Hidden Compass: The Podcast

On today’s podcast, San Diego-based journalist and essayist Annelise Jolley is here to speak with co-hosts (and Hidden Compass co-founders) Sivani Babu and Sabine K. Bergmann about challenging victim narratives, surreal clubbing, and the meaning of choice. But first, journey with us, as Annelise takes us to Pattaya, Thailand, and gets closer to figures long obscured by the “Trick of the Light.”

Storyteller: Annelise Jolley is a journalist and essayist based in San Diego who writes about food, travel, ecology, borders, and faith. She’s reported on the state of refugees in Greece and from rural villages in Mexico, and backpacked from traditional Turkish baths to a remote farm in Romania. Read more of Annelise’s work at her website, www.annelisejolley.com/, and check out her Hidden Compass profile page, https://hiddencompass.net/journalist/annelise-jolley/.

To support Annelise, you can sign up for her newsletter at www.annelisejolley.com. Find her piece, “One Hundred Thousand Flames,” at https://nationsmedia.org/one-hundred-thousand-flames/; her story “Outrunning Death with the Monarchs” at https://sundaylongread.com/2020/10/28/outrunning-death-with-the-monarchs/; and her piece, “In Mexico’s vibrant forests, locals adapt to a year without tourists,” at https://www.nationalgeographic.com/travel/article/mexico-forests-adapts-to-a-coronavirus-year-without-tourists.

Story: “Trick of the Light” first appeared in the Chasing Demons department of Hidden Compass, The Magazine in our autumn 2018 issue. It was a “Notable Mention” in the 2019 edition of The Best American Travel Writing. Read the full piece — and see the accompanying photos — at www.hiddencompass.net/story/trick-of-the-light.

Hidden Compass, The Magazine: If you like the stories you hear on this podcast, you’ll love our magazine, which brings you more stories, alongside stunning photography and bespoke artwork. And you get to be a part of it! See the faces and hear the voices of the people behind our stories, and help us forge an alliance to turn storytellers and explorers into heroes and champion a new age of discovery. Our spring 2021 issue is now live. Learn more at hiddencompass.net, and sign up for our newsletter at https://mailchi.mp/8539a03c8c0c/hclanding2020-explorers.

See you next week, when we’ll go with storyteller Martha Ezell to the sacred fir forests of the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt to be awed by the “Journey of a Golden Soul.”

Today our very own co-host and Hidden Compass co-founder, Sivani Babu, is in the hot seat at Hidden Compass, The Podcast! Sivani is an award-winning nature photographer and journalist, and she talks with co-host Sabine K. Bergmann about everything from saying "yes" to last-minute opportunities to her desire to hug apex predators to the need for us humans to understand our place in the universe. But first, journey with us, as Sivani brings us to the beautiful and desolate ice floes of the Arctic, and explores the mysteries of the “Ice Bear.”

Storyteller: Sivani Babu is one of the co-founders and the creative director of Hidden Compass, but she’s also a lawyer turned award-winning nature photographer and journalist who focuses on exploration, conservation, and the power of awe. Sivani has chased storms across Tornado Alley, explored Antarctica by sailboat and on foot, and represented hundreds of indigent defendants in federal court. To see more of her evocative writing and stunning photos, go to her website, www.sivanibabu.com, and visit her Hidden Compass profile page at www.hiddencompass.net/journalist/sivani-babu.

You can read Sivani's storm-chasing story, "Like Dust in a Storm" here: https://sivanibabu.com/2021/03/05/like-dust-in-a-storm/; and her story about childhood visits to her grandparents' home in India, "The House on KVR Swamy Road," here: https://www.geoex.com/blog/house-on-kvr-swamy-road/.

Story: “Ice Bear” first appeared in the summer 2018 issue of Hidden Compass, The Magazine as a photo feature in our Human and Nature department. See the full story, with all its striking photographs, at www.hiddencompass.net/story/ice-bear.

Hidden Compass, The Magazine: If you like the stories you hear on this podcast, you’ll love our magazine, which brings you more stories, alongside stunning photography and bespoke artwork. And you get to be a part of it! See the faces and hear the voices of the people behind our stories, and help us forge an alliance to turn storytellers and explorers into heroes and champion a new age of discovery. Learn more at hiddencompass.net, and sign up for our newsletter at https://mailchi.mp/8539a03c8c0c/hclanding2020-explorers.

See you next week, when we’ll venture with journalist Annelise Jolley to Pattaya, Thailand, and get closer to figures long obscured by the “Trick of the Light.”

