The Global Elite and the Climate Crisis

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I think there is no question about the fact that both in the past and in the present and potentially the future, development in the global north is built on the backs of the global south. I would say anger breaks more about just recognizing the fact that the story that we have been fed where okay, the global north developed this way. Here's what you need to do to get there as well. It's just a false narrative. That is just almost completely fiction because it implies this sort of linear mode of development," he says.

On this episode, Nate is joined by recent Stanford graduate and biophysical researcher Taimur Ahmad to discuss energy inequality within and across nations. Taimur offers a unique perspective as someone who has spent years studying the issues of the polycrisis, while also having experience growing up in Pakistan and living in the United States. How does the culture of a nation and its access to energy interrelate to create huge differences in the daily lives of the people who live there? How do the looming implications of climate change and energy depletion impact the relationship between the Global North and the Global South? And how do issues of class, wealth, and ‘fictitious capital’ interplay with the larger poly-crisis at hand?

About Taimur Ahmad

Taimur Ahmad is the author of the Fictitious Capital newsletter where he writes about understanding the base layer of the global system: money/finance, energy, and raw materials. He studied economics at Georgetown University in Qatar and recently completed a graduate degree from Stanford University where he focused on energy policy and electricity markets. After working in agricultural development in Pakistan, he worked in the Middle East supporting clients across energy, CP&I, and national development. From these experiences, he realized the importance of reframing contemporary socioeconomic issues in an energy and ecological systems framework. His work is now focused on exploring the intersection of development in the Global South, degrowth/post-growth, MMT, and leftist social theory.

To watch this video episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/4hzDKA0aNJk

For show notes, and more information: https://www.thegreatsimplification.com/episode/80-taimur-ahmad