The Creative Process · Arts, Culture & Society: Books, Film, Music, TV, Art, Writing, Creativity, Education, Environment, Theatre, Dance, LGBTQ, Climate Change, Social Justice, Spirituality, Feminism, Tech, Sustainability

Two weeks away from filming her most ambitious film to date, Cherien Dabis and her crew were forced to evacuate Palestine as the devastating events of October 2023 began. Instead of abandoning the project, they adapted, filming across Cyprus, Jordan, and Greece, creating a cinematic love letter to the resilience, joy, and humanity of the Palestinian people.My guest today is Cherien Dabis. She’s a filmmaker and actress who has spent much of her career trying to fill the silences in the American narrative. In 2022, she became the first Palestinian to receive an Emmy nomination. She has worked on everything from The L Word to Ozark, Only Murders in the Building to the hit Netflix series Mo, always with an eye toward breaking the one-dimensional mold that has historically defined Arab representation in the West. But her latest project is perhaps her most ambitious yet. It’s a film called All That’s Left of You. It follows one Palestinian family across three generations, beginning in 1948 and ending in 2022. It is a story of exile and memory, and it’s Jordan’s official submission for this year’s Academy Awards.(0:00) The Inheritance of Trauma Cherien Dabis discusses how collective trauma is passed down and the importance of showing Palestinian resilience and humanity(1:50) Inherited Trauma: Identity And History The passage of trauma requires a multi-generational lens to truly understand how history and political events shape people(2:37) The Bakri Acting Dynasty: Collaborative Lineage Collaborating with four generations of the Bakri Family brought immense authenticity to the screen(4:02) Filming The Nakba: Art Imitating Crisis Evacuating Palestine weeks before shooting forced the crew to adapt amidst devastating, ongoing events(7:09) The Moment Of Activation: Racism In Ohio Experiencing severe racism during the first Gulf War ignited a lifelong drive to challenge dangerous media stereotypes(9:34) Psychological Violence: Impact Of Humiliation The film explores how non-physical harassment and humiliation leave devastating, long-term relational scars(10:48) Broken Distribution: Industry Gatekeepers Navigating systemic fear and gatekeeping in Hollywood distribution remains a profound challenge for Palestinian cinema(11:37) Previous Films, Television And Craft Directing television hones the craft and expands the creative capacity needed for ambitious feature films(12:28) Truth Seekers: The Next Generation Hope lies with young people who refuse to accept the broken systems and hidden truths of previous generationsEpisode Websitewww.creativeprocess.info/podInstagram:@creativeprocesspodcast

“These oppressive structures are built to strip us of our humanity. One of the ways they do that is by filling us with anger and hatred. If we allow ourselves to stay there, we're doing the job of the oppressor for them by slowly killing ourselves. I wanted to make a movie that would remind people that we can't allow them to win by giving up our humanity. We have to hold onto our humanity and try in these impossible circumstances.”My guest today is Cherien Dabis. She’s a filmmaker and actress who has spent much of her career trying to fill the silences in the American narrative. In 2022, she became the first Palestinian to receive an Emmy nomination. She has worked on everything from The L Word to Ozark, Only Murders in the Building to the hit Netflix series Mo, always with an eye toward breaking the one-dimensional mold that has historically defined Arab representation in the West. But her latest project is perhaps her most ambitious yet. It’s a film called All That’s Left of You. It follows one Palestinian family across three generations, beginning in 1948 and ending in 2022. It is a story of exile and memory, and it’s Jordan’s official submission for this year’s Academy Awards.(0:00) The Inheritance of TraumaCherien Dabis discusses showing the multifaceted humanity of Palestinians beyond just pain and suffering(3:41) Inherited Trauma: Identity And History The film explores how collective trauma is passed down across generations and shapes individual identities(5:52) The Bakri Dynasty: Collaborative Lineage Working with the legendary Bakri Family brought deep, authentic relational dynamics to the screen(9:25) Filming The Nakba: Art Imitating Crisis The crew faced severe challenges and had to evacuate Palestine during the October 2023 escalation(16:10) Representation Gap: Dehumanization In Media Growing up in Ohio, Cherien Dabis witnessed the dangerous misrepresentation of Arabs in Western media(21:24) The Moment Of Activation: Racism In Ohio The stark racism experienced during the first Gulf War ignited her passion to become a filmmaker(33:40) Psychological Violence: Impact Of Humiliation The film depicts how psychological harassment under occupation leaves devastating, long-term impacts on families(38:23) Broken Distribution: Industry Gatekeepers Despite international success, systemic fear and gatekeeping in the US distribution market remain significant obstacles(45:28) Previous Films, Television And Craft Directing television shows like Only Murders in the Building expanded her creative capacity and adaptability(51:45) Truth Seekers: The Next Generation Cherien Dabis shares her profound hope for young people who refuse to accept the broken systems of the pastEpisode Websitewww.creativeprocess.info/podInstagram:@creativeprocesspodcast

