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

“Imagining with precision is a very fundamental part of my work. When I sit down to write about anything, whether it be The Hungry Tide in the Sundarbans, or let's say The Shadow Lines, or Ghost-Eye. It's very important for me to get the topography right, to get the outlay of the streets or the house exactly right so I can actually picture all of that in my head. It's very important for me to have a sort of pictorial sense of what I'm seeing and what I'm writing about. Before I can write about it, I need to see it, as it were. So that's absolutely fundamental to my craft. That's just how I go about it. Like the Sufis say—behind the apparent reality is a hidden or batin reality. “In this episode of the Speaking Out of Place podcast, Professor David Palumbo-Liu talks with Amitav Ghosh about his new novel, Ghost-Eye. The novel is about reincarnation, but also a lot more. In our conversation we talk about the need to address the terrible set of environmental and other crises we face, and the seeming foreclosure of the imagination by the obsession with technology and the future it offers to us. Instead, we look to how we can fashion beginnings out of endings, aided by a renewed sense of wonder, curiosity, and awe. We turn to the body, to the haptic, and perhaps most important, to food as more than simply nourishment. In all this, story-telling, the revival of connections between living beings, and a deep sense of other times and places are central.(0:56) Planetary Crisis and Accelerating Disasters(3:50) The Lasting Impact of The Hungry Tide(5:00) Storytelling and the Existential Crisis(8:26) Imagining with Precision in Literature(12:46) The Denuded Human Existence and AI(15:37) Artisanal Intelligence vs. Artificial Intelligence(17:57) Food, Industrial Agriculture, and Memory(21:16) Cultural Assimilation Through Cooking(24:12) The Sociability and Joy of Cooking(27:57) The Failure of the Humanities(31:38) The Role of the Narrator(35:27) Regaining Our Sense of Wonder(37:04) Past Life Memories and Circular TemporalityEpisode Websitewww.palumbo-liu.com https://speakingoutofplace.com Bluesky @palumboliu.bsky.social Instagram @speaking_out_of_place

Today, we examine how we will adapt to a changing climate and learn to listen to the Earth.(0:00) Abrahm Lustgarten (Reporter, ProPublica) (3:00) Jon Gertner (Author, The Ice at the End of the World) (5:32) Bill Hare (CEO, Climate Analytics) (6:35) Rob Nixon (Prof. Environmental Humanities, Princeton) (8:12) Louis de Jaeger (Co-founder, Food Forest Institute) (10:06) Kathleen Rogers (Pres., EarthDay.org) (11:31) Rebecca Tickell (Filmmaker, Kiss the Ground) (13:42) Ben Goldfarb (Author, Crossings) (14:56) Jane Madgwick (CEO, Plantlife International) (19:23) Jason deCaires Taylor (Sculptor, Underwater Museums) (21:02) William McDonough (Architect, Cradle to Cradle) (23:19) Euan Nisbet (Scientist, Royal Holloway) (26:06) Roland Geyer (Author, The Business of Less) (28:15) Ron Gonen (CEO, Closed Loop Partners) (29:34) Paul Shrivastava (Co-President, Club of Rome) (30:14) Carlo Ratti (Architect, Dir., MIT Senseable City Lab) (31:24) Osprey Orielle Lake (Founder, WECAN) (32:38) Liza Featherstone (Journalist) (33:41) Yolanda Kakabadse (Fmr. President, WWF)For more, listen to their full interviewsEpisode Site: https://www.creativeprocess.info/interviews-featured/anth-regen

“I've discovered in my studies of creativity in general that creativity is not about starting with a brilliant idea and then following a linear path to an execution of your idea. What I see in art and design is a much more iterative, wandering, exploratory process where the ideas emerge from the act of engaging in the work.”Dr. Keith Sawyer’s work focuses on creativity and human ingenuity. With over 20 books and a career that spans computer science, psychology, and the study of innovation, he has explored what it means to lead a creative life. Following his foundational research with Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, his books include Explaining Creativity and Group Genius. In his latest book, Learning to See: Inside the World's Leading Art and Design Schools, he pulls back the curtain on how elite institutions cultivate the creative mind. He has been a jazz pianist for over 40 years. We will explore the evolution of his research, and what music and improvisation have taught him about life.(0:00) The Non-Linear Process of Creativity(3:12) Teaching Students to Find Their Own Aesthetic(7:13) The Pressure to Replicate Success(13:31) Guided Improvisation in Education (16:46) Unlearning Rigid Perceptions(22:52) Embodiment and the Material World(25:27) Deep Listening and Jazz Improvisation(27:09) Domain General vs. Domain Specific Creativity(30:07) Architecture as an Exchange(37:47) Learning from Nature: The Velcro Lesson(42:54) Gen AI and Human Ingenuity(44:42) The System of Improv(1:01:08) The Value of Problem FindingEpisode Websitewww.creativeprocess.info/podInstagram:@creativeprocesspodcast

