Get more from Jesse Damiani in the Substack app

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Audio versions of this episode can be found here on Substack, Apple Podcasts, and Spotify. You can also watch it on YouTube:

My guest today is Sarah Wilson.

Sarah Wilson is a multi-New York Times and Amazon best-selling author, podcaster, social philosopher, international keynote speaker, philanthropist and climate change advisor.

Sarah is known globally for founding the I Quit Sugar movement – a digital wellness program with 13 award-winning books that sell in 52 countries – which saw millions around the world transform their health. In 2022 Sarah sold the business and gave everything to charity.

Sarah is an experienced journalist and broadcaster. She was previously the editor of Cosmopolitan Australia at age 29; host of MasterChef Australia; was a News Corp journalist and columnist; and has hosted ABC’s Compass, Ten’s The Project and has been a regular panelist and news commentator on Australian, UK and US screens for two decades.

Her New York Times bestseller First, We Make the Beast Beautiful is described by bestselling author (The Subtle Art of Not Giving a Fuck) Mark Manson as, “The best book on living with anxiety that I’ve ever read,” and was featured as the book of the year on NBC’s Today Show. It’s published in 27 countries. Sarah’s book, This One Wild & Precious Life, won the 2021 US Gold Nautilus Prize.

Sarah is the host of the thought-leading podcast Wild with Sarah Wilson and writes the popular Substack newsletter This is Precious, which has an engaged community of 60,000 subscribers.

Most recently, she serialized her book I Eat The Stars on Substack – an exploration of system collapse and how we navigate it, which was acquired by Penguin US and will be released globally across May and June.

This is Precious

Bold words for living in an uncertain world....from author Sarah Wilson

By Sarah Wilson

A lot of writing about collapse ends up feeling abstract—like the authors are writing from a remove about an alien species. I’m not saying this is the intent of those authors, but rather that, when dealing with something as charged as the prospect of systemic collapse, there’s an inevitable tendency to stay zoomed out—a tendency only amplified when the authors operate within the structures of academia. And to be clear: I’m so grateful for the renegade scholars and authors who have been banging the collapse drum in whatever fashion they have; the collective effect of this work in my life has profoundly transformed my life, work, and priorities.

But Sarah’s latest book, I Eat The Stars, does something that’s rare in the world of collapse books: she imbues it with heart and personal narrative, letting us not only learn about collapse with her, but share in hard emotions with her, even when that amounts to deep existential grief.

Grab your copy of I Eat The Stars now!

Along the way, she also invokes the key ideas that anybody learning about collapse should encounter (e.g., poly- and metacrisis, planetary boundaries, sensemaking, moloch, et al.), so if you’ve been feeling like maybe you should spend a little more time understanding the shape of contemporary collapse, this book will also be of great value to you.

So, so much in this episode(!)—please enjoy this powerful conversation with Sarah Wilson.

Another episode you might like:

Support Reality Studies

NOTE: Thank you for supporting my work by purchasing these products through the links provided. I will only ever share products I actually believe in.

In case you haven’t noticed, it’s time to take your digital hygiene seriously. There are a few super simple, effective things you can do to up your digital self-defense considerably, and the first is to get a VPN. ProtonVPN is the gold standard, with fast service and a commitment to transparency. I promise you: once you realize how easy it is to use your VPN, you’ll be kicking yourself that you didn’t start sooner. Click here to get 55% off VPN Plus ($4.49/mo).

1Password: Password managers may not make for the most riveting dinner party conversation, but listen: 1) They make your life so much easier—it’s called “1Password” because once you get set up it’s the only password you’ll ever need to remember again. 2) They make your online life so much safer, ensuring that you use unique passwords for every account, stored with a high degree of encryption. 3) They are not nearly as complicated to set up as you think they are! Head over to 1Password using this link for a free trial, and individual plans for less than $3/mo after that.

ZBiotics: Right now, get 10% off ZBiotics. Just head over to zbiotics.com and use code JESSEDAMIANI. If you have an evening with drinking and a morning you need to feel fresh, these are a great help. Genetically engineered by a team of PhD microbiologists, ZBiotics is a probiotic drink that breaks down the byproduct of alcohol responsible for rough mornings after drinking (acetaldehyde).

MUD\WTR: Right now, save $20 on starter packs using this link. There’s four different blends to choose from, but my current favorite is :rest. “This is our protest to hustle culture,” they say, and that resonates with me. Not only does it actually help me ramp down to sleep, but since I froth a little milk and make a latte with it, I get the warm cozy feeling of morning coffee at night. (For the evening tea drinkers out there: I’m not saying it’s better, just different!)

