Manda Scott: Any Human Power, Fiction, Tech, Climate, and Thrutopia

For this haunted Wicked Problems – Climate Tech Conversations, Richard Delevan is joined by celebrated author Manda Scott, known for historical fiction, thrilling plots, and a gift for exploring deep-seated mythologies that shape human struggles.

In this Halloween/Samhain episode, Scott takes us through her latest novel, Any Human Power, a genre-bending work that interweaves climate, technology, politics, and mythology to probe our existential crises. Halloween, or Samhain in Celtic tradition, is when the veil between worlds is at its thinnest—a fitting setting for a discussion blending the metaphysical with the political. We dive into how stories, myths, and beliefs profoundly shape our understanding of climate change—and our responses to it.

Utopia, Dystopia… or Thrutopia?

Scott argues that we face more than climate change; we’re in a polycrisis—a web of interlinked existential threats that defy isolated solutions. Climate breakdown, economic disparity, and political polarization are all interwoven. Rather than focusing on dystopia, Scott introduces us to “Thrutopia,” stories that offer not only escape or survival but paths to reimagining governance, social structures, and our relationship with nature. In her view, we don’t need heroes; we need collective transformation.

The Role of Myth in Modern Crises

Mythologies shape how we interpret reality and help us frame complex issues in ways that feel tangible. Scott’s storytelling bridges the familiar with the visionary, drawing on Irish and Scottish influences that explore the liminal “between” spaces, echoing Samhain’s themes. As she explains, this space “between” worlds encourages us to imagine beyond the typical bounds of existence—a lens through which we can more fully grasp the challenges before us.

Changing Our Relationship with Power and Technology

Scott explores a key theme: the gap between technology’s potential and its often-destructive application. Drawing on Taiwan's Audrey Tang’s vision for tech as a unifying tool, Scott reimagines social media as something that builds communities, not conflict— essential for a sustainable future. Using insights from neuropsychology, she explains how power structures hijack our fears through “limbic system manipulation.” This, she argues, is not inevitable; it is simply a reflection of our system’s structural failures. Her work calls us to confront these flaws and envision a fundamentally different world.

Dive Deeper

Her two podcasts, Accidental Gods and Dreaming Awake, explore regenerative futures, mythology, and spiritual aspects of climate action. Her courses offer ways to reconnect with the “web of life” and sustainable change.

Among her influences are Ursula Le Guin’s ideas on human power, Kim Stanley Robinson’s climate fiction, and The Dawn of Everything by David Graeber and David Wengrow, which reimagines human history and societal structures.

• Manda Scott’s novel, Any Human Power
• Podcasts: Accidental Gods and Dreaming Awake
• Courses: Thrutopia - Writing Our Way to a Future

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