Enviromental Podcast
Sustainable Asia
Stories about Asia and the environment…that you probably haven’t heard yet. A new perspective on how different countries in Asia are tackling a changing planet.

Eight Million
Eight Million takes you through the ins and outs of plastic waste treatment globally and in China. It’s an illuminating look at how China is closing their doors on imported plastic waste, and turning their back on industrial pollution in favour of building an ‘ecological civilisation’.

Plasticity
In the Plasticity Podcast, Marcy speaks with innovators and entrepreneurs in the world of recycling, to find out what needs to happen in Asia for us to move away from the plastic linear economy of produce, consume, and discard and create a more circular economy of reuse and recycle.

1986
Groundbreaking new podcast series 1986 from Sustainable Asia interviews Chinese and global ocean advocates to investigate the overfishing problem that is pushing Chinese fishing vessels into the South China Sea and beyond to find their catch.

3 Billion
How does a grouper from the Seychelles end up in a restaurant’s fish tank in Hong Kong? What damage is the banquet culture in Asia doing to marine species and what can be done? Three Billion is a four-part podcast series about the seafood trade in Hong Kong, China and Asia. It’s made in collaboration with chinadialogueocean and sponsored by Swire Group Charitable Trust.

Mining the Deep
The concept of deep seabed mining has been around for decades, but our growing demand for renewable energy is making this far fetched idea a reality. Renewable energy resources are perceived to be the solution to the world’s climate change problem. But, their production requires a lot of rare minerals which often come from questionable sources. What do we have to gain and lose from Mining the Deep?

China’s Polar Frontiers
In China’s Polar frontiers, we explore China’s recent positions and discussions on the icy expanses of the Arctic and Antarctica. They’ve recently established themselves as stakeholders in the future of both these areas. Why is China so interested in these polar regions? And how do the impact of warmer temperatures and climate change shift China’s priorities in the the poles?

The Pangolin Reports
Pangolins are the most trafficked mammal in the world, in large part due to demand from Chinese consumers. In The Pangolin Reports, we investigate their role in global conservation efforts. Scientists are pointing to these peculiar creatures as a possible source of the coronavirus outbreak in China, where a temporary ban on all wildlife trade is now in force. Could this mean fresh hope for pangolins? Why are they so sought-after? And why, despite laws preventing their trade, have they been hunted to the point of extinction?

Fight COVID-19 with HKU
COVID19 with HKU: Ten episodes walk you through the leading research coming out of HKU to fight COVID19.

Plastic First Mile
Setting up plastic recycling systems is difficult. Like, really difficult. Especially on a national scale. In our latest series, Plastic First Mile, we travel to different parts of Asia to understand what it takes for a circular economy to become a reality instead of just a dream. From Taiwan to Indonesia, journey with us as we get to the bottom of what really happens to your bottle after you throw it in the trash.

Will China Save Antarctic Ocean?
China’s interest in Antarctica’s rich fishing grounds has grown significantly over the past 20 years. A member of the international body governing use of these resources since 2007, the country is also involved in managing the Southern Ocean’s two existing marine protected areas (MPAs). Three new MPAs are due to be voted on later this year, and China’s approval will be crucial. Will China help secure a sustainable future for Antarctica’s ocean?

Mapping Asia’s Plastic Crisis
From Japan to India….new ideas taking shape to tackle the decades old problem of plastic pollution in Asia… Based on a new research report by the Heinrich Boell Foundation called The Asia Plastic Atlas with support from Break Free From Plastic Asia.

Asia’s Noisy Ocean
It turns out, sound is really the dominant sense for animals underwater. For anything further than 10 metres away, marine life uses sound rather than sight to gather information. So human-produced noise pollution – whether its construction or shipping vessels – alters ocean animals ability to communicate, mate and even survive. In this season, we first describe the beauty of undersea animal acoustics and then dive into the impact of noise pollution on marine life in China’s southern ocean.

Is a UN Global Plastic Treaty Enough?
In February 2022, the UN Environment Assembly agreed to negotiate a global plastic treaty over the next two years. With so many Asian nations struggling under the weight of plastic waste….can the UN do for plastic what the Paris Agreement has done for climate change? How is this treaty viewed across the region?

Clearing the air
Why haven’t the governments in Asia’s larger cities done something about the decades old problem of air pollution? Our two young environmental journalists, based in Hong Kong, Khoa Tran and Chermaine Lee, try to find out why. As always in our podcast series, we’ll talk to experts and activists on the ground to bring out a fresh local perspective….We’ve called the series Clearing the Air to add an optimistic tone because the citizen movements that we uncovered while producing this series….were so inspiring.