Today we welcome professor, science educator, and storyteller Daniel Hudon to Hidden Compass, The Podcast to talk about bringing ancient beings to life, the story humanity tells itself, and fossil beds that shine to us like beacons. But first, journey with us, as Daniel takes us back in time 565 million years to traipse among the strata and be caught in the gaze of “The Medusa of Time.”

Storyteller: Daniel Hudon is a writer and educator drawn to wonder and humor. He’s taught natural science at the college level for 20 years, with a focus on how astronomy tells us about our cosmic heritage. He’s also the author of The Bluffer’s Guide to the Cosmos and Brief Eulogies for Lost Animals: An Extinction Reader. Visit his website, www.danielhudon.com, and hop on over to our website to check out his profile page, www.hiddencompass.net/journalist/daniel-hudon. 

Story: “The Medusa of Time” first appeared in the autumn 2020 issue of Hidden Compass, The Magazine as a feature in our Human and Nature department. See the full story, which includes custom illustrations by Henry Sharpe (https://twitter.com/Paleoartologist) that are both beautiful and scientifically accurate, at www.hiddencompass.net/story/the-medusa-of-time.

To support Daniel, you can buy a copy of his book, Brief Eulogies for Lost Animals, at penandanvil.com/brief-eulogies, and sign up for his newsletter at http://danielhudon.com/about/! Other stories of his mentioned on the podcast are: “Horns of a Dilemma” (https://www.thesmartset.com/horns-of-a-dilemma/); “The Tree on My Block” video series (https://vimeo.com/showcase/4621414); and “Black Holes in the Time of Coronavirus” (https://www.thesmartset.com/black-holes-in-the-time-of-coronavirus/).

Hidden Compass, The Magazine: If you like the stories you hear on this podcast, you’ll love our magazine, which brings you more stories, alongside stunning photography and bespoke artwork. And you get to be a part of it! See the faces and hear the voices of the people behind our stories, and help us forge an alliance to turn storytellers and explorers into heroes and champion a new age of discovery. Learn more at hiddencompass.net, and sign up for our newsletter at https://mailchi.mp/8539a03c8c0c/hclanding2020-explorers.

See you next week, when we’ll talk with nature photographer and journalist (and one of our podcast co-hosts!) Sivani Babu about the beautiful and desolate ice floes of the Arctic and the mysteries of the “Ice Bear.”

And just like that, we’re at our third episode of Hidden Compass, The Podcast! Each week, Hidden Compass co-founders and podcast co-hosts Sivani Babu and Sabine K. Bergmann bring you stories from their award-winning magazine, and go behind the scenes with each storyteller to see what inspired them to venture to the frontiers of courage and curiosity. This first season, our theme is “In Pursuit of Phantoms.”

This episode’s story is “The Beauty and Violence Beneath Our Feet” by writer, editor, photojournalist, and documentary filmmaker Jodi Cash. Jodi speaks with Sabine and Sivani about the power of choosing pride over shame, the transformation that comes from empowered women and planted seeds, and the illegal substances we stumble upon when reporting on fish. But first, sit back and journey with us, as Jodi brings us to Moravia, a Medellín neighborhood that not only shows us what we can overcome, but also that we can never forget “The Beauty and Violence Beneath Our Feet.”

Storyteller: Writer, editor, photojournalist and documentary filmmaker Jodi Cash is on a quest for characters. Her work sheds light on pot-smugglers in Florida, foraged food in Atlanta, and her own lockdown in Barcelona, Spain. Visit her website http://www.jodicash.com, and her Hidden Compass profile at https://hiddencompass.net/journalist/jodi-cash.

To support Jodi, you can visit https://www.thegreenflashdocumentary.com to learn more about her upcoming documentary, and buy Concrete Jungle: A Foraged Fruit Cookbook at https://shop.concrete-jungle.org/.

Story: “The Beauty and Violence Beneath Our Feet” first appeared in the winter 2017 issue of Hidden Compass, The Magazine as a feature in our Portrait department. See the full story, which includes photos taken by Jodi Cash herself, at https://hiddencompass.net/story/the-beauty-and-violence-beneath-our-feet.

Hidden Compass, The Magazine: If you like the stories you hear on this podcast, you’ll love our magazine, which brings you more stories, alongside stunning photography and bespoke artwork. And you get to be a part of it! See the faces and hear the voices of the people behind our stories, and help us forge an alliance to turn storytellers and explorers into heroes and champion a new age of discovery. Learn more at https://hiddencompass.net, and sign up for our newsletter at https://mailchi.mp/8539a03c8c0c/hclanding2020-explorers.

