Beverly Hills isn’t the first place most people would think of harboring a steady-state government. Yet, led for three terms by past Mayor John Mirisch (who still serves on the city council), the enclave west of Hollywood has pushed back agains

Chris Matthews Uncut: Hard-Limits Hardball (Part 2)

Feb 7th, 2022 27m 52s

In the second part of our conversation with Chris Matthews, the former Hardball host ponders the mixed legacies of Al Gore, George W. Bush, Ronald Reagan, and FDR. He also shares his opinions on where to look for political support for the stead

Chris Matthews Uncut: Hard-Limits Hardball (Part 1)

Jan 31st, 2022 24m 51s

In the first part of a two-part special, Chris Matthews of MSNBC fame joins Brian to discuss the steady state economy. The CASSE signatory comments on his favorite episodes of Hardball, his recent book This Country: My Life in Politics and Hist

Beat it Bitcoin, Here Comes Beetcoin! (with Woody Tasch)

Jan 24th, 2022 33m 52s

For Woody Tasch, founder of Slow Money Institute, it’s all about balance. Every moonshot needs an Earthshot; diversity and efficiency; simplicity and complexity. That’s where the “deceptively simple” concept of Beetcoin comes in. Providing crow

The Atlas of Disappearing Places: A View From 2050 (with Christina Conklin)

Jan 17th, 2022 32m 44s

The future, as they say, is unwritten. But that didn’t stop authors Christina Conklin and Marina Psaros from speculating, in their acclaimed book The Atlas of Disappearing Places: Our Coasts and Oceans in the Climate Crisis. We spoke with Chris

In Memoriam — Steady Staters Who Left Us in 2021

Jan 10th, 2022 19m 49s

In our first podcast episode of the year, Brian Czech takes a moment to remember some of the steady staters who left us in 2021: David Schindler, Valerius Geist, Mason Gaffney, Dick Lamm, Thomas Lovejoy, E.O. Wilson, and Lisa Vandemark. Brian l

Extinction as Shakespearean Tragedy – The Romeo Error (with Chris Haney)

Dec 20th, 2021 34m 19s

Heading into the holidays we take a rare optimistic detour in the world of conservation. Our guest is Dr. Chris Haney, President of Terra Med Applied Sciences, a public interest ecological research company. He and Brian discuss the fate of the

Wetlands, Kitchens, and Abalone: No Steady States in Sight (with Ann Vileisis)

Dec 13th, 2021 31m 25s

Ann Vileisis is an author and environmental historian, intrigued by stories of food, ecology, and the connections between the two. This week, Brian traverses his fond memories of Ann’s vivid wetlands book, Discovering the Unknown Landscape, as

A Song for a Post-Growth Australia (with Michael Bayliss)

Dec 6th, 2021 32m 59s

Michael Bayliss of the Post-Growth Australia Podcast likes all kinds of communication, whether it’s hosting thoughtful and conversational interviews, his communications role at Sustainable Population Australia, or spreading ecological messages

Divesting from Doom, Investing in Education (with Stephen Mulkey)

Nov 29th, 2021 33m 2s

Stephen Mulkey from the University of Florida is known to some as “Dr. Doom.” Yet the “doom” is in the data; Mulkey is just exceptional at compiling and communicating it. A better title might be “Dr. Do.” Consider for example his pivotal role i

Shrink Globally, Act Locally (with Helena Norberg-Hodge)

Nov 22nd, 2021 35m 47s

How should the past inform the future? How should the global inform the local? To get an idea, Brian chats with Helena Norberg-Hodge, founder and director of the long-running non-profit Local Futures. They discuss all manner of topics from the

Sensible Scientists, Stable Planet (with Phoebe Barnard)

Nov 15th, 2021 31m 46s

Our guest this week is Dr. Phoebe Barnard, CEO and Executive Director of Stable Planet Alliance, a new organization working to "bend the curve" on population and hyper-consumption. Brian and Phoebe discuss this budding alliance, the World Scien

Catching Up with CASSE and a Book Review Bonus (50th Episode Special)