Mission Farms CBD: Right now, get 25% off your first order using this link to sign up for emails. Mission Farms CBD crafts full-spectrum CBD products for specific conditions like sleep, stress, and discomfort, using a combination of CBD and terpenes found in essential oils. I swear by this stuff. All of Mission Farms’s CBD comes from a small farm in Bend, Oregon. They farm the hemp organically, tend every plant by hand, and test for purity four times: the soil, the hemp, the hemp-extract, and the final products. This CBD is designed for wellness and it shows.

CREDITS: This podcast is edited and produced by Adam Labrie and me, Jesse Damiani. Adam Labrie also directed, shot, and edited the video version of the podcast, which is available on YouTube. The podcast is presented by Reality Studies. If you appreciate the work I’m doing, please subscribe and share it with someone you think would enjoy it.

Find more episodes of Urgent Futures at: youtube.com/@UrgentFutures. Past conversations include Taylor Lorenz, Lisa Messeri, Legacy Russell, William E. Rees, Renée DiResta, and more. Here is another recent episode with media theorist :

Get more from Jesse Damiani in the Substack app

Available for iOS and Android

Get the app

Audio versions of this episode can be found here on Substack, Apple Podcasts, and Spotify.

My guest today is Cy Canterel.

, in her own words: Artist. Feral scholar. Raised by computers. Ex-tech (infrastructure, IoT, AI/ML). Alumna: Institute for the Future of the Book. Fmr. visiting scholar @NYU. Decoding systems of power and meaning. Big time crayon fan.

Cy also runs and the podcast with . Both are great and you should subscribe right now! Look, I’ll even make it easy for you:

Abstract Machines with Cy Canterel

Decoding systems of power and meaning.

Omnishambles

A podcast where two slightly deranged scholars pick one knotty problem in our political, cultural or technological life, and untangle it.

By Brianna

I was lucky to meet Cy a few years ago during the downslope of hype around NFTs and web3—a moment we actually dive into during the episode—fully aware of the ways many people will hear those terms an instantly tune out. My hope here isn’t to valorize the aforementioned (though we do discuss how there were seeds of something meaningful that were drowned out by all the grift and greed); I bring it up because it highlights the intellectual curiosity and expansiveness that threads all of Cy’s work across tech, art, culture, power, and philosophy. More than most people I’ve met, Cy trusts her intuition to lead her to new ways of thinking and perceiving, and her intense research practice then creates the scaffolding and texture to give her ideas weight.

All of which is why it’s especially fun for me that Cy has emerged as a leading media theorist and communicator on Substack, with a particular eye toward decoding systems of power and meaning. As you can gather from the title, that includes a whole lot of contemporary concerns as well as more evergreen ones. When I say this conversation is free-wheeling, I mean it; but I’ll let you experience it for yourself.

Another episode you might like:

Support Reality Studies

NOTE: Thank you for supporting my work by purchasing these products through the links provided. I will only ever share products I actually believe in.

In case you haven’t noticed, it’s time to take your digital hygiene seriously. There are a few super simple, effective things you can do to up your digital self-defense considerably, and the first is to get a VPN. ProtonVPN is the gold standard, with fast service and a commitment to transparency. I promise you: once you realize how easy it is to use your VPN, you’ll be kicking yourself that you didn’t start sooner. Click here to get 55% off VPN Plus ($4.49/mo).

1Password: Password managers may not make for the most riveting dinner party conversation, but listen: 1) They make your life so much easier—it’s called “1Password” because once you get set up it’s the only password you’ll ever need to remember again. 2) They make your online life so much safer, ensuring that you use unique passwords for every account, stored with a high degree of encryption. 3) They are not nearly as complicated to set up as you think they are! Head over to 1Password using this link for a free trial, and individual plans for less than $3/mo after that.

ZBiotics: Right now, get 10% off ZBiotics. Just head over to zbiotics.com and use code JESSEDAMIANI. If you have an evening with drinking and a morning you need to feel fresh, these are a great help. Genetically engineered by a team of PhD microbiologists, ZBiotics is a probiotic drink that breaks down the byproduct of alcohol responsible for rough mornings after drinking (acetaldehyde).

MUD\WTR: Right now, save $20 on starter packs using this link. There’s four different blends to choose from, but my current favorite is :rest. “This is our protest to hustle culture,” they say, and that resonates with me. Not only does it actually help me ramp down to sleep, but since I froth a little milk and make a latte with it, I get the warm cozy feeling of morning coffee at night. (For the evening tea drinkers out there: I’m not saying it’s better, just different!)

