This is Planet Hope, a new podcast from The Times in partnership with Rolex and its Perpetual Planet Initiative, hosted by Stories of Our Times as a bonus weekly series each Saturday.The Earth’s climate has been known to change in the past, but it’s only since the industrial revolution that there have been changes to our climate which have been driven by humans. Environmental Editor for The Times, Adam Vaughan joins climate scientist and National Geographic Explorer Tom Matthews to investigate how his work, mapping the planet’s most extreme climates, can help us to better understand how our climate is changing and most importantly, evaluate whether we can change the course that we’re on.Through its Perpetual Planet Initiative, Rolex supports Tom Matthews as part of the National Geographic and Rolex Perpetual Planet Mount Everest Expedition and the Amazon Expedition. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Last week water companies pledged to spend £10bn over the next five years to drastically reduce the number of sewage spills going into the country’s waterways and seas. Over 30 years on since privatisation have our beaches and rivers got cleaner?This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes. Guest: Adam Vaughan, Environment Editor, The Times.Host: Manveen Rana.Clips: BBC News Al Jazeera Times Radio, Sky News, Channel 4 News, Parliament. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It took less than an hour on the Telegram messaging app for an undercover Times reporter to infiltrate a network of fraudsters based in the UK. They openly traded bank details for thousands of victims – and boasted that the police would do nothing to stop them. We hear how the gang were exposed and speak to one of their targets.This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes. Guest: Emma Yeomans, news reporter, The Times.Host: Manveen Rana. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Microsoft has found itself in a bitter war of words with both its gaming rival Sony and the UK authorities, over a multi-billion dollar takeover bid of games developer Activision Blizzard. So what is the future of Activision Blizzard’s Call of Duty franchise on Xbox or Playstation? And after the UK’s competition watchdog blocked the deal, what does it say for Britain’s post-Brexit business strategy? This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes. Guest: Katie Prescott, Technology Business Editor, The Times.Host: Jenny Kleeman.Clips: CBS News, BBC Radio 5 Live, CNBC, Windows XP/Microsoft, ChatGPT/OpenAI, Xbox Series X/Microsoft, YouTube/@SpawnWave, BBC Newsnight.Video game clips: Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2/ Infinity Ward/Activision, World of Warcraft/Blizzard, Spyro Reignited Trilogy/Toys For Bob/Activision, Crash Bandicoot™ N. Sane Trilogy/Vicarious Visions/Activision, Candy Crush Saga/King. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As a new report from the Children’s Commissioner points to the impact of violent pornography on British children, are the waters around consensual sex being muddied? And should there be greater regulation of the porn industry?This episode contains discussions about sex and some explicit descriptions of violent porn.This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: thetimes.co.uk/storiesofourtimes. Articles: I’m watching what the kids are watching: porn. It’s disturbing - https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/i-m-watching-what-the-kids-are-watching-porn-most-of-it-is-disturbing-pqb99zbnqSex lessons for boys: what young men need to be taught - https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/sex-lessons-for-boys-what-young-men-need-to-be-taught-pltqpxfbdGuest: Helen Rumbelow, Features Writer, The Times.Host: Josh Glancy, Special Correspondent, The Sunday Times. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.