
Doomer Optimism
Doomer Optimism is a podcast dedicated to discovering regenerative paths forward, highlighting the people working for a better world, and connecting seekers to doers. Beyond that, it's pretty much a $hitshow. Enjoy!
Latest episodes

Oct 7, 2022 • 1h 29min
DO 82 - Jack Murphy w/ Tucker Max and Ashley Colby
Ashley and Tucker ask Jack about the version of homestead rescue he did for a member of his Liminal Order on a farm in Michigan. They discuss the barn raising, homesteading, localism and why it is important to push yourself to learn and try new things, even when it is hard to do.
Jack Murphy @jackmurphylive interviews the world’s best thinkers on Jack Murphy Live. He is the founder of the Liminal Order and an Alumnus of the Claremont Institute's Lincoln Fellowship.
YouTube.com/jackmurphylive
liminal-order.com
Tucker Max @tuckermax is the co-founder of Scribe Media, a company that helps you write, publish, and market your book. He's written four New York Times Best Sellers (three that hit #1), which have sold over 4.5 million copies worldwide. He's credited with being the originator of the literary genre, “fratire,” and is only the fourth writer (along with Malcolm Gladwell, Brene Brown and Michael Lewis) to have three books on the New York Times Nonfiction Best Seller List at one time. He was nominated to the Time Magazine 100 Most Influential List in 2009. He received his BA from the University of Chicago in 1998, and his JD from Duke Law School in 2001. He currently lives in Austin, Texas, with his wife Veronica and four children.
Ashley Colby @rizomaschool is an Environmental Sociologist and co-founder of the Rizoma Field School in Uruguay.

Oct 5, 2022 • 1h 52min
DO 81 - Michael Thomas w/ Jason Snyder and Anarchocontrarian
Jason and AC talk to Michael about his farm, family, the Catholic Land Movement, and distributism.
Michael Thomas of Sharon @michaelGT09 Husband of @rosary2battle Father of five. Traditional Catholic. https://catholiclandmovement.info/
Jason Snyder @cognazor Metamodern localist | homesteading, permaculture, bioregional regeneration | meditation, self inquiry, embodied cognition | PhD from Michigan State University, faculty Appalachian State University.
Anarcho-contrarian @anarcontrarian is a nostalgia-poasting Twitter Anon who is passionate about the resiliency of rural places.

Oct 3, 2022 • 1h 35min
DO 80 - Paul Wheaton w/ Tres Crow and Dave Aspiring Peasant
Dave and Tres interview Paul about all his various activities including Permies, Rich Soil, Wheaton Labs and more. The Duke of Permaculture, ladies and gentlemen!
Paul Wheaton @paul wheaton is an American permaculture author, master gardener, software engineer, and disciple of the natural agriculturist Sepp Holzer.
paulwheaton.com
richsoil.com
permies.com
Dave @aspiringpeasant still none of your business
Tres Crow @dogeatcrow is a writer, podcast host, occasional thinker, and the President and co-owner of Roots Down, an environmental education startup that's revolutionizing the landscaping industry from one of the dirtiest industries in the US to a powerful force for positive change.

Oct 1, 2022 • 1h 21min
DO 79 - Richard Heinberg w/ Jason Snyder and Josh Kearns
Jason and Josh sit down with world renowned expert on energy and the environment, Richard Heinberg to discuss the future of energy, techno-utopianism, and an optimistic vision for the future.
Richard William Heinberg @richardheinberg is an American journalist and educator who has written extensively on energy, economic, and ecological issues, including oil depletion. He is the author of 13 books, and presently serves as the senior fellow at the Post Carbon Institute. Richardheinberg.com
Jason Snyder @cognazor Metamodern localist | homesteading, permaculture, bioregional regeneration | meditation, self inquiry, embodied cognition | PhD from Michigan State University, faculty Appalachian State University.
Josh Kearns @hillbillynarnia is a born-n-bred Appalachian and a native of West-By-God-Virginia and damn proud of it. He studied chemistry and environmental engineering at Clemson (BS), biogeochemistry at Berkeley (MS), and environmental engineering at CU-Boulder (PhD). He's spent years bumming around rural and remote communities in Thailand, Burma/Myanmar, India, Nepal, Ladakh, Sri Lanka, and Mexico, and generally tried to make himself useful while doing so. He's the Director of Science for Aqueous Solutions, and the Chief Technical Advisor for Caminos de Agua, grassroots water and health development organizations in Thailand and Mexico, respectively. He taught environmental engineering courses at NC State University for a couple of years before returning to his roots as a freelance renegade scientist and exponent of ecological transition engineering. He lives with his wife Rachael and all their critters on a small mountaintop homestead in southern Appalachia.

