Douglas Rushkoff was named one of the “world’s ten most influential intellectuals” by MIT. For the IMPAKT Festival he talks to investigative journalist Sonia Shah. They present us with a provocative statement: migration is a natural phenomenon. As such, it is only natural that people move away from places affected by the climate crisis. Why is migration still such a contested topic? 

In this online conversation Rushkoff and Shah will talk about the climate crisis, the migration of people, animals and plants. Where does our idea of a permanent habitat come from? Can we shift the political debate that is demonizing migration, and focus on the benefits instead? We are living together on a planet on the move; animals and other organisms are moving en masse to the poles or high altitudes, and some people are already being pushed away from their countries by war, floods, rising sea-levels and expanding deserts.

In her most recent book The Next Great Migration: The Beauty and Terror of Life on the Move, Shah proposes to see migration as a solution, rather than a problem. Rushkoff and Shah will also discuss Pandemic, Shah’s book from 2016 about the history of viral infections. In this book she makes a connection between the way we treat our planet (through the burning of fossil fuels, loss of biodiversity, deforestation, intensive agriculture, wildlife trade and more) and the spread of infectious diseases.