At Work in the Ruins: Review
And what I take from this is that we don’t get to choose whether or not there is an ending. We only get to choose what kind of ending we have, and therefore what we have left to build from.
building resilient societies
Giant Leap, or Too Little Too Late
Going back to the alternative futures, Collapse is collapse, and both Growth and Discipline also lead to collapse, sooner or later. The only one that provides a route to sustainability is Transformation, and only then if it is not dependent on a technology transformation.
The end of the world is just the beginning…
When the high-energy authoritarian political centres fail, which ultimately they will, my hope is that some of these ‘irrelevant’ places will have forged resilient material cultures and mature political institutions that will enable them to usher our descendants into the next chapter of human history.
Our future isn’t a problem to be solved
The best we can do is have lots of ideas, lots of tools, lots of ways of thinking, all ready at hand when crises of whatever flavor come barreling down that hill.
Gaya Herrington: “Humanity’s Soul: Life or Growth?”
On this episode, Nate speaks with econometrician and sustainability researcher Gaya Herrington about her new book, Five Insights for Avoiding Global Collapse, a more in-depth and personal telling of her 2021 review of the Limits to Growth (LTG).
Making a movement of movements to restore the common good
That is the place of a movement of movements, to move beyond single-issue politics, to pull together the various aspirations for a better society into an understandable, coherent whole, and to unify our forces to make our aspirations reality.
How Black History Paves the Way for a Just Black Future
What gets us to racial justice is making sure that people have the things that they need to survive and thrive.
David Sloan Wilson: “Chickens, Cooperation and a Pro-social World”
On this episode, evolutionary biologist David Sloan Wilson joins Nate to unpack how evolution can be used to explain and understand modern human behavior, particularly with respect to cooperation and pro-social behavior.
Is “Polycrisis” the Right Word for Our Times?
But as the American anthropologist and historian Joseph Tainter documents in his seminal book, The Collapse of Complex Societies, this is what “advanced,” hierarchical human societies do—they respond to challenges created by their complexity with ever more complexity. This may work in the short-term but usually leads to the underlying crises worsening in the long term.
Why Biodiversity?
Ultimately, the Earth will survive after the sixth mass extinction event, but it will do so without us unless we care enough to change.
Against the Economic Grain: Addressing the Social Challenges of Sustainable Livelihoods
Living and working, having lifestyles and livelihoods that are truly regenerative and sustainable look nothing like how most of us currently live and work.
The Power Podcast: Episode 9 How to Navigate Power with Wisdom
My goal isn’t to come up with new solutions to humanity’s converging crises—because until we have sufficient wisdom, we won’t recognize real solutions, even if they already exist. First wisdom, then action.