At a Distance

British philosopher Kate Soper, author of the new book “Post-Growth Living: For an Alternative Hedonism,” speaks with us about why people reject the idea of an absolute truth, how alarmist narratives fail the climate conversation, and slowing down and downsizing as a means for a more satisfying life.

Walter Hood, founder and creative director of Hood Design Studio and co-author of the forthcoming book “Black Landscapes Matter,” talks with us about how his new proposal for Washington, D.C.’s National Mall Tidal Basin could facilitate unity, why spaces that elicit discomfort are a step toward reconciliation, and the importance of investing in people and places that society takes for granted.

London-based economist Paola Subacchi, author of the new book “The Cost of Free Money: How Unfettered Capital Threatens Our Economic Future,” discusses the financial impact of the coronavirus, similarities between trade and currency, and how wealth inequality is fueling the United States’s current political climate.

Regan Ralph, founding president and CEO of the Fund for Global Human Rights, speaks with us about the importance of “trust-based philanthropy,” funding decentralized movements, and what social-change organizations can learn from local activists.

Cuban-born, Los Angeles–based artist, author, and former scientist Enrique Martínez Celaya talks with us about the problematic relationship between the art market and artists’ practices, the consciousness-raising power of science, and finding clarity in moments of uncertainty by looking in the mirror.

Gregg Buchbinder, CEO of the American furniture maker Emeco, discusses the motivation behind the company’s recently launched carbon footprint calculator, why planned obsolescence should be illegal, and how his team transformed plastic bottles into a series of recyclable chairs.

Self-described “fermentation fetishist” Sandor Katz, author of the new book “Fermentation as Metaphor,” speaks with us about how the pandemic has revealed our food systems’ vulnerabilities, why fermentation is integral to human culture, and what he learned from eating “stink heads” in Alaska.

Composer, artist, and writer Paul D. Miller talks with us about social media’s “computational propaganda,” the need to trust science over belief, and how his multimedia project “Quantopia” unpacks the history and evolution of the internet.

Artist, aesthetics expert, and writer Leonard Koren, author of the new book “Musings of a Curious Aesthete,” discusses the psychological benefits of bathing, how “action intellectuals” harness life’s experiences, and the enlightenment that comes from looking at things from a new perspective.

Physicist and climate researcher Dr. Friederike Otto, author of the new book “Angry Weather: Heat Waves, Floods, Storms, and the New Science of Climate Change,” speaks with us about the nuances of understanding real-time weather data, why climate change is a social issue, and how suing fossil fuel companies can help change their business models, regardless of the legal outcome.