As we move through our cities and suburbs, we’re part of an invisible flow— the design of the urban grid itself.  As we look the future, we have an opportunity to reimagine these environments. How will the remote work revolution affect office spaces and commuting patterns? How can cities mitigate the impacts of climate change?

Join us as we speak with Samuel Assefa, Director of the California Governor’s Office of Planning and Research, an agency that delivers guidance to state partners and local communities, with a focus on land-use and community development, climate resilience, and high-road economic development.

Reference Links

Devil in the White City by Erik Larson
Life and Death of Great American Cities by Jane Jacobs
The Inclusive City by Susan Goltsman
The Creative City by Charles Landry
The Language of Towns and Cities by Dhiru A. Thadani

Produced by Belmondo. Follow us on LinkedIn. Follow us on Instagram.

Coffee— hard to imagine civil society without it. And yet, the coffee industry creates significant carbon emissions, and its markets don't provide a living income to most of the world’s farmers. If climate change continues, this farming could be unsustainable. 

But there is another way. In this episode, we talk with Grayson Caldwell, Senior Sustainability Manager at Bellwether Coffee, a new company that has created a low-carbon footprint roasting system and an innovative marketplace for coffee beans.

Tune in and learn how we might change the way our beloved bean is farmed, distributed, roasted, and sold.

Produced by Belmondo. Follow us on LinkedIn. Follow us on Instagram.

In this episode, we talk with Brooke Hopper, Principal Designer Emerging AI & ML at Adobe. We take a look at Adobe's new product Firefly, which puts advanced AI imaging tools in the hands of millions of creatives.

We discuss the history of AI imaging tools, how people are using them, and where this field is going. We'll also talk about the implications of changing copyright laws, intellectual property, and the evolving role of the designer.

Featured Links:

Shyama Golden
Paul Trillo

Produced by Belmondo. Follow us on LinkedIn. Follow us on Instagram.

What happens when artificial intelligence learns to write code? Join us as we talk with AI expert Matt Welsh about this brave new world. Matt believes that AIs will eventually replace software engineers, and he is working on a new platform, Fixie.ai,  that deploys AI “agents” that can talk to each other and collaborate on the design and deployment of software. 

These kinds of solutions will make it possible for non-technical people to make apps from scratch. We’ll talk about the implications of this, and how it will change the way that we work and teach people how to use software.

And of course we will also touch upon the ongoing debate about the risks posed by AIs. Tune in to hear Matt's thoughts on how we can prepare society for a superintelligent AI, and what books on this topic he recommends.

Produced by Belmondo. Follow us on LinkedIn. Follow us on Instagram.

Featured Links:

Fixie.ai

Superintelligence by Nick Bostrom

Produced by Belmondo. Follow us on LinkedIn. Follow us on Instagram.

In Part 2 of our Climate Series, we talk to Jonathan Strauss, co-founder and CEO of Climate Draft, an organization that is accelerating the transition of top talent to climate related work. 

Topics covered:

• Jonathan's journey from traditional  startups to emerging climate tech
• The vast investment of capital pouring into climate technology
• Changing the conventional narratives about solutions to climate change
• How individual citizens can learn about opportunities in this new economy and get involved
• Emerging technologies for decarbonization

Links:

https://www.climatedraft.org/

https://frontierclimate.com/

https://ncx.com/

https://pachama.com/

https://www.regrow.ag/

https://www.perennial.earth/

https://www.useyardstick.com/

https://charmindustrial.com/

https://www.heirloomcarbon.com/

https://www.travertinetech.com/

https://www.livingcarbon.com/

https://arbor.co/

https://www.runningtide.com/

https://www.mill.com/

Produced by Belmondo. Follow us on LinkedIn. Follow us on Instagram.

Part 1 of 2 in our Climate Change series,  recorded live at SF Climate Week. This panel discussion features Tim Wolters and Leah Bowes, co-founders of CrowdSolve. Crowdsolve is a platform that accelerates climate startups at scale. 

We talk about how individuals can invest in this new crop of companies, what climate technologies are promising, and how the narrative about climate change is evolving. 

We also take questions from the audience about regulatory changes and issues of diversity, equity, and inclusion in the startup landscape.

Produced by Belmondo. Follow us on LinkedIn. Follow us on Instagram.

How do we design for a changing world?  How will technology change culture? 
Future Days is a podcast that explores these questions, diving into the forces that are shaping design and creativity today and how we plan for a world of tomorrow. 

Join us, Peter Brambl and Joanna Ellis, co-founders of the creative strategy company Belmondo. We’ve spent years collaborating with innovators working at the intersection of business, technology, and culture. Tune in as we talk to a special guest about the trends shaping our timeline. 

Future Days. Coming soon.

Produced by Belmondo. Follow us on LinkedIn. Follow us on Instagram.