logo
episode-header-image
Feb 2019
11m 30s

An architect's subversive reimagining of...

TED
About this episode

What is a border? It's a line on a map, a place where cultures mix and merge in beautiful, sometimes violent and occasionally ridiculous ways. And a border wall? An overly simplistic response to that complexity, says architect Ronald Rael. In a moving, visual talk, Rael reimagines the physical barrier that divides the United States and Mexico -- sharing satirical, serious works of art inspired by the borderlands and showing us the border we don't see in the news. "There are not two sides defined by a wall. This is one landscape, divided," Rael says.

Vote for our show in the Signal Awards for Most Inspirational podcast!


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Up next
Yesterday
The three words that saved my life | Blake Mycoskie
On paper, Blake Mycoskie is a glowing success story: he founded TOMS Shoes, building a global brand that has given away more than 100 million pairs of shoes to children in need. Yet despite his success, his struggle with depression nearly cost him his life. In this personal talk, ... Show More
18m 48s
Oct 8
How imaginary worlds help kids learn | Anna Rainio
All children develop at different paces — so why do schools expect every student to learn the same way? Early education researcher Anna Rainio introduces "playworlds," a learning activity where adults and kids create imaginary stories together. She shows how pretend play helps st ... Show More
17m 42s
Oct 7
What my politically divided family teaches me | Tami Pyfer
Tami Pyfer has five kids who belong to five different political parties, and sometimes family conversations get heated. Drawing on her work as a former policy advisor to the governor of Utah, she wanted to find a healthier way for people to talk about politics without contempt. T ... Show More
14m 3s
Recommended Episodes
Sep 2025
Line. Fence. Wall.
The U.S. - Mexico border, according to a video on the official White House website, is very quiet: nothing but tires crunching on gravel and the wind whistling around a high, solid-looking wall. But that's not the whole story. Today on the show, how that border went from a line i ... Show More
49m 5s
Feb 2018
Border Wall
<p>When current President Donald Trump took office, he promised to build an “an impenetrable, physical, tall, powerful, beautiful, southern border wall." The first part of this episode by Radio Diaries tells two stories of what happens when, instead of people crossing the border, ... Show More
28m 48s
Jan 2019
Borders
With Donald Trump’s Mexican wall back in the news, Tom Holland and Iszi Lawrence follow history’s lines and linkages to discover how Britain’s borders have been used to separate communities.Tom travels to Offa’s Dyke to find out how the 176-mile-long, 8th century earthwork divide ... Show More
27m 54s
Jul 2025
Open Borders
tail spinning
29m 9s
Oct 2020
Kind World Presents: Port Of Entry
<p>The perception that the U.S.-Mexico border’s been effectively sealed shut because of the pandemic is wrong. Lots of people are still crossing. Actually, the biggest, most dramatic change in who can’t cross right now; you’re not going to find those folks at the official ports o ... Show More
25m 21s
Nov 2021
Darrel Alejandro Holnes — Amending Wall
In a poem that directly addresses Robert Frost’s “Mending Wall,” Darrel Alejandro Holnes asks questions: who gets to build walls, or guard borders?. Do good fences really make good neighbors? Taking a poem that’s been part of an American imagination both of poetry and of citizens ... Show More
17m 8s
Nov 2020
The Border Patrol Agent I Know
Ana is an activist and a reporter. Art is an active duty border patrol agent. Their two worlds collided in the Arizona desert, over a series of conversations. When it comes to the border, what does it mean to see the other side? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoi ... Show More
38m 36s
Jul 2022
'Wherever you go, there you are'
Many immigrants have described the feeling of being different people in different places. Maybe in one country, you're a little goofy, a little wild. In another, you're more serious — more of a planner. In this episode, which originally aired on Latino USA, Miguel Macias explores ... Show More
56m 32s
Oct 2025
New Wall Construction and Borderlands Resistance
James is joined by Erick Meza to discuss the plans for new border walls in San Diego and elsewhere, and how people are resisting the destruction of sacred spaces, wildlife habitat, and wilderness. Sources: https://www.sierraclub.org/arizona/blog/2025/10/no-more-walls-san-diego-co ... Show More
32m 25s