Mission Farms CBD: Right now, get 25% off your first order using this link to sign up for emails. Mission Farms CBD crafts full-spectrum CBD products for specific conditions like sleep, stress, and discomfort, using a combination of CBD and terpenes found in essential oils. I swear by this stuff. All of Mission Farms’s CBD comes from a small farm in Bend, Oregon. They farm the hemp organically, tend every plant by hand, and test for purity four times: the soil, the hemp, the hemp-extract, and the final products. This CBD is designed for wellness and it shows.

CREDITS: This podcast is edited and produced by Adam Labrie and me, Jesse Damiani. Adam Labrie also directed, shot, and edited the video version of the podcast, which is available on YouTube. The podcast is presented by Reality Studies. If you appreciate the work I’m doing, please subscribe and share it with someone you think would enjoy it.

Find more episodes of Urgent Futures at: youtube.com/@UrgentFutures. Past conversations include Taylor Lorenz, Lisa Messeri, Legacy Russell, William E. Rees, Renée DiResta, and more. Here is another recent episode with about his Apocalypse Early Warning System & creative tech interventions:

Get more from Jesse Damiani in the Substack app

Available for iOS and Android

Get the app

Audio versions of this episode can be found here on Substack, Apple Podcasts, and Spotify.

My guest today is Kyle McDonald.

Kyle McDonald is an artist working with code. He crafts interactive installations, sneaky interventions, playful websites, workshops, andtoolkits for other artists working with code. Exploring possibilities of new technologies: to understand how they affect society, to misuse them, and build alternative futures; aiming to share a laugh, spark curiosity, create confusion, and share spaces with magical vibes. Working with machine learning, computer vision, social and surveillance tech spanning commercial and arts spaces. Previously adjunct professor at NYU’s ITP, member of F.A.T. Lab, community manager for openFrameworks, and artist in residence at STUDIO for Creative Inquiry at CMU, and YCAM in Japan. Work commissioned and shown around the world, including: the V&A, NTT ICC, Ars Electronica, Sonar, Todays Art, and Eyebeam.

A couple weeks ago, Kyle’s Apocalypse Early Warning System started making the rounds, garnering coverage in Boing Boing, The Times, VICE, Washington Post, and elsewhere. It’s an extremely zeitgeisty project, predicated on the notion that if apocalypse is imminent, the ultra-wealthy will be the first to know—and scurry off to safety in their private jets. Accordingly, the site tracks aforementioned private jets.

This project epitomizes how media art can become a vector for creative intervention in toxic systems. It’s simple, accessible, and simultaneously rooted in an unambiguous politics. And, as you’ll learn in this episode, it’s far from the first such project Kyle has released. We discuss his wide-ranging practice, which ranges from making local loquat jam to countersurveilling law enforcement. Along the way we dig into his artistic philosophy, ethics, and much more. So please enjoy this rich conversation with Kyle McDonald.

Another episode you might like:

Support Reality Studies

NOTE: Thank you for supporting my work by purchasing these products through the links provided. I will only ever share products I actually believe in.

In case you haven’t noticed, it’s time to take your digital hygiene seriously. There are a few super simple, effective things you can do to up your digital self-defense considerably, and the first is to get a VPN. ProtonVPN is the gold standard, with fast service and a commitment to transparency. I promise you: once you realize how easy it is to use your VPN, you’ll be kicking yourself that you didn’t start sooner. Click here to get 55% off VPN Plus ($4.49/mo).

1Password: Password managers may not make for the most riveting dinner party conversation, but listen: 1) They make your life so much easier—it’s called “1Password” because once you get set up it’s the only password you’ll ever need to remember again. 2) They make your online life so much safer, ensuring that you use unique passwords for every account, stored with a high degree of encryption. 3) They are not nearly as complicated to set up as you think they are! Head over to 1Password using this link for a free trial, and individual plans for less than $3/mo after that.

ZBiotics: Right now, get 10% off ZBiotics. Just head over to zbiotics.com and use code JESSEDAMIANI. If you have an evening with drinking and a morning you need to feel fresh, these are a great help. Genetically engineered by a team of PhD microbiologists, ZBiotics is a probiotic drink that breaks down the byproduct of alcohol responsible for rough mornings after drinking (acetaldehyde).

MUD\WTR: Right now, save $20 on starter packs using this link. There’s four different blends to choose from, but my current favorite is :rest. “This is our protest to hustle culture,” they say, and that resonates with me. Not only does it actually help me ramp down to sleep, but since I froth a little milk and make a latte with it, I get the warm cozy feeling of morning coffee at night. (For the evening tea drinkers out there: I’m not saying it’s better, just different!)

