29 SEP 2018 · Creativity Roots - Episode 12 by Ronald Paredes Today is September 30th, and we are celebrating #InternationalPodcastDay. It is a good day to think about the reasons why we started podcasting, obviously we all have something we think is worth saying, maybe we feel that we represent a group of people with some specific need or maybe some of us just want to entertain. Whatever it is the motivation for us to get in front of the microphone we need to be always aware that we are occupying a space, that we are stirring a pot somewhere, that we are influencing people and for that reason is important to be aware that all this comes with a responsibility. Congratulations to all my fellow podcasters! Happy #InternationalPodcastDay! Visit my website: www.CreativityRoots.com

24 SEP 2018 · Creativity Roots - Episode 11 by Ronald Paredes Chef Nino at the Pacific Restaurant at the Jinling Hotel in Nanjing is without a question one of the most interesting people I have met in all my years in China, his approach to producing menus, creating dishes and serving is very unique, he enjoys creating an entire experience where all the senses are involved, even those senses we didn’t know we had, Nino believes that we possess 7 senses adding emotion and thinking to the traditional 5 ones, and they should all participate in the enjoyment of his food. Visit www.creativityroots.com for more information and images. Remember to send your creative work, comments, and feedback at creativityroots@yahoo.com

17 SEP 2018 · Creativity Roots - Episode 10 by Ronald Paredes Note: For those listeners located in mainland China the podcast is accessible by using a VPN connection. Given the importance of developing a sense of identity I feel is necessary to summarize the topic and emphasize some important information about it. I mention an experiment about isolation called "In Solitary: The Anti Social Experiment” that you can find int he following link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=28D-lTFa_ss The Vanuatu Women's Water Music documentary directed by Tim Cole can be found at: https://www.wantokmusik.org/vanuatuwomenswatermusic The World Didgeridoo Vibes is available at: https://archive.org/details/World_Didgeridoo_Vibes_Vol1/Droihoeksken_Djridoo.mp3 The creator this week was Gemini George performing his song Full Foolish Moon, find him on his website: http://www.geminigeorge.com/ and more information at: www.creativityroots.com

9 SEP 2018 · Soft-spoken, chill demeanor, and introverted personality, characteristics that hide a very strong force of creative expression. Originally from the Republic of Congo, Benj Kinenga Mushila is a visual artist who regardless of his young age has developed, through consistent and disciplined work, a very mature and distinctive technique of painting. Using mainly oil painting and knives he basically places chunks of color one on top of the other to create impressionist like compositions rich with a very expressive texture, to me it looks like painting with pieces of melted candy that makes you want to touch and even rip off the pieces of color (unfortunately some people try). The themes of his painting are usually attached to his African cultural roots, daily life scenes, the market, the walking, the working, and even the struggles. Because Benji is a person with a very grounded and pragmatic sense of pride and patriotism, he completely acknowledges the shortcomings of his culture, which gives him the drive to exalt also the richness and the beauty Having a conversation with Benji is an enriching experience, well read, educated and informed, Benji has the conversational style of the patient teacher who knows how to captivate your interest while filling your brain of interesting information, he admitted to me once that he learned this from his family who are educators. Find more from Benji in the following links: Creativity Roots - Episode 9 by Ronald Paredes Conversation with Benj Kinenga Mushila, Congolese visual artist and painter Check the Creativity Roots website www.creativityroots.com for more information about Benj Kinenga Mushila and his work. Originally from the Republic of Congo, Benj Kinenga Mushila is a visual artist who regardless of his young age has developed, through consistent and disciplined work, a very mature and distinctive technique of painting. Using mainly oil painting and knives he basically places chunks of color one on top of the other to create impressionist like compositions rich with a very expressive texture, to me it looks like painting with pieces of melted candy. The themes of his painting are usually attached to his African cultural roots, daily life scenes, the market, the walking, the working, and even the struggles. Find more from Benji in the following links: www.benjkinenga.com Instagram @benjkinenga B Kineng'Art @Facebook Benj Kinenga @Facebook Contact The Creativity Roots Podcast by mail: creativityroots@yahoo.com www.creativityroots.com Instagram @creativityroots

2 SEP 2018 · Creativity Roots - Episode 8 by Ronald Paredes Identity is probably the most important aspect of an individual, it is what helps us identify ourselves with the different social groups we interact with, giving us a sense of belonging. Knowing who are, where we come from, having a strong sense of identity can help us to be more social adaptable. Lack of an identity can create great conflict that can be of great detriment to our mental and physical health and maybe even make us incur in criminal behavior. Our identity can be a rich source of material for our creative activities. The featured creator for this week is once again Krystal (Gypsy) Orellano with a wonderful piece called “Who I am” Enjoy!

