Understand Podcast
Understand from BBC Radio 4 - unravelling the complexities of the biggest stories and subjects that really matter right now.
Episodes to download
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10. Rival Visions—Ten Fights That Made the Green Movement
Fri 10 Jul 2026
10/11Where next for the future of the green movement?
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9. Crackdown—Ten Fights That Made the Green Movement
Thu 9 Jul 2026
9/11Did Just Stop Oil help lead to new laws cracking down on disruptive protest?
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8. Shutdown—Ten Fights That Made the Green Movement
Wed 8 Jul 2026
8/11Protesters clash on the eve of the shutdown of Germany’s last remaining nuclear plants
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7. Impenetrable—Ten Fights That Made the Green Movement
Tue 7 Jul 2026
7/11An indigenous community is evicted from its homeland for gorilla conservation.
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6. Arctic 30—Ten Fights That Made the Green Movement
Mon 6 Jul 2026
6/11A campaign against oil drilling in the arctic takes a dangerous turn
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5. Brokenhagen—Ten Fights That Made the Green Movement
Fri 3 Jul 2026
5/11The US president gatecrashes a secret rendez-vous at the world’s climate summit
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4. Terror—Ten Fights That Made the Green Movement
Thu 2 Jul 2026
4/11A pair of environmentalists burn down a ski resort in Colorado, USA.
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3. The Ecologist—Ten Fights That Made the Green Movement
Wed 1 Jul 2026
3/11The story of an influential green magazine and the man who created it.
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2. The Greenpeace—Ten Fights That Made the Green Movement
Tue 30 Jun 2026
2/11Environmentalist hippies set sail to stop a nuclear test.
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1. Rebellion—Ten Fights That Made the Green Movement
Mon 29 Jun 2026
1/11Extinction Rebellion launches one of its early occupations - against Greenpeace.
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Trailer—Ten Fights That Made the Green Movement
Wed 24 Jun 2026
1/11The story of the power struggles that forged the green movement
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8. Sorry?—Rinsed
Wed 20 May 2026
8/13New legislation promises to slash the sewage released into rivers, but will it become law?
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7. The Eureka Moment—Rinsed
Tue 19 May 2026
7/13The data scientist, the ex-detective and the politician trying to clean up our rivers.
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5. The Camel's Humps—Rinsed
Fri 15 May 2026
5/13Rivers work when everything is in balance, but what happens when that’s disrupted?
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4. Inkblot—Rinsed
Thu 14 May 2026
4/13We can all look the same picture, but what you make of it depends on who you are.
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3. Turd Nerds—Rinsed
Wed 13 May 2026
3/13The 'Dossier of Despair' that reveals what's happening to some of Britain’s rivers.
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2. Water Works—Rinsed
Tue 12 May 2026
2/13The centuries-old battle between public good and private profit still being fought today.
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1. The Bridge—Rinsed
Mon 11 May 2026
1/13After watching their local river grow murky and lifeless, two neighbours fight back.
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Trailer—Rinsed
Wed 6 May 2026
1/13A sewage scandal and a centuries old battle between public good and private profit
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3. How Reading Made Our Politics—How Reading Made Us
Mon 23 Mar 2026
3/3Did reading create democracy? And what does it mean for our politics if reading dies out?
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2. How Reading Made Our Feelings—How Reading Made Us
Mon 16 Mar 2026
2/3Did reading make us lonely, set us free, and even end torture? James Marriott investigates
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1. How Reading Made Our Brains—How Reading Made Us
Mon 9 Mar 2026
1/3Did learning to read rewire your brain? With James Marriott.
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Trailer—How Reading Made Us
Thu 5 Mar 2026
1/3The story of how reading made us and what might happen if we stop - with James Marriott.
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4. Life and Liberty—An American Journey
Mon 9 Feb 2026
4/4The idea of freedom is foundational to America, but whose freedom, and what kind?
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3. Establishing Justice—An American Journey
Mon 2 Feb 2026
3/4How has 'justice' been understood by different generations of Americans?
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5. The Bush Doctrine—US Foreign Policy in Five Doctrines
Fri 23 Jan 2026
5/5How the September 11 attacks led to conflict in Iraq and Afghanistan.
