At a Distance

Canadian novelist, essayist, and cultural commentator Stephen Marche, author of the new book The Next Civil War: Dispatches from the American Future , discusses the bleak potential of a civil war–scale event occurring in the U.S. in the not-so-distant future, why national lack of trust in the Supreme Court portends fractious violence, and the hope that remains for the country to be able to reinven...

Danish designer and entrepreneur Jens Martin Skibsted, co-author of the new book “Expand: Stretching the Future by Design” and a partner of the firm Manyone, speaks with us about how to practice long-view thinking in a fast-paced world, science fiction as a design tool, and why “human-centered” approaches to design might not be such a good thing.

iPod inventor, iPhone co-inventor, and Nest founder Tony Fadell, principal of the investment and advisory firm Future Shape, and author of the new book “Build: An Unorthodox Guide to Making Things Worth Making,” talks with us about learning through failure, why developing product and story goes hand in hand, and the greatest misconceptions about Apple’s ability to innovate.

Veteran technology journalist John Markoff, author of the new biography “Whole Earth: The Many Lives of Stewart Brand,” discusses the forces that have helped Brand forecast the future, the great value in Brand’s “eco-pragmatist” perspective, and why the next tech innovation is likely to come out of left field.

Jeff Rosenthal, co-founder of the global platform Summit, which organizes events and experiences for entrepreneurs, academics, athletes, artists, and others, speaks with us about the value of mystery in storytelling, generosity as a tool for cultivating community, and  why anything that’s truly worth building can’t be done alone.

Chef and restaurateur Andrew Carmellini, co-founder of the NoHo Hospitality Group, talks with us about using food as a way to nourish communities, why there’s no recipe for scaling restaurants, and the nuanced realities of local produce. Episode sponsored by Château Troplong Mondot .

Dr. Jo Handelsman, author of the new book “A World Without Soil: The Past, Present, and Precarious Future of the Earth Beneath Our Feet,” discusses the urgency of developing new antibiotics, why she’s opposed to calling soil “dirt,” and what Indigenous agricultural systems can teach us about protecting and rebuilding farmlands. Episode sponsored by Château Troplong Mondot .

British designer, creative director, and artist Samuel Ross, founder of the fashion label A-Cold-Wall, speaks with us about his reverence and respect for materials; essentialism as a response to excess; and why art, at its best, provokes questions.  Episode sponsored by Grand Seiko .

Novelist and veteran wine writer Jay McInerney, famous for his 1984 cult classic “Bright Lights, Big City,” talks with us about how vineyard owners are coping with the climate crisis, the opportunity plant-based fine dining presents for rethinking wine pairings, and why great food should cost a certain price. Episode sponsored by Château Troplong Mondot .

Kate Orff, founding principal of the landscape architecture and urban design studio Scape, discusses rewilding as one tool among many for restoring ecological infrastructure, oysters as engineering assistants in preventing coastal flooding, and other out-of-the-box solutions local and federal authorities should be considering before the next hurricane hits.  Episode sponsored by Château Troplong M...

Kathleen Finlay, president of the Glynwood Center for Regional Food and Farming in New York’s Hudson Valley, speaks with us about the great opportunities to be harnessed within local food systems, the health benefits of subscribing to a C.S.A., and the importance of giving people a voice in determining their foodscapes. Episode sponsored by Château Troplong Mondot .

Kyoto-based landscape architect, artist, and author Marc Peter Keane talks with us about listening to stones, how well-tended environments can help engage the senses, and the importance of thinking about the world not as a series in individual parts, but as a confluence of them.  Episode sponsored by Grand Seiko .

Social philosopher Daniel Schmachtenberger, a founding member of The Consilience Project, discusses the importance of taking multiple perspectives on a single situation, the challenge of international coordination when trying to solve global problems, and how collective action can mitigate catastrophic and existential risk.

Wava Carpenter, the curatorial director of the Design Miami fair, speaks with us about what she’s doing to make Design Miami a potent platform for conversation, how the pandemic created an ideological shift in the design industry, and the age-old debate around what constitutes “art” versus “design.” Episode sponsored by Grand Seiko. ​​https://www.grand-seiko.com/us-en

Bioacoustician and musician Bernie Krause, author of the new book “The Power of Tranquility in a Very Noisy World,” talks with us about quieting the mind by listening to nature, what he learned after losing his home and studio in a 2017 California wildfire, and his recordings of more than 100 species in their natural habitats for “The Great Animal Orchestra,” an immersive audio-visual exhibition n...

Computer scientist and investor Kai-Fu Lee, co-author of the new book “A.I. 2041: Ten Visions For Our Future,” discusses reasons to remain optimistic about artificial intelligence, why minimizing routine work could make space for more creativity, and the powerful role that science fiction can play in inspiring STEM professionals.

Mathematician and professor Jordan Ellenberg, author of the book “Shape: The Hidden Geometry of Information, Biology, Strategy, Democracy, and Everything Else,” speaks with us about the limitations of logic, how math can help us develop mindful skepticism, and why gerrymandering is no longer visible to the naked eye.

Entrepreneur and writer Emilien Crespo, founder of the publishing company Ordinary Flame, talks with us about the importance of getting out of one’s comfort zone, how an increasingly digital culture can intensify real-life experiences, and an adventure in Tokyo he went on with the artist Harold Ancart.  Episode sponsored by Grand Seiko .

Activist, journalist, and academic Raj Patel, co-author of the new book “Inflamed: Deep Medicine and the Anatomy of Injustice,” discusses why corporations encourage people to make changes within themselves rather than within society, the consequences of treating nature as a cheap and infinite resource, and how external anxieties, from payday loans to the stress of living in an exploitative culture...

Penny Abeywardena, New York City’s Commissioner for International Affairs, speaks with us about how the Trump era provided an opportunity for community leadership to harness its governing power, why an entrepreneurial spirit can aid in developing public policy, and how the city is navigating various pandemic-related issues, including vaccination requirements, keeping schools open, and a recent upt...

Anthropologist and historian Josh Berson, author of the new book “The Human Scaffold: How Not to Design Your Way Out of a Climate Crisis,” talks with us about why design thinking often fails to result in actual anthropological work, how reconsidering what it means to be comfortable can help us find environmental solutions, and the relationship between race, capitalism, and eating meat.

Devon Turnbull, founder of the hi-fi audio equipment company Ojas, discusses listening with intention, the parallels between consuming music and viewing art, how the Japanese audio scene’s emphasis on tradition and simplicity has informed his work, and the profound response to his D.I.Y. speaker-making kit. Episode sponsored by Grand Seiko .

Vanessa Barboni Hallik, founder and CEO of the fashion brand Another Tomorrow, speaks with us about building supply chains from scratch, how clothing resale marks a radical shift in how people think about fashion, and why the pandemic provides an opportunity to redefine luxury in terms of personal and planetary values.

Polish-American architect Daniel Libeskind, who designed the original Ground Zero master plan at the World Trade Center site, talks with us about his personal experience of the 9/11 attacks; how architecture can serve as an instrument for healing; and why the Tree of Life Synagogue he’s redesigning in Pittsburgh, to memorialize victims of the 2018 mass shooting there, represents a global vision fo...

Astrologer Alice Sparkly Kat, author of the new book “Postcolonial Astrology: Reading the Planets through Capital, Power, and Labor,” discusses the dual meanings of planets, the relationship between race and astrology, and why the practice is about making, not predicting, the future.