Walt Disney’s Wish Upon an Atom With Sam Gennawey

About this episode

The episode explores Walt Disney's vision for a nuclear-powered city and its implications for innovation and technology.

What if Walt Disney had actually built the city of the future—powered by nuclear energy? In the Season 5 premiere of Fissionary, hosts Mary Carpenter and Jordan Houghton sit down with urban planner and author Sam Gennawey to uncover how Walt’s imagination extended far beyond theme parks. From Disneyland to his unrealized vision for Epcot, Walt dreamed of communities built around innovation, clean power, and human connection. Sam shares how those plans included a nuclear-powered city under a climate-controlled dome, what it reveals about Disney’s faith in technology, and why his “yes, if” philosophy still matters today. Visit us at www.nei.org/fissionary . Sam’s Book: Sacred Landscapes  Fissionary Wants To Hear From You! Fill out our short listener survey Music used in this episode was created by Beat Mekanik

People in this episode

Hosts: Mary Carpenter, Jordan Houghton

Guest: Sam Gennawey

Topics covered

• Walt Disney
• nuclear energy
• urban planning
• innovation
• clean power
• human connection

Keywords

• Walt Disney
• nuclear energy
• urban planning
• Epcot
• Disneyland
• innovation
• clean power

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Disney

Books & works: Sacred Landscapes

Places: Epcot, Disneyland

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