Past Present Future The History of Bad Ideas: Polycrisis
30 snips
Jul 10, 2025 Gary Gerstle, a renowned American historian, explores the term 'polycrisis' and its emergence in the late 20th century. He delves into how this concept highlights the interconnectedness of global crises and the comfort and danger of viewing them as linked. Discussing historical perspectives, Gerstle contrasts today’s political despair with the activism of the past, emphasizing the need for innovative solutions amidst overlapping challenges. The conversation provokes thought on our collective sense of powerlessness in defining our current dilemmas.
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
Origins of Polycrisis Concept
- The term polycrisis originated in the 1990s to describe multiple overlapping global crises linked to modernity and not just one issue like climate change.
- It reflects a complexity in understanding that challenges simplistic single-cause explanations prevalent in earlier ideological eras.
Moving Beyond Single Causes
- Polycrisis challenges the age of ideology's single cause explanations by emphasizing interconnected crises interacting with each other.
- The focus shifts from a monocausal explanation to seeing how crises feed off one another and magnify overall impact.
Polycrisis Breeds Pessimism
- The polycrisis paradigm fosters pessimism because of unpredictable, layered crises that resist simple solutions.
- Despite initial empowerment from connecting crises, it offers little actionable political program to address these intertwined problems.
