What if the stories we hear could become part of the places we experience?
In this episode of The Soundtrails Box, Dr. Hamish Sewell welcomes Nikki Silva, veteran NPR radio producer, audio artist, curator, and one half of the acclaimed Kitchen Sisters.
For more than four decades, Silva and her creative partner Davia Nelson have documented voices and experiences that might otherwise disappear from our collective memory.
Their work includes Lost & Found Sound and The Sonic Memorial Project, which captured the history, personal memories, and human experiences surrounding the World Trade Center.
The conversation explores how audio storytelling can preserve cultural heritage while creating new opportunities for people to experience history in the places where it happened.
An especially compelling theme emerges around the importance of authentic human voices in an increasingly digital world.
As technology accelerates how we create and consume information, Soundtrails offers a complementary possibility: using technology to help people slow down, listen, and develop deeper connections with communities and landscapes.
The discussion also explores collaboration with Indigenous communities, cultural ownership, and the importance of respecting how and where stories are shared.
At Soundtrails, we believe technology should deepen our humanity, not replace it.
Every place has a story. Soundtrails lets you hear them.
Listen to Dr. Hamish Sewell in conversation with Nikki Silva on The Soundtrails Box.
Link to program https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=unjhPjDW4SQ