Sep 29, 2022 • 1h 21min
DO 78 - Chris Arnade w/ Ashley Colby and Anarcho-contrarian
Chris Arnade, author exploring poverty, addiction, and faith in the US, talks about antidotes to Front Row thinking, including 'don't be an asshole.' They discuss the limitations of quantitative data, negative consequences of hypermobility, educational sorting mechanism, and changing nature of elites. They also touch on controversy over Walmart, upcoming travel plans, and the value of embracing agency and adventure.

Sep 26, 2022 • 1h 1min
DO 77 - Texas Slim w/ Julie Frederickson
In this episode Julie interviews Slim about his beef initiative, bitcoin and several events he has been a part of that are advancing food and community sovereignty.
Texas Slim @moderntman
Slim is the founder of The Beef Initiative and Food Intelligence. He is a Native Texan with a National Reach.
https://fountain.fm/texasslimsvision
https://beefinitiative.com/
About Julie Fredrickson I'm a founder, and now investor, with extensive experience across the internet and software industry. As a serial entrepreneur, I have overseen multiple venture and private equity fundraises for companies as diverse as direct to consumer cosmetics and online advertising networks. I have managed multi-million dollar P&Ls and successfully exited two of my companies. I'm currently the founder and managing partner of Chaotic Capital, a seed stage investment vehicle that invests in ideas that adapt humanity to complexity. We capitalize on chaos. We like companies that adapt our lives and systems to the opportunity that chaos brings. We invest in 4 key areas Personal Flexibility Organizational Agility, Systemic Arbitrage and Climate. I began my entrepreneurial career as the Co-Founder of Coutorture Media, a luxury affiliate publishing and e-commerce network of fashion websites that was acquired by Sugar Inc. I also founded and ran playAPI, a developer tool kit and SaaS platform for digital brand marketers. Most recently I was the CEO and Co-Founder of Stowaway Cosmetics a direct to consumer makeup brand re-making how premium cosmetics are manufactured, marketed, merchandised and sold online (acquired by WIN Brands Group). I have extensive experience user acquisition, audience development, digital and social marketing, communications and brand marketing for Fortune 500 brands. I've created digital, e-commerce & brand marketing strategies for brands as diverse as Pepsi, Tropicana, Nike, Michael Kors, Club Monaco, and The Gap. I have spent time in-house at Equinox as well as at Ann Taylor overseeing ecommerce and digital brand growth.

Sep 24, 2022 • 54min
DO 76 - Carol Sanford w/ Glen Ganaway and Tres Crow
Carol Sanford @carolsanford
Carol Sanford is a consistently recognized disruptor and contrarian working side by side with new economy executives in designing and leading systemic business change and design. Through her university and in-house educational offerings, global speaking platforms, best selling multi-award-winning books, and human development work, Carol works with executive leaders who see the possibility to change the nature of work through developing people and work systems that ignite motivation everywhere. For four decades, Carol has worked with great leaders of successful businesses, educating them to develop their people and ensure a continuous stream of innovation that continually deliver extraordinary results. Carol is often called a positive contrarian bringing old practices into modern practice. But most importantly, Carol offers businesses and their stakeholders a pathway to extraordinary results.
Glen Morton Ganaway @glenganaway
Glen considers himself a product of the Military Industrial Complex, The Deep South and the Southern Baptist Church. Today he identifies as an Anarchist. Born in Anchorage, Alaska to a deeply religious family and raised in the gated communities of Navy bases.The 80's found Glen doing sex work and waiting tables to support an injection habit. Glen cleaned up in the 90's and joined the Radical Faeries, a loose knit collection of Pagan Queer Anarchists. He met the love of his life Yolanda, an East Village legendary performance artist in 2004. Glen went on to be ordained an Interfaith Minister and acquire an Integral Mentor Certification and a BS in Healthcare Management, which he uses for UFCW Local 2013. Glen's passions include Advaita-Vedanta, Integral Theory, Anarchism, and Regenerative Agriculture. His next project is a 4.4 Acre Homestead in Vermont.
Tres Crow @dogeatcrow
Tres is making the world a greener place one urban space at a time with my friends Roots Down. He's a storyteller and marketing dude. He loves natural urbanism and climate justice.

