World Footprints

Janet Cheatham Bell is an author, scholar, budding playwright and mother to CNN host, W. Kamau Bell, of United Shades of America. Having lived through America’s Civil Rights Movement, Janet joins World Footprints to reflect on her life journey from a segregated Indiana to her interracial marriage that defied the laws of the era. We also talk to Janet about the Black Lives Matter (BLM) protests and...

Do you wonder who will tell your story and how you’ll be portrayed? How can you control your narrative? Why should we be concerned with uncovering the full truth of our collective history? Meet Ardre Orie--a social activist, entrepreneur, publisher, philanthropist and author who is on a mission to give marginalized voices a platform to speak. Ardre is the CEO of 13th & Joan Publishing and the foun...

In Episodes One and Two of Escape from India during COVID-19, we heard from veteran journalist Anietra Hamper, who gave us a chilling, first-hand account of her time in India as COVID-19 spread through the country. Anietra and her guide, Ian Henderson of The Greatest Fish, traveled to India on a fishing assignment to write about a rare catfish called the Goonch, but the outbreak of COVID-19 left t...

"All we want to do is leave!" In Episode One of Escape from India during COVID-19, we introduced you to veteran journalist Anietra Hamper who was trying to escape from India after COVID-19 derailed her fishing assignment trip. Anietra and her fishing guide, Ian Henderson, were left stranded in India with only a narrow window to get out. In this episode, we hear about the multiple obstacles that An...

What was meant to be a four-week writing assignment to Nepal and India for veteran journalist Anietra Hamper, turned out to be an absolute nightmare for her and her traveling companion, Ian Henderson. In March 2020, Anietra and Ian set out in search of the goonch--a very rare catfish also know as the giant devil catfish. Anietra was hired by a prominent fishing magazine to write about the elusive...

Today we’re going to explore the land down under – Australia. As an extra bonus we will also enjoy a listener’s favorite travel memory. What is it about Australia that captures our imagination? We had hoped to explore parts of Australia until COVID-19 forced a change in all of our plans. So we did the next best thing, we traveled vicariously through the stories of our Australian friend and fellow...

What do you get when you take several stacks of pancakes, add some miniature figurines and a stream of syrup? If you’re photographer Erin Sullivan you’ll get a scene of a canyon with hikers walking by a waterfall. Erin Sullivan is an accomplished photographer and traveler blogger. She showcases her work on her blog Erin Outdoors. During this pandemic Erin created a challenge called #TheGreatIndoor...

When travel writing is your profession, adjusting to a new normal of not traveling can be tough and even downright weird. To understand the impact that COVID-19 is having on the travel journalism community and to gain some insight into what the future of travel may hold, we spoke to an award-winning veteran travel writer, Tim Leffel. Tim Leffel publishes multiple blogs and online magazines includi...

If you want to hear about what the future face of travel might look like post-coronavirus ask someone who travels for a living. That's what we did when we sat down with fellow travel journalist Helen Hatzis of Trip Jaunt. In addition to being a travel journalist Helen is known for many other things. She she was recognized as one of Canada’s Nicest Person's by Roots Canada celebrating Canada’s 150t...

This mandatory pause that’s been imposed on us because of COVID-19 is very challenging; especially for those of us who travel frequently. But a fellow travel journalist, Terri Marshall of Tripping with Terri says that technology has offered us ways to feed our wanderlust at home. Terri writes a lot about multi generational travel and, in fact, she told World Footprints that the first post-corona t...

Join World Footprints as we interview a friend and Knight Wallace Journalism Fellow about the challenges facing LGBTQ+ travelers and hear from a digital nomad about her life on the road. First, travel journalist, Michael Luongo, has researched and written about the role travel journalism plays in tourism development in conflict zones and urban areas under stress. Michael also has his pulse on trav...

You have probably seen the men with black coats, black panama-style hats and long curly sideburns (payots) and wondered who they are. These men (and women) in black are members of the Hasidic Jewish religious group that arose as a spiritual revival movement in 18th century Eastern Europe. The Hasidic Judaism community has grown exponentially beyond Eastern Europe and if you visit Brooklyn, New Yor...

Imagine a bi-partisan dinner with U.S. Senators and Representatives at the Library of Congress with leading contemporary historians and a billionaire patrotic philanthropist. Then image an evening of enlightened discussions about American history without the presence of media or political jockeying. This is the setting of the Congressional Dialogues that philanthropist and Carlyle Group co-founder...

