The Epistemic Alchemy Podcast

Beyond Fragmentation: Gabriele Bammer on Building Integration and Implementation Sciences

Episode description In this episode of the Epistemic Alchemy Podcast, Dr. Mohammed Raei speaks with Professor Gabriele Bammer, a leading figure in transdisciplinary research and the founder of Integration and Implementation Sciences, or i2S. Bammer reflects on her early intellectual journey, the real-world policy challenges that shaped her work, and why fragmentation remains one of the greatest barriers to addressing complex societal and environmental problems. Together, they explore the evolution of i2S, the importance of integrating disciplinary and stakeholder knowledge, the role of unknowns and imperfection in research, and the political realities of power, implementation, and institutional change. The conversation also turns to higher education reform, AI’s emerging role in transdisciplinary work, and what it would take to build more effective approaches to complexity in universities and beyond.   Resources: * Integration and implementation insights  https://i2insights.org/ [https://i2insights.org/] * Substack post on redesigning higher education https://substack.com/@mohammedraei/p-189037847

Meta Studies, Meta Crisis, and the Future of Big-Picture Thinking — A Conversation with Mark Edwards

What is meta — and why might it matter more than ever? In this wide-ranging conversation, I speak with Dr. Mark Edwards, meta-theorist and former Associate Professor at Jönköping International Business School, about the science of meta studies, the misunderstandings surrounding metatheory, and the role of big-picture thinking in a world facing systemic crisis. We explore: * What meta studies actually are — beyond the buzzword * The difference between metatheory, meta-methodology, metadata, and meta-meaning * Why large-scale ideas are performative — and how they shape the world we inhabit * The historical roots of meta thinking, from the Abbasid translation movement to modern systems science * Whether we need more metatheories — or better use of the ones we already have * The concept of the “meta crisis” and why fragmented thinking cannot solve interconnected global problems Mark argues that science becomes more important — not less — in an age where it is difficult to know what to believe. We discuss planetary boundaries, economic metatheories of growth, trauma and consumption in the 20th century, and why linking social, economic, environmental, and governance systems is no longer optional. This episode is for listeners interested in metatheory, systems thinking, integral and critical realism debates, and the future of scholarly inquiry in a destabilizing world.

Rigor with Vigor: Dancing Scholarship into Being with Celeste Snowber

This episode of Epistemic Alchemy features Dr. Celeste Snowber—dancer, poet, scholar, and pioneer in embodied and arts-based inquiry. In conversation with host Dr. Mohammed Raei, Celeste traces the origins of her work to an early, visceral realization that we are bodies, not merely thinkers who happen to have bodies. She reflects on how pregnancy, silence, and enforced stillness led her to write the way she dances—through sensation, intuition, and movement. Together, they explore how embodied inquiry challenges disembodied academic norms by foregrounding somatic wisdom, creativity, and presence. Celeste discusses how dance reveals forms of knowing inaccessible to language alone, including intergenerational memory, trauma, and hidden insight. She emphasizes the power of listening with the whole body, the role of improvisation in cultivating risk, play, and originality, and the necessity of integrating spirit, intuition, and vulnerability into scholarship. The episode addresses methodological rigor, the resistance and expansion of arts-based research within neoliberal universities, and the subversive courage required to sustain such work. Celeste offers guidance to the next generation: pursue your deepest gladness relentlessly, honor your embodied calling, and trust that creative, somatic scholarship ripples far beyond the academy.   Dr. Snowbar's Website:   https://www.celestesnowber.com/

Design Thinking as a Way of Being

In this episode, Dr. Mohammed Raei welcomes Dr. Dani Chesson, organizational and behavioral scientist, adjunct professor at the University of Denver, and founder of the Design Thinker Institute. Together, they explore how design thinking—a human-centered, experimental approach to problem-solving—extends far beyond process to become a capability and even a way of being. Drawing from her doctoral research, Dani discusses the development and validation of the Design Thinker Profile, a framework identifying six key capabilities that enable effective design thinking: solution optimism, visual expression, ideation, collaboration, experimentation, and empathy. The conversation moves fluidly between scholarship and practice: from the mixed-methods rigor behind the profile’s creation to Dani’s experience leading large-scale organizational transformations across global enterprises. She shares insights from her research in New Zealand’s public-health sector, where indigenous and decolonizing research approaches reshaped how empathy, co-design, and storytelling can democratize knowledge production. Dr. Raei and Dr. Chesson also discuss the founding of the Design Thinker Institute, her upcoming book  (on why organizations get stuck and how to move forward), and practical advice for anyone applying design thinking to research, leadership, or everyday life. The episode closes with a reminder that design thinking is not just about thinking—it’s about doing: experimenting boldly, learning continuously, and acting with empathy in the face of complexity.   Resources:   Dr. Chesson's Dissertation  https://aura.antioch.edu/stuworks/31/ [https://aura.antioch.edu/stuworks/31/]   Design Thinker Institute https://www.designthinkerinstitute.com/ [https://www.designthinkerinstitute.com/]   Design Thinker Podcast   https://www.designthinkerpodcast.com/

Making Theory Contributions Clear: Martin Kilduff on Philosophy of Science and Scholarship

This podcast episode features Dr. Martin Kilduff, Professor of Organizations and Innovation at UCL School of Management, in conversation with Dr. Mohammed Raei. The dialogue explores Kilduff’s influential work on theory contribution, particularly his framework derived from the philosophy of science. Kilduff traces the origins of this work to his experience teaching a doctoral course in philosophy of science, which led him to grapple with the unintelligibility of much of the field and the absence of a clear framework for theory contribution in organizational studies. The discussion highlights four distinct approaches—empiricism, strong paradigm advocacy, instrumentalism, and realism—mapped across two dimensions: truth claims and the representativeness of theoretical terms. Kilduff illustrates the strengths and limitations of each approach, while underscoring the role of instrumentalism and empiricism in contemporary research, particularly given the rise of big data. The conversation also addresses challenges for early-career scholars, offering practical strategies such as Jay Barney’s three-paragraph rule for articulating contributions. Finally, Raei and Kilduff reflect on the implications of transdisciplinary and boundary-spanning work, warning of both the promise and perils of venturing beyond disciplinary homes. The episode provides conceptual clarity and pragmatic insights into how scholars can frame contributions that resonate across diverse audiences.   Resources:   *FROM BLUE SKY RESEARCH TO PROBLEM SOLVING: A PHILOSOPHY OF SCIENCE THEORY OF NEW KNOWLEDGE PRODUCTION Author(s): MARTIN KILDUFF, AJAY MEHRA and MARY B. DUNN Source: The Academy of Management Review, April 2011, Vol. 36, No. 2 (April 2011), pp. 297-317 * Where's the theory contribution? An answer in four parts https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/20413866241233739