Indigenous peoples represent about five percent of the world’s population—and sustain nearly 80 percent of the world’s biodiversity. This week, Dr. Jessica Hernandez joins Jonathan to discuss the principles of Indigenous science, Indigenous land stewardship, and what it will take to heal Indigenous landscapes. Dr. Jessica Hernandez (Maya Ch’orti’ & Binnizá) is a transnational Indigenous scholar, scientist, and community advocate based in the Pacific Northwest. In her new book Fresh Banana Leaves: Healing Indigenous Landscapes Through Indigenous Science (out now!), she breaks down why western conservationism isn’t working–and offers Indigenous models informed by case studies, personal stories, and family histories that center the voices of Latin American women and land protectors.You can follow Dr. Hernandez on Twitter and Instagram @doctora_nature, and keep up with her work at www.jessicabhernandez.com. For more resources about Native and Indigenous lands, visit landback.org and native-land.ca. Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up to by following us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN. Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com.Check out Getting Curious merch at PodSwag.com.Listen to more music from Quiñ by heading over to TheQuinCat.com.Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook.

What happens when you add JVN to E = mc²? You get an episode of Getting Curious all about physics, explored through one of Jonathan’s favorite topics: figure skating! This week, Dr. Deborah King joins Jonathan to break down the biomechanics behind skating techniques, the cutting edge technology she’s using to research ice sports, and how we can watch the winter Olympics like scientists.Dr. Deborah King is a professor of biomechanics in the Department of Exercise and Sport Sciences at Ithaca College. She began her work with figure skating in 1993 while with the United States Olympic Committee Athlete Performance Division and has continued to work with the sport for the last 21 years. Her work in skating has included studying the biomechanics of figure skating jumps, focusing on 3D kinematics of national and internal level figure skaters, studying injury demographics in competitive and non-competitive skaters, and developing an instrumented blade to study impact forces in figure skating.    Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up to by following us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN. Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com.Check out Getting Curious merch at PodSwag.com.Listen to more music from Quiñ by heading over to TheQuinCat.com.Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook.

As the itsy bitsy spider crawls up the water spout, it dawns on her: her exoskeleton doesn’t fit. Is it a fashion emergency—or her moment to shine? This week, Dr. Maydianne Andrade joins Jonathan to share the ins and outs of spider growth, behavior, and reproduction.  Dr. Maydianne Andrade is a professor of Biological Sciences at the University of Toronto Scarborough, and president of the Canadian Black Scientists Network. You can follow Dr. Andrade on Twitter @WidowWeb, and at maydianne.com. The Canadian Black Scientists Network is on Twitter and Instagram @canblacksci. For more resources referenced in this episode, make sure to check out the work of Professor Karen Warentkin at Boston University, including the presentation Crossing boundaries, disrupting binaries: A queer perspective on studying behavioral diversity. Many thanks to Dr. Senthurran Sivalinghem at University of Toronto for permission to use the amazing spider footage featured towards the end of this conversation. And thank you to Dr. Jessica Ware for sparking our curiosity here! Dr. Ware’s episode of Getting Curious about cicadas, dragonflies, and other insects is a perfect follow-up listen. Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up to by following us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN. Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com.Check out Getting Curious merch at PodSwag.com.Listen to more music from Quiñ by heading over to TheQuinCat.com.Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook.

We’re ending this year on a high note with none other than Brandi Carlile! She and Jonathan talk Brandi’s incredible music career, queer faith, and Dolly Parton—and Jonathan asks hard-hitting questions like, “Did you know you’d grow up to be Brandi Carlile, Brandi Carlile?”Brandi Carlile is a six-time Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter, performer, producer, New York Times best selling author and activist. Her new album In These Silent Days was released this past fall to widespread acclaim leading to five nominations at the 64th Annual GRAMMY Awards including Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Pop Solo Performance for the album’s first single, “Right On Time.”You can follow Brandi on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter @brandicarlile and find more of her work on brandicarlile.com. Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up to by following us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN. Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com.Check out Getting Curious merch at PodSwag.com.Listen to more music from Quiñ by heading over to TheQuinCat.com.Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook.

 This week’s episode is as nourishing as they get, as chef Pati Jinich joins Jonathan to discuss cuisines along the US-Mexico border, holiday foods she associates with growing up in Mexico, and what we can learn from taking a bite out of a burrito. Pati Jinich is a James Beard Award-winning Mexican chef who has dedicated her career to building a shared understanding between her two home countries: Mexico and the United States. Her long-running PBS series Pati’s Mexican Table has brought Mexican flavors, colors and textures into American homes and kitchens, as viewers have watched Pati thoughtfully and enthusiastically guide them through the various geographic regions of the country.  Pati is also the host of the recently released PBS Primetime special La Frontera, which highlights the unique foods and culture along the Texas-Mexico border, and has authored three cookbooks including the recently released Treasures of the Mexican Table. You can follow Pati on Instagram and Twitter @PatiJinich, and learn more about her work at patijinich.com. Find out what today’s guest and former guests are up to by following us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN. Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com.Check out Getting Curious merch at PodSwag.com.Listen to more music from Quiñ by heading over to TheQuinCat.com.Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook.