Episode 15: The magic of mushrooms

Fake or altered media is an accepted norm of our daily lives, but not only does it spread misinformation and enable fraud – it has completely eroded public trust in digital media as a whole. Truepic is tackling the problem head-on by using revolutionary technology to ensure we can trust what we see online. We sit down with Truepic’s former VP of Research & Development, Sherif Hanna, to hear how their tech paves the way for a healthier and more transparent society. From elections to activism, Tinder dates to Airbnb. This is the last episode of ‘Can Design Save Us?’ for a while. We’re looking to return in the new year with even more incredible design stories. Writer & Host: Lesley Price Producer: Sidsel Kaae Nørgaard Composer: Kristina Lilleskov Soundbites: Tedx Talks, Guardian News, SoFloWildlife Stream Clips, The Hour, BBC News. / Want to know more about this podcast? Take a listen to Episode 00 / If you have feedback or story suggestions, feel free to drop us a line via [email protected] / And, don't forget to subscribe, rate and share. Enjoy!

Beyond soulful dishes to psychedelics, mushrooms and their root systems, known as mycelium, are proving to be critical to our survival. And London-based studio BIOHM is tapping into their true potential. This month, we talk to Director of Design Oksana Bondar about BIOHM’s mission to revolutionise the built world. She shares what it’s like designing with living organisms, how her early kitchen experiments led to a career in sustainability, and why she believes we’re just scratching the surface when it comes to truly symbiotic design. Writer & Host: Lesley Price Producer: Sidsel Kaae Nørgaard Composer: Kristina Lilleskov Soundbites: Undecided with Matt Ferrell (YouTube), Vox. / Want to know more about this podcast? Take a listen to Episode 00 / If you have feedback or story suggestions, feel free to drop us a line via [email protected] / And, don't forget to subscribe, rate and share. Enjoy!

More than 922 million women worldwide use contraceptives, yet the area has seen limited innovation. We sit down with Cirqle Biomedical, the Danish company behind the world’s first hormone-free contraceptive. OUI, a tiny clear capsule, works just a few minutes after insertion. Design Manager Marie Lyhne gives us the inside scoop on breaking taboos around sex and how conversations with thousands of women all around the world shaped the design of what they hope will be the go-too for birth control. Writer & Host: Lesley Price Producer: Sidsel Kaae Nørgaard Composer: Kristina Lilleskov Soundbites: YouTube Channels: EmpowHER, TEDx Talks. News media: CNN. / Want to know more about this podcast? Take a listen to Episode 00 / If you have feedback or story suggestions, feel free to drop us a line via [email protected] / And, don't forget to subscribe, rate and share. Enjoy!

Our online identities are becoming the most important way we interact with society. If we can filter and customise every aspect of how we look, why not get creative with our clothing? We take a deep dive into the endless possibilities of digital fashion with pioneers, The Fabricant. The studio’s Creative Strategist Michaela Larosse explains how they’re already helping big names, from Puma to Karlie Kloss, make supply chains more sustainable, why collectors are jumping on virtual garments now, and how soon we’ll all be dressed to the nines for the digital universe. Writer & Host: Lesley Price Producer: Sidsel Kaae Nørgaard Composer: Kristina Lilleskov Soundbites: YouTube Channels: Taco Stacks, The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, i-D Netflix: Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj  / Want to know more about this podcast? Take a listen to Episode 00 / If you have feedback or story suggestions, feel free to drop us a line via [email protected] / And, don't forget to subscribe, rate and share. Enjoy!

Most of us take our sense of smell for granted, yet it's one of our most primal and powerful human functions. This month, we meet Osh Agabi, Founder and CEO of Koniku, the Silicon Valley company using synthetic biology to design and develop an army of 'smelling cyborgs'. But, why? By replicating the world's most exceptional noses, we'll be able to sniff out danger and disease at unprecedented levels, from explosives to COVID-19, thereby revolutionising healthcare and safety. Writer & Host: Lesley Price Producer: Sidsel Kaae Nørgaard Composer: Kristina Lilleskov Soundbites: The Relaxed Guy, Vincenzo's Plate, Will Roegge, Trav Que & n Beats / Want to know more about this podcast? Take a listen to Episode 00 / If you have feedback or story suggestions, feel free to drop us a line via [email protected] / And, don't forget to subscribe, rate and share. Enjoy!