Look closely at the screen in front of you. It is no longer just a passive device; it is actively shaping your perception. Today, we investigate the cognitive and ethical costs of offloading our reason to algorithms and ask what happens when our tools begin to train us? We explore the rise of surveillance capitalism with those documenting the shift—technologists Jaron Lanier, Henry Ajder, and Antonella Wilby. We hear from those fighting to preserve our essence and agency—philosophers Iain McGilchrist and C. Thi Nguyen, economist Jeffrey Sachs and ecologist Carl Safina. Grounding us in the power of expression, are artists and writers Trevor Paglen, April Gornik, Etgar Keret, and Hans Ulrich Obrist. In these original interviews for The Creative Process, our guests remind us that we must never surrender our messy, human reality to artificial perfection.(0:00) Trevor Paglen (Artist) The cognitive cost of offloading our reasoning to AI (3:26)(2:28) Jaron Lanier (Computer Scientist, VR Pioneer) The Turing Test and the degradation of humanity (14:30)(5:42) Henry Ajder (AI & Deepfakes Expert) The unprecedented speed of generative AI(8:48) Hans Ulrich Obrist (Artistic Director, Serpentine Galleries) The fight for net neutrality(10:14) Antonella Wilby (Roboticist, NatGeo Explorer) Encoded biases, the danger of neutral tech(11:50) C. Thi Nguyen (Philosopher, Author) Thin metrics and the truth about screen time(13:09) Carl Safina (Ecologist, Author) Mechanization and human dignity(15:17) Jeffrey Sachs (Economist, Center for Sustainable Development) Citizen responsibility (23:06)(16:54) Etgar Keret (Writer, Filmmaker) Enslavement to the machine, outsourcing imagination(19:07) April Gornik (Artist) The historical parallel between AI and nuclear weapons(20:46) Iain McGilchrist (Psychiatrist, Author) Wisdom vs. utility in artificial intelligenceTo hear more from each guest, listen to their full interviews here or http://www.creativeprocess.info/podEpisode Website IG@creativeprocesspodcast

“I think in terms of the Land-Grab project: looking at that history and really beginning to learn more about the history of education in the United States—and especially Indian education—a lot of that was new to me. So, our project that we did about two years ago, building on Land-Grab, was our Misplaced Trust investigation at Grist. We wanted to go back to those universities and start looking at not just the history of how they got their finances, but looking at the present to understand how dispossession and extraction are ongoing.”In this episode of the Speaking Out of Place podcast, Professor David Palumbo-Liu and guests Tristan Ahtone, Andrew Herscher and Robert Warrior take a deep look into universities, and education more broadly with We focus on a critique of land grant universities, which were built on land granted by the federal government. What we learn is that lands were stolen from Indigenous peoples through violence-based treaties and seizures. These 57 universities have used wealth derived from those initial acts of theft to buy more property, expand holdings, and enrich themselves. In contrast, we see the continued harm these universities do to Native peoples. This harm comes what Herscher calls “non-memory,” which creates knowledge that distorts and omits historical truths and impedes upon Indigenous futures. We talk about the deep damage non-memory does to education for all, and the ways people have fought back to retrieve, restore, and grow knowledge through scholar-journalist activism like the Land Grab University project.(6:18) The Morrill Land-Grant Act and the Origins of Institutional Wealth(7:38) Visualizing the Massive Wealth Transfer(15:30) The Northwest Ordinance and the Architecture of Deletion(27:32) Reframing Education as Indigenous Negotiation(46:33) Settler Insecurity and the Politics of Non-memoryTristan Ahtone (Kiowa) is Editor at Large at Grist and one of the foremost journalists covering Indigenous affairs in America. He previously served as Editor in Chief of the Texas Observer and Indigenous Affairs editor at High Country News.Andrew Herscher’s work endeavors to bring the study of architecture and cities to bear on struggles for justice, democracy, and self-determination across a range of global sites. He is the co-founder of a series of militant research collectives, including Detroit Resists, Settler Colonial City Project, and the We the People of Detroit Community Research Collective. Robert Warrior is Hall Distinguished Professor of American Literature and Culture at the University of Kansas and a member/citizen of the Osage Nation. He is the author of Tribal Secrets: Recovering American Indian Intellectual Traditions, The People and the Word: Reading Native Nonfiction.https://www.creativeprocess.info/speaking-out-of-place-6/land-grab-universitieshttps://www.palumbo-liu.comhttps://speakingoutofplace.comBluesky @palumboliu.bsky.social IG @speaking_out_of_place

