The GLaD Podcast

In this episode we talk to Geoff Boeing, streets and urban form expert, mastermind behind OSMnx, and urban planner at USC. We talk (a lot) about disasters and cities, street networks, and open source software. Several callbacks to previous episodes, including our Vibe Check on Cities and Computing Geographically with David O'Sullivan episodes. Also Davis and Weinstein (2002), "Bones, Bombs, and Break Points: The Geography of Economic Activity" and the New York Times on trash, streets, and urban form.

In this episode your GLaD team gets into the holiday spirit with an energetic conversation about how we're feeling about cities in 2023—because, let's face it, cities have had a bit of a hard time these past few years. Maybe their purpose is changing? Maybe it's a blip? Or maybe cities are just as awesome as they've always been. For this extra special holiday episode, Rachel, Dani, and Levi are joined in their virtual studio by three fantastic guests: Elizabeth Delmelle from City and Regional Planning at the University of Pennsylvania, Özge Öner from Land Economy at the University of Cambridge, and Jon Reades from the Centre for Advanced Spatial Analysis (CASA) at UCL. Listen to find out who is Team City and who is more...Team Cities Kind of Suck Right Now...

It sure feels like we're living through an academic "quitting" moment, with social media abounding with tales of folks departing universities for greener professional pastures. What's going on?! In this episode Dani, Levi, and Rachel try to find out. Joined by three academic "upgraders", Frances Darlington-Pollock, Carson Farmer, Seth Spielman, who share a bit of their professional journeys and their reasons for shifting out of academia and into other sorts of roles, we explore the extent to which the “golden ring” of an academic job has become tarnished, what makes folks leave, and where exactly they’re going to when they do. 

To an academic, doing something for “work”  can mean so many different things. Sometimes, it’s our academic hobbies—the passion projects we take on alongside our usual work—that can really shape how we view our selves and how others view us. In this episode, we discuss the projects, perspectives, and ideas we’re passionate about as academics: not just our work hobbies but our hobby horses. Join us for a wide ranging conversation about PhD training, open science, work life balance, and how we might do academic careers differently.

When we did our #SAD cocktail party, we were so excited about every bit of our lists that we never made it to one of the final questions we always ask: #SAD books. We more than make up for it in this episode, where we (Rachel, Levi and Dani) discuss our favorite picks for books that discuss Geography (Life) and Data. Along the way, we talk about the role books have, why we think they're (still!) important today, and how their role has changed.

Here's an episode all about data—mobile phone data, to be exact. What are we talking about when we talk about using “mobile phone data” in our research? How are these data generated? Who produces them? What is this data good for…and maybe not so good for? How is it accessed and used? So many questions! To help provide some answers, in this episode Rachel, Levi, and Dani are joined by special guest, Wenfei Xu, Assistant Professor in the Department of Geography at UC Santa Barbara.

AI is now definitely changing how we live our (geography) lives. Join Rachel, Dani, and Levi for a chat about how Artificial Intelligence is emerging in our GLAD lives. How is it being used "in the wilds" of teaching, research, coding, publishing, and beyond. Should you be farming out your peer reviews to a computer? Vibe coding with your friend Claude? Setting out on AI-generated running routes? And, as always, do we really need more papers faster than ever before? We chat through this, with some advice and reflections on where AI might change our own practice and how it's certainly changing the way academia (writ large) works.  Let us know what you think at thegladpodcast@gmail.com. Did we miss something about AI that you now can't live without? Have we missed your favorite anecdote about a deluge of digital dreck? Send us an email!  Resources we discussed:  Nature's recent editorial on peer review and AI https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-025-00894-7 Harper Reed's post on how to code well with LLMs https://harper.blog/2025/04/17/an-llm-codegen-heros-journey/ Ethan Mollick's "reasoned optimism" about thinking with AI https://www.oneusefulthing.org/ Simon Willison's blog tracking the frontier of LLMs  https://simonwillison.org      

Join us for the second part of our conversation about the academic job market! This half, we'll talk a bit about the nuts and bolts of putting together your application and the process from applying to interviewing for (and maybe even getting) the job! Caveat: we're mostly familiar with the US and UK academic job markets and we stick to what we know best in this episode! Let us know what you think by sending us an email at thegladpodcast@gmail.com or leaving us a review on whatever podcasting app you use! it really helps us out.   

Everything you (n)ever wanted to know about getting an academic job in geography or geography-adjacent fields. In this episode your friendly—and pretty experienced at applying for academic jobs—co-hosts talk through the academic job market. Where to look for jobs, timing, what to expect, and how to apply. Caveat: we're mostly familiar with the US and UK academic job markets and we stick to what we know best in this episode!

Today, we’re talking about time management. Or, rather, the lack thereof (both time, and management). It feels like we’re always over-committed. Always running behind. 24h a day sounds like so much and feels like so little. Why? Fasten your seatbelts, let’s find out!

This week, join us for our own retrospective on the year, and a look forward to next. We'll talk a bit about all the data in a year of GLaD, the highs and lows of Work/Life Balance in a year of "too much yes", the NYT Spelling Bee, and all the new and awesome Geography and Data that came with the year.   As always, let us know how your year in GLaD went by emailing us at thegladpodcast@gmail.com   Until next year!

