ThinkIns on catch up
ThinkIns are for Tortoise members and invited guests. Catch up below on some of our recent favourites.
A ThinkIn is not just another panel discussion. It’s a real editorial meeting where your insight and experience can help shape our reporting.
How it works
Book a ticket, and we’ll send you a link to join us online. You can bring a friend.
We’ll invite guests with special expertise, but anyone can speak. Just raise your hand.
A ThinkIn is one hour long. At the end, the editor will summarise what we’ve heard.
21 OCTOber 2021
Class, sexism and surviving Trump’s White House: A ThinkIn with Fiona Hill
Fiona Hill emerged as a feminist hero as a witness in the impeachment of President Trump. Her grace under pressure won her millions of admirers – and her broad North-East accent alerted the world to her journey from County Durham poverty to the centre of Washington power. Her story is about Trump and Putin, but mostly it is about class, social mobility, sexism, the rise of populism – in the UK, US and Russia – and what to do about it. You can watch the whole ThinkIn here.
What our members are watching
Has protest music lost its power? with Billy Bragg
A ThinkIn with singer, songwriter and activist Billy Bragg, finding out what modern protest songs sound like, and where we can find them.
Assisted dying: is the Bill safe?
The Assisted Dying Bill just had its second reading in the House of Lords. What is the reasoning of those in favour, and those who are against?
The future of music with Duran Duran’s Nick Rhodes
Duran Duran founding member Nick Rhodes joined us for a special KITE ThinkIn to talk about the Birmingham foursome’s latest album Future Past.
Is £81k a year enough to be an MP?
With the UK average salary at £31k, surely MPs are living very comfortably on £81k a year? If that’s the case, why do so many have a second job?
covid Inquiry
Why wait until spring 2022?
That’s when the prime minister has said an independent inquiry into the government’s response to Covid will begin. Here at Tortoise, we felt the need was far more urgent – and so, last Autumn, we held our own.
Recent ThinkIns
Greening aviation: is jet zero even possible?
As the world reopens, consumers and airlines want to decarbonise flying. Can it be done? Can we really fly sustainably?
Global AI Summit 2021: Accelerations
The Attack: How secure is American democracy?
Join us for a special ThinkIn, in partnership with The Washington Post, almost 11 months after the storming of the Capitol.
What will accelerate the UK’s EV transition?
The UK has made a good start in the shift to electric vehicles, introducing ambitious targets and incentives for EV adoption. We know that electric vehicles are the future: so what’s delaying the switch?
Inflation: what’s really going on?
Inflation is going to stick around for a while, and if Rishi Sunak is right and we can’t do anything about energy prices and supply chains, what’s the political response we need right now?
Is £81k a year enough to be an MP?
With the UK average salary at £31k, surely MPs are living very comfortably on £81k a year? If that’s the case, why do so many have a second job?
Vanity insanity: How far would you go to change the way you look?
Are we losing our grip on reality when it comes to the way we look?
Is the Online Safety Bill a danger to freedom of expression?
A Committee has been gathering evidence on the latest draft of the Bill and will publish its response to that evidence on 10 December. So what is and isn’t in it, and what happens next?
Assisted dying: is the Bill safe?
The Assisted Dying Bill just had its second reading in the House of Lords. What is the reasoning of those in favour, and those who are against?
Has protest music lost its power? with Billy Bragg
A ThinkIn with singer, songwriter and activist Billy Bragg, finding out what modern protest songs sound like, and where we can find them.
How do we kick start the renovation revolution?
A Cop26 series ThinkIn assessing household carbon emissions: who should front the retrofit costs of draughty windows, tired boilers and poorly insulated walls?
Too slow, too many cars – can we change the electrification roadmap?
A Cop26 series ThinkIn about electric cars and their role in solving the climate emergency.
Talk is cheap. What should CEOs actually do about the climate crisis?
A Cop26 series ThinkIn where we asked, what is the CEO’s role in resolving the tension between the need for collective action to survive versus the need for competition to thrive?
How far can we go with the technology we already have?
A Cop26 series ThinkIn where we considered whether the technology we need to deliver our Net Zero commitments already exists.
A ThinkIn with Nicky Gumbel, the Alpha pioneer
Nicky on the future of the Church, the way Alpha works and the role of faith in the modern world.
A ThinkIn with Steven Pinker on rationality
An hour talking with Steven, explaining why we have all become so susceptible to being distracted, manipulated and flummoxed into leaving logic and common sense behind, and what we can do about it.
Don’t miss these upcoming ThinkIns
Sweet Bobby: could any of us be catfished?
Operation Mincemeat
Is hybrid working worse for women?
In conversation with…
Crisis Leadership – Tony Blair
The UK’s former prime minister in conversation with James Harding.
In conversation with Sharon White, Chair of the John Lewis Partnership
Join James Harding in conversation with Sharon White, Chair of the John Lewis Partnership
A ThinkIn with Lisa Nandy
Join James Harding in conversation with Lisa Nandy to discuss the direction of the Labour Party on the international stage.
A ThinkIn with Mark Carney on Value(s)
What does value really mean? Join James Harding in conversation with Mark Carney to find out.
Next Gen
ThinkIns created especially for students and apprentices
How to start a movement with anti-discrimination activist Alex Holmes
Alex Holmes used his personal experience of racism to start a grassroots movement that later saw him become deputy CEO in the charity sector.
How to break down stereotypes with actor Samantha Renke
Samantha knows a thing or two about proving people wrong.
Sensemaker Live
Sensemaker Live: Are the Olympics doomed?
Are the Olympics doomed, or are we just going through a grumpy patch?
Sensemaker Live: Can’t we just ditch social media and get along?
Why not just scrap the apps and use the phone for talking, or not getting lost?
Sensemaker Live: Why go to space?
Make sense of this week’s major news stories in a live editorial conference with Tortoise editors.
Sensemaker Live: How slimmed down should the royals be?
Make sense of this week’s major news stories in a live editorial conference with Tortoise editors.
Summits
The Tortoise Responsible Business Summit
The Tortoise Cyber Summit
The Tortoise Education Summit
Schooling after the virus: can we build back better?
The Future of Work Summit
What does the future of work really look like?
The Tortoise Climate Summit: How can we accelerate net zero?
Join us to start writing a global to-do list before the world gathers in Glasgow to work out how to save itself.
The Future of Cars Summit
Join us and invited experts to discuss the big questions about the future of cars
The Future of Money Summit
Join us an invited experts to discuss the big questions about the future of money
Global Health Summit
The six challenges after Covid