The Sunday Magazinewith Piya Chattopadhyay

Author Jeff VanderMeer's new novel, Hummingbird Salamander, is a dark tale of environmental chaos, set in an eerily familiar world, pandemic included. Despite the grim backdrop, VanderMeer holds out hope for our world. He tells Piya how activism drives his art and the inspiration he finds in his backyard.

In the eastern United States, the regular chorus of buzzing cicadas will swell by the billions when Brood X cicadas emerge for the first time in 17 years. We explore the history of Brood X and what cicadas represent in literature and philosophy over time.

Art restorer Elizabeth Wicks speaks about what Advancing Women Artists uncovered through its decade of sleuthing for the lost work of Renaissance women.

Guest host David Common speaks with Naheed Nenshi about his tenure as Calgary mayor, looks at what ancient cultures can teach us about parenting with Michaeleen Doucleff, discusses Adam Litovitz's impact on 'jooj two' with Sook-Yin Lee and pays tribute to Prince Phillip.

Megan Rapinoe came out publicly as a lesbian in 2012, after garnering international attention for her pass during a Women’s World Cup semifinal match. Her new memoir One Life reflects on her childhood, sports career and social and political activism.

During his tenure as Calgary mayor, Naheed Nenshi took on urban sprawl, navigated the city through a devastating flood, pushed for better public transit and won increased power for his city. He reflects on all of that, the current state of politics and his future in a discussion with guest host David Common.

NPR Science reporter Michaeleen Doucleff says traditional cultures around the world, from Tanzania to Nunavut, have a lot to teach us about raising children. She addresses her findings in her new book, 'Hunt, Gather, Parent: What Ancient Cultures Can Teach Us About the Lost Art of Raising Happy, Helpful Little Humans'.

To help her cope with creative and romantic partner Adam Litovitz's death, Sook-Yin Lee completed an electro-pop album she had co-created with Litovitz. The album, called 'jooj two', was released last week.

As Canadians once again settle into a spring spent at home, poet Lorna Crozier reflects on what her late husband Patrick Lane taught her about what a garden can be, and why we should all be digging our hands into the earth right now.

Host Piya Chattopadhyay explores the politics of vaccines with Dr. Peter Hotez, breaks down the relationship between work and personal fulfillment with Sarah Jaffe, speaks with writer Larry Olmstead about the power of sports beyond the stadium, and examines the notion of "guilty pleasures" with musician Chilly Gonzales.

Dr. Peter Hotez, the Dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor College of Medicine, argues that impediments to ending the pandemic lie in people who will not get vaccinated, and the billions globally who won't have access to vaccines for months or years to come.

Montreal-based artist and curator Karen Tam has made a career of exploring the commodification of Chinese-Canadian cultural spaces, and how Chinese Canadians have ensured their own economic survival. Tam reflects on culture, identity, and the devastating effects of racism and fear in Canada's Asian communities.

Labour journalist Sarah Jaffe says we need to rethink the idea that our jobs should be sources of personal fulfilment — let alone love. She argues that this attitude is used to keep workers — from nurses and teachers, to writers and Uber drivers — down for years, and even more so during the pandemic.

Baseball is back this weekend. But with so much going on in the world, from the raging pandemic to crushing social inequities, it may seem silly to pay so much attention to a ball game. But according to journalist Larry Olmsted, sports fandom provides real benefits both for us as individuals and as a society.

Host Piya Chattopadhyay speaks with Bruce Jones of the Brookings Institution about heightened tensions between North America and China, journalist Kevin Roose talks about how artificial intelligence and automation have changed our lives, our jobs, even our tastes, psychologist Peter Lovatt discusses how dancing is a fundamental human need and a way to heal ourselves and bioethicist Jessica Pierce discusses the pandemic pet boom.

There are deep reasons why so many of us are longing for the chance to move and sweat with others in shared spaces again, according to psychologist Peter Lovatt. He trained as a professional dancer, and went on to study dance in academia, and he tells Piya Chattopadhyay that dancing is a fundamental human need and a way to heal ourselves and the world.

The pet boom was one of the more surprising — if understandable — pandemic phenomena we witnessed this past year. But with vaccines rolling out, and potentially a return to "normal" life on the horizon, what will it mean for all these new pets? Bioethicist and writer Jessica Pierce fears pet shelters will once again be filled with pets we no longer have time for. But if there's a silver lining to the pet boom, she says, it's that we've hopefully come to better appreciate the emotional work our pets do.

This past week, U.S. President Joe Biden called for democracies to work together to hold China accountable on a number of issues, including human rights abuses. The rhetoric has left many wondering whether a new Cold War is brewing, with the U.S. and China as central players. Bruce Jones from the Brookings Institution think tank joins Piya Chattopadhyay to unpack the evidence he sees for the world being divided, once again, into two main geopolitical camps.

Host Piya Chattopadhyay explores the significance of new COVID-19 vaccine trials on kids, talks to Toronto Star journalist Joanna Chiu about snap trials in China for Canadians Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig, chats with the Pulitzer Prize-winning author Elizabeth Kolbert about whether we can really engineer ourselves out of the ecological mess we've made, and talks to psychiatrist Dr. Mona Gupta about offering medical assistance in dying to those wishing to end their suffering due to a mental illness.