The Great Simplification with Nate Hagens Nate Hagens

(Conversation recorded on May 1st, 2024)  
Show Summary:
Music has been an integral part of the human experience for thousands of years, and continues to embody a unique aspect of culture across the world today - yet most people hold only a preliminary understanding of the full range of benefits that sound, resonance, and harmonics can provide. Today, Nate is joined by ethnomusicologist Alexandre Tannous for a deep dive on the evolution of the human relationship with sound and how music could be used as a tool to facilitate personal resilience and healing. How can resonance quiet our reptilian fight-or-flight system and positively impact personal and group consciousness? When grounded in ceremony, how does music enhance spirituality and well-being for communities? What could a world look like in which every human has the access and energy to focus on healing themselves through the powerful tools of sound and meditation?
 
About Alexandre Tannous:
Alexandre Tannous is an ethnomusicologist, sound therapist and sound researcher who holds four degrees in music, and years of experience performing, composing, conducting, teaching and lecturing on music. He has been investigating the therapeutic and esoteric properties of sound from three different perspectives - Western scientific, Eastern philosophical, and shamanic societal beliefs - to gain a deeper understanding of how, and to what extent, sound has been used to affect human consciousness. 
The material he transmits about sound is based on multidisciplinary research conducted over 24 years. Inspired by his findings, he designed a protocol of an integrated experience he calls “Sound Meditation”, raising an awareness to how a specifically designed sound can have the ability to help us to disconnect from habitual patterns while judiciously listening to the overtone-rich instruments he plays. He uses a method that empowers the participants to engage actively with tools that enhance their experience.
 
Show Notes and More
Watch this video episode on Youtube

(Conversation recorded on May 7th, 2024)  
Show Summary:  In contrast to ‘The Great Simplification’, some might call the events of the last few hundred years a ‘Great Complexification’ in terms of relationships, governance, supply chains, and many other human activities. Today’s conversation with economics journalist Ed Conway focuses on the six essential resources that underpin our modern economies –  sand, salt, iron, copper, oil, and lithium - and dives into the (often unseen) environmental and human costs of extracting them, as well as the surprisingly fragile global supply chains they fuel.
In order to understand what possibilities – and dangers – may await us in the future, we need to understand the realities and constraints of the present, as well as the fail points of the past. What does it take to mine, refine, and transform the materials that are foundational to the world around us - which many of us now take for granted? How can we ensure the stability of global supply chains, and could we predict potential disruptions and chokepoints before they arise? If we understood the intricate web of complexity, energy, and resources that go into everything we consume, would it change our expectations for how much we need in order to live a good and fulfilling life?
About Ed Conway:
Ed Conway is a writer and broadcaster. He is the Economics and Data Editor of Sky News and has written for many newspapers and publications, including the New York Times, the Times of London and the New Statesman. His latest book, Material World, was an Economist and Sunday Times Book of the Year and was shortlisted for the 2023 FT Business Book of the Year Award. He has also written two other critically acclaimed and bestselling books and has won numerous awards for his journalism. He was educated at Oxford and Harvard. He lives in London.
 
For Show Notes and More visit: 
https://www.thegreatsimplification.com/episode/127-ed-conway
To watch this video episode on Youtube → https://youtu.be/4C2-tWcFKfQ
 

(Conversation recorded on May 8th, 2024)  
Show Summary:  As the human predicament continues to accelerate, the conversations regarding the future are still dominated by older generations - yet it is their younger successors who will face the brunt of these issues throughout their lives. Today’s Reality Roundtable with Priscilla Trịnh, James Branagan, and Natasha Linhart, focuses on Generation Z’s perspective of the metacrisis, how learning the reality of the human predicament has affected their worldview, and what they see as viable future paths for themselves and the world. How might we approach intergenerational relationships to encourage the transfer of knowledge in both directions, without blame or resentment? What are the unique challenges that young people face when addressing  the layers of complexity and risk in the world, and thinking about how to respond? Could fostering community, empathy, and personal responsibility act as a bridge across generational divides, steering us towards a more unified and compassionate future?
 
