The Philanthropist’s Conversation returns for Season 2, ready to take you on a new journey, through food and culture, towards a more resilient world.

This season, our co-hosts are two life long lovers of food: Jay Brooks and Garth Pritchard. As Pegasus’s champions of food resilience, they’re on a mission to answer a deceptively simple question:

What does it mean to eat well in a world that’s forgotten how?

They map out today’s food landscape to find the answers; from the streets of New Orleans to the rolling hills of the Swiss Alps, with stops in Vietnam, Turkey, and beyond. Along the way, we uncover ancient foodways, and imagine what the future of food could be if we choose to rebuild it now.

Joining them on this journey are three food aficionados who speak to every kind of listener: Rohan Kashyap, a self-taught Michelin-starred chef blurring the lines between high-end and everyday cuisine; Mateo Flores, a journalist and cultural commentator, with a foot in media outlets across the world, and cutting edge takes on the current food landscape; and Zane Carver, the food-and-fitness entrepreneur, who will talk longevity and show us how what we cook shapes how we live. Together, their voices will get straight to the heart of the food resilience conversation.

Take a seat around the table, to start new conversations and build a bigger picture of resilience. One where food isn’t just about what we eat, but what sustains us.

Links:

• Pegasus Website
• The Philanthropist’s Conversation - Season 1

The Philanthropist's Conversation is a fictional podcast from Pegasus. For any enquiries, you can find us at our website.

In the shimmering heat of the Gulf region, a new kind of city is taking shape. One where ancient architectural wisdom meets cutting-edge technology—and where people live well with extreme heat.

In this final episode of The Philanthropist’s Conversation, our host Paula lands in Abu Dhabi to ask a powerful question: What does urban life look like, in a world where temperatures frequently reach 40*C?

Joined by senior government advisor Hamdan Al Suwaidi, Paula tours Abu Dhabi’s historic landmarks like Qasr Al Hosn or the Grand Mosque to learn about the city’s centuries-old relationship with heat. They also spotlight the United Arab Emirates’ most innovative design initiatives, with a visit of the ultra-modern Masdar City – a large-scale urban project that put the UAE on the map when it comes to sustainability.

Along the way, you’ll hear an exclusive interview with Gerard Evenden, a senior partner at Foster + Partners who helped designed Masdar. And we’ll explore the UAE’s sustainability agenda, which is moving away from oil wealth, and towards ecological stewardship.

So what can an experimental desert city teach the world about adaptation? And what conclusions should we draw from this series, to turn individual projects into engines for systemic change?

Find out today on The Philanthropist’s Conversation: Social Architecture to Address Urban Heat.

Highlights:

• Welcome to Abu Dhabi (00:59)
• Meeting Hamdan Al Suwaidi in the Mandarin Oriental Lounge (03:05)
• An Historic Approach to Heat in Central Abu Dhabi (07:29)
• Islamic Futurism at the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque (16:02)
• Masdar City: A Case Study in Heat Resilient Design, with Gerard Evenden (26:33)
• Introducing Ivan Peter and Pegasus’s Ambitious Vision (37:31)
• Insights & Legacy: A Walking Tour of Masdar City (39:16)
• Reflecting on Abu Dhabi’s Approach to Extreme Heat (51:28)
• Conclusions on Urban Heat and Applications for the Future (58:32)
• A Glimpse into Season 2: Spotlight on Food Resilience (01:04:48)

Links:

• Episode Resources
• Gerard Evenden LinkedIn

New York is a place where private money has left a trail. From the high rise towers of Midtown, to large urban regeneration projects like the High Line, philanthropy is the reason New York rose up through the bad times and the good.

So in this episode of the Philanthropist’s Conversation, our host Paula takes a deep dive into the world of philanthropic innovation, and asks a burning question: how can the private sector advance heat resilience?

Paula meets with locals who can answer that question, and walk her through the history of New York’s iconic skyline. Along the way, we discuss the transformative impact of Michael Bloomberg’s policies and learn about the role of the Rockefeller Foundation in establishing Chief Heat Officers. Through real examples of grassroot initiatives and private-public partnerships, we break down how private investors and public authorities can come together to form a whole new system.

So what does New York’s approach teach us about the power dynamics of heat resilience? How does philanthropy turn ideas into action? And what happens when the private sector sees heat not just as a crisis, but as an economic opportunity?

Find out today on The Philanthropist’s Conversation: Social Architecture to Address Urban Heat.

Highlights:

• Welcome to New York (00:50)
• The High Line: a case study in philanthropy and urban development (05:33)
• Looking back on Michael Bloomberg's impact as Mayor of New York (11:38)
• Exploring the history and legacy of Rockefeller Center (16:42)
• Philanthropy's role in New York's cultural institutions (23:49)
• Private-public partnerships: resilience as an economic opportunity (26:53)
• The Rockefeller Foundation’s efforts towards sustainability and urban development (29:02)
• Meeting Jane Gilbert: the role of Chief Heat Officers (34:56)
• What happens when heat is no longer a seasonal phenomenon? (45:52)

Links:

• Episode Resources
• Jane Gilbert LinkedIn
• Michael Berkowitz LinkedIn