108: We Empower! with Prof. Dr. Anabel Ternès von Hattburg - Episode 108108: We Empower! with Prof. Dr. Anabel Ternès von Hattburg - Episode 108
UK Health Radio Podcast
Two artist-activists share how theatre, creativity and nature help people face racism, trauma and climate crisis while building community and courage. The conversation focuses on practical daily choices, personal turning points and the power of collective responsibility over lone heroes.
51:39•25 Jul 2026
Art, Ocean and Courage: How Creativity Fuels Climate Action and Inner Strength
Episode Overview
- Art, movement and theatre can turn personal stories into shared experiences that reduce shame and build collective strength.
- Safe spaces are created when people are allowed to be authentic, while everyone shares responsibility for respecting boundaries and differences.
- Staying close to nature through forests, the sea and simple daily rituals helps manage stress, frustration and climate anxiety.
- Choosing a more sustainable life is built from tiny, conscious decisions, such as eating local organic food and avoiding unnecessary packaging.
- Feeling pain and dissatisfaction can be a useful signal that it’s time to change direction and align life with deeper values.
“What happens when a body becomes a voice, when movement becomes a language, and when theater becomes not entertainment, but a place where society can target itself?”
What can we learn from those who have battled addiction, climate anxiety and social injustice through creativity and courage? This episode of **We Empower!** on UK Health Radio brings together two women who use art and activism to shake up how people relate to themselves, each other and the planet. Host **Prof. Dr. Anabel Ternès von Hattburg** chats first with Brazilian theatre-maker **Bárbara Luci Carvalho**, who works across Brazil, Europe and Africa.
Bárbara shares how growing up in a working-class family in Salvador de Bahia and finding theatre at 14 changed everything. For her, movement and performance turn streets and stages into spaces where “every person carries a story” and can stop pretending to fit into boxes. She explains how working with children, coastal communities and anti-racism dance practice is about creating safe spaces where people can “just be what they are” and feel less alone with their struggles.
You’ll also hear how water and the ocean run through her work and life: starting projects by reconnecting with nature, honouring Afro-diasporic and Indigenous resilience, and building festivals where thousands gather peacefully in public space. Her belief that “there is no saviour or heroes, but we all take responsibility” gives the conversation a grounded, collective energy.
Then curator and cultural strategist **Anne-Marie Melster**, founder of **artport – making waves**, shares how she walked away from a lucrative corporate art career after realising she was “completely unhappy”. Moving to Spain with her dog, she slowly built projects that bring artists, scientists and young people together around ocean literacy and climate action. Daily forest walks, cold sea swims and home-cooked food keep her sane while facing political inaction and greenwashing.
Both guests offer a refreshing reminder: art isn’t a luxury, it’s a lifeline – and your body, your story and your small daily choices can all be part of wider change. Which part of your own life could use a little more courage, creativity and connection to nature?
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