Funny Old World with Juliet Kinsman

Making magic from the movement of people Who gets to travel freely, and who is forced to leave home? Tourism and migration are two sides of the same story, yet the travel industry rarely talks about refugees, asylum seekers and displacement. In this special edition of Funny Old World, Juliet Kinsman and Jaz O'Hara, founder of Asylum Speakers, share voices from a roundtable they hosted at PURE Life Experiences in Marrakech. Hoteliers, tour operators, guides and people with lived experience of displacement – from Syria, Rwanda, Colombia, Jordan, Mongolia, Morocco, Turkey, Cyprus and beyond – on how travel can break down prejudice, create jobs and change who gets to tell the story of a place. Supported by Intrepid Travel. WHAT YOU'LL HEAR – Why most prejudice comes from ignorance, and how travel tackles it – The women-led London tours built around Ethiopian and Albanian heritage – How Jordan's story has been shaped by Palestinian, Iraqi, Syrian and Armenian communities – Why Rwanda understands what it means to be displaced – A Colombian eco-lodge creating opportunities after 17 years of conflict – A Cyprus hotel where refugees have become part of the story guests come back for – The hotel groups pledging to train and hire refugees IN THIS EPISODE 00:00 Welcome – Juliet Kinsman and Jaz O'Hara 01:00 Why this conversation belongs at a travel event 02:16 Thomas Reilly (UK) – tourism is all about migration 04:09 Lubna Kayyali (Syria) – the media narrative around refugees 06:25 Undraa Buyannemekh (Mongolia) – history is the story of migration 07:03 The power of human stories 08:16 Zina Bencheikh, Intrepid Travel (Morocco) – travel as a route into work 16:45 Muna Haddad, Baraka Destinations (Jordan) – who gets to tell the story of a place? 19:38 Bosco Munga (Rwanda) – recovery after displacement 23:07 Santiago Giraldo Diaz, Cannua (Colombia) – returning home to rebuild 25:47 Figen Ayan (Turkey) – home is where your belly is filled 27:18 Patrick Dessy (Cyprus) – refugees at the heart of a hotel 29:21 Natalie (Ireland) – hotel groups hiring refugees 30:47 Thomas Reilly and Mike McHugo, Education For All – the courage to speak up 32:59 Closing words and thank yous LINKS Bouteco's podcasts: https://www.bouteco.co/podcasts Asylum Speakers: https://www.asylumspeakers.com/ PURE Life Experiences: https://purelifeexperiences.com/ Intrepid's women-led Ethiopian flavours tour, Shepherd's Bush: https://www.urbanadventures.com/en/london/london-private-women-led-ethiopian-flavours-in-shepherd-s-bush-with-coffee-ceremony Baraka Destinations' Amman walking tour: https://barakadestinations.com/tour/amman-city-tour/ Cannua Lodge, Colombia: https://cannua.com/ Tent Partnership for Refugees: https://www.tent.org/ Greater Action, supporting Afghan refugees in Kuala Lumpur to upskill and make a living: https://greateraction.org/about-us/ THANK YOU TO Lubna Kayyali (Syria) Zina Bencheikh, Intrepid Travel (Morocco) Undraa Buyannemekh (Mongolia) Thomas Reilly, geopolitical consultant (UK) Muna Haddad, Baraka Destinations (Jordan) Bosco Munga (Rwanda) Santiago Giraldo Diaz, Cannua (Colombia) Charukesi Ramadurai (Malaysia) Figan Ayan (Turkey) Patrick Dessy (Cyprus): https://www.linkedin.com/in/patrickdessy Natalie (Ireland) Mike McHugo, Education For All Ariella and Isabella at PURE Life Experiences And to the many others who took part, born in and living in countries all over the world. We couldn't cover every aspect of these two incredible conversations on this enormous topic. Read more about the roundtable in our article on adventure.com. If this episode moved you, please share it with someone in travel who needs to hear it. Follow Funny Old World wherever you listen. Follow Juliet Kinsman @JulietKinsman with Jaz O'Hara of @AsylumSpeakers

In the midst of worldwide weather chaos, London Climate Action Week reminded us that loving nature is a powerful form of climate action. This special episode includes two talks introduced by Juliet Kinsman at the Nature in the City live event, hosted by Bouteco during London Climate Action Week at Sea Containers London with our friends at The Long Run. It took place in a week when several extreme heat events were cancelled — because of extreme heat. We hear from two brilliant speakers: Brynn Garner of Rainforest Trust, speaking from the heart about biodiversity and why loving nature might be one of our most powerful climate tools. And Aisling Creevey, TV weather presenter and co-host of For the Love of Weather alongside Gemma Plumb, on El Niño, the AMOC, and what it's really like to live through the personal effects of the climate crisis. We also share soundbites from the biggest voices at London Climate Action Week: UN Secretary-General António Guterres — and his warning that "the Earth's tipping points are like objects in a car mirror: they are far closer than they appear.” And wise words from Prince William, speaking at Guildhall, on the responsibility of this moment and the question future generations will ask of us. Thank you to everyone who joined us at Sea Containers London. If this episode makes you feel something — please listen, follow, and share. It genuinely helps. In this episode: Live talks from Nature in the City, our London Climate Action Week event with The Long Run Brynn Garner (Rainforest Trust) on biodiversity and loving nature as climate action Aisling Creevey (For the Love of Weather) on El Niño, the AMOC, and living the climate crisis UN Secretary-General António Guterres's tipping-points warning Prince William’s wise words from LCAW 2026 With thanks to Aisling Creevey & Gemma Plumb, For the Love of Weather: https://www.fortheloveofweather.com/ Brynn Garner / Rainforest Trust; full talk available here https://www.bouteco.co/ Follow Juliet on Instagram @JulietKinsman\ The Long Run: https://www.thelongrun.org/ Funny Old World is produced by Juliet Kinsman, edited by Jon Weeks.

