Why We Need Forests: Their Vital Role in Climate Dynamics, Rain, and The Biotic Pump with Anastassia Makarieva

Despite the improved standard of living that modern finance has enabled, it has also created an unsustainable economic system rife with systemic risk. Recent trends in debt, monetary inflation, interest rates and U.S. dollar hegemony are accelerating us toward a point of biophysical reckoning when the system can no longer function as intended, and nearly everyone's financial comfort level will suffer in the ensuing recalibration back to reality. This week's Frankly is a reflection on the financial industry's history of accelerating through crisis after crisis, each time sowing the seeds of the next, bigger crisis. Is the mother of all speed bumps just ahead? For Show Notes and Transcript visit: https://www.thegreatsimplification.com/frankly-original/12-the-speed-bump To Watch on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hYQDEa99pYU

14 Loka 202222min

This week, religious scholar Mary Evelyn Tucker unpacks the entanglement of religion and ecology from an academic perspective. She and Nate discuss what the roots of environmental ethics in religions all over the world look like and how they've been evolving in the face of a climate and biodiversity crisis. Could we learn and leverage the uniting power of religion to help us organize and mobilize against impending global crises? About Mary Evelyn Tucker: Mary Evelyn is a Senior Lecturer and Research Scholar at Yale University where she has appointments in the School of Forestry and the Environment as well as the Divinity School and the Department of Religious Studies, with a specialty in Asian religions. She teaches in the joint MA program in Religion and Ecology and directs the Forum on Religion and Ecology at Yale University. Her concern for the growing environmental crisis, especially in Asia, led her to co-organize a series of ten conferences on World Religions and Ecology at the Center for the Study of World Religions at Harvard, which were highly successful. For Show Notes and Transcript visit: https://www.thegreatsimplification.com/episode/40-mary-evelyn-tucker

12 Loka 20221h 2min

We are a product of evolutionary processes - certain categories of behaviors made our ancestors more 'fit' depending on the environmental/social circumstances in the past. One of these behaviors - 'spite' - is when an animal (or human) actively does something against their self-interest as long as it hurts their competitor more. In a post growth world I expect - and fear - that this dynamic will become more prevalent at micro scales in our daily lives but also - and of more immediate concern - at the macro scale of nation states. I thought it worth a short video to explain spite, to understand it, as a small thread of awareness in hopes of avoiding it. We are going to need as much pro-social (as opposed to anti-social) behavior in coming decades as possible. A short reflection, on the concept of 'spite'. For Show Notes and Transcript visit: https://www.thegreatsimplification.com/frankly-original/frankly-11-in-spite-of To Watch on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ocoFGelQ3vE

7 Loka 202212min

On this episode, Nate talks with Ayan Mahamoud, a climate and resilience planner from Djibouti. They discuss the growing challenge the poly-crisis poses for the Global South and how climate change is already creating challenges for people (and animals) in East Africa.In many ways, the discussions in our world are not only energy blind but also blind to accelerating threats to nations outside our own. What does managing and coordinating responses look like? What can we learn from communities already dealing with increasing poverty and climate impacts? About Ayan Mahamoud: Ayan Mahamoud (PhD) is the Head of the Socioeconomic, Policy, Research and Marketing Department of ICPALD. She is an expert in Regional and Transboundary Polycrisis, Climate Security and Climate Fragility and their policy dimensions for sustained coordinated action. She contributes to the IGAD Climate Security Agenda and collaborates with institutions across the IGAD Member States, Divisions, Specialised Institutions, the UN Office of the Special Envoy, UNDP, CGIAR and various independent think tanks such as Adelphi, the Clingendael Institute. She also manages the USAID Programme Portfolio at IGAD and deals with issues related to Resilience/Climate Fragility Risks/Climate Adaptation/Dryland Development, Cross-Border Health, Countering Violent Extremism, and Conflict Prevention/Early Warning. For Show Notes and Transcript visit: https://www.thegreatsimplification.com/episode/39-ayan-mahamoud

5 Loka 20221h 12min

Climate change is often described as one of the single most important and existential issues of our time - that there is no greater threat to humanity. While the effects of climate on our ecosystems and wildlife is one of my greatest concerns, it does not tell the whole story. On this weeks Frankly, I highlight (what was in my case) Seven Stages of Climate Awareness – from recognizing 'there is an environment' to understanding that the systems dynamics of the human economy implies a much different choreography of societal response than is currently being advertised and pursued. Global warming is becoming more obvious to more people, but the interventions look quite different at Stage 7 than Stage 4. It is unlikely we'll find 'solutions' without first understanding the dynamics at its core. For Show Notes and Transcript visit: https://www.thegreatsimplification.com/frankly-original/frankly-10-the-7-stages-of-climate To Watch on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pDi82plBOh4

30 Syys 202214min

On this episode, venture capitalist and entrepreneur Sebastian Heitmann discusses his work in tech innovation towards more sustainable futures. Technology will inherently be a part of any human future - the question is what will this technology be? Sebastian's work focuses on finding what is termed 'Gigacorns' - scalable inventions for low(er) carbon futures. If successful, this could result in large scale reductions in the CO2 emissions for global society. About Sebastian Heitmann Sebastian Heitmann is a partner at Extantia Capital, a platform to invest in breakthrough technology solutions that address climate crisis mitigation and adaptation. The €300M platform includes Extantia Flagship, backing scalable deep decarbonisation companies, Extantia Allstars, partnering with mission-aligned climate tech venture capital fund managers, and Extantia Ignite, a sustainability hub advancing knowledge and competence in climate innovation and ESG practices. Sebastian is an entrepreneur and has worked in a range of different industries, from sports to community building to software. He received his education from the Harvard Business School and now lives in Berlin, Germany. For Show Notes and Transcript visit: https://www.thegreatsimplification.com/episode/38-sebastian-Heitmann

28 Syys 20221h 34min

This week's Frankly is a reflection in response to (and support of) Gerardo Ceballos' new project Creatures United, launching this week at Stanford University.. The Earth is in the middle of a massive biodiversity and population loss - on the verge of a 6th Mass Extinction. Though most conversations and actions will revolve around the economy, poverty, finance, and geopolitics, the other creatures we share the planet with do not have a voice. This short video reflection is a reminder that the natural world is a passenger on the human roller coaster ride. It is my hope that (some, many?) humans can unite on behalf of our fellow creatures to preserve and support the amazing variety of life inhabiting the planet. From the great Blue Whale to the humble bumble bee, each animal is a part of our family - and what makes this planet home. For Show Notes and Transcript visit: https://www.thegreatsimplification.com/frankly-original/frankly-09-creatures-united To Watch on Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lgoD9q3A5RU

24 Syys 202214min

On this episode, Professor of environmental chemistry Martin Sheringer joins Nate. Together, they discuss Sheringer's most recent paper on PFAS - the 'forever chemicals, their ubiquity in waterways all over the globe, and their numerous critical health effects. More broadly, they outline the risks and scenarios of plastic pollution to planetary futures - and what we might do about it. Is it possible to live in a (mostly) plastic free world, and do we really have any other option? About Martin Sheringer Martin Scheringer is a professor of environmental chemistry at Masaryk University, Brno, Czech Republic, and works in the research program on Environmental Chemistry and Modeling at RECETOX. He holds a diploma in chemistry from the Johannes-Gutenberg University, Mainz, Germany, and a doctoral degree and a habilitation from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) in Zürich, Switzerland. For Show Notes and Transcript visit: https://www.thegreatsimplification.com/episode/37-martin-scheringer

21 Syys 20221h 17min