In an era of segregation, the Green Book directed African-American travelers to safe havens as they traveled through inhospitable and outright dangerous places. Indeed, being a Black family in the time of segregation having to travel by car across America through Sundown Towns and knowing that there was no one to protect you is a frightening and daunting proposition. We’ll explore the legacy of th...

Explore the richness and depth of Kansas City’s black history from sports and jazz to food and social advancement on World Footprints with Ian and Tonya Fitzpatrick. First, we’ll talk to Bob Kendrick, President of the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City. Bob says that the Negro Leagues is more than a story about baseball. It is the story of the beginning of the civil rights movement. It i...

The island of Puerto Rico was still recovering from the destruction caused by Hurricane Maria when a Magnitude 6.4 earthquake shook the island. As of this taping, Puerto Rico was hit by a 5.3 quake. Yet, despite these natural disasters Sarah Ratliff, owner of Purple Coqui tours and a resident of Puerto Rico, along with freelance writer Cassandra Brooklyn, who just returned from Puerto Rico, say th...

For 2020, nude travel and space tourism are two of the top travel trends that we'll see emerge. Surprised? Don't be. Nakations, otherwise known as nude recreation and nude travel represents a $550 million global industry. Jeff Baldasarre with the American Association for Nude Recreation, an organization that represents 52 million individuals and 180 resorts and campgrounds worldwide, says that nud...

Being well traveled doesn’t prepare you to live in another country. In addition to learning a new language there is subtle cultural differences that require some adjustment. Susan Haskins and Dan Pressure, International Living writers and authors of the new book, Live Richer, Spend Less, moved from Omaha, Nebraska nearly 2 decades ago and have lived in several different countries since then. So we...

Join us for thought-provoking conversations that examine voluntourism and the impact that conservation practices and tourism have on the Galapagos Islands. First, voluntourism aka volunteer travel projects are helpful to communities in need. But, intercultural educator Lena Papadopoulos says that some projects cause more harm to the communities they are meant to serve and it behooves us to recogni...

Iceland is a country of sharp contrasts--Where dark winter night are offset by a sleepless summer sun—where fire and ice co-exist; and where a dramatic landscape and insular existence supports folklore and informs a vibrant culture. We set out exploring Iceland aboard the Ocean Diamond, the small cruise ship of ProCruises Iceland. Captain Herve Parage and Expedition Leader, Dorothee Hippel guided...

Join World Footprints for our conversation with New York Times bestselling author Patricia Schultz and Avalon Travel’s Grace Fujimoto about their newest books, the Deluxe edition of 1,000 Places to See Before You Die and Wanderlust. Author Patricia Schultz has transformed her New York Times bestselling book, 1,000 Places to See Before you Die, into an illustrated masterpiece featuring 1,000 mesmer...

Depending on your age you may know actor/singer John Schneider as “Bo Duke” from The Dukes of Hazzard or more recently from Dancing with the Stars or on Tyler Perry’s show, The Haves and Have Nots. Either way, John has been involved with an artistic or charitable project that has reached you but he shared some things with us that will surprise you. Pianist Kendol Bacchus has played private events...

The photographs of Ansel Adams are among America’s finest artistic treasures. Now a landmark book containing a collection of photographs that Ansel selected before his death of his beloved Yosemite National Park has just been published for the first time in book form. We spoke to Ansel’s son, grandson and dark-room assistant about the impact of his work and legacy. Mahisha Dellinger grew up in the...

"No duty is more urgent than that of returning thanks." -- James Allen We owe our men and women in uniform a huge debt. Not only do they sacrifice their lives for the freedoms we enjoy, they also display incredible statesmanship in the line of duty. Chez Chesak is an Army National Guardman turned travel journalist. In 2005, Chez was deployed to Kirkuk, Iraq, as part of a combat team comprised of i...

From open boarders to climate change, the Norwegian archipelago island of Svalbard (also known as Spitsbergen) is an open border island that speaks to some of the most pressing and challenging issues of the day. Located between mainland Norway and the North Pole, Svalbard is the largest of the islands and one of the northernmost inhabited areas. Atossa Abrahamian, senior editor of The Nation, join...