Post Carbon Institute

Join environmental journalist?Rachel Donald, Jason Hickel, Nia Evans, and Cierra Peters for an expansive conversation on the what, why, and how of sustainably scaled economies.?

Our friends at Island Press have discounted all print books 50% and are offering free shipping on orders of $100+ until November 24. Island Press’s mission is to elevate voices of change, shine a spotlight on crucial issues, and focus attention on sustainable solutions through their books. https://lnkd.in/ghcJEvSR

Nearly half of the world’s human population has the right to vote in 2024 – a testament to the spread of democracies in just the last couple of centuries and the progress marginalized groups within democratic nations have made in just the last couple of centuries. And yet surveys across many countries show that political polarization –?the divergence of political attitudes away from the center and toward ideological extremes –?is on the rise. When polarization becomes toxic it often leads to political violence and greatly hampers the ability of societies to address critical issues. Worsening environmental and social crises like climate change, resource constraints, and economic inequality can both exacerbate political polarization and literally make the stakes a life or death proposition. Join us for this live, online event associated with our Surviving Political Polarization Deep Dive, on October 8, 2024 at 11:00 AM PT.

People in over half of the world have the opportunity to vote in 2024. But even while more people are now living in democracies, polarization -- and extreme polarization -- are on the rise. As the #polycrisis deepens, challenging our communities, nations, and the international community with multiple, interacting environmental and social crises, the importance of grappling with political polarization can literally become a matter of life and death. Richard Heinberg of Post Carbon Institute provides a great overview here of some of the drivers of political #polarization, the particular situation in the United States, and what can be done to counter it. This essay is part of a heavy focus PCI is putting on the topic of political polarization over the coming weeks in the lead up to a hugely consequential and contentious election in the United States. Our Deep Dive on Surviving Political Polarization (https://lnkd.in/gwWyvMuJ) features live events and recorded interviews with some of the leading experts on the topic, including Lilliana Mason, Cecilie Surasky, Jennifer McCoy, Nichole Argo, PhD, Peter T. Coleman, David Stasavage, and Trisha Dehrone. https://lnkd.in/gV8AspSZ

If you've ever wanted a better strategy for discussing difficult topics like the climate crisis, then join us for this free event.

Do you find people changing the subject when you speak up about climate change? Have you ever torpedoed the mood of a get-together just by mentioning an environmental problem? Could it be that we—well-intentioned environmentalists—should be doing something different? Join us for a conversation with Dr. Elizabeth Sawin, Executive Director of the Multisolving Institute, on Tuesday, September 24, 2024 at 11:00am Pacific. In this live, online, 75-minute event, Dr. Sawin will share a unique approach to communicating more effectively about challenging topics. https://lnkd.in/gc5ejhPp

Tori Tsui has made an impressive impact on the environmental movement. She is the co-founder of the space Bad Activist Collective and a member of the climate coalition Unite for Climate Action. She sailed across the Atlantic Ocean with the think tank Sail to the COP, and was featured in “Overheated,” singer-songwriter Billie Eilish’s?documentary, about mental health and the climate crisis; as a result, she was one of eight climate activists to be featured on the cover of Vogue in 2023. Post Carbon Institute sent her 15 questions about her career thus far, her perspective on the connection between climate anxiety and environmental injustice, and what it means to be a “bad activist.” She answers them all in this video: https://lnkd.in/gEAkxMGc

"Sometimes when contemplating this dilemma, I see the human enterprise as a monster avalanche and each of us little more than incorporated—even willfully participating—snowflakes. We are simply swept along in the furious deluge, our best efforts useless in slowing its gathering momentum." In our most recent Resilience+ post, world-renowned ecologist and systems thinker William Rees explores humanity’s overshoot predicament and shares advice for coping with the predictable consequences. https://bit.ly/3zH6deY

Journalist Rachel Donald recently interviewed Johanna Bozuwa, Executive Eirector of the?Climate and Community Project, as part of our Navigating Climate Unraveling Deep Dive. In the interview, some of the larger topics they discuss include: what it would take to build a community-centered climate movement that can achieve an equitable energy transition; ways we can re-envision carbon-heavy sectors of the economy (such as transportation) so that they can meet needs without causing widespread harm; and finding solidarity with one another in the process. Access this interview—and other insightful resources—through the Navigating Climate Unraveling Deep Dive: https://lnkd.in/emsgWfh2

Climate change is a?huge, complicated problem. Therefore, many people have an understandable tendency to mentally simplify it by focusing on just one cause (carbon emissions) and just one solution (alternative energy). Sustainability scholar?Jan Konietzko?has called this “carbon tunnel vision.” Oversimplifying the problem this way leads to techno-fixes that actually fix nothing. Despite?trillions of dollars?already spent on low-carbon technologies, carbon emissions are still?increasing, and the climate is being destabilized?faster than ever. Read the rest of this great article by Richard Heinberg on Resilience: https://bit.ly/3RPxvpw