Anthropause: Excerpt

If the United States were to abandon that trajectory and take the concrete actions that are needed to achieve equitable ecological renewal, what elements of life in the present-day Global North would we necessarily, and gladly, leave behind?

The Radish Rebellion

Every time you plant a seed, you are declaring independence. Every time you repair a toaster, you are voting against disposable culture. Every time you generate a kilowatt-hour on your roof, you are disarming a dictator.

On Collapse and the Need for a Non-Bureaucratic Temporality

Thinking and preparing for a collapse (itself a byproduct of a system of waste, exploitation and domination) will require that people organize on a grassroots level, in order to open up spaces within which they can collectively forge a temporality that will allow for serious reflection, deliberation and long-term planning.

Babylonian Banter

The most impressive thing we’ve ever designed—or even the collection of all such things—is absolute child’s play next to Life in evolved, ecological relationship. Humility serves us well.

Beyond the Right to Roam

Two recent books, Wild Service, a collection of essays edited by Nick Hayes with Jon Moses and Uncommon Ground by Patrick Galbraith, share a common theme: they both seek to address the “disconnectedness” of the mass of the public from nature and the countryside. Yet the two books could hardly be more different.

You Don’t Miss What Doesn’t Exist

“Anthropause” is an amazing word and the latest book about it is an eye-opener.  Stan Cox’s Anthropause: The Beauty of Degrowth (2026, Seven Stories Press), does what far too few degrowth books do – it first focuses readers’ attention to the positive experiences we could enjoy in a society less dedicated to producing unnecessary stuff.  It then details the destructiveness of overproduction.

A Primer For Paradigm Shift

There are near endless reasons to downsize to elevate our own value for what it means to be human. There are untold benefits to be gained when consumers become citizens. Paradigm shift starts at home and so do the benefits.