"To be in the process of making things, to be in the process of talking to people about what things mean. The creative process is actually, I think, the most meaningful part of life, but it's very hard to measure. When we get shoved towards a world that demands easy measurables, it's very hard to optimize away from the creative process and optimize towards things that are more static."On this episode of The Creative Process, philosopher C. Thi Nguyen joins us to discuss his new book, The Score: How to Stop Playing Somebody Else's Game. He unpacks the profound concept of "value capture"—the moment we stop caring about the rich, subtle experiences of life and start obsessing over simplified, external metrics like grades, likes, and screen time.Beyond the trap of quantification, C. Thi Nguyen explores the liberating power of games and art. We discuss how true play requires us to step lightly between different rule sets, the difference between art and craft, and how reclaiming our creative process might just be the ultimate meaning of life.(0:00) THE TRAP OF VALUE CAPTURE How external metrics and scoring systems hijack our personal values and creativity(7:09) THE LOGIC OF QUANTIFICATION Why simple numbers travel well but strip away vital human context, from screen time to grades(11:58) THE MAGIC CIRCLE OF PLAY Understanding the difference between a gamified life and the true, disattached beauty of struggle(14:57) ART, CRAFT, AND METRICS Why taking the hard way leads to genuine creative expression, and how to spot value-laden systems(19:34) THE POLITICS OF MEASUREMENT Questioning the assumption that complex human traits, like IQ or consciousness, can be quantified on a single scale(21:31) THE SPIRIT OF PLAY Using constraints to boost collaborative storytelling and learning to step lightly between different rule worldsEpisode Websitewww.creativeprocess.info/podInstagram:@creativeprocesspodcast

We live in a world obsessed with tracking. From our sleep scores to our social media engagement, invisible systems constantly quantify our worth. But when we replace our deepest values with these thin, easily measurable numbers, we lose a part of our humanity. It is time to step outside the magic circle of optimization and reclaim the unstructured joy of being alive. C. Thi Nguyen is a philosopher whose work gets to the heart of the invisible structures that define modern life. He first established himself as a food writer, exploring the sensory world, before turning his intellectual gaze toward the philosophy of games and agency. He’s the author of Games: Agency As Art.His new book is The Score: How to Stop Playing Somebody Else's Game.He argues that when we simplify our values for the sake of a leaderboard, something inside the human spirit begins to die. In it, he explores a concept called "value capture"—the moment we stop caring about the experience and start obsessing over the metric. He joins me now to discuss how we can lead a playful, spontaneous life without getting lost in the scoring systems of the 21st century.(0:00) THE MEANING OF LIFE IS THE CREATIVE PROCESS Why the most valuable parts of life are impossible to measure(6:46) VALUE CAPTURE DEFINED How external metrics and institutional scoring systems take over our personal values(11:38) THE METRICS WE LIVE BY The invisible toll of screen time, credit scores, and daily optimization(19:44) THE LOGIC OF QUANTIFICATION Why simple numbers travel well but strip away vital human context(24:13) THE MAGIC CIRCLE OF PLAY Understanding the difference between a gamified life and the true beauty of struggle(31:56) ART AS A GAME How taking the hard way and avoiding efficiency leads to genuine creative expression(38:48) THE POLITICS OF TECHNOLOGY Why tools and systems like factories and databases are never truly value-neutral(44:23) AI AND HUMAN CREATIVITY Navigating the tension between automated efficiency and expressive human art(50:44) THE POLITICS OF IQ Questioning the assumption that complex human traits can be measured on a single scale(1:01:12) NARRATIVE SCAFFOLDING How structured constraints in role-playing games can actually boost collaborative storytelling(1:10:00) THE SPIRIT OF PLAY Stepping lightly between different rule worlds and reclaiming our agencyEpisode Websitewww.creativeprocess.info/pod@creativeprocesspodcast

