A lonely Antartic landscape.

The Contemplative Silence Of A Cold, Lonely Journey

Articles

In 1993, Norwegian explorer Erling Kagge became the first person to cross Antarctica alone. It took him 50 days. The thing that had the biggest impact on him was the silence.More

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How Psychedelic Experiences Might Treat Depression

Fruit bodies of the fungus Psilocybe pelliculosa
Articles

After the excesses of the 1960s — and an ensuing moral panic — psychedelic research was outlawed by the United States government for decades. But today, the research is blossoming as a promising treatment for depression and anxiety.

Length: 
14:30

Do 10 Burpees And Call Me In The Morning

exercise
Articles

Exercise is good for you. And while that might seem pretty obvious, Dr. Claudia Reardon says that it goes deeper than that — specific exercises can actually act as effective treatments for specific mental illnesses.

Length: 
8:41

Sharing Eye-To-Eye Epiphanies With The Animal World

eyes
Articles

Squirrels and pigeons share our sidewalks and park benches. Crows pick through our trash, rabbits munch on our lawns. They watch us; we ignore them. What would change if we actually met their eyes? 

100 Bird Eyes Are Watching You

"Birds Watching." Printed reflective film mounted on aluminum on steel frame.
Photo Gallery

In Chicago, writer Gavin Van Horn and environmental artist Jenny Kendler visit her new art installation, which confronts viewers with the gaze of 100 giant bird eyes. It's meant to provoke curiosity, wonder, and awareness of how many non-human eyes are always watching us.

Length: 
15:24

'We Are The Feast' — A Feminist Philosopher's Life-Changing Encounter With A Crocodile

crocodile eye
Audio

The feminist eco-philosopher Val Plumwood was one of the few people to survive a crocodile's death roll. The attack reoriented her thinking about life, death, and what it means to be human.

Length: 
8:20

Watching the Fierce Green Fire Die: Animal Gazes That Shaped Conservation Movements

Northern Rocky Mountains wolf
Audio

There are two famous moments that helped shape environmental politics. Gavin Van Horn, of the Center for Humans and Nature, tells us what happened when Aldo Leopold met the eyes of a dying timber wolf and when Paul Watson looked into the eye of a dying sperm whale.

Length: 
10:08

In The Eye Of The Osprey: A Physicist's Wild Epiphany

osprey
Sonic Sidebar

Locking eyes with another creature in the wild can be a profound experience. For physicist and writer Alan Lightman, half a second of eye contact with a pair of ospreys felt like an epiphany.

Length: 
2:24

Hope Is Faith In Life Itself

Life springs eternal
Sonic Sidebar

Even facing the bleakest outcomes that climate change might inflict on our planet, we have to have faith in a new future. That’s something writer Anne Lamott has been struggling with too.

Length: 
2:22

Tales of Dragons That Fight Segregation, and AI That Fights Transphobia

AI robots and dragons
Articles

Victor LaValle is the editor of a collection of short stories where — even in dire situations and terrifying futures — everyone has a place, and a chance at being the hero.

Length: 
11:08

Can We Have Hope If The World Is 'Doomed'?

Barren wastes
Articles

Journalist and essayist Roy Scranton has been called "our Jeremiah of the Anthropocene." His book "We’re Doomed. Now What?" is a hard-headed — often terrifying — look at how climate change could transform our planet, and how that impact might shape our daily thoughts and experiences.

Length: 
13:35