Insight and inspiration in turbulent times.
Charles Stevenson Ending the unequal exchange that traps the Global South in poverty and extractivism and paving the way for a degrowth transition will require an alliance of countries prepared to default on their foreign debts, and strong movements in the Global North ready to defend them when they do.
So I foresee a time very soon when Lughnasadh will be the necessary release of joy that it once was in Ireland, and vats of calorie-dense foods will again fill bellies hollowed out by the hunger of July.
In truth, the situation couldn’t be simpler: we need to abolish nuclear weapons before they abolish us. Hopefully, Oppenheimer will help prepare the ground for progress in that all too essential undertaking, beginning with a frank discussion of what’s now at stake.
As more people become disillusioned with the relentless march of modernity—no longer buying into its deluded destiny and suspecting a mindless march toward a cliff edge—they may simply stop participating in the expected ways.
Humanity’s last little blast of carbon for a millennium or so is being auctioned off to the highest bidder for a simple reason: it’s the rich who have the power to shape such decisions, and deciding those precious allocations through the marketplace suits them just fine.
To promote both human health and environmental quality, countries would focus not on growing the GDP, but rather on different goals including education.
I decided to wrap up ideas in a story an audience would enjoy, but also make them curious, sparking imagination, and leaving readers thinking about the ideas and themes long after they finish the book.
Translating research on “smart shrinking” in rural Iowa into a European context, Elena and Mathieu propose a “smart rebound”, in which funding and policy support the visions, actions and intergenerational collaboration of rural communities, for resilience, wellbeing and reduction within environmental limits.
Dealing with climate change will take state intervention, and so you can see how right-wing parties might think that playing the “freedom” card could be a good move, putting the ethical and practical issues about climate change impacts to one side here for the moment.
Politicians and economists may dismiss the commons with a wave of the hand, but commoners understand a deeper truth – that the presumptions of capitalist modernity are profoundly flawed, if not already collapsing.
Are we capable of reforming our relationships with each other as well as with the planet? Nothing short of that will suffice.
In Part 2 of this Frankly Series, Nate breaks down why energy – and specifically oil – is currently the central foundation of our entire modern economic system.