Sep 21, 2022 • 1h 33min
DO 75 - David Holmgren w/ Ashley Colby and Sam Sager
Ashley and new host Sam Sager sit down with legend of permaculture David Holmgren. They discuss a permaculture vision for the suburbs laid out in David's book: Retrosuburbia.
David Holmgren is the co-originator of the permaculture concept following publication of Permaculture One, co-authored with Bill Mollison in 1978. David is globally recognised as a leading ecological thinker, teacher, writer and speaker promoting permaculture as a realistic, attractive and powerful alternative to dependent consumerism. Other key publications include Permaculture: Principles and Pathways Beyond Sustainability (2002) and Future Scenarios: How Communities Can Adapt To Peak Oil and Climate Change (2009) and RetroSuburbia: The Downshifter’s Guide to a Resilient Future (2018).
www.holmgren.com.au
www.retrosuburbia.com
www.futurescenarios.org
Sam Sager is slowly building a suburban food forest on a 1/4 acre in North Carolina. He's fascinated by how we can build the capacity to respond to change within ourselves and the natural world around us. He loves exploring new ideas and experimenting in his own backyard. He runs First Stone Fitness to help people embrace exercise more fully and hosts The Self-Renewal Podcast.

Sep 19, 2022 • 1h 29min
Episode 74 - Mr. Cooper w/ Ashley Colby and Willow Liana
On one of the most inspiring episodes of Doomer Optimism, Ashley Colby (@RizomaSchool) and Willow Liana (@willlowthewhisp) speak with the father of Kevin Cooper (AKA Cole Summers) about his late son's work. They discuss Cole's plans and aspirations for sustainably developing the farmland where he lived to preserve the water table. Cole passed away at aged 14, leaving a huge legacy behind him. He had some of the most ambitious plans for business development and sustainable agriculture that you'll ever hear of. The hope of this episode is to inspire others to continue the work he left behind him. You can donate to help Cole's family rebuild their lives here:
https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-kevin-coopers-family
You can purchase Cole's autobiography here.
About Willow Liana
Willow is a professional social butterfly and mother of a wee babe whom she is raising in the Canadian countryside.
About Ashley Colby
Ashley is an Environmental Sociologist who studied at Washington State University, the department that founded the subdiscipline. She's interested in and passionate about the myriad creative ways in which people are forming new social worlds in resistance to the failures of late capitalism and resultant climate disasters. I am a qualitative researcher so I tend to focus on the informal spaces of innovation. She's the founder of Rizoma Field School and Rizoma Foundation.

Sep 14, 2022 • 1h 29min
Episode 73 - Chris Smaje and Sean Domencic w/ Ashley Colby and Nathan Gates
On this episode, Ashley Colby (@RizomaSchool) teams up with Nathan Gates (@TornadoNate) to co-host an intriguing conversation about Distributism with Chris Smaje (@csmaje) and Sean Domencic (@tradtom), co-founder of Tradistae.
About Sean Domencic
Sean Domencic is the director of Tradistae, a contributing author at New Polity, and a maintenance man who speaks and writes about Distributism and Catholic Social Teaching. He and his wife live in community at Holy Family Catholic Worker in Lancaster, PA.
About Chris Smaje
Chris Smaje has coworked a small farm in Somerset, southwest England, for the last 17 years. Previously, he was a university-based social scientist, working in the Department of Sociology at the University of Surrey and the Department of Anthropology at Goldsmiths College on aspects of social policy, social identities and the environment. Since switching focus to the practice and politics of agroecology, he's written for various publications, such as The Land , Dark Mountain , Permaculture magazine and Statistics Views, as well as academic journals such as Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems and the Journal of Consumer Culture . Smaje writes the blog Small Farm Future, is a featured author at www.resilience.org and a current director of the Ecological Land Co-op. Chris' latest book is: A Small Farm Future: Making the Case for a Society Built Around Local Economies, Self-Provisioning, Agricultural Diversity, and a Shared Earth.
About Nathan Gates
Nathan is a licensed psychotherapist and co-host of Altered States of Context, a podcast about psychedelics, science and psychotherapy. He also practices regenerative ranching and writes from his family's farm in rural west-central Illinois.
About Ashley Colby
Ashley is an Environmental Sociologist who studied at Washington State University, the department that founded the subdiscipline. She's interested in and passionate about the myriad creative ways in which people are forming new social worlds in resistance to the failures of late capitalism and resultant climate disasters. I am a qualitative researcher so I tend to focus on the informal spaces of innovation. She's the founder of Rizoma Field School and Rizoma Foundation.