Kurt Kohlstedt is a skeptical urbanist and design journalist who writes, edits, and produces stories for 99% Invisible. Together with show host Roman Mars, Kurt co-authored a New York Times Bestselling book: The 99% Invisible City. He also created Adapt or Design as a project of 99pi.
Kurt’s work on 99% Invisible spans more than a decade, during which time the show has published 500+ episodes — which have collectively been downloaded over 500,000,000 times.
During Kurt’s tenure at 99pi, the show has also won notable awards from the Third Coast Audio Festival, Discover Pods Awards, Webby Awards, Signal Awards, and Academy of Podcasters Awards, in categories such as Best Podcast, People’s Choice, Society & Culture, and Arts.
99pi has been named one of the 50 Best Podcasts by TIME magazine, 20 most influential podcasts of the last 20 years by Apple Podcasts, and has made other top-podcast shortlists on Wired, Vulture, Fast Company, The Atlantic, The Guardian, and other media outlets.
Back in 2007, Kurt founded WebUrbanist, the first in a series of urban architecture, art and design publications that would go on to reach hundreds of millions of readers around the world. These included Dornob and WebEcoist (respectively acquired by Internet Brands and Evolve Media).
Kurt studied philosophy (BA) at Carleton College and received a graduate degree in architecture (M. Arch) from the University of Washington’s College of Built Environments. He also participated in a specialized architecture program at the Harvard Graduate School of Design (GSD).
P.S. Feel free to reach out regarding speaking engagements, panels, and other professional (ad)ventures … or simply to go grab a coffee and nerd out together in the Twin Cities!
📧 Kurt àt urbanist dót us
