"Some people really show us what one person can do, the power of one. Mark Thomas is one of these people.

We were expecting political jokes. What we saw was an eye-opening account of his struggle with the arms trade and some of its many 'weird' contradictions. The characters he described were both 'nice' guys and ruthless arms dealers. He seemed surprised the stereotypes were not reinforced.

Although he was very entertaining, he was also dealing with a serious subject, and this contrast was really effective. The triumphant end to his presentation was handing out a report on illegal arms deal he had prevented.

We found his sense of moral duty incredibly inspiring and thought provoking. It made us feel we should be more politically active, and he stressed the point that action changes things.

The author of steamy comic novels Jilly Cooper, in contrast seemed happy to support stereotypes in her new book about the education system.

She could afford her 150 characters within the 800 pages by making them generally undeveloped and two dimensional, including the 'hunky head teacher' and the 'naughty children' of the poor comprehensive school. She herself came across as 'sweet' yet slightly naïve about the state school system.

Lisa Jardine, in contrast, talked about challenging gender stereotypes, how poets can find a 'common language' that transcends male and female. She believes that poetry engages us on a deeper emotional level than any other medium.

We were also inspired by our walk around Llangorse Lake. Our guide revealed to us its myths and crumbling history - how man's impact; our burial grounds, crannogs and buildings have been worn down, flooded and reclaimed by nature. How the relationship between man and nature is in constant flux."

Written by Ruth Newrick and Alice Hemming from the Beacons Project