URSA

Welcome to another issue of URSA, Europe’s audio magazine! In this first section you’ll hear the latest news headlines from Europe, including updates on the Dutch Donald Trump’s victory in the country’s latest elections, the outcry against domestic violence in Italy, and new smoking bans in France. You’ll also hear climate updates, including how the Dutch Donald Trump winning the elections poses a...

Issue 24: December 2023 In this section we bring you two fantastic original pieces from Berlin-based producers. The first piece comes from Bear Radio School Alum Husna Chhoangalia and her brand new podcast I Didn’t See It , where she is joined by sports journalits Shireen Ahmed to explore the Hijab ban in French Football and the exclusivity of secularism. The second piece comes from And All That J...

Issue 24: December 2023 What’s more festive than a Christmas Market? Literally NOTHING. In this episode, we’re talking all things Christmas Markets, from warm bevs to chestnuts, sausages and stews. Will, Jill and Julia take themselves out for a cheery evening at the RAW Gelande Medieval Christma Market, where they stay warm by sipping Glühwein and watching a fantastic fireshow and axe throwing. Bu...

Issue 24: December 2023 In the Culture section URSA we bring you arts and culture from the heart of Berlin! Berlin’s history doesn’t stop at ground level. The city’s numerous bunkers, abandoned train stations and tunnel offer a deeper look into the stories that made Berlin what it is today. Jill speaks with Kay Hayne of the Berliner Unterwelten, E.V. about his 20 years with the foundation, leading...

Issue 24: December 2023 Anastasia Pilepchuk is a Berlin-based artist with Buryat roots. She creates many beautiful things, but it is her masks, or rather, facial adornments that have garnered the intrigue and appreciation from many, the world over. Julia Joubert speaks with Anastasia to find out more about her beaded, spiked, mirrored and laced creations, as the artist shares how her ancestry, lif...

Welcome to another issue of URSA, Europe’s audio magazine! In this first section you’ll hear the latest news headlines from Europe, including updates on the ongoing war in Gaza and Germany’s response. We also share audio from a recent Pro-Palestine demo we attended in Berlin. You’ll also hear climate updates from outside of Europe, looking at armed violence and its impact on climate change. In the...

Issue 23: November 2023 In this section we bring you two fantastic original pieces. The first piece comes from Asian Provocation , where producer and host Ayoto speaks to Professor Lara Sheehi and Professor Stephen Sheehi, authors of the book Psychoanalysis Under Occupation . Together they reflect on settler colonialism and violence, and the discourses of "normalization," "trauma," "resilience" ar...

Issue 23: November 2023 There is truly nothing quite like growing or foraging your own food! Replacing the supermarket frozen section with Berlin’s magical forests, Julia teams up with fungi enthusiast and foraging hobbyist, Hanna, to go mushroom hunting for their dinner. Hanna shares her extensive knowledge on mushrooms in Brandenburg, advice for novice foragers, the do’s and don’t of ethical har...

Issue 23: November 2023 In the Culture section URSA we bring you arts and culture from the heart of Berlin! The Barbaren Barbies is an all woman circus based in Berlin, and we headed to their most recent show, ‘The Wild Women Circus,’ at Zirkus Mond in October. Jill speaks with the troupe’s resident clown extraordinaire, Nicole Ratjen , about her love for clowning, performing, and working with the...

Issue 23: November 2023 Kera, aka Christian Hinz, a Berlin-based muralist, has been designing and painting beautiful facades for more than 23 years. Julia met with him at his studio in Berlin to discuss his start ingraffiti as a teenager, the influence of graphic design on his work, his distinguishable blue-grey-yellow colour palette, his favourite muraling experiences and more. Check out Kera's w...

Welcome to another issue of URSA, Europe’s audio magazine! In this first section you’ll hear the latest news headlines from Europe, including the rise of far right extremism in Germany, the potential rise of fentanyl on European soil, and a Spanish town’s investigation into AI-generated NSFW images of local girls. You’ll also hear climate updates, including a story about six young people from Port...

Issue 22: October 2023 In this section we bring you two fantastic original pieces. The first piece comes from the team at Quid Pro Euro , by Felix Trench and Zack Fortais-Gomm . Quid Pro Euro is a fiction comedy podcast about Europe, and the series explores how people in the 90’s predicted the EU would look like in the 21st century - and how wrong they were. The segment we feature is from the seri...

