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The Great Simplification with Nate Hagens

Daniel Schmachtenberger: "Bend not Break #4: Modeling the Drivers of the Metacrisis"

The Great Simplification with Nate Hagens

Nate Hagens

Natural Sciences, Science, Earth Sciences

4.8555 Ratings

🗓️ 26 October 2022

⏱️ 126 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In this fourth installment of conversations with Daniel Schmachtenberger, we dive deeper into the nuances of humans using energy, materials and technology. Human's ability to develop and use tools is one of our greatest strengths - yet has also led to increasing destruction of the natural world. How does technology intensify the binding effects of a world order based on growth? Is there any way out - or could global solutions just make the problem worse?

About Daniel Schmachtenberger:

Daniel Schmachtenberger is a founding member of The Consilience Project, aimed at improving public sensemaking and dialogue. 

The throughline of his interests has to do with ways of improving the health and development of individuals and society, with a virtuous relationship between the two as a goal.

Towards these ends, he's had particular interest in the topics of catastrophic and existential risk, civilization and institutional decay and collapse as well as progress, collective action problems, social organization theories, and the relevant domains in philosophy and science.

For Show Notes and Transcript visit: https://www.thegreatsimplification.com/episode/42-daniel-schmachtenberger

Transcript

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0:00.0

You're listening to The Great Simplification with Nate Higgins.

0:06.3

That's me.

0:07.7

On this show, we try to explore and simplify what's happening with energy, the economy, the environment, and our society.

0:17.0

Together with scientists, experts, and leaders, this show is about understanding the bird's-eye view of how everything fits together, where we go from here and what we can do about it as a society and as individuals.

0:33.1

Here is the long-awaited fourth installment in a series with Daniel Schmachtenberger.

0:39.8

We dive deeper into the nuances of humans with our relationship with energy, materials, and technology.

0:49.1

How does technology intensify the multipolar trap on a world order based on growth?

0:55.9

Is there a way out?

0:57.8

Or could global solutions just make the problem worse?

1:01.6

We close this fourth conversation, queuing up what our eventual goal was, which is a what-to-do

1:09.3

framework on bend and not break for society in coming

1:15.7

decades. Once again, here is Daniel Schmachtenberger. We got really sidetracked on the last conversation, and I'm going to try to be a taskmaster here to keep us on topic.

1:40.5

But with you and me, who knows where this will go. So here is my intent for this

1:47.6

conversation. This is part four of a series called Bend Not Break, which is the ultimate

1:55.3

intent of framing our macroeconomic human predicament, understanding the game board of the constraints and challenges

2:05.5

which then inform the opportunities so that we can navigate coming centuries and educate,

2:13.5

and inspire more humans to play a role at various scales of the challenges we face.

2:20.3

So just if you don't mind, I'm just going to briefly recap our first conversations.

2:27.3

Our first conversation, you kind of interviewed me and we talked about the energy, money, economic growth basis of modern early 21st

2:39.2

century society and how we got here and our dependence on fossil hydrocarbons, how we paper

2:46.6

over some of our limits with increased monetary claims and what are the drivers of growth.

2:54.8

The second, you talked about the maximum power, which is that organisms and ecosystems in nature

...

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