Audacious with Chion Wolf

For over a year, we followed American, Francesca Cronin as she experienced being a high school student abroad in Sarajevo. You’ll hear what she felt, what she learned, and how she changed. Plus, you’ll hear her dad’s reflections on loving her from afar, and from the best friend she made over there, too! And Audacious producer, Jessica Severin de Martinez, talks about how her experience as a German...

Writer and educator, Dr. César A. Cruz, said, “Art should comfort the disturbed and disturb the comfortable”. So on this episode, meet a goldsmith who turns expired abortion pills into jewelry, another artist who uses word art to amplify messages of racial justice, and a cartoonist who puts Disney characters into dire, real-life situations. GUESTS:  Dani Coke :  An illustrator and activist represe...

Today: Audacious trick shots! Hear from a guy who went viral for throwing plungers onto store signs, a Harlem Globetrotter on his slam dunk from 13,000 feet, a young woman who threw out the pre-game pitch at all 30 major league stadiums with her robotic hand, and one man whose 24-hour basketball free-throw experience created a massive fundraising operation for people with cancer. GUESTS:  Chris Iv...

I think it’s safe to say that all of us have multifaceted relationships with the way our faces look. We may notice a blemish here, a scar there, a bump or a divot all arranged on our face to show the world some of what makes us… us. But what if, on your precious face, it wasn’t just a blemish or a bump, but an injury so extensive that it makes people stare? Makes you reconsider what beauty means,...

Zulynette needs no last name. She’s a Hartford-based poet (among other things) whose book,  Seeing in the Dark , just came out. She joins Chion around a fire to talk about poetry, power, and, of course, names. GUEST:  Zulynette:  Visual artist, social worker, host of  The Creative Alchemist  podcast, creative workshop facilitator, creator of A Little Bit of Death, and a poet. Her books are  Buildi...

Note from Chion:  This episode of Audacious deals with themes that may be disturbing to some listeners, including stories from our guests about rape and assault. Ten people talk about why they had an abortion, how they feel about it years down the road, and how they felt when Roe v. Wade was overturned. Plus, what it's like telling your abortion story as a comedian. Alison Leiby, a Brooklyn-based...

Almost 1000 people have won Nobel Prizes. But only 300 have won IG Nobel Prizes! That’s the award honoring achievements that first make people laugh, and then make them think. In this episode, meet the creator of the prize, and three people who’ve won it! Mark your calendar : The next Ig Nobel Prize ceremony will happen on September 15, 2022! GUESTS:  Marc Abrahams : Founder of the Ig Nobel Prize...

Think about your BFF (that’s Best Friend For Life). Now, imagine if that “for life” part was a deliberate, co-creative commitment. You’re free to date other people if you’re into that kinda thing, but you put each other down as your emergency contact, you live together, you may even raise kids together. On this episode, you’ll meet people who are in what’s called Platonic Life Partnerships, or PLP...

What’s it like to be a child prodigy? In this episode, you’ll meet a boy who became a chess master at the age of ten, a pair of siblings who started college at seven years old, and one of the youngest members of the high-IQ society, Mensa, who joined it when she was two. GUESTS:  Tanitoluwa Adewumi :  an 11-year-old Nigerian-American chess prodigy and chess master, who co-wrote  My Name Is Tani ....

How do auctioneers do what they do? Meet some of the best in the business, including a 102 year-old auctioneer - America’s oldest. Plus, hear what it was like for the guy who auctioned off that $28 million seat on the rocket ship, New Shepard. And find out what happens when a lead charity auctioneer for Christie’s teams up with Bruce Springsteen. Finally, find out how Chion did when she tried her...

TikTok is full of… well, everything, so the Audacious team scoured the app to find people who use TikTok to spread kindness. Like a woman who researches and then cleans gravestones , another woman who cleans - at no charge - the houses of people who are going through tough times, and the CEO of a company whose employees post videos of drive-by compliments. GUESTS:  Auri Kananen, a.k.a. Auri Katari...

Here are a few things we often get wrong about anorexia: That it always has something to do with body image. That men don’t really get it. That it’s insurmountable. Hear from an eating disorder specialist, and two people - including one who is in recovery - talking about their lives with anorexia. GUESTS:  Mary Dobson: a certified eating disorder specialist, author and community organizer based in...