Issue 22: October 2023 The leaves are falling, the wind is blowing in, and with it comes the delicious aroma of all things comfort. In our instance? Dumplings! The earliest records of the existence of dumplings come from the Han Dynasty era in China - around 2000 years ago, so this month we headed to the one place we knew we could get our hands on a tasty Chinese Dumpling - Wok Show. Jill, Julia a...

Issue 22: October 2023 In the Culture section URSA we bring you arts and culture from the heart of Berlin! The Pergamon museum sits atop Berlin’s bustling museum island, and is filled with artifacts and antiquities from the Middle East. Jill stopped by the Museum before it closes for extensive renovations from October 2023 until the mid 2030s, to explore its exhibitions, its history, and how the m...

Issue 22: October 2023 This month we intriduce you to Artist and Tatooist, Lisa Bender, aka Etions Formidables . Julia Joubert meets Lisa at her apartment in Berlin to chat about the artist's start in banking, her fundamental need to be creative, where she draws inspiration and how she connects with her clients. Check out Lisa and her work at www.etions-formidables.eu or visit her studio Visions o...

Issue 21: September 2023 Welcome to another issue of URSA, Europe’s audio magazine! In this first section you’ll hear the latest news headlines from Europe, including France’s ban of the Abaya, how data centers in Norway are helping the country’s lobster industry, and Germany’s proposed citizenship reform. You’ll also hear climate updates, including Poland's pushback against climate policies, how...

Issue 21: September 2023 Our theme music is from Lucas Carey , with audio from Epidemic Sound . Cover art by Sian Amber Fletcher. Our first feature comes from Talia Augustidis , called The Sound Collector , from her podcast, UnReality . In this piece, she speaks with her sister, Teia, about the year their mother died when they were both young children, and a truth she learns almost two decades lat...

Issue 21: September 2023 Mogg is a New York style Jewish deli in the heart of Berlin Mitte. Housed in a historical building that was once a Jewish Girl’s school, Mogg is a poetic representation of the Jewish heritage, new and old, in the city. Jill and Will Maidment stopped by Mogg on a sweltering summer evening to try the famous Reuben sandwich, and they were NOT disappointed. Other eateries ment...

Issue 21: September 2023 In the Culture section URSA we bring you arts and culture from the heart of Berlin! The Panke Parcours is a grassroots festival that showcases the best of Wedding, Berlin, along the banks of the Panke river. It features live music, excellent local food, exhibitions, classes, puppet shows, and even a rubber duck race down the river itself. Jill stopped by the Festival for i...

Issue 21: September 2023 This month we meet journalist, podcaster and filmmaker Ben Knight to chat about his documentary We're All Going to Die. The film is a "mostly funny" look into the realities of climate anxiety and the individuals and communities preparing for the world's ecological collapse. We discuss how he got into filmmaking, his view on "Preppers" pre and post documentary and what his...

Issue 20: August 2023 Welcome to another issue of URSA, Europe’s audio magazine! In this first section you’ll hear the latest news headlines from Europe, including the story of the viral ‘#10secondi’ trend from Italy, updates on the Quran burnings in Sweden, and a lovely story about a group of Parisian neighbors who have built a truly inspiring community. You’ll also hear climate updates, includin...

Issue 20: August 2023 This month, our first piece comes from Bear Radio School Alum Kerra Schanofski and her brand new podcast about food, family and everyday life, called “ Be My Gast .” In each episode of the podcast, guests from around the world pull up a chair to chat about their most nostalgic dishes served by Kerra. The second piece comes from our friends at Radio Spaetkauf and their latest...

Issue 20: August 2023 Why does every Berlin hipster and their dog seem to be drinking Natural Wine right now… and honestly, what the f**k is it anyway? These were questions, among many, that URSA foodie Will Maidment, his fans, and Julia, had for this month’s episode. So we brought in an expert: Emidio, a sommelier and the co-founder of the Berlin and Munich-based natural wine supplier - Forever T...

Issue 20: August 2023 In the Culture section URSA we bring you arts and culture from the heart of Berlin! Kino Babylon is an iconic theater in the heart of Berlin Mitte. Opened in 1929 as a silent film cinema, the theater has gone through enormous changes in its 94 years - including wars, regime changes, the advent of sound and color in film, being abandoned - and being brought back to life to con...

Issue 20: August 2023 On a glorious summer evening in Berlin, we sit down with Eric Owusu and Yannick Nolting, the frontmen of the Berlin based Jazz and Afro-Soul collective, Jembaa Groove. Hot off the back of recording for their sophomore album, and in the middle of a global tour, Julia Joubert chats with Eric and Yannick about their inception as a band, their debut album Susuma, the misconceptio...