The Social Impact Lab, hosted by the Meliora podcast, is delighted to be joined by Steve Fleming MBE to discuss the inspirational work of Kick4Life F.C., a football club dedicated to social change. Kick4Life is a multi-award-winning charity and social enterprise using the power of sport to transform the lives of vulnerable children and young people in Lesotho, helping to promote long-term sustainable development in the Mountain Kingdom.

https://www.kick4life.org/

Episode guest: Steve Fleming MBE, Kick4Life F.C.

Episode host: David Light, Social Impact Lab Director University of Southampton

Episode producer: Ali Walker, Digital Media Developer, Faculty of Social Sciences

Episode editor: Jack Dinham, Meliora podcast intern

The Meliora podcast is delighted to share that we have partnered with the Social Impact Lab (SIL) at the University of Southampton to release episodes all about their wonderfully transformative work. In this introductory episode we chat with the SIL Director David Light to find out all about their work, the history of SIL from its formation by our much missed friend Prof Pathik Pathak, and David's fascinating career journey.

Join us for future SIL episodes, starting with an episode all about the inspirational Kick4Life progamme.

Guest: David Light, Director of the Social Impact Lab University of Southampton

Host: Prof Simon Kemp, Deputy Director of the Sustainability and Resilience Institute, University of Southampton

Producer: Ali Walker, Digital Media Developer Faculty of Social Sciences

Editor: Jack Dinham, Meliora podcast Intern

We are delighted to be joined by the brilliant Rebecca Kinge and Izzy Sargent of the Southampton Climate Action Network (SoCAN) to discuss the crucial work they and community collective colleagues are conducting across the city of Southampton. Although climate focused in the name, their work addresses all the different dimensions of sustainability and this episode explores this through a local community action group.

We also get to learn about the sustainability journeys of both Rebecca and Izzy, showing how different peoples paths can be, but how they can end at a convergence point that makes the best of personal skills and experience.

If you would like to learn more, please visit these pages:

Local is the New Global film - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOs5T-R2p8k

Southampton National Park City - https://southampton-national-park.com

So Collective Climate Futures - http://www.socollective.org.uk/Imagine-Climate-Friendly-Futures

SoCAN calendar of events - https://www.sotoncan.org.uk/calendar/

Transition Southampton Repair Café - https://transitionsouthampton.org/projects-repair-cafe/

Episode Guests: Rebecca Kinge and Izzy Sargent

Episode Host: Simon Kemp

Episode Producer and Editor: Eleanor Howell

In the summer of 2025 the DRAGON-Mekong Institute at Can Tho University Viet Nam and the Sustainability & Resilience Institute at the University of Southampton UK worked together on a research exchange programme for undergraduates, masters students, postgraduate research students, and early career academics. This programme is all about transformative impact in the broadest fields of sustainability centred around the climate change and adaptation challenges facing communities along the Mekong River Delta.

In episode 3 we address the visit of four sustainability researchers from the DRAGON-Mekong Institute at Can Tho University Viet Nam to the University of Southampton to continue the collaboration on climate change and adaptation research projects.

Episode host: Prof Simon Kemp

Episode guests: Phan Ky Trung, Le Kim Ngan, Nguyễn Kiểu Điểm, Nguyễn Tan Loi

Episode producer: Libby Kale

Episode editor: Ellie Howell

In the summer of 2025 the DRAGON-Mekong Institute at Can Tho University Viet Nam and the Sustainability & Resilience Institute at the University of Southampton UK worked together on a research exchange programme for undergraduates, masters students, postgraduate research students, and early career academics. This programme is all about transformative impact in the broadest fields of sustainability centred around the climate change and adaptation challenges facing communities along the Mekong River Delta.

In episode 2 we continue to discuss the opening visit where nine students and researchers from the University of Southampton visited the DRAGON-Mekong Institute at Can Tho University Viet Nam to collaborate on climate change research projects and undertake cultural exchange activities to develop an understanding of the people and the environment of the region.

