The Falkland Islands are very remote: 8,000 miles south of London, 700 miles north of the northern most part of Antarctica and 300 miles east of Argentina. Only discovered in 1760 by a British sailor, then variously settled and occupied by British, French and Spanish garrisons, the islands were claimed for the British crown in 1832. But, given their proximity, Argentina has, not surprisingly, long laid claim to them and still sees them as part of Argentina. Negotiations were under way to lease them to Argentina when they invaded in 1982 leading to Mrs Thatcher approving a task force to retake the islands. This podcast traces their history and asks the question what is their economic and strategic significance. Whaling and sealing have long ceased but they are a surprisingly important global source for squid fishing and forward base for Antarctic research.

Svalbard, or Spitzbergen, as it used to be called, is an archipelago in the Arctic ocean about midway between the north of Norway and the North Pole and midway between Greenland to the West and the islands of Novaya Zemblya in northern Russia. 60% of it is covered with glaciers and it has about 3000 people. Its a place most people have never heard of, but it has considerable geographical and strategic significance as this episode of Geography Matters makes clear

This is a taster for the Geography Matters podcast series. It explains why geography matters for understanding the world and how it intersects with history and with economics, politics, society and the environment. Everything happens in particular places and particular times. Geography looks at where and why and history looks at when and why. The series is presented by Chris Hamnett, emeritus professor of geography at King's College London and Klaus Dodds, professor of geopolitics at Royal Holloway College, University of London. Chris is an urban geographer interested in big cities, and Klaus is a specialist in geopolitics, with an interest in the Arctic and the polar regions and in border conflicts.