5x15

John Preston on his new book Fall which tells the jaw-dropping life story of notorious business tycoon Robert Maxwell. John is a former Arts Editor of the Evening Standard and the Sunday Telegraph. For ten years he was the Sunday Telegraph’s television critic and one of its chief feature writers. His book, A Very English Scandal, was published to great acclaim in 2016 and turned into a BAFTA-winning BBC drama series. His 2007 historical novel The Dig has been adapted into a new major motion picture starring Ralph Fiennes, Carey Mulligan and Lily James and directed by Simon Stone, on Netflix. 5x15 brings together outstanding individuals to tell of their lives, passions and inspirations. There are only two rules - no scripts and only 15 minutes each. Learn more about 5x15 events: 5x15stories.com Twitter: www.twitter.com/5x15stories Facebook: www.facebook.com/5x15stories Instagram: www.instagram.com/5x15stories

Biodiversity - crucial to human, economic and planetary health - is declining faster than at any time in human history. It is thought that one million animal and plant species are now threatened with extinction. How has this happened, what are the consequences and what can be done? Professor Sir Partha Dasgupta is the author of the seminal Dasgupta Review, published in February 2021. Commissioned by the UK Treasury, it is a global independent review on the economics of biodiversity, bringing economics and ecology together. He has been a Professor of Economics at the University of Cambridge since 1985. Dr Gabrielle Walker is an expert strategist, speaker and moderator, with a focus on sustainability and climate change and their impacts on the energy, finance and transportation sectors. Gabrielle has presented dozens of TV and radio programs for the BBC. Tony Juniper CBE is Chair of the official nature conservation agency Natural England. Before taking up this role in April 2019 he was the Executive Direct

Two incredible environmental writers and thinkers take part in this special event for 5x15 on Under A White Sky: The Nature of the Future. This is the first time David Wallace-Wells and Elizabeth Kolbert have spoken together at a public event. Elizabeth Kolbert is the author of Under a White Sky: The Nature of the Future, The Sixth Extinction, and Field Notes from a Catastrophe: Man, Nature, and Climate Change. She has been a staff writer at the New Yorker since 1999, and has been awarded the Blake-Dodd Prize from the American Academy of Arts and Letters. She lives in Williamstown, Massachusetts, with her husband and children. David Wallace-Wells is editor-at-large of New York magazine, where he writes frequently about climate change and the near future of science and technology. David’s first book, The Uninhabitable Earth, was selected as a Book of the Year 2019 by the Sunday Times, Spectator and New Statesman. It was a Waterstones Paperback of the Year and shortlisted for the Foyles Book of the Year 2019.

Rachel Clarke is a palliative care doctor and former television journalist who cares deeply about standing up for her patients and the NHS. She retrained as a doctor in her late twenties, after making current affairs documentaries about subjects as diverse as the Monica Lewinsky scandal, Al Qaeda and the civil war in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Rachel believes that helping patients who are approaching the end of their lives experience the best quality life possible is priceless. She lives in Oxford with her husband and two children. Her new book, Breathtaking, is an unflinching insider’s account of medicine in the time of coronavirus. Drawing on testimony from nursing, acute and intensive care colleagues – as well as, crucially, her patients – Clarke argues that this age of contagion has inspired a profound attentiveness to – and gratitude for – what matters most in life. 5x15 brings together outstanding individuals to tell of their lives and inspirations. This talk was recorded at an online 5x15

Jason Hickel is an economic anthropologist, Fulbright Scholar, and Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. He is originally from Swaziland and spent a number of years living with migrant workers in South Africa, studying patterns of exploitation and political resistance in the wake of apartheid. He has authored three books, including most recently The Divide: A Brief Guide to Global Inequality and its Solutions. He writes regularly for the Guardian, Al Jazeera and Foreign Policy, serves as an advisor for the Green New Deal for Europe, and sits on the Lancet Commission for Reparations and Redistributive Justice. He lives in London. 5x15 brings together outstanding individuals to tell of their lives and inspirations. This talk was recorded at the online 5x15 event in February 2021. Learn more about 5x15 events: 5x15stories.com Twitter: www.twitter.com/5x15stories Facebook: www.facebook.com/5x15stories Instagram: www.instagram.com/5x15stories

