The Creative Process · Arts, Culture & Society: Books, Film, Music, TV, Art, Writing, Creativity, Education, Environment, Theatre, Dance, LGBTQ, Climate Change, Social Justice, Spirituality, Feminism, Tech, Sustainability

"Within society, we seem to have separated the arts out, so they're not so much a part of our daily lives. Often there's something that we feel we should do as a kind of leisure activity or hobby if we have enough time or if we have enough money to engage in them. And this is so fundamentally different to how humans engaged with the arts. When we look back thousands of years, it just was part of the everyday, and I feel like that's a major loss within contemporary societies."
Daisy Fancourt is a Professor of Psychology & Epidemiology at UCL and the author of Art Cure: The Science of How the Arts Transform Our Health. A pioneer in the field of psychoneuroimmunology, she directs the WHO Collaborating Center on Arts and Health, where her research influences global health policy and the integration of the arts into medical care.
(0:00) The Healing Power of the Arts: Longevity, Immunity & Wellbeing
(1:17) Singing to Daphne: How Daisy used singing to comfort her premature daughter in the ICU
(2:47) The Story of Russell: How a stroke survivor used art classes to reclaim his life, health, and identity
(5:23) A Planet of 8 Billion Artists: Tracing the evolutionary origins of creativity back 40,000 years
(8:58) Psychoneuroimmunology. Defining the biological mechanisms: how art reduces inflammation and cortisol
(12:42) Art & Longevity. How arts engagement can slow biological aging and alter gene expression
(18:24) Safeguarding Creativity. Why we should use AI for routine tasks but protect the human joy of the creative process
Episode Website
www.creativeprocess.info/pod
Instagram:@creativeprocesspodcast

Did you know that visiting a museum can lower your cortisol levels? Or that singing can bond a group faster than almost any other activity? We tend to think of the arts as entertainment, but science tells a different story. Today, we explore why creativity is hardwired into our biology and how it can be used to treat everything from postnatal depression to stroke recovery.
Daisy Fancourt is a Professor of Psychology & Epidemiology at UCL and the author of Art Cure: The Science of How the Arts Transform Our Health. A pioneer in the field of psychoneuroimmunology, she directs the WHO Collaborating Center on Arts and Health, where her research influences global health policy and the integration of the arts into medical care.
(0:00) The Healing Power of the Arts: Longevity, Immunity & Wellbeing
(4:14) The Story of Russell: How a stroke survivor used art classes to reclaim his life, health, and identity
(9:01) A Planet of 8 Billion Artists: Tracing the evolutionary origins of creativity back 40,000 years
(15:30) The Chemistry of Connection. Why singing evolved before language and how it accelerates group bonding
(20:32) Psychoneuroimmunology. Defining the biological mechanisms: how art reduces inflammation and cortisol
(25:57) The Professional Paradox: Balancing the wellbeing benefits of art with the pressures of a creative career
(30:03) Predictive Coding & Play: Why the human brain needs improvisation and why we shouldn't outsource creativity to AI
(33:26) Singing to Daphne: How Daisy usedsinging to comfort her premature daughter in the ICU
(37:55) World Health Organization, Public Policy & Social Prescribing
(46:04) Art & Longevity. How arts engagement can slow biological aging and alter gene expression
(58:17) Finding Artistic Reverence in Nature
Episode Website
www.creativeprocess.info/pod
Instagram:@creativeprocesspodcast

Why do we write? Is it to capture a memory before it vanishes or to build a bridge between the person we are and the stories we've been told? In this episode of The Creative Process, we explore the practice of writing as an awakening and tool for discovery with a group of celebrated poets, novelists, musicians and thinkers.
We hear from neuroscientist, dancer and author Julia Christensen on how literature inspires transformative aesthetic experiences. Award-winning poet and clinical psychologist Hala Alyan discusses navigating displacement through narrative, while bestselling author Andre Dubus III reflects on the honest labor of the writer and the willingness to fail.
Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Jericho Brown shares how the sounds of American vernacular guide his work and Fmr. US Poet Laureate Ada Limón discusses holding hope within frightening thoughts about the future of our planet. NYT Bestseller Aimee Nezhukumatathil speaks on tenderness towards the natural world and naturalist Sy Montgomery shares how animals have been her greatest teachers.
The conversation expands with poet Max Stossel on finding humanity in conflict, Tiokasin Ghosthorse on the ancient energy of the earth and Julian Lennon on art as a collective human endeavor. Finally, composer Erland Cooper takes us to the landscape of his youth, where the sound of the sea informed his creative voice.
To hear more from each guest, listen to their full interviews.
Episode Website
www.creativeprocess.info/pod
Instagram:@creativeprocesspodcast