Freedom of the press is the cornerstone of democracy. But as the media landscape becomes more convoluted and global surveillance surges, is censorship and manipulation bound to increase? This month, we sit down with the great minds behind The Uncensored Library, an initiative that tackles censorship through gaming. Tobias Natterer and Nina Martinelli of agency DDB explain how they're using Minecraft, the world's most popular computer game, as an effective publishing loophole to get essential facts and stories into the hands of those who need them most. Writer & Host: Lesley Price Producer: Sidsel Kaae Nørgaard Composer: Kristina Lilleskov Soundbites: NBC News, C-Span and Fox News / Want to know more about this podcast? Take a listen to Episode 00 / If you have feedback or story suggestions, feel free to drop us a line via [email protected] / And, don’t forget to subscribe, rate and share. Enjoy!

Exploration has always led to ground-breaking innovation. Whether it's trekking to the most remote glaciers, scouring the harshest deserts, or diving to the deepest parts of the oceans. This month, we sit down with design icon Yves Béhar to chat about his futuristic underwater habitat PROTEUS, designed with renowned ocean explorer Fabien Cousteau. Béhar shares his sustainability journey, from swimming in a revived Lake Geneva as a child to designing for some of the world's biggest brands and organisations, and how he hopes PROTEUS will activate a new generation passionate about conservation. Writer & Host: Lesley Price Producer: Sidsel Kaae Nørgaard Composer: Kristina Lilleskov Soundbites: Random Things, Michael Ghelfi – RPG Ambiences & Music, Greenpeace USA, BBC Radio 1, Guardian News, News.un.org, Jonna Jinton, MW, Sounds Majestic and Nagaty Studio – Sound Effects. / Want to know more about this podcast? Take a listen to Episode 00 / If you have feedback or story suggestions, feel free to drop us a line via [email protected] / And, don’t forget to subscribe, rate and share. Enjoy!

Our digital footprints are piling up in data centres, sucking up masses of electricity use and pouring out tonnes of emissions every year. But, as our lives become increasingly digital, can we find a solution fast enough? This month, we chat with Sean Mihm, Senior Mechanical Engineer at Boston-based tech firm CATALOG. CATALOG is hacking DNA to use it as the next-gen medium for data storage and computing. Mihm explains why DNA is the perfect solution and how their tech can compress whole data centres into the size of a sugar cube. Writer & Host: Lesley Price Producer: Sidsel Kaae Nørgaard Composer: Kristina Lilleskov Soundbites: War Games & Netflix / Want to know more about this podcast? Take a listen to Episode 00 / If you have feedback or story suggestions, feel free to drop us a line via [email protected] / And, don’t forget to subscribe, rate and share. Enjoy!

Stephen Hawking's robotic voice from the '80s is a universally-recognised trademark. But since, speech synthesis has seen little innovation, meaning millions still speak with a generic computerised voice. This month, Founder of VocaliD, Dr Rupal Patel, shares how her team uses AI to restore this critical piece of personal identity: giving them a voice that's uniquely theirs. As a pioneer in the field, Patel shares powerful stories of how the tech is changing lives and where she sees it heading —beyond Siri and Alexa— to serve society's greater needs. Writer & Host: Lesley Price Producer: Sidsel Kaae Nørgaard Composer: Kristina Lilleskov Soundbites: Paul Wilson Creating eLearning Tutorials, TED, Royal Opera House, Great Big Story & 30 Rock (TV-Series) / Want to know more about this podcast? Take a listen to Episode 00 / If you have feedback or story suggestions, feel free to drop us a line via [email protected] / And, don’t forget to subscribe, rate and share. Enjoy!

White designers still make up more than 70 per cent of the industry, according to the Design Census. So, why are the designers of colour missing in action? This month, we chat with up-and-coming designer Mitzi Okou, Founder of 'Where are the Black Designers?' Okou candidly shares her experiences as a young designer pushing for systemic change, moving the Black design narrative away from tragedy, and why prioritising diversity in design is the biggest opportunity we have as an industry — both for society and business. Writer & Host: Lesley Price Producer: Sidsel Kaae Nørgaard Composer: Kristina Lilleskov Soundbites: Vanity Fair & TEDx Talks / Want to know more about this podcast? Take a listen to Episode 00 / If you have feedback or story suggestions, feel free to drop us a line via [email protected] / And, don’t forget to subscribe, rate and share. Enjoy!