Mission Farms CBD: Right now, get 25% off your first order using this link to sign up for emails. Mission Farms CBD crafts full-spectrum CBD products for specific conditions like sleep, stress, and discomfort, using a combination of CBD and terpenes found in essential oils. I swear by this stuff. All of Mission Farms’s CBD comes from a small farm in Bend, Oregon. They farm the hemp organically, tend every plant by hand, and test for purity four times: the soil, the hemp, the hemp-extract, and the final products. This CBD is designed for wellness and it shows.

CREDITS: This podcast is edited and produced by Adam Labrie and me, Jesse Damiani. Adam Labrie also directed, shot, and edited the video version of the podcast, which is available on YouTube. The podcast is presented by Reality Studies. If you appreciate the work I’m doing, please subscribe and share it with someone you think would enjoy it.

Find more episodes of Urgent Futures at: youtube.com/@UrgentFutures. Past conversations include Taylor Lorenz, Lisa Messeri, Legacy Russell, William E. Rees, Renée DiResta, and more. Here is another recent episode with on the role of storytelling & comedy in collapse:

Welcome to the Urgent Futures podcast, the show that finds {signals} in the noise. Each week, I sit down with leading thinkers whose research, concepts, and questions clarify the chaos, from culture to the cosmos.

👉 Never miss an episode! 👉 Subscribe to Urgent Futures now: Youtube | Apple Podcasts | Spotify.

And if you’re loving the show, please share it with a friend who you think would as well! You have no idea how much word-of-mouth helps the channel find new audiences (and thank you to everyone who has supported the show by leaving ratings and reviews on your preferred podcast apps!)

My guest this week is Adam McKay.

is an Academy Award-winning writer, director, and producer whose work spans comedy, film, television, documentaries, and podcasting. He won the Oscar for Best Adapted Screenplay for The Big Short and earned additional Academy Award nominations for Vice and Netflix’s global hit Don’t Look Up. His producing credits also include The Menu, Booksmart, Hustlers, The Chair Company, and HBO’s acclaimed series Succession, for which he directed the pilot and won a Directors Guild Award.

Before becoming one of Hollywood’s most influential filmmakers, McKay made his name in the comedy world as a founding member of the Upright Citizens Brigade. In 1995, McKay and Will Ferrell happened to start on the same day at Saturday Night Live, where he became Head Writer. McKay and Ferrell’s time at SNL led to collaborations that established their unique absurdist style on Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy (2004) followed by Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby (2006), Step Brothers (2008), The Other Guys (2010) and Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues (2013).

Beyond film and television, McKay is also an active producer of documentaries and podcasts focused on politics, culture, sports, and social issues. In 2023, he founded Yellow Dot Studios, a nonprofit media organization dedicated to combating climate misinformation through comedy and storytelling.

In 2016, McKay joined the Creative Council of Represent Us, the largest grassroots anti-corruption campaign in the US to pass laws that stop political bribery, end secret money and give voters a stronger voice. He is passionate about the climate crisis and is affiliated with numerous climate organizations, including the Climate Emergency Fund to whom he donated $4M in 2022. In addition to aiding the movement General Strike for Resignations (GS4R), a group that helps finance strike-support platforms across labor unions, climate organizations and social justice groups, McKay supports DSA LA, Homeless Health Care LA and Amnesty International.

Odds are you’ve seen one of the many film and TV projects that Adam has written, directed, produced, or otherwise. It’s no exaggeration to say he’s one of the most important filmmakers of the twenty-first century. But that’s not the reason I was so excited to have him on the show (well, okay, it’s at least part of the reason!).

We originally connected on social media, where both of us were quite concerned about a new credible scientific paper that claimed we may be on track for 3°C world by 2050, which, to make a long story short, is a truly harrowing prospect. And yet nobody seemed interested in covering the story. Even now, as we head into this purported Super-Duper El Nino, so many other issues magnetize public attention away from this global crisis.

Adam’s willingness to be vocal about issues like climate change and labor rights speaks not only to his ethics and courage, but to how rigorously he’s researched this stuff. And that research isn’t sitting idly in his mind, he’s applying it to a range of different creative projects.

Many of you know that the subject of creativity in crisis is close to my heart; I actually just finished my first semester teaching it at University of Nebraska (shoutout to all my students for taking that ride with me). Adam’s evolution as a storyteller and public figure epitomizes what I hope to see more of from creative folks; a willingness to understand the systems that shape our world and the bravery to do something about through creative risk-taking. I could go on and on about this episode but instead of that I’m going to let you hear it from Adam. Please enjoy this powerful conversation with Adam McKay.

Another episode you might like:

of on strategic climate storytelling:

Support Reality Studies

NOTE: Thank you for supporting my work by purchasing these products through the links provided. I will only ever share products I actually believe in.

