234 - Failed States (feat. Imre Szeman)

Dominic reports briefly on how your co-hosts returned home to their own personal Hurricane Harvey. Then (4:20) Imre Szeman returns to the podcast to talk about his new book Futures of the Sun: The Struggle Over Renewable Life (University of Minnesota Press, 2024), a marvelous analysis of the narratives that shape how we conceive of, and experience, energy futures. Imre explains how the book is as much about failed states as it is about renewable energy and highlights the struggle over who gets to define “common sense” as a central feature of politics today. Imre talks about the tech barons who have wriggled out of the cracks of state failure to promote technofeudalist politics. And then we turn to about the generational character of climate politics and the seemingly increasingly insane quality of populist politics. We close with what Imre is up to these days, including his work with the Canadian Green Party and his new position as Director of the Director of the Institute for Environment, Conservation, and Sustainability at the University of Toronto Scarborough. Hang in there, everyone, peace and love.