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Getting Better with Jonathan Van Ness — Education
Getting Better with Jonathan Van Ness

Join Jonathan Van Ness (Queer Eye) each week for their next exciting endeavor! “Getting Better with Jonathan Van Ness” is here to empower listeners (and also make them laugh) by using curiosity as a tool for personal growth. In a world that often feels overwhelming—where it’s easy to feel stuck, frustrated, or helpless—Getting Better offers a lifeline. Each week, Jonathan Van Ness, alongside experts and thought leaders, guides us through our shared challenges—confidence, productivity, mental health, happiness, relationships, and more—helping us emerge thriving, invigorated, and most importantly – a little bit better.

Join us every Wednesday for brand new episodes, and catch full video episodes on YouTube! And tune in every Monday for brand new episodes of our companion show: The Monday Edit, where JVN and senior producer Chris giving you a behind the scenes look at the creation of Getting Better, hot takes on today’s headlines, and all in all share with you how the sausage gets made!

Curious about bringing your brand to life on the show? Email podcastsales@sonymusic.com

Copyright: © Jonathan Van Ness

Latest Episodes:

What Happened To Separation Of Church And State? with Dr. Lauren Turek Mar 08, 2023

Show notes

A pastor, a president, and a foreign political leader step into a National Prayer Breakfast. What happens next? A whole lot of mingling between church and state. This week, Dr. Lauren Turek joins Jonathan to explore how evangelicals have influenced American politics—domestically and abroad—over the last half century. It’s a story of televangelism, missionary trips, and politicking of biblical proportions.

Lauren Turek is an associate professor of history at Trinity University in San Antonio, TX, where she teaches courses on modern United States history, U.S. foreign relations, and public history. She is the author of To Bring the Good News to All Nations: Evangelical Influence on Human Rights and U.S. Foreign Relations, published with Cornell University Press. Lauren is currently at work on a book about the Congressional debates and alliances that shaped U.S. foreign aid funding during the twentieth century and is co-editing a Routledge Handbook on the history of religion and politics in the United States.

You can follow Dr. Turek on Twitter @laurenfturek, on Instagram @laurenturek, and at laurenturek.com.

If you’re curious for more, Dr. Turek recommends the following:

Anthea Butler's White Evangelical Racism: The Politics of Morality in America

Kristin Kobes Du Mez’s Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation

Melani McAlister’s The Kingdom of God Has No Borders: A Global History of Evangelicals

Jeff Sharlet’s The Family: The Secret Fundamentalism at the Heart of American Power

Follow us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN to join the conversation.

Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook.

Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com.

Our executive producer is Erica Getto. Our associate producer is Zahra Crim. Our editor is Andrew Carson.

Our theme music is “Freak” by QUIÑ; for more, head to TheQuinCat.com.

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Who Wins When Everyone Plays? with Verity Smith Mar 01, 2023

Show notes

Sports are about so much more than competition. Through athletics we learn life skills, we move authentically, and we find community. This week, Verity Smith joins Jonathan to discuss the importance of trans inclusion in sports, his personal experiences on the rugby pitch, and how we can stay resilient in this critical moment for LGBTQIA+ rights.

Verity Smith (he/him) is the Mermaids’ Trans Inclusion in Sports manager. Verity is a gay trans man and has a disability. He played elite women’s rugby in both codes for 26 years and now plays for the Leeds Rhinos in the wheelchair rugby league superleague. He also supports D&I for the International Gay Rugby and World Gay Games.

Verity believes that all young people should have access to sport, believing in education, not discrimination.

Mermaids is a UK-based organization that supports transgender, nonbinary, and gender-diverse children, young people, and their families.

You can follow Verity on Instagram @smithverity and on Twitter @VeritySmith19.

You can follow Mermaids on Instagram @mermaidsgender and Twitter @Mermaids_Gender, and at mermaidsuk.org.uk.

Curious for more? Revisit our episode with Lui Asquith about trans rights in the UK here, and check out our full collection of episodes about LGBTQIA+ rights and representation at jonathanvanness.com/topic/lgbtqia.