In case you haven’t noticed, it’s time to take your digital hygiene seriously. There are a few super simple, effective things you can do to up your digital self-defense considerably, and the first is to get a VPN. ProtonVPN is the gold standard, with fast service and a commitment to transparency. I promise you: once you realize how easy it is to use your VPN, you’ll be kicking yourself that you didn’t start sooner. Click here to get 55% off VPN Plus ($4.49/mo).

1Password: Password managers may not make for the most riveting dinner party conversation, but listen: 1) They make your life so much easier—it’s called “1Password” because once you get set up it’s the only password you’ll ever need to remember again. 2) They make your online life so much safer, ensuring that you use unique passwords for every account, stored with a high degree of encryption. 3) They are not nearly as complicated to set up as you think they are! Head over to 1Password using this link for a free trial, and individual plans for less than $3/mo after that.

ZBiotics: Right now, get 10% off ZBiotics. Just head over to zbiotics.com and use code JESSEDAMIANI. If you have an evening with drinking and a morning you need to feel fresh, these are a great help. Genetically engineered by a team of PhD microbiologists, ZBiotics is a probiotic drink that breaks down the byproduct of alcohol responsible for rough mornings after drinking (acetaldehyde).

MUD\WTR: Right now, save $20 on starter packs using this link. There’s four different blends to choose from, but my current favorite is :rest. “This is our protest to hustle culture,” they say, and that resonates with me. Not only does it actually help me ramp down to sleep, but since I froth a little milk and make a latte with it, I get the warm cozy feeling of morning coffee at night. (For the evening tea drinkers out there: I’m not saying it’s better, just different!)

Mission Farms CBD: Right now, get 25% off your first order using this link to sign up for emails. Mission Farms CBD crafts full-spectrum CBD products for specific conditions like sleep, stress, and discomfort, using a combination of CBD and terpenes found in essential oils. I swear by this stuff. All of Mission Farms’s CBD comes from a small farm in Bend, Oregon. They farm the hemp organically, tend every plant by hand, and test for purity four times: the soil, the hemp, the hemp-extract, and the final products. This CBD is designed for wellness and it shows.

CREDITS: This podcast is edited and produced by Adam Labrie and me, Jesse Damiani. Adam Labrie also edited the video version, which is available on YouTube. The podcast is presented by Reality Studies. If you appreciate the work I’m doing, please subscribe and share it with someone you think would enjoy it.

Find more episodes of Urgent Futures at: youtube.com/@UrgentFutures. Past conversations include Taylor Lorenz, Lisa Messeri, Legacy Russell, William E. Rees, Renée DiResta, and more. Here is another recent episode with on tech activism and building solidarity to combat AI risks:

Get more from Jesse Damiani in the Substack app

Available for iOS and Android

Get the app

Audio versions of this episode can be found here on Substack, Apple Podcasts, and Spotify.

My guest today is Juan Sebastián Pinto.

is a designer and writer currently working at the intersection of civil rights and technology. His writing appears in The Guardian, Forbes, Dwell Magazine, and Substack. His work and advocacy has been featured in WIRED, NPR, The Washington Post, Democracy Now!, and the BBC.

In the past Juan led content/creative for various leading AI startups and worked and collaborated with many architecture firms as a strategist, writer, and graphic designer. He completed his BA and MA in English at the University of Pennsylvania.

Juan also runs here on Substack—be sure to subscribe!

Ziggurat

A nonprofit creative project against the exploitation of people by AI, big tech, and surveillance.

By Juan Sebastián Pinto

And here’s a post that will give you a sense of what you can find on Ziggurat:

Ziggurat

Warlords of Information: Palantir, Epstein, & The New York Times

Note: French and Spanish translations of this essay are available since publishing…

Read more

5 months ago · 3083 likes · 83 comments · Juan Sebastián Pinto

By now, the company Palantir has probably entered your field of view—but many still don’t quite get the scope and scale of what they’re building and why. Juan, who formerly worked at Palantir and other AI companies, has emerged as leading advocate for a people’s movement to regulate AI and promote liberatory futures. So listen/watch on to understand into the invisible dangers of Palantir’s tools and what we can do to keep them (and other harmful aspects of AI rollout) in check.

Another episode you might like:

Support Reality Studies

NOTE: Thank you for supporting my work by purchasing these products through the links provided. I will only ever share products I actually believe in.

In case you haven’t noticed, it’s time to take your digital hygiene seriously. There are a few super simple, effective things you can do to up your digital self-defense considerably, and the first is to get a VPN. ProtonVPN is the gold standard, with fast service and a commitment to transparency. I promise you: once you realize how easy it is to use your VPN, you’ll be kicking yourself that you didn’t start sooner. Click here to get 55% off VPN Plus ($4.49/mo).

