For this episode, we embark on a story of ancient human migration with Pulitzer Prize-winning writer and National Geographic fellow, Paul Salopek.
Paul is currently on year nine of his 24,000-mile foot-journey tracing the ancient human migration from Africa across the globe. He started in January 2013 in Ethiopia and is making his way to the southern tip of South America. This odyssey, as it is commonly referred to, is Out of Eden Walk.
In late 2021, Mei joined Paul in Yunnan for a first-hand experience of what day-to-day on the ground with Out of Eden Walk looks like. Paul has since made his way to Sichuan where he is continuing the traverse.
Listen to Episode 26:
Out of Eden Walk with Paul Salopek
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Episode Overview:
- 00:28 – Introduction to Paul Salopek
- 03:34 – How Paul got in to somatic storytelling
- 06:29 – Is Out of Eden Walk planned out
- 09:41 – How Paul got to where he is today
- 15:40 – The importance of attentiveness in any type of work
- 16:35 – Paul’s career and life advice
- 23:68 – How did Out of Eden Walk come to be and how is it going
- 29:18 – Applying the concept of slow reporting to travel
- 35:15 – How is success measured in a project like Out of Eden Walk
- 39:50 – Out of Eden Walk experience in Yunnan
- 46:16 – Human inhabited wilderness spaces vs human-devoid wilderness spaces
- 47:07 – Concept of modern conservation in incorporating indigenous people
Places, resources and tips mentioned in the podcast:
- Out of Eden Walk
- Polish writer, Ryszard Kapuściński on the concept of slow reporting
- Follow Out of Eden Walk on Instagram @outofedenwalk
- Follow Out of Eden Walk on Vimeo @outofedenwalk