“Architecture should bring a true sensation of wellbeing. We were really lucky to experience that as children, and now as architects, we try to bring all that we learned into our practice.”Salwa and Selma Mikou are the founders of Paris-based Mikou Architecture. Born in Fez, Morocco and educated in Paris, they have spent the last two decades reimagining the relationship between the built environment and the cultural landscape.After honing their craft under two of the world’s most iconic architects, Jean Nouvel and Renzo Piano, they founded their own studio. For them, architecture is a living interaction with landscape and what they call the Atlas of Resonance, interpreting the hidden layers of a territory, geology, memory, and craft. It is a philosophy that rejects the generic, seeking instead to weave together technological innovation with local materials. Whether it is a mosque in the north of England or a hybrid innovation hub in a former royal manufactory, their work asks a fundamental question: How does space shape the way we think, learn and remember?They were selected by Rem Koolhaas to represent Morocco at the Venice Biennale. Most recently, they were commissioned by Hermès to create a 17,000-square-meter facility that bridges industrial performance with poetic expression. At the heart of their practice is a belief that architecture is not just about building—it’s about shaping relationships: between people, between past and future, between technology and craft.(0:04) The Intuitive Knowledge of Living Art(4:24) The Medina and the Geometry of Childhood(8:18) The Social Spaces of Rooftops(13:46) The Intuitive Knowledge of Living Art(15:31) Contextual Echoes & Traces of the Site(19:18) The Twin Dynamic and Confrontation with 'l'autre'(26:42) The Temples of Water(33:24) The Mosque as Pure Spatiality(38:01) The Crisis Period and Structural Systems(48:24) Building Culture with Yves Saint Laurent & Pierre Bergé(51:38) The Wast ed-dar (وسط الدار) and the Heart of a Building(57:02) Preserving the Human Core of Expression(1:04:29) Urban Acupuncture in the Modern City(1:08:46) The Smells and Sounds of Home(1:10:02) Balance, Nature, and SisterhoodEpisode Websitewww.creativeprocess.info/podInstagram:@creativeprocesspodcast

Can fiction help us make sense of an increasingly chaotic world? For Mark Greaney, writing international thrillers isn't just about explosive action—it's about untangling the messy realities of disinformation, institutional erosion, and AI-driven conflict. The author of The Gray Man series joins us to discuss his path to publishing, training alongside military operatives, and why the most terrifying threats in his novels are often pulled straight from today’s headlines.Mark Greaney is a #1 New York Times bestselling author and has spent his career exploring the technical and human complexities of the modern thriller. A student of international relations and political science, he has spent the last two decades at the intersection of deep-state espionage and the high-tech future of warfare. The Grey Man series is also a motion picture starring Ryan Gosling. Greaney was entrusted to carry forward the Jack Ryan universe created by the late Tom Clancy. To get the details right, Mark doesn’t just sit at a desk; his writing is built on a foundation of immersive experiential research. He’s traveled to dozens of countries, trained with SWAT teams, and even flown in Navy fighter jets.His latest book, The Hard Line, brings his protagonist back to a landscape of old conflicts in Northern Ireland and forces him to confront a father he hasn't seen in twenty years. It’s a story about the blood we share and the blood we shed. It arrives at a moment when the boundaries of global conflict are being redrawn by AI, disinformation, and a shifting geopolitical order.(0:00) The AI Arms Race(0:53) Maladaptive Daydreaming in Childhood(1:50) Following Your Passion(4:39) Growing Up with a Newsman Father(8:10) Collaborating with Tom Clancy(11:05) Work Ethic and Enjoying the Process(13:24) The Weight of Grief and Becoming an Adult(16:18) The Reality of Consequences in Fiction(18:01) The Evolution of Court Gentry(22:02) An Unconventional Path to Writing(26:33) Writing Through Physical Pain(30:56) The Weaponization of AI in Warfare(32:41) The Erosion of Truth and Bot Farms(38:06) The Cold War vs Modern Political Polarization(40:46) The Gray Man Film Adaptation(42:56) Immersive Military and Weapons Research(45:14) The Value of the Outsider Perspective(46:31) Reading from The Hard Line(50:42) Justifying Treason in Espionage(54:40) The Climate Crisis and Erosion of Institutions(57:51) The Media and Complexity(1:00:55) Adapting Education for a Changing World(1:05:49) Advice for Writers to Follow Your PassionEpisode Websitewww.creativeprocess.info/podInstagram:@creativeprocesspodcast