Cultures of Energy

Dominic and Cymene talk about AI and other chowhounds to kick off this week's podcast. Then (12:46) we welcome the wonderful Alice Lovejoy to talk about her new book Tales of Militant Chemistry: The Film Factory in a Century of War (U California Press, 2025). We begin with the materiality of early film and how it became intertwined with the industry of chemical warfare. At stake in the making of this militant chemical complex was chemistry's fundamental principle of transformation, which brought materials like film into close alignment with a burgeoning plastics industry. We move from there to talking about the forms of expertise involved in militant chemistry, the relationship between chemistry and empire, and the politics of labor in factories operated by firms like Kodak and AGFA. We close with the affinities and disaffinities between militant chemistry and the nuclear industry. Hang in there, everyone, peace and love.

Gustav Peebles and Ben Luzzatto, co-authors of The First and Last Bank, delve into innovative ideas on carbon banking. They explore how redefining carbon as a reserve asset could transform climate action and local economies. Discussions cover converting waste into biochar, enhancing community engagement with digital currencies, and the importance of making carbon 'sacred.' With historical parallels to banking, they outline accessible pathways for communities to establish carbon banks and emphasize the power of collective stewardship.

There be tales of two Sean Fields on this week's podcast. Happily, we are only welcoming (8:56) the smart and accomplished Dr. Field to the podcast to talk about his pathbreaking new ethnography of oil and finance, Carbon Capital: Climate Change and the Ethics of Oil Investing (NYU Press, 2025). We begin with why it matters to understand the moral landscape and ethical values of oil investment. From there, the conversation evolves to include oil and Christianity, the intersection of value and values, why the oil industry "inhales capital" and how private equity firms helped US oil and gas industry explode in size. We dig into how both finance and oil discount the future, the moral philosophy of oil evangelist Alex Epstein and much, much more. Please listen and share! Hang in there, everyone, peace and love.

Cymene and Dominic talk about screamo music and the band Phish and how you can't fake the feels on this week's intro to the podcast. Then (13:07) expert in all things Mancunian, the great and wondrous Hannah Knox joins the conversation to discuss her recent book Thinking Like a Climate: Governing a City in Times of Environmental Change (Duke UP). Hannah explains to us how climate change has challenged both the concepts and methods of urban governance and how governmental and non-governmental experts in Manchester have sought to come to terms with the scope of the problem. We talk carbon footprints, emissions tracking, vernacular engineers and much more, concluding with a discussion of how climate change challenges conventional anthropological concepts and methods too. Please listen and share! Hang in there, everyone, peace and love.

Robert Savino Oventile, a poet and author of 'The Canyon', shares his profound connection to Eaton Canyon and the devastating impact of the recent Eaton Fire. He discusses how his poetry reflects the bond between art and ecology, supporting the restoration efforts of the area. The conversation highlights the importance of ecological relationality, the role of local knowledge during wildfires, and how creative expression fosters community resilience. Robert emphasizes the need for slow engagement with nature and honors the Indigenous heritage of the land.

Dominic reports from a delayed birthday trip to Los Angeles and we learn about how Mike Brady (of Brady Brunch fame) nearly perished in a helicopter crash. Then (5:55) Roy Scranton returns to the podcast after nearly eight years away. We're talking about his provocative and important new book, Impasse: Climate Change and the Limits of Progress (Stanford UP, 2025). We begin with the philosophical origins of the concepts of optimism and pessimism in debates over Leibniz and Voltaire and from there explore what Roy means by "ethical pessimism." Roy explains how pessimism might do more for us than the too-often empty rhetoric of hope and optimism because optimism verges toward narcissism and often defers relieving the suffering of the world into an imaginary future. From there we talk about signs of civilizational collapse (or "simplification"), the psychology of optimism, the virtues of depressive realism, pacifism and pessimism, religion and the apophatic tradition, and what comes after collapse. Listening to Roy may make you feel weirdly better about feeling hopeless these days. Finally (55:32) Cymene, Dominic and a nervous Brijzha take their first-ever trip in an automated Waymo vehicle and share a new song about Shadow (which can be found on Spotify here). Please listen and share! Hang in there, everyone, peace and love.

Dominic gives a quick update from the frontlines of home repair. Then (3:30) we welcome Rachel Frazin an energy and environmental reporter from The Hill to the podcast to talk about her new book, together with Sharon Udasin, Poisoning the Well: How Forever Chemicals Contaminated America (Island Press, 2025). We start with the basics: what forever chemicals and PFAS are, where they came from and when it first became clear that they could have devastating health impacts. We move from there to why, even though 97% of Americans have PFAS in their blood, Rachel sees this as a global problem and discuss some of the powerful and tragic personal stories covered in the book. We then talk about the failures of the regulatory state that allowed the PFAS epidemic to get so out of hand and various efforts to bring the originators of PFAS to justice. Finally, Rachel offers some very helpful thoughts about what people can do to keep PFAS out of their lives and bodies. You can find Rachel on Bluesky, Instagram and X and if you have a forever chemicals story of your own you can reach her at The Hill at rfrazin@thehill.com

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.

Cymene and Dominic report from Berlin, a land of feisty wasps (which are possibly bees) and haunted lakes. Then (16:38) we are so thrilled to welcome Queen of Ecodelia, Stacy Alaimo back to the podcast to discuss her brand new book The Abyss Stares Back: Encounters with Deep-Sea Life (U Minnesota Press, 2025). We talk about the history of the deep sea as a space of military, capitalist and scientific interest as well as a place of wonder and reflection. Stacy explains that the question of what it would take to provoke concern about life at the bottom of the sea inspired the project and why she became interested in creaturely aesthetics as a way of exploring the deep sea. We talk about the oceanic abyss as experimental space and foil for the extraterrestrial abyss and the critical potential of focusing on the richness of abyssal earthly life in contrast to the hypermasculinist mineral fantasies imposed on places like Mars. From there we talk about jellyfish and suffrage, the virtues of staying ignorant in the interpretive process, the limits of the sublime as analytic, and, of course, the importance of practicing ecodelia against the Anthropocene. What deep sea creature is Stacy eyeing for her next incarnation? You'll have to listen to find out!

In this engaging discussion, Mark Goodale, an expert on Bolivia and author of the upcoming book on the lithium boom, dives into the history of extractivism in Bolivia. He introduces the concept of 'flexible extractivism,' demonstrating how it intertwines with Bolivia's gas exploration legacy. The conversation takes an intriguing turn as he examines the role of Silicon Valley in the lithium landscape and critiques the energy transition's continuation of petrostate logic, all while advocating for more sustainable futures.