If our biggest problem in the climate space is communication, then maybe climate scientists doing stand-up are the messengers we need. In this episode of Funny Old World — the podcast that looks the climate crisis in the eye and tries to stay light-hearted — Juliet Kinsman has a gentle, soothing, serious chat with the refreshingly real Dr Matt Winning: climate-policy academic at UCL and stand-up comedian, and quite possibly the only person whose research has been cited by the IPCC and whose jokes have been heckled in a comedy club. WHAT IS SOLASTALGIA? We talk about Matt's show Solastalgia at Soho Theatre during London Climate Action Week — solastalgia being the grief caused by environmental loss, a concept Juliet has written about for Condé Nast Traveller. Matt is also a closing speaker at the Nature in the City event with LORE Group and The Long Run at Sea Containers London on Sunday 21 June. Dr Matt Winning has a PhD in climate change policy, has advised the UK Committee on Climate Change, and was formerly Head of Climate Research at Oxford Economics. He knows his stuff — and he wants us to think about how we might make people think about that, and laugh about it. We cover nominative determinism, why milk in your coffee doubles your carbon footprint, and why climate solutions need reframing: "What people want is a menu of climate solutions, but actually we need to give them a list of ingredients." "Be curious, be creative, make your action part of your community… Everybody can do something." PODCAST RECOMMENDATION WILD with Sarah Wilson — New York Times bestselling author, activist and former journalist. FOLLOW ON INSTAGRAM Juliet Kinsman: instagram.com/julietkinsman Dr Matt Winning: instagram.com/mattywin85 Funny Old World is supported by The Long Run — a global community of nature-based tourism businesses united by the 4Cs Framework: Conservation, Community, Culture and Commerce.

Funny Old World | Food, Farming & Ploughing through the BS 🌱 What are we actually eating — and what does it cost the earth? This bite-sized episode digs into ethical food systems, regenerative farming, and what all of us as consumers can actually do. It covers politics, environmental hard truths — and yes, it ends on an erotica note. You've been warned. Star guests this episode: 🍺 Geetie Singh-Watson — founder The Bull Inn in Totnes and the UK's first certified organic pub. Co-founder of the Riverford Field Kitchen. The poster human for hospitality which can genuinely heal land and community. → bullinntotnes.co.uk 🌾 Ed Faulkner — founder Sapling Spirits. Environmental policy meets award-winning spirits made with regenerative agriculture and minimum waste. (Did you know what's in your glass matters as much as what's on your fork?) → saplingspirits.com Your host: Juliet Kinsman — journalist, author, broadcaster, Bouteco founder — sharing stories that inspire impact. → bouteco.co/podcasts Brought to you by The Long Run — the membership organisation for tourism businesses committed to positive impact. → thelongrun.org 📍 MEET US IRL — 21 June 2026, Sea Containers, London, Nature in the City is a live event during London Climate Action Week. Come and continue this conversation with Geetie, Ed and Juliet — with food, drink, and proper debate. Ticket proceeds support Farms for City Children on their 50th anniversary. 🎟 eventbrite.co.uk/e/nature-in-the-city-at-sea-containers-london-tickets-1987679926166 Next up: Dr Matt Winning (comedian, environmental economist, BBC Radio 4) and Shakira Mobarak, nature-positive storyteller at The Datai Langkawi.

…SOLUTIONS-LED STORYTELLING IN TRAVEL is giving us hope. In this new episode of a new format, Juliet Kinsman — sustainability expert and solutions-led storyteller — shares lightbulb moments from a 30-year career in journalism and why she believes storytellers are the keystone species for a better world… Radically honest, as ever, in her talk given for the British Guild of Travel Writers’ Better World Symposium in London, she makes the case for solutions-led storytelling over greenwashed marketing spin, for authentic human authority over AI-generated content, and for a kind of travel writing that doesn't just document the world — it advances the narrative and cultivates empathy. Just watch out for those Passport Bros… What are those? Listen in and find out… A must-listen if you’re anyone sharing stories from your travels. Follow your host Juliet http://instagram.com/julietkinsman/ founder or Bouteco http://bouteco.co For more information, this episode features: https://www.thedatai.com/sustainability/ https://www.andbeyond.com/ https://uxua.com http://fogoislandinn.ca http://shorefastinstitute.org https://www.instagram.com/mandalaire_finca http://asylumspeakers.com https://www.inntravel.co.uk/getmedia/dcc19a67-2875-4ca9-8d6a-5bdfcb0c70e6/travel-writers-manifesto-spread.pdf Topics covered: sustainable travel · biodiversity · keystone species · solutions-led storytelling · regenerative tourism · the future of journalism · authentic brand communications · impact reporting · the Datai Langkawi · coral bleaching · deforestation · Fogo Island · asylum seekers · Ikigai · AI and human connection