Are the walls of our most celebrated museums actually monuments to wealth extraction and labor suppression? How did the violent union-busting tactics of the 19th-century robber barons pave the way for modern philanthropy? And what happens when we expose the hidden racial capitalism behind the "genius" of modern art?In this episode of the Speaking Out of Place podcast, Professor David Palumbo-Liu talks with Eunsong Kim about her stunning book, The Politics of Collecting: Race & the Aestheticization of Property. It is remarkable in its theoretical conceptualization, argument, and archival work. Kim argues that the beginnings of elite art collection in the United States coincided with the rise of the robber barons and the suppression of the labor movement. She connects this to Taylorism and the idea of scientific management, that further extenuated the rift between the mind and the body, between intellectual activity and labor. Not coincidentally, this distribution of kinds of work created a new distribution of value. In each case, Kim argues, race played a fundamental role. Ranging from the “found” art of Duchamp to the pseudo-Marxist conceptual art of Sierra, Kim eviscerates both pretention and cruelty, and restores the laboring body and what it produces to prominence, along with a truly reinvigorated and capacious sense of the Imagination outside of the constraints of neoliberal aesthetics.(0:00) The Politics of Collecting(2:16) The Rise of the Museum Form How art spaces are fundamentally tied to racial capitalism and settler colonialism(5:18) Carnegie, Frick, and the Homestead Strike, Violent de-unionization of steelworkers that preceded modern philanthropic projects(10:04) Taylorism and Scientific Management How Frederick Taylor's experiments sought to separate "mind work" from "hand work"(13:00) The De-skilling of Labor(16:11) The PR of Robber Barons(19:42) Duchamp and the Illusion of Meritocracy(26:17) Racial Violence and the "Ready-Made" Reading Duchamp's Fountain through the lens of segregation and white freedom(32:26) Santiago Sierra and Neoliberal Aesthetics Critiquing art that replicates capitalism by enacting humiliation on marginalized and precarious workers(43:12) Artists vs. Workers at the Whitney, 1969 anti-Vietnam War protest(47:58) Professors as Managers On private university labor laws, unionization, and the weaponization of the "manager" title(51:24) AI and the Alienation of ThoughtEpisode Websitewww.palumbo-liu.com https://speakingoutofplace.com Bluesky @palumboliu.bsky.social@speaking_out_of_place

Have we forgotten how to truly participate in the natural world? What can the ancient practice of shepherding teach us about ecological healing? How does physical labor connect us to the land, memory and belonging?In this episode of the Speaking Out of Place podcast, Professor David Palumbo-Liu speaks with Helen Whybrow about her book, The Salt Stones: Seasons of a Shepherd’s Life. Besides being a detailed account of the day to day, season by season life on her farm, where she and her family raise sheep, build a broad community, and maintain Knoll Farm, a center for activists, writers, artists and others to share ideas on how to promote healthier and more just ways of living together and in the environment, The Salt Stones is at base about the ways we are losing a sense of belonging, not only with others and with other forms of life on this planet, but also with the cycles of existence, of life and of death. Whybrow shows time and again that it is mostly a matter of developing ways of seeing and noticing what is all around us, and learning about and respecting the ways that generations of people and non-human animals have existed together in sustainable and mutually-dependent ways.Helen Whybrow is a writer, editor and organic farmer whose book about shepherding, land and belonging, The Salt Stones, was longlisted for the National Book Award and chosen as a New Yorker Best Book of 2025. Her other titles include Dead Reckoning (W. W. Norton, 2001) and A Man Apart (Chelsea Green, 2015). She has a master’s in journalism and has taught writing at Middlebury College and the Breadloaf Environmental Writer’s Conference. She and her family farm and steward a refuge for land justice at Knoll Farm in Fayston, Vermont.(0:00) The Salt Stones(2:50) A Lifelong Love of Land and Language(6:50) The Cord: A Story of Lambing and Life(13:40) Literary Influences and Jean Giono(18:15) The Erased Work of Nature(20:30) Radical Intimacy and Participation(23:45) Measuring Diminishment and Listening to Nature(25:15) Lita the Ewe and Complex Ecosystems(29:17) Kulning: The Lost Art of Herding Songs(32:15) Embodied Memory and Physical Labor(37:45) The True Meaning of Belonging(43:30) Radical Hospitality at Noel Farm(46:15) Kinship Episode Website www.palumbo-liu.comhttps://speakingoutofplace.com Bluesky @palumboliu.bsky.social Instagram @speaking_out_of_place

What happens when Mexico's future president lands in New Orleans, a city of operas, slave markets, and radical musical invention? A man who spoke a variant of Zapotec and read the French philosophers of the Enlightenment finds himself adrift in the hallucinatory swamps of New Orleans.In this episode of Speaking Out of Place podcast, Professor David Palumbo-Liu speaks with novelist, essayist, and scholar Yuri Herrera about his new novel, Season of the Swamp, which is a deeply researched and dazzlingly imagined account of Benito Juarez’s time spent in exile in New Orleans. We learn about what that time and place offered to Juarez’s understanding of a world coming into being—one of créolité and carnival, of mixedness and multiplicity, and what these sometimes hallucinatory moments offered his political vision. They talk about what kinds of new visions of freedom are discovered in the midst of forms of slavery that horrify Juarez. We hear how all of this relates to the present day—to the genocide in Gaza, the violent ICE attacks in the United States, and the descent into unbridled, and unmasked fascism.Yuri Herrera's first three novels have been translated into several languages: Kingdom Cons, Signs Preceding the End of the World, and Transmigration of Bodies. In 2016 he shared with translator Lisa Dillman the Best translated Book Award for the translation of Signs Preceding the End of the World. That same year he received the Anna Seghers Prize at the Academy of Arts of Berlin, for the body of his work. His latest books are A Silent Fury: The El Bordo Mine Fire, Ten Planets, and Season of the Swamp. He is a professor of creative writing and literature at Tulane University, in New Orleans.(0:00) The Season of the Swamp(3:55) Benito Juarez’s Life, his indigenous roots and his conflict with dictator Santana.(7:00) Yuri Herrera's relationship with New Orleans and the theme of extreme migration.(11:00) An Accidental Avant-Garde How the clash of European classical music and African drumming in Congo Square created a new space for imagination.(15:30) Individual Freedom vs. Slavery(19:30) Ocampo the Socialist Vampire Slayer Symbolic dreams in the novel and the rebellious resilience of New Orleans.(24:10) The Art of Translation(27:25) Reading from the novel(33:30) Democratizing the Gaze Why the author chose not to use Juarez's name in order to strip away the monument and reveal the tender, perceptive migrant.(39:30) Modern Fascism and Cruelty Connecting history to the ICE attacks and global resistance.(45:00) The Last Gringo Reflecting on a short story about language, power and the changing face of America. www.palumbo-liu.comhttps://speakingoutofplace.com Bluesky @palumboliu.bsky.social @speaking_out_of_place

