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Currently Browsing: Essays / Academic

The Rebellion Hypothesis: Extinction Rebellion and Civil Disobedience (Part VII of Ecological Civilisation)

Can civil disobedience ever be justified in a democracy? How does Extinction Rebellion relate to other social movements in history that have also practiced civil disobedience to advance societal progress? In this presentation I critically examine these questions and present an analysis I call the ‘rebellion hypothesis’. This is Part VII of the Ecological Civilisation series. The series is... read more

Video – Ecovillage Future: And How Access to Land is a Barrier (Ecological Civilisation Series)

What is an ‘ecovillage’ and how do practices and values different from ordinary life within consumer capitalist societies? And what would the world look like if there were millions of ecovillages emerging to replace industrial civilisation? In this presentation, I examine these question and draw on research which attempts to measure the energy and resource reductions of ecovillage living.... read more

A ‘Real’ Green New Deal? Policies for a Post-Growth Economy (Video)

I’ve just released the next video presentation in the Ecological Civilisation series. Today’s topic is ‘Policies for a Post-Growth Economy‘ and my question is: What would a ‘real’ Green New Deal look like? In my next presentation I’m going to consider ‘Life in a Degrowth Economy: Envisioning a Prosperous Descent’. Watch this space! This series is free... read more

The Rebellion Hypothesis: Crisis, Inaction, and the Question of Civil Disobedience

Many of you will have read about the Extinction Rebellion that has been hitting the streets around the world in recent months. I’ve participated in these non-violent demonstrations, not because I agree with every framing, demand, or detail of this movement, but because I worry that ordinary politics is functioning to sleepwalk us all toward catastrophe. Therefore, I feel we need to experiment with... read more

Post-Capitalism by Design not Disaster: Creating Common Wealth via Degrowth

Two weekends ago I delivered a keynote presentation at the New Economy Network of Australia. I’ve had several requests for a transcript, so I’ve posted it below. POST-CAPITALISM BY DESIGN NOT DISASTER Samuel Alexander MELBOURNE SUSTAINABLE SOCIETY INSTITUTE UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE (Keynote address at the New Economy Network of Australia Conference) Designing the Descent Good morning everyone,... read more

Degrowth in the Suburbs: A Radical Urban Imaginary

I’ve just published a new book, Degrowth in the Suburbs: A Radical Urban Imaginary, co-authored with Professor Brendan Gleeson, with a foreword by David Holmgren, and published by Palgrave Macmillan. (If anyone is interested in reviewing it on their website / blog, please leave a comment and I’ll send you a pdf). More details in forthcoming posts. This book addresses a central dilemma of the... read more

Degrowth, Permaculture, and the Simpler Way (Collected Essays)

Late last year I published my third book of collected essays – and I never got around to posting about it. The collection is called Wild Democracy: Degrowth, Permaculture, and the Simpler Way and it is available here. My first two books of collected essays are Prosperous Descent: Crisis as Opportunity in an Age of Limits and Sufficiency Economy: Enough, for Everyone,... read more

Art Against Empire: Toward an Aesthetics of Degrowth

Last night I launched my new book called Art Against Empire: Toward an Aesthetics of Degrowth. This book is the outcome of a year-long collaboration with culture jamming artists around the world who produced over 170 images that make up the substance of the book. You can see some of the images here and the book is available for purchase here. What role might art need to play in the transition beyond... read more

A Critique of the Decoupling Strategy: A ‘Limits to Growth’ Perspective

In late 2015 the CSIRO – Australia’s most prominent scientific organisation – published the ‘Australian National Outlook Report’ which argued that Australia can grow its economy and achieve sustainability without questioning consumerist values. In response to that report, the Simplicity Institute has just published a new paper called ‘A Critique of the Decoupling... read more

The Moral and Ethical Weight of Voluntary Simplicity: A Philosophical Review

I’ve just published a new Simplicity Institute Report with a friend and colleague, Jacob Garrett, called ‘The Moral and Ethical Weight of Voluntary Simplicity: A Philosophical Review’. I’ve posted the introduction below and the full report is available here. The Moral and Ethical Weight of Voluntary Simplicity: A Philosophical Review Samuel Alexander and Jacob Garrett 1.... read more
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