This fourth session in the Earth Convention series explores the huge global impact of food production on the environment and climate change - and indeed on human health. Food production is responsible for a quarter of all the greenhouse gas emissions contributing to global warming, according to a recent study from Oxford University. However, the environmental impact of different foods varies hugely. One of the most powerful things that we, as individuals, can do to reduce our emissions is change what we eat. And it is increasingly recognised that we cannot achieve our national and international climate targets without overhauling the food system. In this session we examine a range of issues with leading experts and innovators who are charting the way forward - from what has been exposed about the global food system by the coronavirus crisis to what constitutes "sustainable eating". How has the food industry evolved since the Second World War? Which part of the food supply chain is most carbon intensive and

Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall is a writer, broadcaster and campaigner. His series for Channel 4 have earned him a huge popular following, while his River Cottage books have collected multiple awards including the Glenfiddich Trophy and the André Simon Food Book of the Year. Hugh’s additional broadcasting, like the hugely influential Fish Fight, has earned him a BAFTA as well as awards from Radio 4, Observer and the Guild of Food Writers. Learn more about 5x15 events: 5x15stories.com Twitter: www.twitter.com/5x15stories Facebook: www.facebook.com/5x15stories Instagram: www.instagram.com/5x15stories

George Saunders has been teaching the Russian short story for over twenty years. In his new book, A Swim in a Pond in the Rain, he explores seven iconic stories by authors including Chekhov and Tolstoy, showing us how they work, why we keep reading, and what they can tell us about the world today. Funny and frank, George Saunders shows how the best stories can spark our humanity as well as our imaginations, and why fiction is more important than ever in these turbulent times. George Saunders is the author of nine books including Lincoln in the Bardo, winner of the 2017 Man Booker Prize and the Premio Rezzori prize, which was also shortlisted for the International Dublin Literary Award. Tenth of December won the inaugural Folio Prize and was a finalist for the National Book Award. Saunders has received MacArthur and Guggenheim fellowships and the PEN/Malamud Prize for excellence in the short story, and was recently elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. In 2013, he was named one of the world’s

Mariana Mazzucato is Professor in the Economics of Innovation and Public Value at University College London (UCL), where she is Founding Director of the UCL  Institute for Innovation & Public Purpose (IIPP).  She advises policy makers around the world on innovation-led inclusive and sustainable growth. She is author of The Entrepreneurial State: debunking public vs. private sector myths (2013), The Value of Everything: making and taking in the global economy (2018) and Mission Economy: a moonshot guide to changing capitalism (2020).  She is winner of international prizes including the 2020 John Von Neumann Award, the 2019 All European Academies Madame de Staël Prize for Cultural Values, and 2018 Leontief Prize for Advancing the Frontiers of Economic Thought. Rana Foroohar is global business columnist and associate editor for the Financial Times, and CNN’s global economic analyst. Her first book, Makers and Takers, was shortlisted for the Financial Times and McKinsey Business Book of the Year in 2016. Her s

Morgan Housel is a partner at The Collaborative Fund and a former columnist at The Motley Fool and The Wall Street Journal. He is a two-time winner of the Best in Business Award from the Society of American Business Editors and Writers, winner of the New York Times Sidney Award, and a two-time finalist for the Gerald Loeb Award for Distinguished Business and Financial Journalism. 5x15 brings together outstanding individuals to tell of their lives and inspirations. This talk was recorded at the online 5x15 event on 5th Nov 2020. Learn more about 5x15 events: 5x15stories.com Twitter: www.twitter.com/5x15stories Facebook: www.facebook.com/5x15stories Instagram: www.instagram.com/5x15stories