Today, on International Women's Day, we hear from writers, artists, filmmakers and activists who have used their work to question old hierarchies and give expression to the fullness of women’s experiences.(0:00) Manuela Lucà-Dazio  (Exec. Director, Pritzker Architecture Prize · Fmr. Exec. Director, Dept. of Visual Arts & Architecture · Venice Biennale) on Analyzing and Acting(2:01) Siri Hustvedt (Novelist, Scholar, Memoirist · Author of ‘Ghost Stories’ and ‘What I Loved’) on Listening and the Essence of Dialogue(3:35) Hala Alyan (Psychologist, Author of I'll Tell You When I'm Home)(5:11) Ana Castillo (Novelist & Poet) On Xicanisma and Indigenous History(6:55) Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy (Academy Award-winning Filmmaker) Film As A Tool For Change(8:37) Sara Ahmed (Scholar) On The Feminist Killjoy(10:40) Marilyn Minter (Artist) on Owning Sexual Agency(11:23) Ellen Rapoport (Showrunner, Writer, HBO’s Minx) on Feminism and Sexual Expression(12:07) Intan Paramaditha (Author) on Tiger Mothers, Monsters and So-called Bad Women(15:07) Ada Limón (24th U.S. Poet Laureate) Motherhood, Grief And Poetry(18:11) Ami Vitale (Photographer & Filmmaker) How Being a Woman Gave Her Access to Different StoriesTo hear more from each guest, listen to their full interviews.Episode Websitewww.creativeprocess.info/pod@creativeprocesspodcast

"The thing that puzzled him was why people don't agree to be fully expressed while they're alive. Why does it only happen in their last moment? Why wouldn't you live being fully expressed?"My guest today is AL Kennedy. She is one of Britain’s most acclaimed and versatile literary voices, a writer who can inhabit the internal life of a soldier in a POW camp, as she did in her Costa Book Award-winning novel Day, as easily as she can navigate the "professional lying" of a modern civil servant.Her latest novel, Alive in the Merciful Country, takes place during the 2020 lockdown. It tells the story of a primary school teacher who receives a confession from an undercover police officer who infiltrated her life decades earlier. It’s a provocative investigation into state power, the "Spy Cops" scandal and the search for mercy in an age of surveillance. It’s a book about the breakdown of trust. We talk about her life, her activism, and why she believes fiction is the only way to tell the truth when the facts are forbidden and how she balances the truth of her novels with the relief of stand-up comedy.(0:00) Finding Your VoiceOn the Alfred Wolfsohn voice method and the power of being fully expressed(2:30) Reading from Alive in the Merciful CountryKennedy shares a passage from her latest novel, exploring hope and resilience in dark times.(4:43) The Myth of Shrinking Attention SpansChallenging the narrative that modern audiences cannot focus, and the importance of engaging storytelling.(6:22) Education and the Foundation of DemocracyThe dangers of dismantling education and how critical thinking protects us from fascism.(10:26) The Spy Cop Scandal and State SurveillanceUnpacking the reality of undercover police infiltrating peaceful protests and intimate lives.(13:59) Lockdown: A Global Pause and the Inrush of EmpathyThe fleeting moment of unified humanity during the pandemic and how it was ultimately betrayed.(17:34) Writing Without Theft: The Ethics of Character CreationKennedy explains her imaginative process and why she refuses to steal details from real people's lives.(28:16) AI, Digital Slop, and the Loss of TrustReflections on artificial intelligence as an unstable plagiarism machine and its impact on truth.(30:03) Nature, Spirituality, and the Merciful CountryFinding healing in the natural world and navigating the future with love and awareness.Episode Websitewww.creativeprocess.info/podInstagram:@creativeprocesspodcast

