. Join in the conversation #hivepodcast, and find out more at www.nathalienahai.com/the-hive-podcast/

This episode, I speak with Geoff White, an investigative tech journalist and author, whose book "Crime Dot Com: From Viruses to Vote Rigging, How Hacking Went Global", is due out on the 10th of August this year. Geoff has covered technology for BBC News, Channel 4 News, Audible, Forbes online and many others, and his exclusives reveal tech’s impact on our lives: from the controversial police use of facial recognition and the failure of artificial intelligence therapy apps, to hi-tech call centre scams and fraud in the internet dating industry.

 He has written and presented two major podcast series for Audible - "Artificial Intelligence: Friend or Foe?" and "The Dark Web", and also runs his own series, "Cybercrime Investigations", an inside look into the world of an investigative journalist, detailing the twists and turns as the story unfolds. If you’ve been following this podcast since it started, you’ll have heard us in conversation in episode 5, where we explored the murky world of the dark web and the manipulative power of fake news. I wanted to bring him back on the show in this moment to help us dig deeper into the ways in which misinformation flows so quickly from one person to the next, and what we can do to become more resilient against content that is designed to alarm and persuade. Join in the conversation #hivepodcast, and find out more at www.nathalienahai.com/the-hive-podcast/

This episode, I had the pleasure of speaking with Gemma Milne, a science and technology writer whose book, Smoke & Mirrors: How Hype Obscures the Future and How to See Past It, just recently came out. Her work explores science, tech and the broad cultural issues surrounding their advancements, and she has a particular interest in deep tech, including biotech, agriculture, energy, space, health, quantum computing, AI. Gemma is also a deep tech advisor to governments, investors and other organisations working in these spaces, and she’s the Co-Founder of Science: Disrupt, a media organisation that connects and showcases innovators and entrepreneurs creating change in science. In this rich conversation, we talk about everything from hype, advertising and fake news, to simplified narratives and emotion-laden messaging, and how all of these things can influence our perception of the world and the situations around us. We explore why there’s such a great need for robust critical thinking, especially in this moment, and why it might serve us better not to think so much in terms of fixing broken systems, but assessing them according to the values on which they were built, so that we might more consciously choose the values on which to redesign them. Join in the conversation #hivepodcast, and find out more at www.nathalienahai.com/the-hive-podcast/

In today’s show, I’m doing something a bit different. This week I was invited by Manda Scott to join her in conversation on her podcast, Accidental Gods, and we decided it would be lovely to share it with all our listeners, across both of our platforms. We explore what it means to be human under the lockdown, and how we might grasp this moment in ways that will leave all of us better when it’s over, without feeling guilt-tripped or (even more) exhausted on the other side. Join in the conversation #hivepodcast, and find out more at www.nathalienahai.com/the-hive-podcast/