Follow us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN to join the conversation.

Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook.

Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com.

Our executive producer is Erica Getto. Our associate producer is Zahra Crim. Our editor is Andrew Carson.

Our theme music is “Freak” by QUIÑ; for more, head to TheQuinCat.com.

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Who Are The Fab Five Of The Great Ape Family? with Dr. Laura Simone Lewis Feb 22, 2023

Show notes

Gorillas. Orangutans. Bonobos. Chimpanzees. Humans. Can you name a more iconic Fab Five? This week, Dr. Laura Simone Lewis joins Jonathan for an episode all about our beautiful primate family tree! Listen in to learn how we’re related, what makes each species unique, and why we need to step up conservation efforts for our closest living relatives on the planet.

Dr. Laura Simone Lewis is a postdoctoral fellow at the University of California, Berkeley, and earned her PhD from Harvard in the department of Human Evolutionary Biology. Laura studies how social cognition has evolved in chimpanzees, bonobos, and humans. Besides hanging out with great apes, she loves swimming in the ocean, making pottery, and going on solo travel adventures around the world.

You can follow Dr. Lewis on Twitter @LauraSimoneLew.

Here's a link to the chart on human evolutionary pathways. And here's a link to the great ape family tree, with a photo of Jonathan at the center!

We have so much more ground to cover with Dr. Lewis, and we’re already planning a follow-up episode about social cognition in chimpanzees and bonobos. If you have a question for Dr. Lewis, leave us a voicemail or text message at (917) 960-2980, or share your message with us at jonathanvanness.com.

Follow us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN to join the conversation.

Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook.

Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com.

Our executive producer is Erica Getto. Our associate producer is Zahra Crim. Our editor is Andrew Carson.

Our theme music is “Freak” by QUIÑ; for more, head to TheQuinCat.com.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

How Does Dust Impact Earth’s Climate? with Dr. Sarah Aarons Feb 15, 2023

Show notes

Dust isn’t just something that accumulates between our couch cushions. Dust is ALL OVER Earth—there are 20 trillion grams of it!—and it plays a critical role in weather events, climate change, and how we understand Earth. This week, Dr. Sarah Aarons joins Jonathan to discuss her research on mineral dust, and her research trips to Antarctica. Plus, Jonathan asks hard-hitting questions, like: Is household dust really just dead skin cells? Does flushing your toilet make an aerosol mess? And how do you stay caffeinated near the South Pole?

Sarah Aarons was born and raised in Alaska. She is an Assistant Professor of Geosciences at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego.

Follow us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN to join the conversation.

Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook.

Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com.

Our executive producer is Erica Getto. Our associate producer is Zahra Crim. Our editor is Andrew Carson.

Our theme music is “Freak” by QUIÑ; for more, head to TheQuinCat.com.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What’s The Steamy History Of Valentine’s Day? with Dr. Sally Holloway Feb 08, 2023

Show notes

Roses are red, violets are blue, we have a Valentine’s Day episode for you! This week on Getting Curious, we’re learning all about the history of Valentine’s Day, with returning guest Dr. Sally Holloway. Was the holiday always about love and romance? When did roses and chocolates become go-to gifts? And what would people living in Georgian England think of celebrations like Galentine’s Day?

This episode is a perfect match with Dr. Holloway’s first conversation with Jonathan, all about love and courtship in Georgian England! Here’s a link to listen.

Dr. Sally Holloway is a historian of gender, emotions, and material culture in 18th and 19th century Britain. She is a Vice Chancellor's Research Fellow at Oxford Brookes University, and the author of The Game of Love in Georgian England (2019).

You can follow Dr. Holloway on Twitter @sally_holloway.

Looking for a Valentine’s Day treat? Grab a copy of The Game Of Love In Georgian England, now in paperback.

Follow us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN to join the conversation.

Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook.

Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com.

Our executive producer is Erica Getto. Our associate producer is Zahra Crim. Our editor is Andrew Carson.

