Welcome Gut the System with Harry Farnsworth. In this podcast series I will be looking to delve into the world of systems thinking, talking to some of the greatest and smartest people working in the food, farming, health, energy and policy world. I will be talking to them about the issues we face globally, be that nature depletion, declining human health or the degradation of our soils and how we are now arriving at unique point, where we can start to restore and regenerate by looking more closely at the connectivity of these systems and nature.
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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Welcome Gut the System with Harry Farnsworth. In this podcast series I will be looking to delve into the world of systems thinking, talking to some of the greatest and smartest people working in the food, farming, health, energy and policy world. I will be talking to them about the issues we face globally, be that nature depletion, declining human health or the degradation of our soils and how we are now arriving at unique point, where we can start to restore and regenerate by looking more closely at the connectivity of these systems and nature.
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Contact the show:
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
"Taking back control" of our food with Nick Jefferson:
In this week's episode, I'm walking and talking to the engaging and amusing Nick Jefferson.
Nick came onto my radar through LinkedIn after posting a very alarming article which connected the levels of anti-depressants in river water to the mental health of salmon. From there on out, I was hooked on Nick’s extremely illuminating, and sometimes provocative, posts (I don’t think he'd mind me saying that)!
By no means is Nick just a keyboard warrior, spending his time highlighting how broken our food system is. Nick has created a solution to help everyday shoppers reconnect with high quality produce and, if not more importantly, put the producers, be they farmers, fishermen or fisherwomen, back in the driver's seat.
Along with his co-founder Ella, Nick launched Wylde Market back in 2023 and it's been growing a dedicated following ever since. Wylde Market serves as an online platform that brings the best of local markets to the masses. Or as Nick would say, Wylde is a rebellion against big food and a celebration of Selon le Marché (according to the market).
I really enjoyed talking to Nick as we wandered around the beautiful Kew Gardens and as a user of Wylde Market myself, I can say from experience how fantastic it is. I hope you enjoy listening.
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Show notes:
Petition to put food and farming on the nation curriculum
Dark Matter - Dr James Kinross
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Place, The Final Frontier with Tamara Giltsoff:
In this episode of Gut the System I am walking and talking to Tamara Giltsoff. At heart Tamara is a designer, a disruptor and an innovator, having co-founded two climate tech start-ups and been a strategic advisor across a range of companies. Tamara has held a spectrum of impactful roles from leading innovation at the Foreign and Commonwealth Development Office, to working with The Good Economy, where she helped produce truly foundational work on Place-Based Impact Investing.
More recently Tamara's work has taken a heading into the farming, food and finance sector, seeing her working yet again on a foundational piece of work now with the Soil Association Exchange, which gave birth to The Banking for Change report. SAX is working with major banks and farmers in the UK, to identify and address some of the barriers and potential drivers to helping more farmers transition their operations, to future proof regenerative farming enterprises. Looking at how financial innovation can catalysis systemic change, in place and within complex systems, holding nature and keystone farmers at the heart of those solutions.
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Show notes:
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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
When the Levee Breaks with Simon Evill:
In this episode of Gut the System I am walking and talking to Simon Evill, co-founding partner of Pelican Ag. An early-stage VC who invest from farm to fork, looking to scale regenerative farming, develop smart, local supply chains and drive sustainable consumer habits. In an industry that relies on innovation and distributive technologies, early stage venture capital is crucial for start-ups, in order for them to reach the scale and access the capital they need, to execute on their pioneering work. Pelican Ag were one of, if not the first, VC firm in the UK to be working with regeneration at the core of their manifesto.
This is by no means the sum of Simon. A childhood spent elbow deep in 'Berkeley Compost,' producing biodynamic fruit and veg, sprouted deep roots into soil and ecosystems, a theme he would return to later in his career. Pre-seeding Pelican, Simon had a foundational early career, breaking the wave of Impact Investing at Clearly So. It was this experience, of seeing how well place capital can be catalytic for change, coupled with a growing frustration with the manifesto and criteria used by the impact investing community that led Simon to where he is today. Simon is now a key figure in the global regenerative transformation we're marching towards, championing and investing in companies that deliver more than IRR but deliver for nature, farming and health.
