The Story presents: Planet Hope - protecting snow leopards
The Story
The Times
3.9 • 1.6K Ratings
🗓️ 27 September 2025
⏱️ 29 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
This is Planet Hope, a podcast from The Times and The Sunday Times in paid partnership with Rolex and its Perpetual Planet Initiative. Each episode is hosted by The Story released as a bonus weekly series on Saturdays.
In the remote Himalayan valley of Humla, Rinzin Phunjok Lama is protecting endangered species like the snow leopard and wild yak. Using Buddhist principles, local knowledge, and community-led conservation, he is tackling climate change in one of the world’s harshest landscapes. He tells Adam Vaughan why saving one Himalayan valley matters to the world.
Host: Adam Vaughan, Environment Editor, The Times
Guest: Rinzin Phunjok Lama, Conservation Biologist and Rolex Award Laureate
Series Producer: Priyanka Deladia
Sound Designer: David Crackles
This podcast is advertiser funded.
This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe here.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hi, it's Manveen. Today on the story, we're bringing you an episode from Planet Hope, |
| 0:05.1 | where Environment Editor Adam Vaughn meets the people finding bold answers to global challenges, |
| 0:11.5 | from revealing climate change hidden in Arctic caves, to safeguarding pristine coastlines. |
| 0:18.4 | These are the stories of hope and possibility, and we think you'll like it. Here's Planet Hope. |
| 0:28.9 | Planet Hope is brought to you in paid partnership with Rolex and its perpetual Planet Initiative. |
| 0:39.3 | In the 1930s, Rolex founder Hans Wilsdorf saw the world as a testing ground, |
| 0:45.3 | sending watches to the highest mountains or the deepest oceans, |
| 0:49.3 | and supporting explorers who pushed the limits of what was possible. |
| 0:55.0 | Over time, the company is moved from championing exploration for the sake of discovery |
| 1:01.0 | to protecting the planet by supporting individuals and organisations working to safeguard the natural world. |
| 1:08.0 | From ocean conservation to wilderness restoration, it's a long-term commitment towards the planet's future, which includes the world. From ocean conservation to wilderness restoration, it's a long-term commitment towards the |
| 1:12.9 | planet's future, which includes the work Times, and this is Planet Hope. |
| 1:36.5 | So far in this series, we've met a penguin conservationist on the windswept shores of Patagonia, |
| 1:43.0 | and a dolphin expert deep in the Amazon. |
| 1:46.6 | But today, we're going higher, much, much higher. |
| 1:54.4 | We're heading to Humla, a remote region in northwest Nepal, tucked high in the Himalayas. |
| 2:08.6 | It's a land of breathtaking beauty, deep spiritual roots, and mounting environmental pressures. Our guide today is Rinjin Panyuk Lama, a conservationist who grew up here. |
| 2:14.6 | The trust, you know, the trust and the sharing of knowledge with the people that allow us, you know, |
| 2:22.1 | that the opportunity that brings working with the communities, I think it's a wealth of knowledge |
| 2:25.9 | that we can get in scientific articles that we can get in the university. |
| 2:40.0 | Vindjin is now working to protect this extraordinary landscape and its sacred wildlife, from elusive snow leopards to endangered wild yaks, or helping local communities adapt to a fast-changing climate. |
| 2:51.6 | This is a story of mountain resilience, ancient traditions, |
... |
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