Orion Magazine Podcast

Orion editors Jennifer Sahn, Andrew Blechman, and Hannah Fries discuss the March/April 2012 issue of Orion, including the first of a two-part essay by James Gustave Speth about the disappearing American Dream and how things have gotten so bad in Washington; Belle Boggs's poignant memoir about infertility; Amy Leach's delightfully whimsical essay about panda bears; Steven Kotler's humorous investigation into ecopsychology; poetry in the issue; and an introduction to a very unusual project ("Take a Closer Listen") creatively displayed in this issue of Orion.

Author Amy Leach reads an excerpt from her whimsical essay "Radical Bears in the Forest Delicious," published in the March/April 2012 issue of Orion. Get a glimpse into the bamboo-filled mind of the elusive, unwavering panda.

Has environmentalism lost its way? What does sustainability really have to do with a healthy planet? During Orion's latest live web event, Paul Kingsnorth discussed his essay “Confessions of a Recovering Environmentalist” in the January/February 2012 issue of the magazine. According to Kingsnorth, environmentalism has effectively died, its original deep connection to nature lost in the language of science and economics. Kingsnorth is joined by authors Lierre Keith and David Abram.

Author Luis Urrea is Orion magazine's newest columnist. In this podcast, he reads from his first column, The Wastelander, (January/February 2012) about working the nightshift cleaning toilets at a skanky campsite in Southern California.

Orion editors Chip Blake, Jennifer Sahn, and Jason Houston discuss the January/Feburary 2012 issue of Orion, including an exclusive interview between veteran environmental journalist/author Terry Tempest Williams and Tim DeChristopher on the eve of DeChristopher's lockup in a federal penitentiary; Luis Urrea's witty yet poignant new column The Wastelander; and an iconoclastic essay by Paul Kingsnorth titled "Confessions of a Recovering Environmentalist" -- an essay that is sure to generate a lot of conversation on our website. Photo Editor Jason Houston also discusses this issue's dramatic photo essay about farmers in rural India committing suicide, as well as how Orion covers are selected.

Author Pam Houston reads an excerpt from her story for Orion (January/February 2012) titled "Contents May Have Shifted." Please take your seat and fasten your seat belt. And also make sure your seat back and folding trays are in their full upright position.

What is it about visual art that changes the viewer? What are the pitfalls and opportunities inherent to art that advocates? Hear renowned photographer and cultural activist Chris Jordan and Orion's picture editor Jason Houston discuss these topics and answer listener questions during Orion's most recent live web event. Jordan's series "Intolerable Beauty," which set a new standard for art that advocates, was featured in Orion in 2007

What does an octopus think about? What might it feel like to be a bat? During Orion's latest live web event, authors Sy Montgomery, Marc Bekoff, and aquarist Scott Dowd discuss animal intelligence—the subject of Montgomery's feature "Deep Intellect" in the November/December 2011 issue of the magazine. Listen to Montgomery read an excerpt from her piece, and hear the panel share startling stories of animal consciousness and answer listener questions.

Michael P. Branch reads his essay "Free Birds" (Orion November/December 2011) about the peculiar American tradition of presidential turkey pardons and other myths surrounding Thanksgiving.

In a far-reaching interview with Orion Managing Editor Andrew Blechman, Andrei Codrescu discusses his unexpected move to the Ozarks; Ovid's exile to Romania, the importance of timing; his family's escape from the Nazis; meeting Allen Ginsberg in the 1960s; the power of poetry and monetizing creativity; how to become a poet; his start as a commentator for National Public Radio; his coverage of the Romania revolution; his latest book based on the Persian folk tales in One Thousand and One Nights; and the wonders of retirement.

Orion editors Chip Blake, Jennifer Sahn, and Andrew Blechman discuss the November/December 2011 issue. They reflect on Bill McKibben's column about the need for small and many versus big and brittle; the reign of the One Percenters and how income inequality is stunting cultural evolution; Andrei Codrescu's unexpected move to the Ozarks and what he's found there; Sy Montgomery's unusual ability to get cuddly with octopuses; and Michael Branch's ruminations on the presidential pardoning of turkeys.

Must the economy always grow? At what societal, personal, and planetary cost? Orion hosted a live discussion on the end of economics as we know it with Richard Heinberg, author of The End of Growth, and Helena Norberg-Hodge, whose film The Economics of Happiness explores the costs and alternatives to perpetual growth. During this hour-long dialogue ranging from Occupy Wall Street to climate change, our guests shared ideas, resources, and answered listener questions.

Is our education system capable of producing young people who are ready to tackle today's social and environmental challenges? The outlook is grim, argues Erik Reece in his essay in the September/October 2011 issue of Orion, "The Schools We Need." Reece and noted education thinkers Deborah Meier and Dr. Leon Botstein reflected on these questions and more during a live web event hosted by Orion; the three discussed Reece's essay, the future of our school system, and answered listener questions.

Orion editors Chip Blake, Jennifer Sahn, and Andrew Blechman discuss the September/October 2011 issue. In particular, they reflect on Erik Reece's article about addressing his freshman comp students' grievances and how education influences democracy; the wonderment one feels when contemplating an animal as strange and beautiful as the sturgeon; author Ginger Strand's visit to Speed Week in the Utah desert; Rachel Barrett's photo essay on how gender can imprint itself on the land; and Sandra Steingraber's frustration with how the public perceives environmental change.

Orion managing editor Andrew Blechman interviews author Ginger Strand about Speed Week at Utah's Bonneville Salt Flats and the mostly male obsession with acceleration. Strand discusses her time at Speed Week among the usual suspects of motorheads, as well as a new breed of speed geeks pursuing record-breaking acceleration fueled by alternative means such as battery and compressed air.