Over the last few years, going deep into regeneration, Simon has become an industry spokesman for importance of restoring the water cycle, big and small and why water is the foundational building block for true systems change. Simon and his co-founding partner, Christopher Ramsey, now dedicate a large proportion of their time to educating and sharing the important work of water pioneers like Walter Jehne and Alpha Low.
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Show notes:
Walter Jehne - The Soil Carbon Sponge
Alpha Lo - What if water is more important that carbon
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It's a lovely moment in life when you go full circle. In this episode that's just what I did. Returning to the Royal Agricultural University, where I did a masters in 'Sustainable Agriculture and Food Security', I interviewed the prolific and deeply knowledgeable Professor Nicola Cannon, who I was lucky enough to be lectured by during my time there.
To say Nicola was ahead of the curve is an understatement. Her research spans over several decades and Nicola was writing papers on topics like integrated arable-livestock systems, long before the term regenerative entered the zeitgeist. We cover a broad range of topics during our walk and Nicola leaves no stone unturned when it comes to research. We're granted access into the myriad of experiments and trials she's currently conducting at the RAU, to prove the essential value of regenerative farming systems.
'The proof is in the pudding' and 'walking the walk' are two expressions that summarise Professor Cannon's attitude to agricultural research. However, Nicola's not only passionate about research but also about teaching and extending her knowledge to the next generation of farmers and to those currently working the land. She helps them approach new farming systems in an informed and evidence backed manner in order to secure the future of their farm financially and environmentally.
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Show notes:
.SAFS
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For Kingfisher and Country with Christoph Warrack:
In this episode of Gut the System, I'll be walking through the beautiful grounds of Petworth Park in Sussex with Christoph Warrack, CEO of @Common (formerly known as Woodland Savers). Having discovered the magic of social enterprise and community during his time at Open Cinema, Christoph talks me through his fascinating journey from a career in film to becoming an impact entrepreneur and systems thinker working at the intersection of land and people. As CEO of Common, he enables communities to buy and regenerate land for nature recovery. With optimism and energy, Christoph shares his mission to get land back to the right trajectory of nature restoration instead of nature degradation, at the biggest scale possible.
Christoph has a truly creative mind and a deep love of nature, which quickly becomes apparent during our walk. Christoph guides us through Petworth Park, stopping to observe the Parks' deer and wildfowl, connecting his love of story with his drive to create social change at scale, with nature and for future generations to come.
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Show notes:
.TedX
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The canary in the coal mine with Dr. Amy Godfrey:
In this first episode of Gut the System, I walk and talk with Amy Godfrey, a former anaesthetics and insensitive care doctor. After 13 years training and practising medicine in the NHS, Amy became disenchanted with the healthcare system and was struggling to have the impact she intended to have. She found that the majority of her time was taken up treating patients with life changing but preventable conditions. Amy wanted to change that but it seemed impossible to do whilst working from within. So, she gave up her UK medical license in favour of working further 'upstream', for a venture capital firm called The First Thirty. And it was here that she found a way to have a greater impact on more people's lives. Here are a few of the interesting topics we cover:
The first episode of a series is always a difficult one to pick but Amy's episode, for me, is a testimonial to the poly-crisis we, as a society, are sleep walking into. We've dangerously lost the connection between our food and health. As the old add-age goes 'you are what you eat' and we are becoming processed. Luckily there's a growing swell of nutritionists, doctors, farmers and entrepreneurs who are waking up to this reality. I wanted to air Amy's episode first because she so eloquently lays out why we need to sit up and pay attention but also draws you in with her can do positive attitude. The main take away for me? If our highly trained and sought after medical professionals are leaving the NHS, we need to ask why. We need to take action. If I've said it once I've said it twice, Amy is the canary in the coal mine.
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Show notes:
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Contact the show:
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Welcome to my new podcast Gut The System!
In this podcast series, I'll be delving into the world of systems thinking, talking to some of the greatest thinkers in the food, farming, health, energy, and policy world as we try and come up with a systems approach to dealing with the problems impacting all of us.
Each episode is recorded outside, as we walk the walks that inspired them to make a change in the world.
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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