Today, we’re talking about what some would characterize the “topic” of the XXIst Century (others might perhaps not!): Digital Twins. Are we excited about them? Are our eyes so rolled that they’ll never recover? Or is this excited Vs eyeroll dichotomy not very helpful at all? Above all, what even are Digital Twins?   Episode notes - Here is the Commentary Rachel mentions (free access): Malleson, N., Franklin, R., Arribas-Bel, D., Cheng, T., & Birkin, M. (2024). Digital twins on trial: Can they actually solve wicked societal problems and change the world for better? Environment and Planning B: Urban Analytics and City Science, 51(6), 1181-1186. https://doi.org/10.1177/23998083241262893   - The DT project for a bridge in Amsterdam, by The Alan Turing Institute: https://www.turing.ac.uk/about-us/impact/bridging-gap-between-physical-and-digital - AI for continuous environmental project mentioned by Levi: https://waterinnovation.challenges.org/winners/ai-algal-monitoring/ - Larger scale aquatic “digital twin” project at Turing, mentioned by Levi: https://www.turing.ac.uk/research/research-projects/probabilistic-programming-aquatic-ecosystem-models

In this episode your fearless co-hosts, Dani, Levi, and Rachel, talk about visibility and making a place for oneself in the worlds of research and academia. We chat about brands (do you need one?), clout (is it a thing?), and whether there's agreement about what it means to be an academic duck (maybe?). We've also got advice and lots of GLaD banter.  

Today, we’re tightening our laces, checking our syllabi, and coming to terms with the coming term. Do you plan ahead? Or let the waves of work wash over you? Join Dani, Rachel, and Levi to chat about what it's like going back to school.    As always, let us know what you think by emailing us at thegladpodcast@gmail.com. We read every email, and if there's anything you're keen to hear us discuss, we'd love to hear it!

If the academic life course were a sport, what would it be? Marathon? Hurdles? Bobsled? Find out how your GLaD co-hosts answer that question in this episode, as we discuss academic life course events, the various burdens that assail us at every stage, and how we manage (or don't).

Today, we’re giving you a sneak peek behind the editor’s desk at a peer-reviewed journal. Many academics publish, but organizing reviews, reproduction materials, and making the first (and final) call on a manuscript can be a very unique experience. We hope to answer your questions about life as an editor, and talk a little bit about efforts we’ve seen (or done) to make the process a little bit fairer, faster, and better. Let us know what you liked at thegladpodcast@gmail.com We love hearing from you about questions or ideas for who you'd like to hear on GLaD. Thanks for listening! 

For this episode, we’re joined by David O’Sullivan to talk about his forthcoming book, Computing Geographically: Bridging GIScience and Geography. We talk about how the book came together, what's in it, and also how "computing geographically" fits into the bigger picture of geography, (David's) life, and data. There's lots about David's disciplinary origin story, career trajectory, and how geographical analysis and computation align with the discipline of geography. This is also the episode in which Rachel opens with a comment about our new recording platform and then proceeds to record using her headphone mic, with the result that she sounds as if she's talking into a tin can. Apologies in advance.

Today, we have a second “a day in the life of…” conversation, where we interview GLaD folks to get the scoop and the behind-the-scenes view on what it is like to live their life. This time, we’re chatting with Dr Darla Munroe. Darla is director of research at the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy, leading efforts to support and coordinate the collective body of knowledge produced through the Institute’s work and fostering research strategies to advance its policy and educational activities. She is a geographer with research interests in economic-environmental interactions, especially forested ecosystems at the urban-rural interface globally. Let us know what you liked at thegladpodcast@gmail.com We love hearing from you about questions or ideas for who you'd like to hear on GLaD. Thanks for listening!   

Today, we’re trialing a new episode format: “a day in the life of…”, where we’ll be interviewing GLaD folks to get the scoop and the behind-the-scenes view on what it is like to live their life. As inaugural guest, we have the pleasure of welcoming to the studio a rock star of maps: Professor James Cheshire. Join us for a conversation spanning from James' origins and first steps into mapmaking all the way his current dual life as the director of a data science institute and successful book author.   Remember we now have a mailbox where you can reach us with comments, suggestions, critique and praise, and maybe even hot takes! Send your thoughts to thegladpodcast@gmail.com and, while you're at it, give us a rate wherever you listen to GLaD, it's single best thing you can do to help the podcast (that, and telling your friends about it!).   Rachel, Levi, Dani.

Today, we're reaching back "into the vault" to our Spatial Analytics and Data (SAD) interview series to bring you one of our past guests: Luc Anselin is the Stein-Freiler Distinguished Service Professor of Sociology at the University of Chicago, where he founded and directs the Center for Spatial Data Science.  In this conversation, we'll talk about his life, times, and career, and also learn a little bit about who he would invite to a SAD dinner party! And: if you're curious about the SAD interviews, check out our Spatial Analytics and Data YouTube Channel (link) for the full back catalogue. We will be back with some new interviews and discussion very soon.  Have questions, or want us to cover a topic you love? Let us know at thegladpodcast@gmail.com We'd be glad to hear from you!  Note: we recorded this interview at the height of a global pandemic from home, while we usually record GLaD in the studio. So, we're sorry for any issues with the audio quality! We hope we've gotten better since this... and we hope you enjoy!