What happens when the state infiltrates your most intimate relationships? How do we protect the innocence and imagination of children in an increasingly authoritarian world? "If you have love, eventually you're going to win. It's not that people aren't going to die. It's not terrible things aren't going to happen. But if you stay with that and you stay centered in that, you'll get through and you will not have turned into a monster in order to overcome monsters.”My guest today is AL Kennedy. She is one of Britain’s most acclaimed and versatile literary voices, a writer who can inhabit the internal life of a soldier in a POW camp, as she did in her Costa Book Award-winning novel Day, as easily as she can navigate the "professional lying" of a modern civil servant.Her latest novel, Alive in the Merciful Country, takes place during the 2020 lockdown. It tells the story of a primary school teacher who receives a confession from an undercover police officer who infiltrated her life decades earlier. It’s a provocative investigation into state power, the "Spy Cops" scandal and the search for mercy in an age of surveillance. It’s a book about the breakdown of trust. We talk about her life, her activism, and why she believes fiction is the only way to tell the truth when the facts are forbidden and how she balances the truth of her novels with the relief of stand-up comedy.(0:00) Finding Your Voice On the Alfred Wolfsohn voice method and the power of being fully expressed(2:17) Education and the Foundation of Democracy The dangers of dismantling education and how critical thinking protects us from fascism.(5:14) The Myth of Shrinking Attention Spans Challenging the narrative that modern audiences cannot focus, and the importance of engaging storytelling.(8:23) Reading from Alive in the Merciful Country Kennedy shares a passage from her latest novel, exploring hope and resilience in dark times.(17:45) The Spy Cop Scandal and State Surveillance Unpacking the reality of undercover police infiltrating peaceful protests and intimate lives.(22:07) AI, Digital Slop, and the Loss of Trust Reflections on artificial intelligence as an unstable plagiarism machine and its impact on truth.(28:29) The Power of the Powerless: Radical Whimsy How absurdity, humor, and inflatable costumes can disrupt authoritarian mindsets and potential violence.(33:13) Lockdown: A Global Pause and the Inrush of Empathy The fleeting moment of unified humanity during the pandemic and how it was ultimately betrayed.(42:53) Writing Without Theft: The Ethics of Character Creation Kennedy explains her imaginative process and why she refuses to steal details from real people's lives.(1:29:40) Nature, Spirituality, and the Merciful Country Finding healing in the natural world and navigating the future with love and awareness.Episode Websitewww.creativeprocess.info/podIG @creativeprocesspodcast

“Grief is a particular kind of unrequited love. It wasn't unrequited in the past. Usually, we think of unrequited love as you never got to do it, you never had it for yourself. But, in fact, there can be requited love, which is then unrequited love in the paroxysms of grief.”Today, we are honored to welcome a writer whose work has long explored the intimate landscapes of the mind, memory and the heart. Siri Hustvedt’s writing moves between the personal and the philosophical, the literary and the deeply human. Her work bridges collections of essays, non-fiction, poetry, and seven novels, including the international bestsellers What I Loved and The Summer Without Men. Recipient of the Princess of Asturias Award for Literature and the Gabarron Prize for Thought, her work has been translated into over thirty languages. Her new memoir, Ghost Stories, is a reflection on forty-three years shared with her late husband, the writer and filmmaker Paul Auster. In its pages, we encounter not only love and loss, but the quiet persistence of presence, memory, and language itself.(0:00) “We were hugely important to the drama of becoming in our own lives”(2:04) Grief as Unrequited LoveSiri explores the emotional reality of living without Paul Auster, noting that grief occurs because love does not stop when a person dies.(3:19) The Shared Space of a 43-year Marriage(4:36) Reading from Ghost StoriesSiri reads the opening passage of her memoir, detailing how the loss of her husband deranged her sense of time and bodily rhythms.(7:02) How Loss Changes Our Sense of Time(11:24)  How Powerful Emotions and a Person's Life Can Play a Role in Illness(13:04) Believing in a Reality that Transcends the Individual(20:06) Physical Love in MarriageOn the importance of physical intimacy in long-term marriages, a reality often left out of grief memoirs.Episode Websitewww.creativeprocess.info/podInstagram:@creativeprocesspodcast