1Password: Password managers may not make for the most riveting dinner party conversation, but listen: 1) They make your life so much easier—it’s called “1Password” because once you get set up it’s the only password you’ll ever need to remember again. 2) They make your online life so much safer, ensuring that you use unique passwords for every account, stored with a high degree of encryption. 3) They are not nearly as complicated to set up as you think they are! Head over to 1Password using this link for a free trial, and individual plans for less than $3/mo after that.

ZBiotics: Right now, get 10% off ZBiotics. Just head over to zbiotics.com and use code JESSEDAMIANI. If you have an evening with drinking and a morning you need to feel fresh, these are a great help. Genetically engineered by a team of PhD microbiologists, ZBiotics is a probiotic drink that breaks down the byproduct of alcohol responsible for rough mornings after drinking (acetaldehyde).

MUD\WTR: Right now, save $20 on starter packs using this link. There’s four different blends to choose from, but my current favorite is :rest. “This is our protest to hustle culture,” they say, and that resonates with me. Not only does it actually help me ramp down to sleep, but since I froth a little milk and make a latte with it, I get the warm cozy feeling of morning coffee at night. (For the evening tea drinkers out there: I’m not saying it’s better, just different!)

Mission Farms CBD: Right now, get 25% off your first order using this link to sign up for emails. Mission Farms CBD crafts full-spectrum CBD products for specific conditions like sleep, stress, and discomfort, using a combination of CBD and terpenes found in essential oils. I swear by this stuff. All of Mission Farms’s CBD comes from a small farm in Bend, Oregon. They farm the hemp organically, tend every plant by hand, and test for purity four times: the soil, the hemp, the hemp-extract, and the final products. This CBD is designed for wellness and it shows.

CREDITS: This podcast is edited and produced by Adam Labrie and me, Jesse Damiani. Adam Labrie also directed, shot, and edited the video version of the podcast, which is available on YouTube. The podcast is presented by Reality Studies. If you appreciate the work I’m doing, please subscribe and share it with someone you think would enjoy it.

Find more episodes of Urgent Futures at: youtube.com/@UrgentFutures. Past conversations include Taylor Lorenz, Lisa Messeri, Legacy Russell, William E. Rees, Renée DiResta, and more. Here is another recent episode with Peter Brannen on his book The Story of CO2 is the Story of Everything:

Welcome to the Urgent Futures podcast, the show that finds {signals} in the noise. Each week, I sit down with leading thinkers whose research, concepts, and questions clarify the chaos, from culture to the cosmos.

👉 Never miss an episode! 👉 Subscribe to Urgent Futures now: Youtube | Apple Podcasts | Spotify.

And if you’re loving the show, please share it with a friend who you think would as well! You have no idea how much word-of-mouth helps the channel find new audiences (and thank you to everyone who has supported the show by leaving ratings and reviews on your preferred podcast apps!)

My guest this week is Peter Brannen.

Peter Brannen is an award-winning science journalist whose work has appeared in The New York Times, The New Yorker, The Atlantic, Scientific American, and The Guardian among other publications. He is the author of The Story of CO2 is the Story of Everything and The Ends of the World. Peter was a 2023 visiting scholar at the Kluge Center at the Library of Congress, and is an affiliate at the Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research at the University of Colorado-Boulder. He was formerly a 2018 Scripps Fellow at CU-Boulder, a 2015 journalist-in-residence at the National Evolutionary Synthesis Center at Duke University, and a 2011 Ocean Science Journalism Fellow at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Woods Hole, MA. His essays have been featured in the Best American Science and Nature Writing series and in The Climate Book by Greta Thunberg. Peter is particularly interested in geology, ocean science, deep time, the carbon cycle and the Boston Celtics. Peter splits time between Cambridge, MA and Damariscotta, ME and is a placental mammal.

If you spend enough time learning about climate change, you come to regard the molecule carbon dioxide—abbreivated to CO2—with fear and frustration. After all, the long accumulation of CO2 is behind roughly 75% of Earth’s warming. Leaving aside the fact that we’re the species that put all that CO2 in the air, we’re also not viewing the bigger picture. That bigger picture is the subject of Peter’s modestly titled new book, The Story of CO2 is the Story of Everything. The book amply earns the big claim of the title, helping readers like me understand that the carbon cycle is one of the most miraculous things on Earth—and also one of the most consequential.

Buy your copy of Story of CO2 here!

