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Apr 7, 2022 Posted by Samuel Alexander

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

Mar 26, 2022 Posted by Samuel Alexander

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

Mar 17, 2022 Posted by Samuel Alexander

Video: Post-Capitalism by Design not Disaster – A Grassroots Theory of Change

Capitalism has various growth imperatives that are inconsistent with environmental limits. That is, capitalism must grow for stability but cannot grow limitlessly on a finite planet. It follows that the future will be post-capitalist – by design or disaster. In this presentation I explore a grassroots theory of change that I argue is the most coherent way to help drive a post-capitalist transition by... read more

Feb 23, 2022 Posted by Samuel Alexander

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

Mar 8, 2021 Posted by Samuel Alexander

Disturbance and Enchantment in the Industrial City (National Radio Interview)

Last weekend I was interviewed on national radio with my colleague Professor Brendan Gleeson. We discuss our new book Urban Awakenings: Disturbance and Enchantment in the Industrial City. You can listen to the 25 minute interview here and read more about the book here. I’d also like to share a YouTube link to a talk given by my colleague Joshua Floyd, where he discusses our paper ‘The... read more

Jul 4, 2020 Posted by Samuel Alexander

Extinction Rebellion: Insights from the Inside

I don’t believe Extinction Rebellion has all the answers but I do know that peaceful resistance has played an important role advancing human societies in the past and I believe it has a role to play advancing the state of our troubled world today. To participate in this movement during lockdown, while we’ve been unable to take to the streets en masse, I’ve edited a book of essays on... read more

Sep 17, 2019 Posted by Samuel Alexander

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

Jun 14, 2019 Posted by Samuel Alexander

This Civilisation is Finished: Conversations on the end of Empire – and what lies beyond

I’ve just published a new book, co-authored with philosopher-activist Rupert Read (leading spokesperson of the Extinction Rebellion in the UK). There is also a postscript by Helena Norberg-Hodge, author of Ancient Futures and producer of The Economics of Happiness. Our new book is entitled This Civilisation is Finished: Conversations on the end of Empire – and what lies beyond, but don’t... read more

Oct 31, 2018 Posted by Samuel Alexander

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

Oct 18, 2018 Posted by Samuel Alexander

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

Invitation / Incitation

The Simplicity Collective is founded upon the idea that a 'simpler life' of reduced resource and energy consumption is a viable and desirable alternative to consumer culture.

Our position is that simple living will improve not only our own lives, but the lives of others, as well as help save our planet from the environmental catastrophe towards which we are so enthusiastically marching.

We must not just fall in line, then, and continue the march ‘business as usual.’ We must explore alternative ways to live. We must experiment creatively, like the artist. We must be the poets of our own lives and of a new generation.