“Grief happens because you don't stop loving the person who died. The person doesn't exist in your reality anymore. The everyday is not colored and shaped by this other human being, but you don't stop loving the person. So grief is a particular kind of unrequited love. And probably without that dynamic relationship with this person, I would be someone else. And he would've been someone else. I mean, Paul died before me. But we were, I think, hugely important to the drama of becoming in our own lives.”Today, we are honored to welcome a writer whose work has long explored the intimate landscapes of the mind, memory and the heart. Siri Hustvedt’s writing moves between the personal and the philosophical, the literary and the deeply human. Her work bridges collections of essays, non-fiction, poetry, and seven novels, including the international bestsellers What I Loved and The Summer Without Men. Recipient of the Princess of Asturias Award for Literature and the Gabarron Prize for Thought, her work has been translated into over thirty languages. Her new memoir, Ghost Stories, is a reflection on forty-three years shared with her late husband, the writer and filmmaker Paul Auster. In its pages, we encounter not only love and loss, but the quiet persistence of presence, memory, and language itself.(0:00) Grief as Unrequited LoveSiri explores the emotional reality of living without Paul Auster, noting that grief occurs because love does not stop when a person dies.(4:00) Facing Death with CourageThe importance of not hiding from mortality and how discussing end-of-life wishes offered a necessary perspective.(12:37) Reading from Ghost StoriesSiri reads the opening passage of her memoir, detailing how the loss of her husband deranged her sense of time and bodily rhythms.(18:41) The Phantom Limb: ” The beloved is taken away and it feels as if you're amputated or gutted.”(21:50)  Grandfather, Father and Son: Generational Traumas Behind Paul Auster's Writing(24:11)  How Powerful Emotions and a Person's Life Can Play a Role in Illness(30:09) Feeding the Earth  "Paul very pointedly told me that he wanted to be buried in the Jewish mode. And the phrase he used was, “I want my body to feed the earth.”(44:23) Physical Love in MarriageOn the importance of physical intimacy in long-term marriages, a reality often left out of grief memoirs.(54:00) The Philosophy of the Between: How relational existence is foundational to life.(1:00:16) The Hubris of Controlling Nature(1:12:00) The Dark History of Statistics(1:32:12) The Art of Learning vs. AI“I think we have to ask ourselves, what is education?Episode Websitewww.creativeprocess.info/podIG @creativeprocesspodcast

"Within society, we seem to have separated the arts out, so they're not so much a part of our daily lives. Often there's something that we feel we should do as a kind of leisure activity or hobby if we have enough time or if we have enough money to engage in them. And this is so fundamentally different to how humans engaged with the arts. When we look back thousands of years, it just was part of the everyday, and I feel like that's a major loss within contemporary societies."Daisy Fancourt is a Professor of Psychology & Epidemiology at UCL and the author of Art Cure: The Science of How the Arts Transform Our Health. A pioneer in the field of psychoneuroimmunology, she directs the WHO Collaborating Center on Arts and Health, where her research influences global health policy and the integration of the arts into medical care.(0:00) The Healing Power of the Arts: Longevity, Immunity & Wellbeing(1:17) Singing to Daphne: How Daisy used singing to comfort her premature daughter in the ICU(2:47) The Story of Russell: How a stroke survivor used art classes to reclaim his life, health, and identity(5:23) A Planet of 8 Billion Artists: Tracing the evolutionary origins of creativity back 40,000 years(8:58) Psychoneuroimmunology. Defining the biological mechanisms: how art reduces inflammation and cortisol(12:42) Art & Longevity. How arts engagement can slow biological aging and alter gene expression(18:24) Safeguarding Creativity. Why we should use AI for routine tasks but protect the human joy of the creative processEpisode Websitewww.creativeprocess.info/podInstagram:@creativeprocesspodcast

Did you know that visiting a museum can lower your cortisol levels? Or that singing can bond a group faster than almost any other activity? We tend to think of the arts as entertainment, but science tells a different story. Today, we explore why creativity is hardwired into our biology and how it can be used to treat everything from postnatal depression to stroke recovery.Daisy Fancourt is a Professor of Psychology & Epidemiology at UCL and the author of Art Cure: The Science of How the Arts Transform Our Health. A pioneer in the field of psychoneuroimmunology, she directs the WHO Collaborating Center on Arts and Health, where her research influences global health policy and the integration of the arts into medical care.(0:00) The Healing Power of the Arts: Longevity, Immunity & Wellbeing(4:14) The Story of Russell: How a stroke survivor used art classes to reclaim his life, health, and identity(9:01) A Planet of 8 Billion Artists: Tracing the evolutionary origins of creativity back 40,000 years(15:30) The Chemistry of Connection. Why singing evolved before language and how it accelerates group bonding(20:32) Psychoneuroimmunology. Defining the biological mechanisms: how art reduces inflammation and cortisol(25:57) The Professional Paradox: Balancing the wellbeing benefits of art with the pressures of a creative career(30:03) Predictive Coding & Play: Why the human brain needs improvisation and why we shouldn't outsource creativity to AI(33:26) Singing to Daphne: How Daisy usedsinging to comfort her premature daughter in the ICU(37:55) World Health Organization, Public Policy & Social Prescribing(46:04) Art & Longevity. How arts engagement can slow biological aging and alter gene expression(58:17) Finding Artistic Reverence in NatureEpisode Websitewww.creativeprocess.info/podInstagram:@creativeprocesspodcast

