The Story Collider

Water covers roughly 70 per cent of the Earth’s surface and is essential for human survival. But it can also unleash devastating consequences.
In this week’s episode, both of our storytellers share tales about water — from flooding to polluted groundwater. Through their stories, we explore how water shapes our cities, our safety, and our sense of security in a changing climate.
Part 1: While researching flood risk and insurance costs in California, international student Hannah Melville-Rea is shocked by just how unprotected many people are.
Part 2: Patricia Schuba is determined to stop coal and waste pollution from contaminating the groundwater in Labadie, Missouri.
Hannah Melville-Rea is a PhD candidate and Knight-Hennessy Scholar at Stanford University, pursuing an interdisciplinary degree in Environment and Resources. Her research focuses on flood risk and examines how infrastructure decisions shape insurance costs and household vulnerability. She works closely with local agencies to translate research into practical tools that strengthen community flood resilience. Raised in Osaka, Japan by parents who hail from Australia and New Zealand, Hannah developed an early interest in how different countries tackle natural disasters. Today, she aspires to work at the intersection of science and policy to minimize the impact of climate hazards on frontline communities.
Patricia Schuba has been active in organizing and politics since 2000. She founded two political organizations that worked to give voice to working Missourians living in rural areas, and she was a candidate for Missouri State House in 2018. She was a caregiver for her father with Alzheimer's who died in 2018, and she has had T1 autoimmune diabetes since childhood. She has been the president of all-volunteer Board of Directors of Labadie Environmental Organization (LEO) since 2011 and an active member since 2009. She has lobbied legislators, trained community members to find their voice, and led a citizens' movement in Missouri to end coal and waste pollution of our water and air. The pollution related work has been mostly from the heart and has forced her to grow in ways she never thought possible. It included learning media and advocacy skills but, more importantly… showed her how the world really works and how necessary citizens are in the process.
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Climate change doesn’t happen in the abstract. It happens where we live, work, and raise our families.
In this special Story Collider series, each episode explores a different element of urban climate change — from fire and air to water and earth — through powerful, true stories from the people experiencing it firsthand.
In this episode, our storytellers turn their attention to earth, exploring the ways humans shape the land around us — and how a changing environment shapes us in return.
Part 1: While filming a wildlife documentary, filmmaker Mae Dorricott begins to notice just how profoundly human activity is shaping animal behaviour.
Part 2: For Christy Marsden, climate change always felt like a distant threat until a patch of ice brought it sharply into focus.
Hailing from Lancashire in the north west of England, Mae - is an underwater researcher for natural history documentaries and is currently based in Bristol. From a young age she was blessed with the privilege to visit her mother’s home of Malaysia where her obsession with the sea began. The coral reefs imprinted onto Mae, and from those first snorkels as a child knew that her life would revolve around the sea. During her time studying marine biology at the university of Plymouth she worked part-time at the local Aquarium, where her passion for communication was ignited. To learn more about how good communication is essential for a healthy ocean, Mae undertook a Masters in Science communication at the University of West England. Then, in 2017 she applied and was awarded the European OWUSS scholarship, which gave her the opportunity to explore the watery world like never before. This opportunity became a springboard into the industry in which Mae currently works, specializing in underwater documentaries.
Christy Marsden bikes year-round in Minneapolis, Minnesota. When she's not advocating for climate-forward policies in the city, she's working on helping people develop climate resilience in communities through her work at the University of Minnesota Climate Adaptation Partnership. Christy enjoys helping people craft their experience of climate change through storytelling as a means for science and climate communication
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This week, in honor of Women's History Month, we're presenting two stories from our archive about women in science and the unique challenges they face.
Part 1: Alison Williams' blossoming passion for chemistry is sidetracked by a professor's thoughtless comment.
Part 2: Climate scientist Sarah Myhre becomes embroiled in conflict after speaking out against a senior scientist's problematic statements about climate change.
Alison Williams is the Associate Provost for Diversity and Intercultural Education at Denison University. She received her Ph.D. in biophysical chemistry from the University of Rochester where she was a NSF graduate fellow and winner of the graduate student teaching award. Prior to becoming an administrator first at Oberlin and now at Denison, she was a chemistry faculty member for 25 years, teaching at Swarthmore, Wesleyan, Princeton and Barnard College of Columbia University. Her research focused using spectroscopy to determine the role of ions in shaping the physical properties of nucleic acids. Dr. Williams has been active nationally to increase access, inclusion and equity, especially in the sciences. She has received numerous recognitions for her teaching, outreach and mentoring activities. She is a mother of two and a semi-professional oboist.
Sarah Myhre Ph.D. is a Research Associate at the University of Washington and a board member of both 500 Women Scientists and the Center for Women and Democracy. She is actively investigating and publishing on the paleoceanographic history of the Pacific ocean, using ocean sediment cores and robots on the seafloor. She is a freelance writer, grass roots organizer, and a leading voice in the field science communication. She is also an uncompromising advocate for women's voices and leadership, both in science and society.
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This April, The Story Collider presents a special series on urban climate change.
Through eight true, personal stories about science, we explore how the forces shaping our planet — earth, water, fire, and air — show up in the places most of us actually live: our cities.
From flooded streets and wildfire smoke to shifting ground and the air we breathe, these are the moments when climate change stops feeling distant — and becomes deeply personal.
Eight stories. Four elements. One planet in crisis.
Subscribe now and follow along all month long.
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In this week’s episode, both storytellers explore the surprising connections between dance and science.
Part 1: Learning a modern version of her childhood Indian dances puts Sumitra Mattai’s brain and body to the test.
Part 2: When people doubt that dance can empower girls to pursue STEM careers, Yamilée Toussaint sets out to prove them wrong.
Sumitra Mattai is a writer, storyteller and textile designer. She holds a BFA in Textile Design from the Rhode Island School of Design and an MFA in Creative Writing from The New School. Her essays have been published in Huffington Post, Scary Mommy, and Lit Magazine, among others. She lives in Harlem with her family.
Yamilée Toussaint is the Founder & CEO of STEM From Dance, which empowers girls with the skills, experiences, and confidence to pursue careers in STEM through the transformative power of dance. Combining her background in engineering, education, and a lifelong passion for dance, she started the program in 2012 to inspire girls of color to pursue STEM careers. Yamilée holds a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from MIT and a M.S. in Teaching from Pace University. She has earned numerous accolades, including the MIT MLK Leadership Award, Teach For America's Social Innovation Award, AnitaB.org's Educational Innovation Award, Falling Walls Foundation Science Engagement Breakthrough of the Year, and a 2024 Top 5 CNN Hero.
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