Douglas Stuart was born and raised in Glasgow. After graduating from the Royal College of Art, he moved to New York, where he began a career in design. Shuggie Bain is his debut novel. It is shortlisted for the Booker Prize, the National Book Award for Fiction, the Kirkus Prize and the Center for Fiction First Novel Prize. His short stories have appeared in the New Yorker and his essay on ‘Gender, Anxiety and Class’ was published by Lit Hub. Shuggie Bain is to be published in over 25 territories (so far) and tv adaptation rights have been acquired by A24 and Scott Rudin Productions. 5x15 brings together outstanding individuals to tell of their lives, passions and inspirations. There are only two rules - no scripts and only 15 minutes each. Learn more about 5x15 events: 5x15stories.com Twitter: www.twitter.com/5x15stories Facebook: www.facebook.com/5x15stories Instagram: www.instagram.com/5x15stories

Named by The Observer as “one of the world’s leading thinkers” and by Vogue as “one of the world’s most inspiring women,” economist Noreena Hertz is a bestselling author, broadcaster and keynote speaker. Her previous books The Silent Takeover, The Debt Threat and Eyes Wide Open are published in more than twenty countries. Her latest book, The Lonely Century – Coming Together in a World That’s Pulling Apart is out now in the UK. Noreena has a PhD from Cambridge University and an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. Having spent 10 years at the University of Cambridge, in 2014 she moved to University College London where she is an Honorary Professor at the Institute for Global Prosperity. 5x15 brings together five outstanding individuals to tell of their lives, passions and inspirations. There are only two rules - no scripts and only 15 minutes each. Learn more about 5x15 events: 5x15stories.com Twitter: www.twitter.com/5x15stories Facebook: www.facebook.com/5x15stories Instagram:

What lessons does the past hold for our future? Join Britain’s pre-eminent public historian to explore his thoughts on the pandemic, the Biden presidency, the future of populism and more. The events of 2020 have upturned the order of the world, and the medical, economic and political crises we face will not fade quietly as the new year begins. Though so much of the present moment feels strange and unprecedented, there is wisdom in heeding to George Santayana’s famous proverb that those who cannot remember the past are doomed to repeat it. To help ensure that we do not fall foul of the prophecy, Simon Schama joins 5x15 to share his insights into the past and near future. A natural storyteller with a deep grasp of human psychology and the broader forces that shape our world, Schama will reflect upon the lessons history holds for the coming year in conversation with journalist and broadcaster Matthew Stadlen, exploring Trump’s resistance to the election result and its consequences for American democracy, the

Michael Sandel teaches political philosophy at Harvard University. Known to BBC listeners as ‘The Public Philosopher’, Sandel's books include Justice: What's the Right Thing to Do? and What Money Can't Buy, which have been translated into twenty-eight languages and sold over two million copies worldwide. He has been a visiting professor at the Sorbonne; delivered the BBC Reith Lectures, and his speaking tours have spanned five continents. The Tyranny of Merit arrives at a hinge point in social and political history. As the pandemic exposes entrenched inequality and the true value of essential work, Michael challenges corrosive attitudes to success and failure and makes the case for an ethic of humility. Above all, he asks how we value our fellow human beings, so that no one is left behind. Polly Toynbee is a columnist for the Guardian. She was formerly BBC social affairs editor, columnist and associate editor of the Independent, co-editor of the Washington Monthly and a reporter and feature writer for the O

Layla F. Saad is a globally respected writer, speaker and podcast host on the topics of race, identity, leadership, personal transformation and social change. Her work has been included on almost every essential anti-racism reading list and she was recently featured in British Vogue’s momentous ‘Activism Now’ issue. As an East African, Arab, British, Black Muslim woman who was born in the West and lives in the Middle East, Layla has always sat at a unique intersection of identities, allowing her to draw on rich and intriguing perspectives. Elizabeth Gilbert hailed her as: ‘One of the most important and valuable teachers we have on the subject of white supremacy and racial injustice.’ Me and White Supremacy was published in January and became an instant phenomenon, spending six consecutive weeks on the Sunday Times bestseller charts and also becoming a New York Timesbestseller. It has now sold 115k copies. Encouraging readers with white privilege to examine the ways in which they benefit from it, it galvanise