About Priscilla Trịnh:
Priscilla Trịnh currently serves as Director of Communications at the Post Growth Institute and co-coordinator of the Minnesota Youth Institute. She is also the creator of the #postgrowth jobs board and a founding member of The Overstory Alliance. Additionally, Priscilla is an editor at the Blue Marble Review, and contributor to the Minnesota Women’s Press. Priscilla holds a B.S. in Sustainable Systems Management and resides on Očhéthi Šakówiŋ lands (Minnesota, USA) and when not working, can be found near a body of water or in the kitchen.
About James Branagan:
James Branagan is a content creator and video editor, posting content on slow living and philosophy from his channel, The New Naturalist. At a young age, he became disillusioned with many different components of society, becoming fascinated by the prospect of humans figuring out how to live in an ecologically compatible way. He's committed to the task of addressing some of the many facets of Our Human Predicament, particularly education and food production systems. 
About Natasha Linhart:
Natasha Linhart graduated from the University of Amsterdam in 2023 with a degree in BSc in Politics, Psychology, Law and Economics with a focus in Economics and Business, and electives in Degrowth and Critical Theory. For the last year, she has been working as a Research Associate with the Institute for the Study of Energy and Our Future. Natasha is also a passionate educator, founding her own tutoring company with a holistic approach to high-school education (IBCompanions).
 
For Show Notes and More visit: 
https://www.thegreatsimplification.com/episode/reality-roundtable-9
 
To watch this video episode on Youtube → https://youtu.be/SnpsxGQ0aZY

(Conversation recorded on May 5th, 2024)  
Show Summary:  In this episode, Nate welcomes back Daniel Schmachtenberger to unpack a new paper, which he co-authored, entitled Development in Progress, an analysis on the history of progress and the consequences of ‘advancement’. 
Current mainstream narratives sell the story that progress is synonymous with betterment, and that the world becomes better for everyone as GDP and economies continue to grow. Yet, this is an incomplete portrayal that leaves out the dark sides of advancement. What are the implications when only the victors of history write the narratives of progress and define societal values? What are the value systems embedded in our institutions and policies, and how do they reinforce the need for ongoing growth at the expense of the natural world and human well-being? Finally, how do we change these dynamics to form a new, holistic definition of progress that accounts for the connectedness of our planet to the health of our minds, bodies, and communities?
The full paper discussed in this episode will be available on The Consilience Project website in the near future.
 
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 a particular interest in catastrophic and existential risk, with focuses on civilization collapse and institutional decay. His work also includes an analysis of progress narratives, collective action problems, and social organization theories. These themes are all connected through close study of the relevant domains in philosophy and science.
 
For Show Notes and More visit:
thegreatsimplification.com/episode/daniel-schmachtenberger-7
 
To watch this video episode on Youtube → https://youtu.be/tmusbHBKW84
0:00 - Introduction
0:46 - Guest Introduction: Daniel Schmachtenberger
2:24 - Personal Catch-Up and Observations
3:55 - Paper on Development and Progress
6:19 - Definition and Importance of Progress
11:03 - Critique of Technological Advancement
14:05 - Historical Context of Progress Narratives
18:53 - Social Structures and Restraint
21:21 - Technological Efficiency and Wisdom
27:41 - Climate Change and Technological Solutions
30:32 - Historical Analysis of Conquerors
35:30 - Multipolar Traps and Progress
45:01 - Asymmetry and Power in Evolution
46:29 - Definitions of Progress
47:15 - Ecological and Economic Risks
52:54 - Case Studies of Externalities
56:14 - Corporate Personhood and Sociopathy
1:02:22 - Influence of Dominant Narratives
1:09:09 - Global Coordination and AI
1:11:51 - Self-Terminating Path of Winning
1:13:45 - Addressing Systemic Ecological Issues
1:20:17 - Human Wisdom and Restraint
1:23:27 - Jevons Paradox and Energy Efficiency
1:30:07 - Historical Analysis of Warfare
1:35:30 - Cancer and Industrial Toxins
1:39:03 - Influence of Dark Triad Traits
1:45:01 - Environmental Impact of Corporations
1:52:54 - Long-Term Ecological Solutions
2:00:27 - Role of Education in Progress
2:07:02 - Ethical Considerations in Technology
2:13:45 - Philosophical Foundations of Progress
2:20:17 - Addressing Social Inequality
2:23:27 - Integrating Traditional Knowledge
2:30:07 - Future Prospects and Challenges
2:35:30 - Personal Reflections and Closing Thoughts

