Posts tagged Travel
Scott Shigeoka | Staying Curious on Contentious Issues

Election season often highlights a range of hot-button topics, from abortion to immigration, which becomes trickier to navigate when conversations pop up with friends or at the dinner table. While we’re often told to be curious about other perspectives, many of us do not know where to start. Worse, we don’t know how to stay curious about issues that elicit our strong opinions. In this interview, curiosity expert Scott Shigeoka shares his research and in-the-field experience using curiosity to navigate polarizing issues. Scott talks about the personal benefits experienced when people are curious. He goes on to talk about how people can become more curious and why maintaining boundaries and earning the right to be curious are important. He finishes the discussion by sharing what he learned on a year-long, 4,500 mile “curiosity journey” across the United States that gave him the opportunity to meet, talk with, and connect with people from a wide variety of backgrounds.

Scott Shigeoka is a globally recognized curiosity expert, speaker, and the award-winning author of SEEK: How Curiosity Can Transform Your Life and Change the World. He popularizes research that promotes positive well-being and relationships, including at UC Berkeley’s Greater Good Science Center and through his groundbreaking courses at the University of Texas at Austin. He has spoken at universities, schools, companies, and conferences around the world. He is also a screenwriter and playwright.

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Dr. Karthick Ramakrishnan | The Value of Democracy

How has democracy enabled Americans to thrive over the last 240+ years? Dr. Karthick Ramakrishnan shares his “only in America” story, talks about how the United States, despite its challenges and problems, is a land of opportunity, and why democracy is an important reason for these opportunities.

Dr. Karthick Ramakrishnan has served in leadership roles that span academia, government, public policy, and philanthropy. He is currently a researcher at the University of California, Berkeley and director of AAPI Data, a nationally recognized publisher of demographic data and policy research on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. He is also Strategy Lead for the Americas at School of International Futures, and Senior Advisor at States for the Future

Dr. Ramakrishnan previously served as Executive Director of California 100, a transformative statewide initiative focused on California’s next century, and as president of the Association of Princeton Graduate Alumni. He also served for 4 years as associate dean of UC Riverside’s School of Public Policy and for 19 years as a professor. He has published many articles and 7 books, including most recently, Citizenship Reimagined (Cambridge, 2020) andFraming Immigrants (Russell Sage, 2016), has written dozens of opeds and has appeared in nearly 3,000 news stories. More information at www.karthick.com.

Thank you to Starts with Us for their collaboration on this series. Starts with Us is an organization committed to overcoming extreme political and cultural division. Check them out at startswith.us.

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Digital Nomads and Worldschooling with Annika Paradise

There are approximately 35 million digital nomads - workers who work online from various places around a country or around the world - and the number is poised to grow rapidly. As tools that enable remote work improve and travel infrastructure grows, the idea of taking a family with children still in school on a digital nomad journey is becoming much more appealing to many parents.

Annika Paradise is one of the co-authors of the book “Wonder Year” - a guide to long-term family travel and worldschooling - in which she chronicles the twelve-month around the world adventure she, her husband, and their three young children took. In this conversation, Annika discusses the challenges faced and benefits gained from her family’s wonder year. She dispels the myth that this is something only the wealthy can do and she goes on to talk about what she learned about herself, what their children learned about her and her husband, and she provides advice for anyone who wants to do something as audacious as packing up their lives and living them on the road for a year or longer. Annika makes the case for why their wonder year was the best learning her children have ever had, the best learning she has ever had, and why taking a wonder year will become a growing trend.

Annika Paradise and her husband, Will, worldschooled their three children across three continents and twelve countries including Nepal, Laos, China, Cambodia, New Zealand, Costa Rica, Italy and Greece. With a cello. Annika is co-author of the book “Wonder Year” and is an adjunct instructor of English at Front Range Community College in Longmont, Colorado.

In this interview, Dr. Block discusses the benefits to companies willing to work in the planet’s most challenged places, the difficulties they will face, the moral responsibility leaders have in creating thriving business environments in these places, and the results she has seen when companies commit and collaborate with local communities. She goes on to talk about how the principles she has honed working in these “frontline regions” can be applied in disadvantaged communities in countries that are otherwise flourishing.