Don’t get the wrong idea: Story of CO2 is not a starry eyed greenwashing affair. If anything, the book is asking us to approach the subject with humility. The carbon cycle may be miraculous, and a driving part of why life emerged on Earth, but that doesn’t mean it’s unchangeable. In continuing to burn fossil fuels, we’re tampering with that system, and at an alarming rate. Insofar as we’re already witnessing some of the consequences, we also have no way of knowing the full regimen of changes that might be occurring across the Earth system. To that, Peter employs some of the same time travel he used in The Ends of the World—which we discussed in an earlier episode—taking us on a journey through deep time to understand how the story of CO2 really did become the story of everything—at least as we understand it on our one precious planet.

So without further ado, please enjoy this conversation with Peter Brannen.

Another episode you might like:

Support Reality Studies

NOTE: Thank you for supporting my work by purchasing these products through the links provided. I will only ever share products I actually believe in.

In case you haven’t noticed, it’s time to take your digital hygiene seriously. There are a few super simple, effective things you can do to up your digital self-defense considerably, and the first is to get a VPN. ProtonVPN is the gold standard, with fast service and a commitment to transparency. I promise you: once you realize how easy it is to use your VPN, you’ll be kicking yourself that you didn’t start sooner. Click here to get 55% off VPN Plus ($4.49/mo).

1Password: Password managers may not make for the most riveting dinner party conversation, but listen: 1) They make your life so much easier—it’s called “1Password” because once you get set up it’s the only password you’ll ever need to remember again. 2) They make your online life so much safer, ensuring that you use unique passwords for every account, stored with a high degree of encryption. 3) They are not nearly as complicated to set up as you think they are! Head over to 1Password using this link for a free trial, and individual plans for less than $3/mo after that.

ZBiotics: Right now, get 10% off ZBiotics. Just head over to zbiotics.com and use code JESSEDAMIANI. If you have an evening with drinking and a morning you need to feel fresh, these are a great help. Genetically engineered by a team of PhD microbiologists, ZBiotics is a probiotic drink that breaks down the byproduct of alcohol responsible for rough mornings after drinking (acetaldehyde).

MUD\WTR: Right now, save $20 on starter packs using this link. There’s four different blends to choose from, but my current favorite is :rest. “This is our protest to hustle culture,” they say, and that resonates with me. Not only does it actually help me ramp down to sleep, but since I froth a little milk and make a latte with it, I get the warm cozy feeling of morning coffee at night. (For the evening tea drinkers out there: I’m not saying it’s better, just different!)

Mission Farms CBD: Right now, get 25% off your first order using this link to sign up for emails. Mission Farms CBD crafts full-spectrum CBD products for specific conditions like sleep, stress, and discomfort, using a combination of CBD and terpenes found in essential oils. I swear by this stuff. All of Mission Farms’s CBD comes from a small farm in Bend, Oregon. They farm the hemp organically, tend every plant by hand, and test for purity four times: the soil, the hemp, the hemp-extract, and the final products. This CBD is designed for wellness and it shows.

CREDITS: This podcast is edited and produced by Adam Labrie and me, Jesse Damiani. Adam Labrie also edited the video version, which is available on YouTube. The podcast is presented by Reality Studies. If you appreciate the work I’m doing, please subscribe and share it with someone you think would enjoy it.

Find more episodes of Urgent Futures at: youtube.com/@UrgentFutures. Past conversations include Taylor Lorenz, Lisa Messeri, Legacy Russell, William E. Rees, Renée DiResta, and more. Here is another recent episode with Vivek Shandas on urban heat islands:

This piece is part of the Reality Studies Resilience & Preparedness Manual. For more, see the full Resilience & Prepping section.

The Strait of Hormuz Crisis continues, and with it, concern about the price of gas. And while this crisis will no doubt take its pound of flesh from your wallet at the gas pump, that’s only the most obvious dimension. What you may not be planning for are the inflationary ripple effects; modern life runs on fossil fuels well beyond transportation.

The first consumer goods to spike in a fuel shock are the cheap, unglamorous essentials that are impacted by energy prices, packing, shipping, and shared demand.

The list that follows does not include “prepper” goods in the conventional sense (though, as I’ve repeatedly written, I think we need to ditch stock stereotypes for normalized, practical preparedness).

No first-aid kits and bug-out bags here; rather, you’ll find the items that will get more expensive when energy markets seize up and shipping costs ripple through the economy.

If you want to minimize the impact of the next inflation wave, one easy way is to front-load the ordinary household goods you are guaranteed to buy anyway before they cost 20-40% more.

Note: I (desperately!) wish we lived in a world where we were not dependent on plastics. Please do not take what follows as advocacy for its use. Rather, I’m trying to be realistic about things that most people will still need in their daily lives. In cases where possible, I’m also including non-plastic options below, in full recognition that their increased price may be prohibitive for many. Everyone’s financial situation is different, and I’m not here to judge you.