(Recorded May 28, 2024)
Description
In this week’s Frankly, Nate offers an update on the current state of conflict between NATO and Russia and the increasing threat of escalation, followed by 7 high-level questions about how to think about war, the human predicament and our work for a more stable future. While these issues may seem too looming and overwhelming for our everyday lives, the society-ending (world-ending?) ramifications of them would trump every other issue if the worst were to happen. When thinking of how we define “war”, is it even possible to “win” within a complex, interconnected, global society given the level of our military technology? Is the way we view and participate in war a result of governance systems that no longer are fit for purpose? Taking a step further, could we change our cultural values - starting with individuals and communities around us - to reorient towards peace-centric structures that rely on cooperation and stability?
YouTube Link here 
Show Notes
 

(Conversation recorded on March 25th, 2024)
Show Summary:  In this episode, Nate is joined by educator and researcher Vanessa Andreotti to discuss what she calls “hospicing modernity” in order to move beyond the world we’ve come to know and the failed promises that “modernity” has made to our current culture. Whether you refer to it as the metacrisis, the polycrisis, or - in Nate’s terms - the human predicament, Vanessa brings a unique framing rooted in indigenous knowledge and relationality to aid in understanding, grieving, and building emotional resilience within this space. What does it mean to live and work within systems that are designed to fail, embedded in an aimless culture? How do we as individuals steady ourselves and create inner strength before engaging with such harrowing work? Importantly, what could education look like if founded in the principles of intergenerational knowledge transmission and emotional regulation, that are centered on our collective entanglement with the Earth? 
About Vanessa Andreotti:
Vanessa de Oliveira Andreotti is the Dean of the Faculty of Education at the University of Victoria. She is a former Canada Research Chair in Race, Inequalities and Global Change and a former David Lam Chair in Critical Multicultural Education. Vanessa has more than 100 published articles in areas related to global and climate education. She has also worked extensively across sectors internationally in projects related to global justice, global citizenship, Indigenous knowledge systems and the climate and nature emergency. Vanessa is the author of Hospicing Modernity: Facing humanity's wrongs and the implications for social activism, one of the founders of the Gesturing Towards Decolonial Futures Arts/Research Collective and one of the designers of the course Facing Human Wrongs: Climate Complexity and Relational Accountability, available at UVic through Continuing Studies.
 
For show notes, including referenced articles and additional resources:
https://thegreatsimplification.squarespace.com/episode/125-vanessa-andreotti
 
To watch this video episode on Youtube → https://youtu.be/h5kQ7_IZ8YI


00:00 - Intro
1:52 - The House of Modernity
16:34 - Hospicing the House of Modernity
22:56 - Theory of Change
31:49 - Affective Responses
43:55 - Healing Trauma
54:42 - Relational Intelligence
59:11 - Metabolical Literacy
1:04:59 - Dopamine Dependence
1:07:25 - Depth Education
1:09:27 - Reception with Young People
1:14:38 - How Do You Keep Going?
1:20:22 - Personal Advice
1:28:34 - What Would You Do with a Magic Wand?