How does literature nourish science? When does physics become poetry? A conversation of cosmic proportions, as two masterful storytellers- Neil Gaiman and Carlo Rovelli - discuss life, the universe and everything. Carlo Rovelli is a theoretical physicist who has made significant contributions to the physics of space and time. He has worked in Italy and the US, and is currently directing the quantum gravity research group of the Centre de physique théorique in Marseille, France. His books Seven Brief Lessons on Physics, Reality Is Not What It Seems and The Order of Time are international bestsellers which have been translated into forty-one languages. His most recent book is There are Places in the World Where Rules are Less Important than Kindness. Neil Gaiman is the author of numerous New York Times bestsellers, including Neverwhere, American Gods, The Ocean at the End of the Lane and the Sandman series of graphic novels. Neil Gaiman is credited with being one of the creators of modern comics, as well as

Maria Konnikova is the author of Mastermind and The Confidence Game. She is a regular contributor for the New Yorker, and has written for the Atlantic, New York Times, Slate, New Republic, Paris Review, Wall Street Journal, Salon, WIRED, among many other publications. Her writing has won numerous awards, including the 2019 Excellence in Science Journalism Award from the Society of Personality and Social Psychology. Maria’s latest book, The Biggest Bluff: How I Learned to Pay Attention, Master Myself, and Win, is out now. 5x15 brings together five outstanding individuals to tell of their lives, passions and inspirations. There are only two rules - no scripts and only 15 minutes each. Learn more about 5x15 events: 5x15stories.com Twitter: www.twitter.com/5x15stories Facebook: www.facebook.com/5x15stories Instagram: www.instagram.com/5x15stories

Anne Applebaum is the author of Gulag: A History, which won the Pulitzer Prize, of Iron Curtain: The Crushing of Eastern Europe, 1944-1956, which won the Cundill Prize and Red Famine: Stalin's War on Ukraine which won the Lionel Gelber and Duff Cooper prizes. She is a columnist for The Atlantic and a senior fellow of the Agora Institute at Johns Hopkins University. From 1988-1991 she covered the collapse of communism as the Warsaw correspondent of the Economist magazine and the Independent newspaper. She is also a Senior Fellow of International Affairs and Agora Fellow in Residence at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, where she co-directs LSE Arena, a program on disinformation and 21st century propaganda. From 1988-1991 she covered the collapse of communism as the Warsaw correspondent of the Economist magazine and the Independent newspaper.She divides her time between Britain, Poland and the USA. 5x15 brings together five outstanding individuals to tell of their lives, passions and

The article: https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/political-commentary/covid-19-end-of-american-era-wade-davis-1038206/ Wade Davis is a writer, photographer, and filmmaker whose work has taken him from the Amazon to Tibet, Africa to Australia, Polynesia to the Arctic. Explorer-in-Residence at the National Geographic Society from 1999 to 2013, he is currently Professor of Anthropology and the BC Leadership Chair in Cultures and Ecosystems at Risk at the University of British Columbia. Author of 20 books, including One River, The Wayfinders and Into the Silence, winner of the 2012 Samuel Johnson prize, the top nonfiction prize in the English language, he holds degrees in anthropology and biology and received his Ph.D. in ethnobotany, all from Harvard University. His many film credits include Light at the Edge of the World, an eight-hour documentary series written and produced for the National Geographic Channel. Davis is the recipient of 11 honorary degrees, as well as the 2009 Gold Medal from the Royal Canad

The Earth Convention- Consumers – Fast Fashion, Manufacturing and Plastics The third event in The Earth Convention series from 5x15 and Rathbones is all about consumers & manufacturing - our consumption patterns & the supply chains that feed them. Miatta Fanbulleh is Chief Executive of the New Economics Foundation (NEF) and has a wealth of experience in developing and delivering policy to empower communities and change people’s lives. She has been at the forefront of generating new ideas on reshaping our economy inside government and out. Prior to joining NEF she was Director of Policy & Research at the Institute of Public Policy Research. Lucy Siegle is a writer and broadcaster on nature and climate. Over many years she has specialised in the environmental and social footprint of the global fashion industry and is the author of To Die For: Is Fashion Wearing out the World (4th Estate/HarperCollins) and Turning the Tide on Plastic: How Humanity (and you) Can Make Our Globe Clean Again (Orion/Hachette 2019).