Doomer Optimism

An excellent conversation on topics of mutual interest. Can be found on Twitter at @‌Hispeedlowdrug: Lightly brain damaged 6ft 2in white trash polymath I've heard all these stories about people with twitter connections meeting IRL and forming beautiful friendships and relationships. I would like that. I'm a mid 40's handyman with a strange bio and a young son in Western MA. Interested...

Austin and Nate discuss Austin’s recent book Barons, concerning consolidation and corruption in the food system. With a focus on the midwest, Austin and Nate discuss how the rise of industrial agriculture has degraded the heartland, how it was allowed to happen, who has been responsible, and most importantly, how to move forward with a different, more humane agriculture that values the health of p...

Arie and Jason meander through a conversation, loosely inspired by recent podcast topics, exploring various ideas. https://bothand.libsyn.com/20-whats-metamodern-with-linda-ceriello-greg-dember https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4iKUVpwwGA&t=11s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3XBfoJx_8mg&t=1s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZKrhrb9oao&t=34s https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H4DmHZJu8UE&a...

In this episode, Ashley and Dougald discuss an event they are co-creating in Chicago over the weekend of September 14 and 15. They talk about the various experimentations on the margins they have been a part of over the years, many of the friends they have in common, Ashley’s experience hosting Dougald’s co-conspirator Paul Kingsnorth in Wyoming last year, and their plans for this upcoming retreat...

Paul McNiel and Ashley discuss the Wagon Box, their shared event with Paul Kingsnorth last year, and their upcoming event this Labor Day in Wyoming. Ashley asks Paul about his conception of the Wagon Box as a new vision of a campus: a place to not only learn, but enjoy fleeting moments of inspiration with fellow learners. You get the inside scoop on the event with Kingsnorth in this episode and an...

Today we sat down with four similar-minded folks to talk about our personal experiences with various Food Hub models. We let the conversation go free-form like we were sitting on the front porch at one of our farms and chatting with friends. It was a great and insightful conversation for all of us and we vowed to record another episode in the future to get updates on our respective projects.  Mega...

Ashley and Arie broadly discuss Goethean science, loconomy, and doomer optimism. This is part of a series of interviews where new hosts turn the mic on recurring DO hosts, like this one with Donald: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QOyS9fAtSI8 Arie J. Dallas is a sometimes surrealist painter who wonders about the mystery of life and connection. He currently produces Popcorn Forest, an interview sho...

Here’s a link to buy the book (if you use the code ‘CUP20’ you can get 20% off) Here’s a link to the Nature article I mentioned Dana R. Fisher is a dynamic speaker and author who writes about activism, democracy and climate policy. Her most recent book, Saving Ourselves: from Climate Shocks to Climate Action was published in February 2024 by Columbia University Press.  She is the Director of the C...

Ashley talks with James of Michigan ( @michlakeshore ) about his adventure walking along the coast of Lake Michigan from his home all the way up the shore to the top of the state at Mackinac Bridge. They discuss the meaning of pilgrimages, the unexpected lessons, and how the journey reinforced James’ faith.

Cultural Renewal with Donald and Mike In this episode, the roles are reversed, and occasional first-time host Donald is interviewed by friend & DO fan, Mike. They discuss religion & spirituality, education, punk rock, veganism, literature, and Ancient Greek, circling around the question of how to bring about cultural renewal in their own lives. Donald lives in the Pacific Northwest with hi...

In this episode, Jason and Roland Gunn (@rolandgunntn ) talk with C. Sandbatch (@csandbatch ) about his project Ecologica Americana. With a focus on the South but more broadly generalizable to America, they weave in ecology, history, and politics to talk about paradigm change, shifting from rigid ideology to cybernetic mythology, breaking through the cultural ennui, and creating a future worth our...

In this episode, Jason talks with Dru Zucchino, executive director of the Tractor Food & Farms food hub in Spruce Pine, NC to talk about local food systems, the challenges that farmers face, local distribution, quantifying the value of local food, the cultural dynamics of local food, and much more

Jake Hubbard is a farmer at Brookhaven Farms, nestled in the mountains of Northeast Tennessee. Hex has a life-long passion for animal husbandry and sustainable farming and hopes to win others to his cause. You can find Jake at the following places: Website: https://brookhavenfarms.net/ Twitter: @‌brookhavenfarms Instagram: @‌brookhaven.farms TikTok: @‌Jacobhubbard0 Email: Jake@brookhavenfarms.net

Rich Bartlett joins Ashley to discuss the art of crafting co-created events. Discover the intricacies of collaboration, community engagement, and fostering inclusivity. Rich Bartlett co-founded tech co-op Loomio , community building network Microsolidarity , non-hierarchical management consultancy The Hum , and director of the social impact collective Enspiral . You can check out his newsletter he...

In this episode Ashley and Jason host Farahn Morgan (@farahnmorgan) to talk about her reporting on community pushback against lithium mining in North Carolina many other themes around ‘defending and cultivating land and people’

James Pogue describes his experience in Africa with Chris Mott and Ashley, including his experience getting detained in the Central African Republic, the role of empire and the United States in a deglobalizing world, and what this means for preparing for the future. James Pogue:  I’m a Contributing Editor at Harper’s, and write about national politics for Vanity Fair. I’ve written for The New York...

Simon @‌simoningall, Kara @‌karakara98, and Anarcho-Contrarian 2.0 @‌waysyoucanstay sit down to discuss building a local community. They work through the challenges of returning home again, new ways to build a community for the future, and different scenarios of how to build a community dependent on your neighborhood.

In this episode, Brendan (@brendangrahamd1)and Jason talk about the meaning of metamodernism and how it relates to permaculture, the interplay of various forms of meaning-making, and how it translates into a theory of change and pragmatic action. Brendan also talks about his work at the Sky Meadow Institute, a retreat center and permaculture homestead in Vermont Brendan Graham Dempsey is a writer,...

Ashley, Jason, Nate, and Josh host a panel and audience discussion as part of Limicon, a month long event bringing together different strands of the ‘Liminal Web’. Main themes include the sensibility and meaning of doomer optimism and the recent trend towards traditional religion as a response to the meaning and civilizational crisis

Andy and Keturah are exploring the possibilities of where to raise their future family. Ashley and Patrick, on the far side of 7 years in Uruguay, discuss the pros and cons, where to live, and why.

James Poulos joins Donald to talk about Tocqueville, McLuhan, Orthodoxy, and "the digital politics of spiritual war." James Poulos helps advance enterprises impacting American life in technological, spiritual, and political ways. He is the co-founder and editor of The American Mind at the Claremont Institute, the founder and editorial director of RETURN, acquired by Blaze Media, and the...

In this episode Jonathan and Jason talk about Jonathan’s relationship to the South, his Orthodox faith and Interest in Islamic history, anarcho-agrarianism, the commons, and his current efforts helping to catalyze urban community food forests in Chattanooga, Tennessee Food Forest Organization: chattanoogafoodforests.org Substack: https://jonathanparkesallen.substack.com Twitter: @‌Mar_Musa

Donald asked Ashley to sit down to think out loud about the pros and cons of continuing to devote time to podcasts, as both a creator and as a listener. Please feel free to weigh in on this topic in the YouTube comments!

A panel discussion talking about the brilliant book Anna Karenina by Leo Tolstoy - how it relates to DO themes of agrarianism, relationship, religion, and much more

Gord and the two Ashleys discuss the modern state of leftism: what remains of it, and how to navigate the upside-down world where the professional-managerial elites have hijacked the conversation.