When you hear the words, “cuddle party”, what do you picture? Something playful? Something salacious? Something… else? When your culture equates affection with attraction, how does it feel to challenge that connection? And to what degree can affection be healing when it isn't necessarily connected with sex? Join Chion as she ponders all this during her experience one-on-one with...

You may be familiar with Joan of Arc, who cut her hair, wore men’s clothing and, well, led the French army in a momentous victory in 1429… But what about all the other women who dressed like the men of their times and cultures to get stuff done? You’ll hear all about them in this conversation with Tracy Dawson, author of  Let Me Be Frank: A book about women who dressed like...

Humans of New York is a photo-slash-storytelling-slash-fundraising powerhouse with 30 million followers on social media. You read narratives about overcoming adversity, personal revelations, or just flat-out great stories. Just that combination alone - the photos and their captions - have been enough to launch Humans of New York into worldwide popularity. But its creator, Brandon Stanton, has take...

Medical aid in dying offers what some may call “a good death”. But how will the increased use of it change our relationship with dying? Meet a hospice and palliative care consultant who has been present for over 1,500 deaths, and hear his concerns about the effect of so-called “designer deaths” on the human species. Then, hear from a woman living with terminal cancer who is an enthusiastic advocat...

What's it like being an environmental activist who takes a vow of silence for 17 years? What's life like as a Trappist monk who defaults to silence for a lifetime? And what's it like to be a public radio host who gives up speaking for a week? The voice in Chion's head narrates the experience, and you'll hear audio she collected along the way. GUESTS:  John Francis : an environmental activist who t...

This is a bonus track from the first time Chion Wolf spoke after a week-long vow of silence. It was for an episode of Audacious featuring two people who've had their own vows of silence, including an environmental activist who didn't speak for 17 years (with the exception of one time), and a Trappist monk, whose lifestyle defaults to silence. This video of this moment is also available here: ctpub...

The most common name in the United States is Smith, and if that's your surname, you'll have around 4.5 million others in the world to share it with. But just because you have a popular name like, say, Pat Smith, that doesn’t mean that you’re common! The four Pat Smiths you’ll meet are unique: an environmental activist, an adventurous videographer, an African-American kindergarten...

The odds that you’ll be in an airplane crash are about 1 in 1.2 million. The odds you’ll die that way? 1 in 11 million. So what’s it like being someone who made it through something like that? On today’s show, hear stories from two people who did, including a military pilot, and a woman who was one of only two survivors of a crash that claimed 107 lives. GUESTS:  Kechi Okwuchi : author of More Tha...

It’s one thing to have a hard time with parenthood. But what if you wholeheartedly regret it? On this  Gracie Award-winning episode , hear from two parents who feel this way, and find out how they balance feeling full of regret while wanting to make sure their kids are well taken care of. And is it really possible to love someone whom they regret bringing into existence? You’ll also meet a woman w...

This episode of Audacious is tops! You’re gonna meet the first African-American to summit Everest, the world’s first candidate to consider transplanting his head onto a different body, and how teachers and students of a special education school in the UK beat the world record for the tallest stack of hats worn for at least 30 seconds! GUESTS:  Sophia Danenberg: The first African-American and first...

On past episodes of our Audacious Love series, we’ve talked with people who’ve been married for over 50 years, people who’ve fallen in love with synthetic companions, people who’ve fallen love with objects, and today, you’ll meet four people who are married to spirits, ancestors, or gods. GUESTS:  Dr. Megan Rose : An initiated ceremonial magician, a Shakta Tantric practitioner, and the author of S...

How do you define forgiveness? Turns out, the definition tends to be as different as every person. And that definition changes depending on where you are in the process, too! On this episode of Audacious, Chion talks about it with a best friend, a pastor, a philosopher, and a man who lost his face after getting hit by a drunk driver. You’ll also hear ponderings on forgiveness from some of our Auda...

On the most recent episode of Audacious, we talked about the definition of forgiveness. It seems like every person has their own interpretation of it, and how we define it often defines us.  David Whyte is a philosopher, poet, speaker, and author of Consolations: The Solace, Nourishment, and Underlying Meaning of Everyday Words . He begins our conversation by reading the passage on forgivenes...