Nov 8th, 2021 33m 15s

This week The Steady Stater podcast reaches its milestone 50th episode. To celebrate we’re doing something a little different: going behind the scenes of CASSE’s history, meeting its staff, and looking to the projects of the future. Plus, Brian

Sea-Level, Shorelines, and SLAMM (with Jonathan Clough)

Nov 1st, 2021 35m 47s

This week Brian is joined by Jonathan Clough, one of the nation’s foremost experts on sea-level rise and its effects on ecosystems. Jonathan and Brian discuss the different methods for observing sea-level rise, the sophisticated SLAMM model, an

Policy Design for Degrowth (with Timothée Parrique)

Oct 25th, 2021 38m 48s

Timothée Parrique joins us for a record third appearance on The Steady Stater! Following previous discussions exploring the social limits to growth and the European degrowth movement, Tim and Brian discuss the final part of his dissertation "Th

Observations of an Independent Sustainability Operator (with Sandy Irvine)

Oct 18th, 2021 27m 9s

Sandy Irvine was a prominent figure in the early days of the Green Party of England and Wales and an Associate Editor at The Ecologist magazine. This week on The Steady Stater, Sandy joins Brian to discuss everything from supergrids to soccer,

Silent Sting (with Dave Goulson)

Oct 11th, 2021 34m 38s

Our episode this week covers the delightful (and occasionally dark) world of insects with Professor Dave Goulson, author of the new book Silent Earth. Brian and Dave discuss fireflies, glow-worms, bumblebees and butterflies. They also discuss e

Overpowered (with Richard Heinberg)

Oct 4th, 2021 34m 58s

Richard Heinberg has written a lot of powerful (and power-themed) books throughout his career. But his recent release — simply titled 'Power' — is the one that he hopes to be remembered for. Brian talks with the Senior Fellow of the Post Carbon

Days of Possibility (with Laurel Hanscom)

Sep 27th, 2021 35m 54s

The Steady Stater podcast returns for Season 2! Our first episode also sees the return of our very first guest Laurel Hanscom, CEO of the Global Footprint Network. Laurel and Brian discuss the 2021 rebound of Earth Overshoot Day, the #100DaysOf

Two Peas in a Podcast (with Dave Rollo and Heather Reynolds)

May 24th, 2021 29m 31s

In a first for the Steady Stater, Brian hosts two guests at once. These guests have a lot in common: scientists, civic-minded citizens, organic farmers, and certainly steady staters. As a bonus, they happen to be married, which makes for a smoo

Roaming the Halls of History (with Adam Rome)

May 17th, 2021 26m 3s

Can we learn from history? It depends on the historian! Hear the erudite Adam Rome reflect upon the roots of American conservation (interesting take), the Progressive Movement, the Dust Bowl, FDR, the Great Suburbanization, Earth Day and more.

Food Hubs for Thought (with Sabine O’Hara)

May 10th, 2021 26m 31s

Sabine O’Hara occupies a unique niche in ecological economics, with numerous titles to show for it. She’s also developed a dynamic research program at the only urban land-grant university in the USA. Listen to Sabine discuss with Brian her theo

The Population Balancing Act (with David Paxson)

May 3rd, 2021 29m 11s

The balance of nature. Balancing resources among nations. Balancing politics with the raw facts of overpopulation. Working in the population education field is a constant balancing act, and David Paxson has been on the tightrope ever since esta

Backtracking the Ecological Footprint (with Bill Rees)

Apr 26th, 2021 28m 59s

This week’s guest at the Steady Stater is a renaissance man in sustainability studies. Bill Rees conceived the ecological footprint concept, and helped develop the footprinting methodology thereafter. In this episode we explore the concept and

Holey Bags, McMansions, and Other American Mysteries

Apr 19th, 2021 18m 27s

Ever wonder why 50% of plastic bags have holes—and always near the bottom? What about Hummers; how in heck did those happen? Then we have McMansions, the NRA’s special Kuznets Curve, and “20 % off” everything, all the time! Let Brian Czech guid