Episodes

  • The Secret Lives of Fireflies

    The Secret Lives of Fireflies
    Jun 19 2025
    Biologist Sara Lewis doesn’t just study fireflies—for her, fireflies are a living reminder that the world is pure magic. In this episode, the author of Silent Sparks: The Wondrous World of Fireflies unpacks the science of fireflies.
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    34 mins
  • Cities and Wildlife: Frenemies or Friends?

    Cities and Wildlife: Frenemies or Friends?
    May 29 2025
    Biologist Dr. Seth Magle wants to rethink what a city is – and who it’s for. As part of an alliance with 50 cities around the globe, Seth and other wildlife researchers have discovered an overlooked truth: that our large cities teem with interesting native wildlife.
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    35 mins
  • Can a Tiny Organism Transform Human Relations?

    Can a Tiny Organism Transform Human Relations?
    May 9 2025
    Artist Laurie Palmer believes they can. In her book, The Lichen Museum, Laurie explores what we can gain from learning to see life the way a lichen does.
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    28 mins
  • Season Six Coming Soon

    Season Six Coming Soon
    May 5 2025
    Season SIX Will Launch This Friday, May 9th New episodes, new guests, and new insights about nature and our built environments coming soon with season 6 of Shape of the World. And more on how we can live together–with nature, with cities, and with one another. Listen on Apple, Spotify, or your favorite platform.
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    1 min
  • Episode 33: Can Listening Be a Political and Moral Act?

    Episode 33: Can Listening Be a Political and Moral Act?
    Dec 22 2022
    Biologist David George Haskell says this collective inattention is a huge loss for each of us. It's like leaving money on the table because paying attention to the living world is a source of beauty, joy and renewal—one we can access at anytime from anywhere.
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    1 hr and 3 mins
  • Episode 32: What Should We Fix First?

    Episode 32: What Should We Fix First?
    Nov 18 2022
    Margaret Renkl's new book "Graceland at Last: Notes on Hope and Heartache From the American South is mix of graceful observations and practical solutions.
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    29 mins
  • Episode 31: Who Trashed My River?

    Episode 31: Who Trashed My River?
    Oct 12 2022
    The organization Nick Wesley co-founded, Urban Rivers, is creating The Wild Mile, the first-ever floating eco-park of its scale in the world.
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    24 mins
  • Episode 30: Privilege & Inequality in Animals

    Episode 30: Privilege & Inequality in Animals
    Aug 2 2022
    Guest Jenn Smith says that human concepts of intergenerational wealth and inequality occur also in the behaviors of animals.
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    33 mins