Urgent Futures with Jesse Damiani

Apr 02 2025 53 ep. 97 mins 61

Urgent Futures with Jesse Damiani Podcast artwork

Welcome to the Urgent Futures Podcast, the show that finds signal in the noise. Each episode, I sit down with leading thinkers for dialogues that clarify the chaos, from culture to the cosmos.

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N. Katherine Hayles: A New Theory of Mind, from 'Bacteria to AI' | #46

Apr 02 2025 114 mins

What if the ongoing devastation of the biosphere and the ascendancy of complex AI are rooted in the same anthropocentrism? What if there were a new theory of mind that incorporated our biological kin and AI? What if such a theory foregrounded ecological relationality and a broadening of our idea of what cognition is—and what can be a cognizer?Today's guest, N. Katherine Hayles, p

Minna Salami: Can Feminism Be African? | #45

Mar 26 2025 76 mins

Can feminism be African? The more you sit with this question, the more its complexities reveal themselves; as you emphasize different aspects of the question, new subtexts and assumptions come into view.This question is also the title of a new book by Minna Salami, today's guest. It's a remarkable read—I encourage you to pick up your copy now!Support the show by checking out: ZBi

Noelle Perdue: The Three Types of Eroticism, The Trevails of a Foot-Fetish Fetishist, Homoflexibility, Looners, Self-Labeling, & More | Riffs & Speculations #1

Mar 13 2025 89 mins

What are the three types of eroticism? What is it like being someone who fetishizes foot fetishists? What is it like writing the script for an adult video in this genre? Speaking of fetishes, were you aware of the balloon ("looner") fetish?All that and more in this freewheeling conversation with today's guest, Noelle Perdue. A doubly fun episode because it marks the official launch

Carl Safina: How Plato Created Hell | #44

Mar 06 2025 68 mins

Plato is among the most famous thinkers in all of Western philosophy. What if his notion of transcendence—of there being a reality "out there" that's "higher" than our earthly plane—underlies everything that's broken about modernity.If you can believe it, that's a core argument of an otherwise touching book about one ecologist's experience raising and ultimately freeing an orph

David Guignion: The History of Conspiracy Theories, Making Philosophy Accessible to the Public, Activism, & More | #43

Feb 26 2025 144 mins

Conspiracy theories are all over the place, but...what are they, exactly? How do they work and what's their history? Who is susceptible to them? What do they tell us about the human condition?These are just a few of the questions that today's guest, David Guignion, examines in his research. He's also the founder of the popular Theory & Philosophy channel and podcast, so he knows a

Everything Has Changed & You're Not Thinking Big Enough | Rapid Response #6

Feb 24 2025 5 mins

The Dark Gothic MAGA oligarchs are going for everything at breakneck speed. We are playing defense and cleanup—and badly. It's time for a switch-up.Let's talk about Canada—and the prospect of Blue States joining it.Support the show by checking out: ZBiotics (Decrease impact of hangovers. Code: JESSEDAMIANI for 10% off), MUD\WTR (43% off starter kits), 1Password (simplify your l

Avriel Epps: AI, Transformative Justice, & How to Teach Kids About Algorithmic Bias | #42

Feb 12 2025 134 mins

AI continues to be a major subject of debate—and for good reason. It’s a technology that holds incredible potential to shape and reshape power. This is why we have to remain more vigilant than ever to how AI models are built, who builds them, what their motivations and value systems are, and what we collectively demand from builders—and how we regulate them as a society. As w

Rupert Read: How Bad Will it Get? On Thrutopias, Transformative Adaptation, & the Other World(s) Still Just Possible | Urgent Futures #41

Feb 05 2025 80 mins

How bad is it going to get?This is the provocation today's guest Rupert Read makes in a recent keynote—and one that I found to be an excellent way to jump into our conversation—though it’s a bit of a decoy. It gives way to a deeper, more nuanced conversation about how we ultimately survive and even thrive in complex emerging realities. Support the show by checking out: ZBioti

LA Wildfire Recovery: Ecological Remediation to Heal Contaminated Sites - Danielle Stevenson | Rapid Response #5

Feb 03 2025 48 mins

Decontaminating the air, soil, and water in Los Angeles in the wake of the wildfires is going to be a long road. But Centre for Applied Ecological Remediation Founder and President Danielle Stevenson has spent more than a decade refining her research in "ecological remediation"—integrated social and environmental practices that could be crucial in not only healing LA, but better

Rachel Donald: Why is the World in Crisis—& What Can We Do About It? | Urgent Futures #40

Jan 30 2025 93 mins

Why is the world in crisis? How can we get a view of the bigger picture?My guest this week is Rachel Donald—and she's something of an expert in these questions.Support the show by checking out: ZBiotics (Decrease impact of hangovers. Code: JESSEDAMIANI for 10% off), MUD\WTR (43% off starter kits), 1Password (simplify your life and increase digital safety), Mission Farms CBD (heal