Be on the lookout for episode four next week, when we’ll go back in time 565 million years, and speak with Daniel Hudon about “The Medusa of Time.”

Welcome back to Hidden Compass, The Podcast! Each week, Hidden Compass co-founders and podcast co-hosts Sivani Babu and Sabine K. Bergmann bring you stories from their award-winning magazine and go behind the scenes with each storyteller to see what inspired them to venture to the frontiers of courage and curiosity. Season 1’s theme is “In Pursuit of Phantoms.”

This episode’s story is “Awakening the Canopy” by our very own Sabine K. Bergmann, who speaks with Sivani about the wisdom of our ancestors, efforts to revive lost languages, and why our current moment feels a little like a giant island of cheese. But first, sit back and journey with us, as Sabine follows groundbreaking linguists to remote villages around the globe where they are tapping into the wisdom of endangered voices and "Awakening the Canopy."

Storyteller: Sabine K. Bergmann is the co-founder and co-CEO of Hidden Compass, and an award-winning travel, science, and nature journalist. She's interviewed earthquake survivors and astrophysicists, been a delegate at the United Nations, and listened first-hand to oral traditions passed down through millennia of indigenous history. Check out Sabine's website at https://www.sabinekbergmann.com and her Hidden Compass profile at www.hiddencompass.net/journalist/sabine-bergmann.

Story: “Awakening the Canopy” first appeared in the summer 2020 issue of Hidden Compass, The Magazine in our Quest department. It won bronze at the 15th Annual Solas Awards in Travel and Transformation. Read the full story, listen to the endangered languages profiled in the piece, and see the beautiful painting by Candace Rose Rardon commissioned specifically for this story here: https://hiddencompass.net/story/awakening-the-canopy.

The stunning feature illustration was created by writer, artist, visual storyteller, and unofficial cultural anthropologist Candace Rose Rardon. To see more of her work, visit https://www.candaceroserardon.com/

Hidden Compass, The Magazine: If you like the stories you hear on this podcast, you’ll love our magazine, which brings you more stories, alongside stunning photography and bespoke artwork. And you get to be a part of it! See the faces and hear the voices of the people behind our stories, and help us forge an alliance to turn storytellers and explorers into heroes and champion a new age of discovery. Learn more at https://hiddencompass.net, and sign up for our newsletter at https://mailchi.mp/8539a03c8c0c/hclanding2020-explorers.

Welcome to the first episode of the first season of Hidden Compass, The Podcast! Join Hidden Compass co-founders and podcast co-hosts Sabine K. Bergmann and Sivani Babu as they bring you stories from their award-winning magazine, and go behind the scenes with each storyteller to see what inspired them to venture to the frontiers of courage and curiosity. Season 1’s theme is “In Pursuit of Phantoms.”

This episode’s story is “People of the Forest” by the the über-talented photographer and writer Hayli Nicole. She speaks with Sabine and Sivani about the allure of the rainforest and our responsibility to protect the places and the individuals we love. But first, sit back and journey with us, as deep in the jungles of Sumatra, Hayli searches for the vanishing “People of the Forest.”

Guest: Hayli Nicole is an award-winning photographer, poet, and writer with roots in California, even as she travels the world. Whether it’s riding a motorbike through Vietnam, jumping out of an airplane, or walking the Camino del Norte in Spain, she believes there is always a story to be found. Check out Hayli’s website at https://www.haylinicole.com/ and her Hidden Compass profile at www.hiddencompass.net/journalist/hayli-nicole. You can also find her on Instagram: https://instagram.com/haylicans

Story: “People of the Forest” first appeared in the autumn 2019 issue of Hidden Compass as a photo feature in our Portrait department. It won silver at the 15th Annual Solas Awards in Adventure Travel, and was a Notable Mention in the 2020 edition of The Best American Travel Writing. See the full story, with its incredible photos, here: www.hiddencompass.net/story/people-of-the-forest.

In this episode, we spoke several times about the palm oil crisis. To learn more, visit https://orangutan.org/rainforest/the-effects-of-palm-oil/.

Hidden Compass, The Magazine: If you like the stories you hear on this podcast, you’ll love our magazine, which brings you more stories, alongside stunning photography and bespoke artwork. And you get to be a part of it! See the faces and hear the voices of the people behind our stories, and help us forge an alliance to turn storytellers and explorers into heroes and champion a new age of discovery. Learn more at hiddencompass.net, and sign up for our newsletter here.