We recognise that some may feel flying to a region to collaborate on climate and sustainability research is counterintuitive, possibly even hypocritical. However, conducting partnership research on these crucial challenges can only be authentic if it is achieved by understanding the real-life complexities facing people and working with these communities, and not by researchers stating what the possible solutions may be from a wholly different part of the world.

Episode host: Prof Simon Kemp

Episode guests: Angelina Spilnyk, Daniel Locke, Irene Ruiz Espejo, Jamie Robinson, Lily Rudduck, Massimo Risoli, Samuel Inkster, Stefania-Myrto Staiculescu

Episode producer: Jack Dinham

Episode editor: Ellie Howell

In the summer of 2025 the DRAGON-Mekong Institute at Can Tho University Viet Nam and the Sustainability & Resilience Institute at the University of Southampton UK worked together on a research exchange programme for undergraduates, masters students, postgraduate research students, and early career academics. This programme is all about transformative impact in the broadest fields of sustainability centred around the climate change and adaptation challenges facing communities along the Mekong River Delta.

In episode 1 we address the opening visit where nine students and researchers from the University of Southampton visited the DRAGON-Mekong Institute at Can Tho University Viet Nam to collaborate on climate change research projects and undertake cultural exchange activities to develop an understanding of the people and the environment of the region.

We recognise that some may feel flying to a region to collaborate on climate and sustainability research is counterintuitive, possibly even hypocritical. However, conducting partnership research on these crucial challenges can only be authentic if it is achieved by understanding the real-life complexities facing people and working with these communities, and not by researchers stating what the possible solutions may be from a wholly different part of the world.

Episode host: Prof Simon Kemp

Episode guests: Angelina Spilnyk, Daniel Locke, Irene Ruiz Espejo, Jamie Robinson, Lily Rudduck, Massimo Risoli, Samuel Inkster, Stefania-Myrto Staiculescu

Episode producer: Jack Dinham

Episode editor: Ellie Howell

This is just a bit of fun. Not a serious sustainability research, education or careers episode, this is an informal recording of some of the Meliora team chatting before, during and after the 2025 Green Gown Awards.

We reflect on the podcast journey to this point, discuss our favourite episodes to date & the 2024 awards in the pub before the awards, attend the 2025 ceremony, chat to one of the co-chairs of the EAUC who run the GGA the brilliant Prof Zoe Robinson, the announcement of the Next Generation Learning & Skills award, the thoughts of the production and editing team after the awards (I'm not really 'that' competitive honest), and a closing reflection at a horribly early time the morning after at Birmingham New Street Railway Station.

We recognise this episode may be seen as a little self-indulgent, but we thought some people may enjoy a light-hearted insight into the more informal celebratory side of sustainability in the HE sector. We hope you enjoy it :)

Episode hosts: Prof Simon Kemp, Jack Dinham, Libby Kale, Ellie Howell

Episode guests: Prof Zoe Robinson and the background comments of the Green Gown Award guests

Episode editor: Ellie Howell

We are delighted to welcome the inspirational and all round wonderful sustainability expert Professor Denise Baden to what is now the 'Green Gown Award Winning' Meliora podcast from the Sustainability and Resilience Institute at the University of Southampton.

Denise continues to innovate in her approach to maximising the sustainability impact of her work. We chat about her journey to sustainability, her academic expertise and teaching, creativity leading to research awards, and her current work as a sustainability fiction author.

Links to Denise's highly recommended brilliant work are below:

https://www.dabaden.com/

https://www.greenstories.org.uk/

https://habitatpress.com/

linkedin.com/in/denise-baden-3742793

https://www.linkedin.com/newsletters/creative-climate-communication-7300475505529540608

https://bsky.app/profile/dabaden.bsky.social

https://www.southampton.ac.uk/people/5wzjrb/professor-denise-baden

Episode guest: Professor Denise Baden, University of Southampton

Episode host: Professor Simon Kemp

Episode producer and editor: Jack Dinham