The Great Simplification with Nate Hagens

Marine biologist Daniel Pauly, ocean physicist Antonio Turiel, and paleobiologist Peter Ward discuss threats to the Earth’s oceans, from overfishing and plastic pollution to climate change and acidification. They explore the impact of industrial fishing, rising ocean temperatures, and the possibility of a Canfield ocean. The speakers also address the negative consequences of tuna fattening operations and overfishing on the ocean's food web. They emphasize the urgent need to preserve the ocean and address climate change for food security and peace.

Exploring the impact and shapes of the carbon pulse, potential future scenarios for energy use, and the implications of the carbon pulse for the future. Analyzing the connection between volcanic eruptions and human-caused emissions, and discussing the role of technology, productivity, and interconnectivity. Exploring the relationship between population ecology and human behavior in shaping the carbon pulse. Discussing declines in energy use, systemic risks, catastrophic events, and a transition to renewable energy as potential future scenarios. Exploring the potential for a sapient species to use carbon to mitigate ice ages and how the carbon pulse affects society and the environment.

Nate Hagens is joined by Graham Palmer, a scholar and engineer in the field of energy, to discuss the critical role of energy storage in shaping societies throughout history. They explore the challenges and potential solutions for energy storage, including the impact on the financial system and the Energy Return on Investment (E.R.O.I.) of intermittent energy sources. They also touch on topics such as housing affordability, contrasting market-based capitalism with a caring economy, and exploring energy consumption and the good life.

Nate discusses the controversy surrounding fossil fuel subsidies, including implicit subsidies and their impact on poor communities. He explores the allocation and impact of these subsidies, emphasizing the economic benefits of fossil fuels. The chapter also explores the ownership of fossil reserves and the future of fossil subsidies.

Nate Hagens and economist and anthropologist Lisi Krall discuss the evolutionary origins of our current systemic predicament, including surplus and ultrasociality. They delve into the concept of the economic superorganism, its connection to capitalism and hierarchy, and the challenges of de-growth. They also explore the role of governance, collective awareness, and the interplay of ideology and biology. The conversation contemplates our place on Earth and the need to understand the problem at hand in evolutionary terms.

The podcast discusses the different perspectives people have when engaging in 'systems' discourse. It explores filters that shape people's responses to facts, approaches to complex issues, navigating social discourse and integrating science and values, and the complexities of systems integration.

Iain McGilchrist, a literary scholar and psychiatrist, joins Nate to discuss the imbalanced use of the two lobes of our brains, and its impact on our communities and the environment. They explore the differences between the left and right hemispheres, the importance of expanding empathy, and the integration of science, imagination, and intuition. They emphasize the need for a fundamental change in our perception of the world, embracing stillness, peace, and love, and investing in wisdom and practical good works.

Nate Hagens discusses the critical importance of energy with Jean-Marc Jancovici. They explore the impact of fossil fuels on human civilization, the role of energy in technological progress, the future of global oil production, the consequences of climate change, and the connection between energy scarcity, retirement, and protests in France. They also discuss the SHIFT Project, a plan to transform the French economy, and ways to connect and collaborate in France on climate change and energy availability.

On this Reality Roundtable, Nate is joined by Jon Erickson, Josh Farley, Steve Keen, and Kate Raworth - all of whom are leading thinkers and educators in the field of heterodox economics. In this lively discussion, each guest begins by sharing one fundamental aspect of what conventional economics gets wrong and how it could be improved in our education system. What basic assumptions about humans have led to a misunderstanding of the average person’s decision-making? What areas has economics turned a blindspot to as the foundation of our economic systems? Who is finding the models and systems that economists have created useful - and how does economics as a discipline need to change in the face of a lower energy future? In short, what we teach our 18-22 year olds around the world matters - a great deal. About Jon Erickson Jon Erickson is the David Blittersdorf Professor of Sustainability Science & Policy at the University of Vermont. He has published widely on energy and climate change policy, land conservation, watershed planning, environmental public health, and the theory and practice of ecological economics.  He advised presidential candidate Bernie Sanders on economics and energy issues. About Josh Farley Joshua Farley is an ecological economist and Professor in Community Development & Applied Economics and Public Administration at the University of Vermont. He is the President of the International Society for Ecological Economics.  About Steve Keen Steve Keen is an economist, author of Debunking Economics and The New Economics: A Manifesto. He is a Research Fellow at the Institute for Strategy, Resilience, and Security at University College in London. About Kate Raworth Kate Raworth describes herself as a renegade economist focused on making economics fit for 21st century realities. She is the creator of the Doughnut of social and planetary boundaries, and co-founder of Doughnut Economics Action Lab, based on her best-selling book Doughnut Economics: 7 Ways to Think Like a 21st Century Economist. Kate is a Senior Associate at Oxford University’s Environmental Change Institute, where she teaches on the Masters in Environmental Change and Management. She is also Professor of Practice at Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences. She is a member of the Club of Rome and currently serves on the World Health Organisation Council on the Economics of Health for All.  For Show Notes and More visit: https://www.thegreatsimplification.com/episode/rr03-erickson-farley-raworth-keen  To watch this video episode on YouTube: https://youtu.be/EC11UQD9q3w  

In Part 4 of this Frankly mini-series, Nate concludes the deep dive into the nexus between “just stopping oil” and “just pumping oil” with 10 guideposts which might help us to navigate through the intersection of the Four Horsemen of the 2020s and the shrinking Web of Life….together known as The Great Simplification.  From decomplexifying at various scales to a change of consciousness arising from more humans focused on "Inner Tech", there are many ways we as individuals and as a part of the greater society can manage the push and pull of both environment and economic issues while remaining grounded in the reality of energy, technology, behavior, and the economy.   For Show Notes and More: https://www.thegreatsimplification.com/frankly-original/41-just-stop-oil-part-4-the-intersection   To watch on Youtube: https://youtu.be/_C8rR5OR74Y