Richard writes about archaeology, marine biology, oceanography, ecology, technology and the environment.
His work has featured in National Geographic, BBC Travel, Smithsonian, New Scientist, The Economist, Hakai Magazine, The Atlantic, Wired UK, MIT Technology Review, Science and Sapiens.
Radio and podcast work for PRI’s The World, Economist Radio, BBC World Service and SciDevNet.
For writing, editing, audio production or podcast consultation, email richardakemeny@gmail.com
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São Paulo and London
Selected writing
Do octopuses dream?
National geographic
Observations of a sleeping octopus startling awake have scientists asking if it has nightmares or is just getting old.
The Spanish town powered by waves
BBC TRavel
For centuries, inhabitants of the picturesque coastal town of Mutriku have drawn from the ocean's riches. Now they're harnessing its immense power.
The Galapagos Islands Will Be a Cool Refuge in a Warming World
Hakai
Pushed by climate change, almost every part of the ocean is heating up. But off the west coast of the Galapagos Islands, there is a patch of cold, nutrient-rich water. This prosperous patch feeds phytoplankton and breathes life into the archipelago.
“The cool water sustains populations of penguins, marine iguanas, sea lions, fur seals, and cetaceans that would not be able to stay on the equator year round,” says Judith Denkinger, a marine ecologist at the Universidad San Francisco de Quito in Ecuador…
Ancient Maya tooth sealant glued gemstones in place—and may have prevented tooth decay
Science
The ancient Maya believed their breath was a link to the divine. To purify it, many people filed, notched, and polished their teeth, some even decorating them with gemstones. Now, a fresh analysis suggests the sealant used to hold these jewels in place may have had therapeutic properties, which could have helped prevent infections.
The Macabre and Magical Human-Canine Story
Sapiens
Zooarchaeologists and geneticists are exploring how wolves and domestic dogs have been humanity’s predator, prey, and partner.
Brazil is sliding into techno-authoritarianism
MIT Technology Review
Once a groundbreaker in internet governance, the country is becoming a surveillance state, thanks partly to covid-19.
As countries battle for control of North Pole, science is the ultimate winner
Science
A competition for the North Pole heated up last month, as Canada became the third country to claim—based on extensive scientific data—that it should have sovereignty over a large swath of the Arctic Ocean, including the pole. Canada's bid, submitted to the United Nations's Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) on 23 May, joins competing claims from Russia and Denmark. Like theirs, it is motivated by the prospect of mineral riches: the large oil reserves believed to lie under the Arctic Ocean, which will become more accessible as the polar ice retreats…
Radio
There are major concerns about what could happen to the Indigenous population in Brazil's state of Amazonas if COVID-19 spreads. The health care system is pretty basic. And many of these communities are largely cut off from outside information. A network of two-way radio stations is helping to keep people there informed.
The coronavirus pandemic was relatively slow to reach Latin America, but Brazil, the region’s largest country, has been hit hardest so far: As of Tuesday, it had 23,430 confirmed cases, and 1,328 deaths. Still, the president has continued to downplay the virus’s impact.
Video
Japan's Yakuza: Inside the syndicate
In 2011 a Belgian photographer was allowed entry into one of Japan’s Yakuza families. Over two years, he captured the lives of those living in the underworld.
This audio slideshow I made from his work has been viewed over 4 million times on YouTube.
Skills and training
Radio
News broadcasts, current-affairs podcasts and long-form documentaries
Script writing
Advanced editing skills using Avid Pro Tools; Adobe Audition
Music production, Logic Pro X
Research, production and editing
Film
Qualified film maker, trained at City University
Editing with Adobe Premiere, Final Cut Pro X
Audio slideshows
Data
Data analysis using Excel; Google Refine; Tableau
Trained sourcing data using FOI requests, web scraping software, APIs
Interactive visualisations; maps and charts
Basic coding