What happens when an African American befriends members of the Ku Klux Klan? Our guest for this episode is Daryl Davis - a blues musician who's played with greats like Chuck Berry, Jerry Lee Lewis and BB King, and who's also persuaded more than 200 white supremacists to leave groups like the KKK. We talk to Daryl about how his extraordinary journey began, what drives him to do this work, and what the rest of us can learn from his approach.

Please be aware that this episode contains a description of a violent and racist incident and use of offensive racist language in that context.

Featuring:
Alex Evans is founder and director of Larger Us, writer of the Good Apocalypse Guideon Substack, Professor in Practice at Newcastle University, and author of The Myth Gap.

Elizabeth Oldfield is chair of Larger Us, host of The Sacred podcast, author of Fully Alive: Tending to the Soul in Turbulent Times, and was formerly director of Theos, the UK's leading think tank on religion in public life.

Dr Daryl Davis is an international recording artist and race relations expert. He has received numerous awards for his book Klan-Destine Relationships and his award-winning film documentary Accidental Courtesy. He is the first Black author to write a book on the Ku Klux Klan based upon in-person interviews and personal encounters.

Other resources:
The Larger Us programme

What does it mean to be 'fully alive' during turbulent times? Our guest for this episode - who'll also be joining us as one of our rotating cast of co-hosts - is Elizabeth Oldfield, the author of Fully Alive: Tending to the Soul in Turbulent Times and Chair of Larger Us's board. Liz talks about how connection and belonging are at the heart of what she writes about in her book, what it's like to live in an intentional community, and how we fill the 'religion shaped hole' in modern life.

Featuring:
Alex Evans is founder and director of Larger Us, writer of the Good Apocalypse Guide on Substack, Professor in Practice at Newcastle University, and author of The Myth Gap.

Claire Brown is head of development and impact at Larger Us, oversees the organisation's climate conversations project, and has previously worked on welcoming refugees to the UK and as a local journalist.

Elizabeth Oldfield is chair of Larger Us, host of The Sacred podcast, author of Fully Alive: Tending to the Soul in Turbulent Times, and was formerly director of Theos, the UK's leading think tank on religion in public life.

Other resources:
Caleb Meakins TEDx - My 40 days - facing the fear of failure
Citizens by Jon Alexander
The Larger Us programme

Sound Effect by Shagor Miah from Pixabay

What do you do when you find yourself at the centre of a culture war? Our guest for this episode is Professor Corinne Fowler who became a target for ‘anti-woke’ journalists and politicians due to her work exploring the colonial histories of National Trust properties. Corinne’s approach - to positively engage with her attackers - yielded some surprising results and she shares what she’s learned about taking on the culture warriors. We also had a wide-ranging discussion about her fascinating new book, Our Island Stories. In it we join Corinne on a series of walks through the countryside during which she delves into the history of slavery, colonialism and empire that has shaped our green and pleasant land. We spoke about everything from her approach to research to the links between oppression and at home and abroad.

Our Island Stories is published by Penguin Books.