Four Thought

Luke Rigg argues that more young magistrates will improve justice.When Luke told his friends and family he wanted to be a magistrate aged just 20, they all had one question: "Why are you doing that, Luke?" In this talk Luke takes us inside the magistrates' courts where for six years he has been convicting, sentencing, and acquitting offenders, many of his own age, to explain how he answers that question.Luke is introduced by host Olly Mann.Producer: Giles Edwards.

Tracey Follows explores how virtual assistants can help us survive after death.Tracey is a futurist who has become fascinated by the memories of people after they die, and in this talk she asks who and what is being memorialised - is it us, or something else altogether?Producer: Giles Edwards

Dr Shona Minson argues that we shouldn't punish children if their parents go to prison.Years ago, as a barrister specialising in care cases, Shona was familiar with the Children Act, and in particular its central principle: that the child's best interests are the paramount consideration of the court. And so when she was asked to write about what happened to children when their mums were imprisoned, she assumed something similar would apply, or at least that she could find some research about what happened to them. She was shocked to find almost nothing, and even more shocked when she started doing the research herself.In this talk she describes some the change she believes is needed - from major institutions thinking properly about the problem, to the judgement children face from their schoolmates' parents, and how she works with judges and other criminal justice professionals to achieve it.Shona is introduced by host Olly Mann.Producer: Giles Edwards

Dr. Tamsin Ellis is a GP who looks for ways to improve her patients' health and the environment.Welcoming us into her consulting room to meet her patients, Tamsin describes her journey to climate activism, and why she's convinced that looking for 'double wins' is the way forward. From giving a lecture about the environment to a sea of faces all sipping coffee from plastic cups, to the challenges of winning over already hard-pressed colleagues, in this witty talk Tamsin describes the realities of climate activism on the NHS frontline. As she prescribes health interventions with positive side-effects for the planet, she offers a new way to talk about climate change.Tamsin is introduced by host Olly Mann.Producer: Giles Edwards

Jak Beula says statues and memorials matter because they show who a society values. His organisation is working to erect more to honour people of colour, including a new statue which he has designed for Windrush and Commonwealth nurses and midwives at the Whittington Hospital in London. "It helps to improve equality and inclusion, to uncover the stories of historic characters who have positively impacted Britain, but for whatever reason remain unknown, unsung and unheralded." Dr Jak Beula is the founder and CEO of Nubian Jak, an African and Caribbean community organisation.Presenter: Olly Man Producer: Sheila Cook

Helena Goodwyn interrogates the near universal practice of giving children their father’s - not their mother’s - surname. She and her husband plan to buck the trend in a stand against structural inequality when their first baby is born. "We have the feminist movement to thank for many of the changes that have led us to our present moment, where broadly speaking, British society no longer stigmatises people based on whether they were conceived in or outside of marriage but in the case of cohabiting heterosexual couples the giving of the father's surname remains the norm." Dr Helena Goodwyn is Vice-Chancellor's Senior Research Fellow in English Literature at Northumbria University. Presenter: Olly Mann Producer: Sheila Cook

Sergeant Rhys Rutledge of the Welsh Guards explains why he thinks people deserve a second chance after turning his own life around from convicted drug dealer to successful soldier. He's set up a project with the Army's backing called Defeat Don't Repeat to help prisoners and young people who might be at risk of offending to stay away from crime. Through presentations and a residential training course involving physical challenges and teamwork, he aims to communicate a message of hope. "I want to engage with people who share a similar background to me, who may have found themselves on the wrong side of the law and have now managed to turn their life around and move on to a successful path. This would demonstrate how it's possible to move on in life and make the ultimate change for the better." Presenter: Olly Mann Producer: Sheila Cook

Dina Rezk describes how she made a friend of fear following the murder of her mother. The trauma of her mother's violent sudden death risked leaving her with a crippling sense of fear which she called "the beast". Over time she has found an ultimately life affirming way to live with it. "My life force had to match its presence. I had to exist in conversation with it rather than deny or repress its existence." Dr Dina Rezk is Associate Professor and lecturer in Middle Eastern History at the University of Reading. She is also a Radio 3 New Generation Thinker. Presenter: Olly Mann Producer: Sheila Cook

Alastair Hendy explains why he thinks we've lost our food culture and how we can rediscover it. Remembering the seventies when convenience food was less available and it was normal to cook from scratch, he urges us to understand more about where our food comes from and calls for basic cookery skills to be taught again in schools. Presenter: Olly Mann Producer: Sheila Cookaghendy.com

Penny Wincer reflects on what it means to be a carer, drawing on her own and other people’s experiences. Especially during the pandemic when support services have been unavailable, it’s time, she argues, for society to take care of the carers. Presenter: Olly Mann Producer: Sheila Cook