How do we restore trust and defend democracy when the very foundations of truth are shifting? Today we look at truth, the decline of the American Empire and buiding a shared future through the eyes of educators and economists, artists and philosophers.
(0:00) Lee McIntyre (Philosopher, Author) On Disinformation: How to Fight for Truth and Protect Democracy
(2:21) Richard D. Wolff (Economist, Founder of Democracy at Work) on Ideological Control and the Decline of the American Empire
(4:36) Kathleen Rogers (President, Earth Day Network) Why climate literacy should be a core requirement for school
(5:11) Todd Kashdan (Psychologist, Author of The Art of Insubordination) on Critical Thinking in Education
(6:17) Howard Gardner (Psychologist, Co-Director of The Good Project) on the Synthesizing Mind
(7:34) Alan Poul (Emmy Award-winning Director/Producer of Six Feet Under, Tokyo Vice) on Paul Schrader, Stephen Sondheim  and the Importance of Mentorship
(9:15) Jeffrey Sachs (Economist, President of UN SDSN) on Sustainable development and global citizenship for all
(10:29) Jericho Brown (Pulitzer Prize-winning Poet of The Tradition) “When you are a writer, you are a person of power.”
(11:38) Peter Singer (Moral Philosopher, Author of The Life You Can Save) on Altruism and How to Live a Good Life
To hear more from each guest, listen to their full interviews.
Episode Website
www.creativeprocess.info/pod
Instagram @creativeprocesspodcast

“They're kind of like a hidden superhero in your body and we just didn't know they existed. Muse cells eat the damaged cells, and they can actually turn into new cells using the cellular machinery.”
Dr. Adeel Khan is a global thought leader in regenerative medicine. He is the CEO and Founder of and founder of Eterna Health, whose work with MUSE cell therapy—developed in collaboration with its discoverer, Professor Mari Dezawa—has made him the go-to expert for world leaders, athletes, and celebrities Chris Hemsworth, Kim Kardashian, and Tony Robbins. In this episode, we move beyond the hype of "anti-aging" to explore the hard science of Muse cells (Multilineage-differentiating Stress-Enduring cells). Dr. Khan breaks down how these unique cells differ from the "medicinal signaling cells" (MSCs) found in most clinics and how they act as a bridge to a future where tissue regeneration is standard care.
(0:00) The "Repair Guys" & The Muse Difference Dr. Khan explains why traditional stem cells (MSCs) often disappoint and how Muse cells offer the "best of both worlds": safety and pluripotency.
(2:19) Smart Cells: How They Find the Damage Understanding the "homing mechanism" that allows Muse cells to sense inflammation and instinctively travel to injured areas like the brain or heart.
(3:11) Curing the Incurable: Diabetes & Alzheimer's The potential of the "cure triad"—stem cells, gene therapy, and FMT—to treat complex autoimmune diseases within the next decade.
(4:40) Biological Noise & The Symphony of Health How "static" in our gene expression indicates aging, and how cellular therapy can reduce this noise to restore the body's harmony.
(6:40) The Viral Monkey Study Dr. Khan discusses a recent study showing significant de-aging in monkeys through high-frequency cell dosing.
(7:32) Unshakeable Foundations: Lifestyle as Medicine Why advanced therapies must be paired with purpose, community, and mindfulness to create a "bulletproof" body.
(8:44) From Sketchy to Standardized Navigating the regulatory landscape: why Muse cells are being classified as a drug in regions like the UAE and the path toward FDA approval.
(12:24) A Personal Mission Dr. Khan shares the origin of his journey: trying to find solutions for his mother's chronic illness when traditional medicine failed.
(14:16) The Cancer Hunter Unlike other pluripotent cells that risk tumor growth, Muse cells have a unique mechanism that can detect cancer cells and trigger their death.
(18:30) Future Outlook: AI, Nature & Blue Zones Reflections on the risks of AI, the importance of "Blue Zone" city design, and reconnecting with nature in a post-human world.
Episode Website
www.creativeprocess.info/pod
Instagram:@creativeprocesspodcast