NerdKicks Podcast

NerdKicks, meet Marisa! Marisa is quite the darling. She is so lovely and bubbly. And her project, New Dress a Day, is a bright ray of sunshine. Marisa started her project almost four years ago and is still going strong today, making a beautiful new dress each day out of scary garments found at thrift stores.

More than the wonder of her creations, Maria's story is delightful. Down in her luck and ready for a lifestyle pivot, she embraced her inner nerd and leaned forward into her craft. Fast forward to today and Marisa's popularity and influence is soaring. She has a gorgeous book out and many other fun projects are in the works!

Join us now as we chat with Marisa about creativity, adversity, self-confidence, positivity, and so much more. She's a peach!

Jodi has an impressive worldview has been shaped from amazing experiences as a traveler, lawyer, writer, freelancer, foodie, author and more. Determined and charismatic. Energetic and witty. Thoughtful and informed. Jodi is a delightful firecracker.

From the creative mind of Jeff Smith comes Stella B and the Busted League, a comedy web series about comic book nerds.

Stella Botticelli is a twenty-something comic book artist who publishes her own book about the courtship and dating of two superheroes. Stella is navigating her way through life with the help of her closest friends, a tight-knit group of like-minded nerds who call themselves “The Busted League.” Together, they face off against a harsh world and life's little ups and downs.

Join us as we talk with Jeff about his comedy creation as well as the highs and lows of being an independent artist.

Once upon a time, in a land far, far away...(Liverpool, England)...two nerds set upon an epic quest to write, produce and share their own feature film. We chat with Alan Donohoe and Jamie Williamson, two nerds with a shared love of screenwriting, about their adventure to produce "I Have A Bad Feeling About This," including their collaborative writing process and the slings and arrows of running a successful crowdfunding campaign.

Brittany Partridge doesn't just talk about making a positive difference in the world. She does it. And she's been doing it since age 17.

At 17, Brittany went on a mission trip to Romania where she met other girls her age. These girls, however, were among the millions of young people around the world being bought and sold through a global network of human trafficking.

That experience inspired Brittany to foundThe Red Thread Movement, which is devoted to (1) raising money to combat sex trafficking in Nepal and (2) generating awareness of human trafficking.

On the surface, Brittany's story may not sound like those nerdy adventures we normally feature. But when you look deeper, you'll find that her motivation is born from the same unquenchable urge to solve real problems in creative and sustainable ways that we all share.

Tis the season of reflection and gratitude. So please, take some time to be thankful for the simple wonders we enjoy every day. And listen to how one person works to give those little wonders to those in dire need.

What do you get when you mash up a passion for making, education and technology, then put it on wheels? SparkTruck!

SparkTruck was born to revitalize hands-on learning for kids by introducing them to design challenges and empowering them with some cutting-edge tools like a laser cutter and some 3D printers. Infused with a spirit of curiosity, discovery and design--and supported by an enthusiastic community and successful Kickstarter campaign--SparkTruck drove over 14,000 miles across 33 different states, visiting over 2,000 students in more than 70 different locations during the summer of 2012.

If you care about learning, are concerned about the future of education, and just generally like to have fun making things, then plug in those headphones, turn up the volume and be inspired by the story of SparkTruck!

Everybody has a birthday, but not every family can afford to give their kid a birthday party. Megs Yunn is working to change that, bringing birthday celebrations to kids in homeless shelters and transitional housing within the city of Pittsburgh. A little girl named Beverly deeply moved her, and Meg set out to make the world a bit happier and a bit more sparkly.

Today's guests are from Trade School! Part education, part art experience, Trade School brings people together to learn from each other, using barter as the means of payment. We have a fantastic conversation about the movement and its spread from New York City to cities around the world.

What could be cooler than a real-life giant robot spider? For real. How about a giant robot spider that you can drive! That's precisely what Gui Cavalcanti and his team of 18 roboticists, engineers, designers, and fabricators are doing: building a 4,000 pound, 18 foot diameter rideable 6-legged robot named Stompy.

We're thrilled to have Georgia Guthrie on the show to talk about The Hacktory, Philly's hackerspace dedicated to promoting the intersection of arts and technology. We had a great chat about benefits of supportive environments for nurturing artistic growth. This is the first in our series on collaborative workplaces.