26 AUG 2018 · Creativity Roots - Episode 6 by Ronald Paredes Conversation with Sabine Ichikawa Ph.D., researcher, conference speaker, developer of programs in luxury and creative industries in Europe & Asia, currently living and working in Shanghai for the last six years. Check the Creativity Roots website www.creativityroots.com for more information about Sabine Ichikawa and her work.

22 AUG 2018 · Creativity Roots Summary Episode 1-5 by Ronald Paredes After reaching the episode number 5 I wanted to make a summary of the topic we touched in the previous episodes to remind ourselves of those things that we know so well but we tend to take for granted, also for those who are landing into this thing and are starting to listen they will find in this a review of what we have been talking about so far.

14 AUG 2018 · Creativity Roots - Episode 5 - hosted by Ronald Paredes Success is one of the most difficult and challenging aspects of our life. There are external factors that pretend to enforce on us an idea of success that is confusing and wrong, family, friends, partners, society, in general, make us believe that success is determined by wealth, possessions, fame, recognition, titles, diplomas, power and influence, and we grow up thinking these are the rights things to pursue in life, our goals, when in reality these should be the consequences of a life pursuing our real passion working to achieve those things that we really love. I define success as the level of satisfaction or fulfillment you get from achieving the goals that you, and only you, have set up for your own life, whatever these might be. It is important to define what is your personal idea of success and happiness and work with discipline and commitment to achieve those REAL life goals. For the Creator featured this week we go once again with Empress Ellehcim, she introduces herself and explains her source of inspiration for her creative work and perform her song “Listen To My Lion” Also, you can check our website: www.creativityroots.com where you can find interesting information about products and inventions that were created out of “failures” as a complement to the previous episode of The Creativity Roots Podcast

7 AUG 2018 · Failure can be either a perception or an attitude and it only happens in our brain and later it manifest in our life. We must understand how failure was first implanted in our mind as a concept at a very early age, how it works in our perception and how the fear of it is one of the first and strongest creativity inhibitors. To overcome the fear of failure and redefine it's meaning is one of the first and biggest steps in acknowledging our innate capacity of being creative. Failure is a healthy and necessary part of any process that can not be avoided, the best way to deal with it is to set our mind with the fact that it will happen and that it must be embraced with an open mind. Only that attitude will allow us to learn from it and take advantage of the outcome to develop further. The song played at the end of the episode is called "Nothingness" and it was composed and performed by the beautiful Empress Ellehcim, a multi-talented Micronesian artist, singer, and performer.

1 AUG 2018 · I closed the previous episode with the claim that creativity makes us better human beings, which sounds a lot like self-help voodoo, since that’s not what we are doing here, in this episode we talk about what is the process taking place in our brain when we start engaging with creative work. I clarify that creativity is not exclusively what an artist produce but also what scientists or anybody in any other discipline or practice can use or do by innovating, by doing things differently and breaking patterns. I also talk about how these activities that force the brain to step out of the comfort zone, to learn and to make new connections represent a way to keep our brain young and healthy. Exciting news, our first creative feature it’s a powerful piece of poetry submitted by Krystal (Gypsy) Orellano Weldon, titled “I Speak These Words”. She is a Tampa, Florida native, a spoken word poet, writer, and educator. Krystal is slowly transpiring as a creative nonfiction writer, being published in St. Petersburg College’s newspaper The Sandbox, Saint Leo University’s book the Sandhill Review and University of Westminster runner-up winner for the 2017 Mental Health Poetry competition. I hope you enjoy this episode and help you in your quest for creativity. Submit your work to be shared with our growing community y sending an email to creativityroots@yahoo.com