Why do we write? Is it to capture a memory before it vanishes or to build a bridge between the person we are and the stories we've been told? In this episode of The Creative Process, we explore the practice of writing as an awakening and tool for discovery with a group of celebrated poets, novelists, musicians and thinkers.We hear from neuroscientist, dancer and author Julia Christensen on how literature inspires transformative aesthetic experiences. Award-winning poet and clinical psychologist Hala Alyan discusses navigating displacement through narrative, while bestselling author Andre Dubus III reflects on the honest labor of the writer and the willingness to fail.Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Jericho Brown shares how the sounds of American vernacular guide his work and Fmr. US Poet Laureate Ada Limón discusses holding hope within frightening thoughts about the future of our planet. NYT Bestseller Aimee Nezhukumatathil speaks on tenderness towards the natural world and naturalist Sy Montgomery shares how animals have been her greatest teachers.The conversation expands with poet Max Stossel on finding humanity in conflict, Tiokasin Ghosthorse on the ancient energy of the earth and Julian Lennon on art as a collective human endeavor. Finally, composer Erland Cooper takes us to the landscape of his youth, where the sound of the sea informed his creative voice.To hear more from each guest, listen to their full interviews.Episode Websitewww.creativeprocess.info/podInstagram:@creativeprocesspodcast

How do we restore trust and defend democracy when the very foundations of truth are shifting? Today we look at truth, the decline of the American Empire and buiding a shared future through the eyes of educators and economists, artists and philosophers.(0:00) Lee McIntyre (Philosopher, Author) On Disinformation: How to Fight for Truth and Protect Democracy(2:21) Richard D. Wolff (Economist, Founder of Democracy at Work) on Ideological Control and the Decline of the American Empire(4:36) Kathleen Rogers (President, Earth Day Network) Why climate literacy should be a core requirement for school(5:11) Todd Kashdan (Psychologist, Author of The Art of Insubordination) on Critical Thinking in Education(6:17) Howard Gardner (Psychologist, Co-Director of The Good Project) on the Synthesizing Mind(7:34) Alan Poul (Emmy Award-winning Director/Producer of Six Feet Under, Tokyo Vice) on Paul Schrader, Stephen Sondheim  and the Importance of Mentorship(9:15) Jeffrey Sachs (Economist, President of UN SDSN) on Sustainable development and global citizenship for all(10:29) Jericho Brown (Pulitzer Prize-winning Poet of The Tradition) “When you are a writer, you are a person of power.”(11:38) Peter Singer (Moral Philosopher, Author of The Life You Can Save) on Altruism and How to Live a Good LifeTo hear more from each guest, listen to their full interviews.Episode Websitewww.creativeprocess.info/podInstagram @creativeprocesspodcast

“They're kind of like a hidden superhero in your body and we just didn't know they existed. Muse cells eat the damaged cells, and they can actually turn into new cells using the cellular machinery.”Dr. Adeel Khan is a global thought leader in regenerative medicine. He is the CEO and Founder of and founder of Eterna Health, whose work with MUSE cell therapy—developed in collaboration with its discoverer, Professor Mari Dezawa—has made him the go-to expert for world leaders, athletes, and celebrities Chris Hemsworth, Kim Kardashian, and Tony Robbins. In this episode, we move beyond the hype of "anti-aging" to explore the hard science of Muse cells (Multilineage-differentiating Stress-Enduring cells). Dr. Khan breaks down how these unique cells differ from the "medicinal signaling cells" (MSCs) found in most clinics and how they act as a bridge to a future where tissue regeneration is standard care.(0:00) The "Repair Guys" & The Muse Difference Dr. Khan explains why traditional stem cells (MSCs) often disappoint and how Muse cells offer the "best of both worlds": safety and pluripotency.(2:19) Smart Cells: How They Find the Damage Understanding the "homing mechanism" that allows Muse cells to sense inflammation and instinctively travel to injured areas like the brain or heart.(3:11) Curing the Incurable: Diabetes & Alzheimer's The potential of the "cure triad"—stem cells, gene therapy, and FMT—to treat complex autoimmune diseases within the next decade.(4:40) Biological Noise & The Symphony of Health How "static" in our gene expression indicates aging, and how cellular therapy can reduce this noise to restore the body's harmony.(6:40) The Viral Monkey Study Dr. Khan discusses a recent study showing significant de-aging in monkeys through high-frequency cell dosing.(7:32) Unshakeable Foundations: Lifestyle as Medicine Why advanced therapies must be paired with purpose, community, and mindfulness to create a "bulletproof" body.(8:44) From Sketchy to Standardized Navigating the regulatory landscape: why Muse cells are being classified as a drug in regions like the UAE and the path toward FDA approval.(12:24) A Personal Mission Dr. Khan shares the origin of his journey: trying to find solutions for his mother's chronic illness when traditional medicine failed.(14:16) The Cancer Hunter Unlike other pluripotent cells that risk tumor growth, Muse cells have a unique mechanism that can detect cancer cells and trigger their death.(18:30) Future Outlook: AI, Nature & Blue Zones Reflections on the risks of AI, the importance of "Blue Zone" city design, and reconnecting with nature in a post-human world.Episode Websitewww.creativeprocess.info/podInstagram:@creativeprocesspodcast