Dr. Emily Block is an Associate Professor of Strategy, Entrepreneurship and Management and the George Cormie Chair in Management at the Alberta School of Business. Her research program explores how values pluralism impacts the processes of legitimacy and change, the nature of social evaluations and how organizational theory can be used to understand and address grand challenges. Emily’s research has been published in journals such as AMJ, SMJ, JBV, JOM, MISQ and JMS. Her book, “Business to the Edge,” (Basic Books, July 2024) explores how business can both thrive and improve lives in post-conflict environments. She serves on the ASQ editorial board and is a Visiting Professor at Strathmore University in Nairobi, Kenya. She received her BBA in Management from the University of Notre Dame and her PhD in Organizational Behavior from the University of Illinois at Urbana- Champaign.

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Life in 2053: Fusion, Quantum, and AI with Ufuk Tarhan

For the Summer of 2023, a dozen futurists talk about what life will be like for humans in 30 to 50 years. Each guest is asked to paint a picture of the changes that we will experience between now and 2053 or 2073. Then they are asked what mistakes we are making today that the people of 2073 will look back at in disbelief. The goal of these episodes is to spark the imagination of listeners about the future we have the ability to create.

In this episode, Turkish futurist Ufuk Tarhan paints a picture of life in 2053. In this conversation, Ufuk talks about the transformative nature of fusion energy, quantum computing, artificial intelligence, and how these technologies will make life better for humanity over the next three decades. Ufuk goes on to talk about how a social scoring system like what is currently being used in China could be adopted in other parts of the world. She ends the conversation by talking about some of the things that we are doing today that the people of 2073 will look back at in disbelief.

Ufuk Tarhan is a futurist, economist, best-selling author, and a keynote speaker. She is a popular blogger who is the only Turkish woman to appear on Forbes Magazine's "50 Most Influential Female Futurists" and "World's Top 100 Female Futurists" lists. Ufuk is the author of "The Future You Dream Of," a book about future planning for high school students, "T-Human," a winner of the Most Successful Innovative Business Book Award, which describes the successful human model of the future for everyone, and "Don't Leave Tomorrow's Job for Tomorrow," a book about next level for future forecasting for adults.

“Clean energy – very cheap and economic energy – will be possible for most of humanity. The clean energy sources like wind, solar, fusion, hydrogen will be normal for all of us. So that will open up very new and possible developments for all of us – like usage of quantum computers and supercomputers, and ultra lightspeed internet with almost zero cost.” Ufuk Tarhan in “Life in 2053: Fusion, Quantum, and AI with Ufuk Tarhan” discussing the technological advancements we can expect in the next 30 years.

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Dr. Anita Sengupta | The Future of Transportation

Transportation is about to get a whole lot faster. In this episode of 12 Geniuses, Don MacPherson speaks with aerospace engineer, rocket scientist, professor, and pilot, Dr. Anita Sengupta. Together they explore the futuristic forms of transportation that are currently being developed. From Hyperloop technology to interplanetary exploration, Dr. Sengupta explains how travel and transportation will be disrupted in the coming years. Don and Dr. Sengupta also discuss her work at NASA, and her current project at Airspace Experience Technologies (ASX) where they are designing electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft as a commuter transport option in urban environments.

Dr. Anita Sengupta is an aerospace engineer, rocket scientist, and pilot who for 20 years has developed technologies that have enabled the exploration of Mars, asteroids, and deep space. She is a Research Professor of Astronautics at the University of Southern California where she is conducting research on transportation technologies including electric propulsion for aviation, Hyperloop technology, and in-space propulsion systems.

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Building the Leaders of Tomorrow - with Shakeel Nelson

Shakeel Nelson and the Inner City Ducks are using sports in very innovative ways to reach young people and ensure they are on the right path in life. They provide mentoring, a safe space to play and learn, discipline, and exposure to new experiences for the young people in his community. The players have participated in tournaments in Kansas City, Indianapolis, Chicago, Wisconsin, and South Dakota. Eating in restaurants, staying in hotels, and seeing new places expands their sense of what is possible in their lives and teaches them life skills they will apply in adulthood.

