Truth seeker, wonder junkie, agent of joy — Lior Schenk explores what it means to be human in a rapidly evolving world. He is captivated by both science and the arts as ways of knowing the universe, and thus merges both subjects as an interdisciplinary teacher at Pittsburgh’s Environmental Charter School. From themes of surrealist portraiture to anthropocene speculative fabulation, Schenk aims to engage students in making as a liberatory force for social and planetary justice. In this critical moment of disconnect, he is a staunch advocate for creative learning and making: perhaps our most crucial, and forgotten, human practice. Schenk is a graduate of UC San Diego and the University of Pennsylvania, with a B.S. in Physiology & Neuroscience and an M.S.Ed. in Science Education. He also partners closely with institutions such as the Green Building Alliance, the MIT Presencing Institute, and the National Writing Project in pursuit of thriving learning ecologies. When outside the classroom, Schenk enjoys romping through cities and forests with his beloved Eileen, making art and music and poetry, and perhaps getting lost in the occasional Wikipedia rabbit hole. He just loves too many things. He is also learning to breathe more deeply.