"The repair mechanisms don't work as well as you get older... The whole idea was: if we can give you more of the 'repair guys,' maybe we can reverse disease."Dr. Adeel Khan is a global thought leader in regenerative medicine. He is the CEO and Founder of and founder of Eterna Health, whose work with MUSE cell therapy—developed in collaboration with its discoverer, Professor Mari Dezawa—has made him the go-to expert for world leaders, athletes, and celebrities Chris Hemsworth, Kim Kardashian, and Tony Robbins. In this episode, we move beyond the hype of "anti-aging" to explore the hard science of Muse cells (Multilineage-differentiating Stress-Enduring cells). Dr. Khan breaks down how these unique cells differ from the "medicinal signaling cells" (MSCs) found in most clinics and how they act as a bridge to a future where tissue regeneration is standard care.(0:00) The Future of Regenerative Medicine(6:13) The Muse Difference: Why these cells are "pluripotent" (able to become any tissue) without the cancer risks of Yamanaka factors.(10:29) Curing the Incurable: Diabetes & Alzheimer's(11:27) The Cure Triad: How combining stem cells, gene therapy, and Fecal Microbial Transplants (FMT) could cure complex autoimmune diseases within a decade.(12:56) Biological Noise: Measuring the "mistakes" in our gene expression to quantify aging.(16:42) Lifestyle as Medicine: Why Dr. Khan prescribes community, mindfulness, and nature immersion alongside advanced therapies.(18:13) From Sketchy to Standardized: The Regulatory Landscape(23:25) A Personal Mission: Trying to Save Mom(25:38) The Cancer Hunter: How Muse cells naturally detect and trigger cell death in tumors.(29:02) Quantum Biology & Healing Frequencies (41:13) The AI Pessimist: Planning for a Post-Human World (44:03) Reconnecting with NatureEpisode Websitewww.creativeprocess.info/podInstagram:@creativeprocesspodcast

Can curiosity and empathy be taught? How can we expand our sense of solidarity through stories? In this episode, we explore the internal dialogues of artists, actors and writers to ask what it means to step into someone else's shoes.(0:00) Novelist Jim Shepard discusses Literature as a Tool for Emotional Education and Exploring History(2:05) Tony Award-winning Actor Neil Patrick Harris on Being Moved by Theater and its Ability to Bridge Worlds(3:55) Novelist Katie Kitamura on How a Book is Made in Collaboration with the Reader(5:00) Screenwriter, Playwright Laura Eason on Inhabiting the Hearts of Characters Different from Ourselves(6:03) Academy Award-winning Director Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy on the Art of Visual Storytelling(6:37) Cinematographer, Director Benoit Delhomme on the Freedom of Handheld Cinematography(7:19) Author Etgar Keret on Looking for Humanity through Shared Intention(8:18) Viet Thanh Nguyen – Opposing Power through Expansive Solidarity(9:27) Adam Moss – Author, Fmr. Editor New York magazine on “The Work of Art”(10:29) John Patrick Shanley – Tony & Academy Award-winning Writer, Director on Finding Value in Ordinary Experiences and the Creative Power of Daydreaming(11:56) Pulitzer Prize-winning Journalist Nicholas Kristof on Why Individual Stories are Necessary to Generate ConnectionTo hear more from each guest, listen to their full interviews.Episode Websitewww.creativeprocess.info/podInstagram:@creativeprocesspodcast

We are living through a moment of collision where it seems like the systems we built are turning against us, and the future feels unwritten. But is this the end, or is it the start of a new beginning? In this latest anthology, we explore the discipline of hope with Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Nicholas Kristof, The Dalai Lama, and a diverse group of global visionaries.This episode argues that while cynicism is an act of surrender, hope is a rigorous discipline of the mind. From how the arts can help us engage with deeper meanings described by composer Max Richter to the regenerative wisdom of forest ecologist Suzanne Simard, our guests explore how biology, philosophy, and journalism intersect to combat despair.In this episode, we explore:The Pinch Point: Why the next few decades will determine if society regenerates or collapses.Wired to Heal: How nature’s biological imperative is resilience, not destruction.The Reporter’s Armor: The emotional toll of witnessing trauma and how to maintain "undefeated despair".Intergenerational Wisdom: How we pass knowledge and values to the next generation.Featuring Explorer Bertrand Piccard (Founder, Solar Impulse Foundation), The Dalai Lama, Environmentalist Paul Hawken, Doc Filmmaker Rebecca Tickell (Kiss the Ground), Exec. Director, Pritzker Architecture Prize Manuela Luca-Dazio, and David Palumbo-Liu (Speaking Out of Place Podcast).To hear more from each guest, listen to their full interviews.Episode Websitewww.creativeprocess.info/podInstagram:@creativeprocesspodcast