In this interview, Shakeel shares his personal experience growing up without a father and candidly shares the challenges he faced. Shakeel explains his inspiration for creating the Inner City Ducks and how he sees the organization and its players growing in the years to come. Shakeel also tells us about the creative ways he is introducing his kids to new experiences and teaching them life skills while developing athletes hungry for success.

At the young age of 25, Shakeel volunteers four days a week to support the youth of his community as a coach, role model, and mentor through the Inner City Ducks. Shakeel’s vision for the organization is to serve 150+ boys and girls and to provide a community center where the kids can go after school to play, study, work out, and receive mentoring.

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Third Quarter Review

What did you accomplish in the third quarter of 2019? How do you plan to finish out this decade? What are your goals for 2020? In this special episode, Don and Devon talk about what they’re paying attention to, where Don traveled, what they’ve learned, and what they have planned for the show. Devon McGrath, Assistant Producer of 12 Geniuses talks with Don about recording the Leadership Moments, lessons from parenthood, remarkable travel moments, and what guests they have planned for Seasons Two and Three.

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Catherine Carr | A Story of Self-Disruption and Reinvention

Every day, 40,000 people around the world work in extremely stressful situations to help provide assistance to people in need. People working for Doctors Without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières) leave behind their comfortable lives for the opportunity to make the world a better place. On assignment they expand their self-knowledge and limitations, experience, and adapt to entirely new ways of living while helping those in need. When it’s time to return home, they experience the challenges of re-assimilating to their native culture. In this episode, humanitarian Catherine Carr shares her decade-long experience working for Doctors Without Borders and how the lessons of working as a humanitarian translate to other areas of work once you return home. Catherine discusses:

Part I: The Humanitarian Experience

Applying to Doctors Without Borders, culture shock and adaptation, finding meaning at work, learning from locals, the various roles within Doctors Without Borders, Tea in the Morning, relationship building during “morning tea,” overcoming the fear that prevents personal growth, finding happiness.

Part II: Lessons to Learn from a Humanitarian

Advice for overcoming fear and facing future changes, resistance to change, agility, discovering yourself, getting out of your comfort zone (without leaving the country), the power of teamwork, building trust with employees and community members, the unique skills of a humanitarian, coping in high-stress situations, burnout vs. stress, belief vs. truth, disruption avoidance.

Organizations, People, Resources, Places Mentioned:

Doctors Without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières), PB&J Family Services, Kenya, Iraq, the Philippines, Haiti, Central African Republic, Jordan, South Sudan

www.catherinecarr.global

“I was scared of making the change, but I think what scared me even more was not making the change.”

Catherine Carr describing her decision to disrupt her career as a Human Resources leader to join Doctors Without Borders

 

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Ryan Estis | Fighting the Fear of Failure

Fear of failure holds many leaders back from embracing change and driving transformation. In this episode of 12 Geniuses, host Don MacPherson speaks with Ryan Estis, a leadership expert and keynote speaker, about how to overcome fear, take bold action, and thrive in disruptive times. In a rapidly evolving business landscape, courage is essential for navigating uncertainty, seizing opportunities, and fostering innovation. Ryan shares personal stories and research-backed strategies to help leaders reframe failure, build resilience, and lead with confidence.

Ryan breaks down the psychology of fear and failure, offering practical strategies for leaders to navigate change and disruption with confidence. He discusses why embracing failure is key to growth, how to lead with courage in uncertain times, and what it takes to build a resilient, high-performing organization. This conversation equips global business leaders with the mindset and tools needed to turn challenges into opportunities and drive meaningful transformation.

Key Lessons for Leaders:

  1. Reframing Failure as Growth – Learn how to shift your mindset to see failure as a stepping stone to success.

  2. Leading with Courage in Times of Change – Discover how bold leadership can drive transformation and innovation.

  3. Embracing Disruption – Understand how top leaders turn uncertainty into opportunity.

  4. Developing a Resilient Mindset – Gain strategies for overcoming setbacks and staying focused on long-term success.

  5. Building a Culture of Risk-Taking – Learn how to create an environment where employees feel empowered to innovate.

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