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The humans behind The Humane Space.
to Explore
“I founded The Humane Space because I’ve learned that curiosity through lifelong learning — asking questions, continuously seeking — is as important to my wellbeing as physical fitness or eating healthy foods or getting enough sleep. Our mission is to make the world more humane through the power of curiosity, wonder, and awe.”
Our core values.
We go where our curiosity takes us.
We explore, experiment, and let our imaginations run wild. And we can’t keep what we learn to ourselves: We share with gusto!
Collaborative creativity is our superpower.
We’re members of a creative collective, feeding off of each other’s unique backgrounds, talents, and interests. Our whole is greater than the sum of our parts.
Intellectual integrity is our North Star.
We think critically, listen to evidence and–with humility–revise our understandings of the world in light of new discoveries.
Made by humans, for humans.
We have the freedom to be original for ourselves and for you. Our passionate team of artists, writers, academics and thinkers thrive on creating content from scratch.
We’re works in progress.
We genuinely embrace opportunities for growth, aiming to become more self-aware, empathetic, and generous.
The humans behind The Humane Space.
We’re a dedicated, passionate team of artists, writers, musicians, academics, psychologists, photographers, teachers, designers, and researchers. We’re proudly based in Rockland, Maine, with team members working everywhere from Iowa City to Mexico City. Between us, we’ve authored award-winning cookbooks, composed film scores, published peer-reviewed articles, curated art exhibits, and more. We believe in the power of curiosity and wonder to make daily life more meaningful.
Lauren Henkin is an award-winning artist who trained as an architect. She also spent 20+ years working in the wellness industry working with some of the biggest hospitality brands worldwide. She is a deeply curious person always interested in new ideas, methods of learning and channels for creativity.
For me, curiosity isn't just about scratching an itch, it’s a fundamental part of humanity that prompts life's most meaningful experiences.
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Since earning a PhD in psychology from Brandeis University, Dr. Mauri Ziff has conducted research at University of California and Johns Hopkins University medical schools. In addition, she has advised non-profits and businesses on strategy and leadership.
Curiosity is my calisthenics. Few things energize me more than following the twists and turns of my whims, finding out as much as I can about whatever intrigues me at the moment.
Carey Dunne is a writer, editor, and teacher based in Iowa City. Her work has appeared in The Guardian, The Baffler, Fast Company, and elsewhere. She received an MFA in Nonfiction Writing from the University of Iowa in 2022.
Curiosity is the best antidote to boredom, ignorance, and complacency.
Megan Shepherd is a Curator, Writer, and Artist who never outgrew her "why?" phase. Before joining the Space, she spent a decade in the museum industry as a curator and educator.
Curiosity is essential in helping me contextualize and understand my experiences on our Pale Blue Dot. It not only expands my knowledge but deepens my appreciation of life and broadens my empathy for all of Earth’s inhabitants.
Evan Goldstein is a writer and educator from upstate New York. He holds an MFA in Poetry from the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, and when he’s not writing for Lingo, he’s teaching Creative Writing at the University of Iowa.
Curiosity is important to me because it stops time and brings me outside of my self, into the strange and beautiful world.
Nicole Simon is a multifaceted designer based in Chicago, IL. She graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 2021, where she majored in the Program of Liberal Studies in addition to Design. Approaching design as both problem-solving and storytelling, she works best in multidisciplinary environments where she can bridge the gap between the written word and visual communication.
Curiosity is essential to creativity. Without a genuine desire to learn something new, the act of creating becomes mere reproduction as opposed to true invention.
Colin Edgington is a visual artist, writer, and editor originally from New Mexico, USA. His visual work has been exhibited internationally and his writing published widely. He resides along the Gulf Coast with his wife Jennifer, son Wolfgang, and dog Jasper.
Curiosity is essential to my waking life and is a driving force behind my everyday activity, manifested through making, writing, looking, reading, and exploring. Intrinsic to curiosity is desire, which requires maintenance. So in a sense, I’m a maintenance man.
Serena Fonze is an audio engineer, composer, and sound designer. Her work is mainly instrumental and focuses on sonic storytelling—allowing the listener to escape while creating their own musical narrative.
When I am writing music or creating soundscapes the question I always come back to is, “what would happen if?” What would happen if I layered these sounds? What would happen if I juxtaposed the songs of cicadas with the crashing of waves? Curiosity is the basis of all of my compositions, both soundscapes and musical.
Emma Ladji is an actress and artist. She has performed in numerous plays and has developed music/performance projects in the U.S and abroad. She has a degree in Theater and Black World Studies from Columbia College Chicago.
Curiosity keeps you nimble. Working to activate my own curiosity is a way to stay fluid and adaptable, which is key as a performer—letting the story, the words, your body, the atmosphere guide you.
Scott is an actor and voice-over pro. When not narrating for The Humane Space, he’s Head of Multimedia for Max Tegmark’s Improve the News Foundation. He worked for a decade in professional sports before pursuing a career in curiosity.
Having two young children is a curiosity cheat code.
Interested in working with us?
We’re always looking to meet interesting people who have wide and vast life experiences. While we’re a young company, we’re building a new model for corporate culture that includes doing things a little differently. That includes:
Remote-First
We’re based on the beautiful coast of Maine, about 2 hours north of Portland. We are a remote-first company and our staff is scattered around the world.
Time Off
Holidays based on what employees want to take off. No need to celebrate holidays that don’t mean anything to you. We tack on all federal US holidays to your vacation time so you can choose which holidays to celebrate.
Curiosity-Driven
We are curiosity-driven which means that if you have an idea for how to improve our company, we encourage you to share it and collaborate with co-workers to see it through. We’re not fans of boxes on an org chart.
Collaborative
We’re highly collaborative and value frequent communication and sharing of ideas between all staff.
Health & Wellbeing
We prioritize wellbeing and offer flexible hours to enable a healthy work/life balance while being able to pursue outside passions/pursuits.
Multipotentiality
We’re multipotentialites. We don’t hide our side-passions, we celebrate them. Outside of what we do at The Humane Space, we’re authors, artists, musicians, gardeners, chefs, and more.
Join us on a journey to knowledge.
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