Our theme music is “Freak” by QUIÑ; for more, head to TheQuinCat.com.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Why Are We So Obsessed With Dogs? with Dr. maythe han Feb 01, 2023

Show notes

Dogs. We snuggle up with them on the couch. We pamper them with treats and toys and songs. We even give them prime placement on our dating profiles! But how—and why—did we become BFFs with canines? And what does our love for dogs say about us? This week, anthrozoologist Dr. maythe han and her dog Frank join Jonathan to explore this special bond between humans and dogs.

maythe han is an anthrozoologist of more-than-human kinship with dogs. Addressing the question ‘how can we live a good life together?’, her research foregrounds embodied imagination and creativity in exploring how dogs and their humans become-with one another. She uses art and music to understand and communicate the ways in which dogs and their humans co-produce and re-produce systems, structures, and sensibilities involved in multispecies experiences and environments. She lives with her border collie, Frank, who is a very good boy.

You can follow maythe on Instagram and Mastodon @odetodogs for her artwork, on Twitter @maythehan, and at maythehan.com. And make sure to check out her gorgeous custom animal portraits—she’s taking commissions!

Follow us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN to join the conversation.

Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook.

Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com.

Our executive producer is Erica Getto. Our associate producer is Zahra Crim. Our editor is Andrew Carson.

Our theme music is “Freak” by QUIÑ; for more, head to TheQuinCat.com.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What Can Queer Arab American History Teach Us? with Dr. Charlotte Karem Albrecht Jan 25, 2023

Show notes

Starting in the late 1800s, a group of Syrian immigrants settled in America. Many of them took up peddling as a career. When American newspapers described these peddlers, it was often in derogatory ways—and through terms of queerness. This week, Dr. Charlotte Karem Albrecht joins Jonathan to explore this moment in Arab American history, how it's been remembered, and what it reveals about “the sexual, racial, and gender machinery of American society.”

A note from Team JVN: In this episode, Dr. Karem Albrecht and Jonathan discuss how Arabs and Arab Americans were understood by white Americans. As part of that discussion, we reference various historical documents that include anti-Arab and anti-Semitic language. If you'd like to pre-screen those moments, you can find them in the transcript at jonathanvanness.com.

Charlotte Karem Albrecht is an Assistant Professor of American Culture and Women’s and Gender Studies at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, where she is also a core faculty member in the Arab and Muslim American Studies program. She is also an avid lover of plants and mushrooms and her five fur babies.

You can follow Charlotte on Twitter and Instagram @CKaremAlbrecht. You can learn more about her work at www.charlotteka.com.

Make sure to check out her new book Possible Histories: Arab Americans and the Queer Ecology of Peddling, published by University of California Press.

A free ebook version is available through Luminos, University of California Press’s Open Access publishing program. Head to www.luminosoa.org for details.

And if you’re curious for more, Dr. Karem Albrecht recommends:

Alixa Naff’s Becoming American: The Early Arab Immigrant Experience

Mejdulene Shomali’s Between Banat: Queer Arab Critique and Transnational Arab Archives

Susan Schweik’s The Ugly Laws: Disability in Public

Sarah Gualtieri’s Between Arab and White

Randa Tawil’s work on Syrian interpreters

Vivek Bald’s work on Bengali migrants

Follow us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN to join the conversation.

Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook.

Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com.

Our executive producer is Erica Getto. Our associate producer is Zahra Crim. Our editor is Andrew Carson.

Our theme music is “Freak” by QUIÑ; for more, head to TheQuinCat.com.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Can You Even Believe It’s Our 300th Episode? with Jonathan Van Ness Jan 18, 2023

Show notes

If you’d told Jonathan seven years ago that they’d be celebrating 300 episodes of Getting Curious this week, they would have passed out on the salon floor. You’d be visiting from the future, after all! We couldn’t have made it to 300 episodes without you, our listeners—so to celebrate this milestone, Jonathan’s answering your voicemails. Listen in for their takes on style, confidence, navigating the entertainment industry, and how we make the show each week. Make sure to grab some tissues and listen to the end, because this one gets emotional!

Follow us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN to join the conversation.

Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook.

Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com.

Our executive producer is Erica Getto. Our associate producer is Zahra Crim. Our editor is Andrew Carson.

Our theme music is “Freak” by QUIÑ; for more, head to TheQuinCat.com.

PS - If you’re looking for style recommendations, and specifically shoe recommendations, we can’t recommend following ALOK enough!

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Are Plant-Based Diets For Everyone? with Dr. Aviaja Lyberth Hauptmann Jan 11, 2023

Show notes

We all need to eat. And we know that the choices we make with food are at once deeply personal and informed by systemic factors. As part of our ongoing exploration into global foodways, Dr. Aviaja Lyberth Hauptmann joins Jonathan to discuss the history, science, and culture of the animal-sourced Inuit diet. Listen in to learn more about Inuit fermented foods, how colonization has shaped what’s on shelves in Nuuk, and why you might want to pass on any papaya for sale in the Arctic.

One note about this episode is that it does discuss hunting and fishing. If you’d like to skip it, we’d completely understand—but if you are able to listen, there’s so much to learn from Dr. Hauptmann.

Aviaja L. Hauptmann, PhD., is an Inuk microbiologist, Assistant Professor and public debater from Kalaallit Nunaat (Greenland). Her research centers the strengths of the animal-sourced Indigenous diet of Inuit. For the past four years, her research focus has been the human and microbial culture of Inuit foods and their role in food sovereignty.

If this episode left you hungry for more, visit Aviaja’s project page on Instagram @asi_inuit_microbiology_lab!

Follow us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN to join the conversation.

Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook.

Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com.

Our executive producer is Erica Getto. Our associate producer is Zahra Crim. Our editor is Andrew Carson.

Our theme music is “Freak” by QUIÑ; for more, head to TheQuinCat.com.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What’s The Sordid History Of U.S. Trash Collection? with Professors Patricia Strach and Kathleen S. Sullivan Jan 04, 2023

Show notes

New year, Gilded Age drama! Today we might think of municipal trash collection as a mundane activity. But in the late 1800s, trash collection in the United States was the site of dirty politics, public health debates, and a whole lot of mess. Professors Patricia Strach and Kathleen S. Sullivan join Jonathan to discuss how we went from 16-foot-tall trash piles in the streets to our modern system of trash pick-ups. And we're getting into all the unsavory details...

Want to (dumpster) dive deeper into the politics of trash? Check out their new book The Politics of Trash: How Governments Used Corruption to Clean Cities, 1890-1929, published by Cornell University Press. You can visit the book’s website for more information!

Patricia Strach is professor in the Departments of Political Science and Public Administration & Policy at the University at Albany, State University of New York and a fellow with the Rockefeller Institute of Government. With Kathleen S. Sullivan, she is the author of The Politics of Trash: How Governments Used Corruption to Clean Cities, 1890-1929 (Cornell University Press 2023). Her previous books include Hiding Politics in Plain Sight: Cause Marketing, Corporate influence, and Breast Cancer Policymaking (Oxford University Press 2016) and All in the Family: The Private Roots of American Public Policy (Stanford University Press 2007).

Kathleen S. Sullivan is Associate Professor of Political Science at Ohio University. With Patricia Strach, she is the author of The Politics of Trash: How Governments Used Corruption to Clean Cities, 1890-1929 (Cornell University Press 2023). She is also the author of Constitutional Context: Women and Rights Discourse in Nineteenth-Century America (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2007). She is currently researching sailors’ boardinghouses.

You can follow Professor Strach on Twitter @PatriciaStrach and Professor Sullivan on Twitter @kathlsullivan.

Follow us on Instagram and Twitter @CuriousWithJVN to join the conversation.

Jonathan is on Instagram and Twitter @JVN and @Jonathan.Vanness on Facebook.

Transcripts for each episode are available at JonathanVanNess.com.

Our executive producer is Erica Getto. Our associate producer is Zahra Crim. Our editor is Andrew Carson.

Our theme music is “Freak” by QUIÑ; for more, head to TheQuinCat.com.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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