SO. Without further ado, here are 10 of the best household items to stock up on now.

1. Trash Bags

Trash bags are one of the purest examples of hidden oil exposure in the average household. They are made from plastic resin (a fossil-fuel byproduct), sold in plastic packaging, and shipped as bulky low-margin consumer goods. That means they are exposed to oil prices three different ways at once. If energy prices spike, we should expect to see trash bags get more expensive quickly.

You are going to keep buying them no matter what they cost. That makes them one of the cleanest inflation hedges on this list: cheap now, shelf-stable for years, and guaranteed to be used.

• Hippo Sak - Plant Based Tall Kitchen Garbage Bags with Ergonomic Handles - 13 Gallon Trash Bags - Recyclable & Eco Friendly - Super Strong and Leak Proof Tall Kitchen Trash Bags (45 Count) ($22.50)

• Glad Tall Kitchen Drawstring Trash Bags - Odorshield 13 Gallon White Trash Bag, Febreze Fresh Clean, 110 Count ($19.97)

• Reli. 55-60 Gallon Trash Bags Heavy Duty | 50 Bags | 50-60 Gallon | Large Black Garbage | Made in USA ($23.99)

• 220Counts Small Trash Bags 4 Gallon, Flexible & Durable Small Garbage Bags, Unscented & Easy Tearing 4 Gallon Trash Bag for Kitchen, Bathroom, Bedroom, Office, Transparent,0.3Mil ($14.99)

2. Laundry Detergent

Laundry detergent gets squeezed from every angle in an inflation shock. Its ingredients are heavily petrochemical; its packaging is plastic, and in liquid form, it’s expensive to ship because you are paying to transport water. Thus, detergent is one of the easiest household staples to reprice upward.

Note: the best version to stock up on is not liquid. It is powder or detergent sheets, both of which store longer, take up less space, and avoid some of the shipping inefficiency that makes liquid detergent so vulnerable to cost increases.

You know you’ll use it and it stores well. And, as we saw during the pandemic, once prices rise, “sticky inflation” (sometimes referred to as ‘stickflation’) sets in, with prices remaining elevated even after the underlying causes of the price shock disappear (and again, with the Strait of Hormuz Crisis, there is no current end in sight).

Powder:

• Seventh Generation Laundry Detergent Packs, Free & Clear, Made for Sensitive Skin, EPA Safer Choice Certified, 64 Count ($19.90)

• ARM & HAMMER Powder Laundry Detergent, Free of Perfume and Dyes, 100 Loads ($15)

• Charlie’s Soap Laundry Powder New (150 Loads, 1 Pack) Fragrance Free Hypoallergenic Plant Based Deep Cleaning Laundry Powder – Biodegradable Eco Friendly Sustainable Laundry Detergent ($24.99)

• Molly’s Suds Original Laundry Detergent Powder | Clean Laundry Detergent Powder for Sensitive Skin | Simple, Effective Ingredients, Stain Fighting ($14.99 for 70 load, $38.99 for 240 load)

Liquid, if preferred:

• MRS. MEYER’S CLEAN DAY Liquid Laundry Detergent, Biodegradable Formula Infused with Essential Oils, Lavender, 64 oz (64 Loads) ($15.38)

• Seventh Generation Concentrated Laundry Detergent Liquid Free & Clear Fragrance Free 40 Fl Oz (Pack of 2) ($14.99 for 1, $25.99 for 2)

• Tide Free & Gentle Liquid Laundry Detergent, 64 Loads, 84 fl oz, Tide Laundry Detergent, Clean Laundry Detergent ($12.97, with additional 33% coupon if you purchase 4)

3. Dish Soap

Like detergent, dish soap combines petrochemical ingredients, plastic packaging, and water-heavy shipping. It is also a constant-repeat purchase in almost every household.

Because it is inexpensive, dish soap is the kind of product manufacturers can quietly reprice without much consumer awareness or pushback. That makes it one of the easiest products to inflate in small increments. It may not be expensive now, but it could be more expensive later, and there is no scenario in which you stop needing it.

• Dr. Bronner’s - Sal Suds Biodegradable Cleaner (1 Gallon) - All-Purpose, Pine Cleaner for Floors, Laundry and Dishes, Concentrated, Cuts Grease and Dirt, Powerful Formula ($54.99)

• MRS. MEYER’S CLEAN DAY Liquid Dish Soap, Lemon Verbena, 16 fl. oz - Pack of 3 ($14.97)

• Molly’s Suds Liquid Dish Soap | Clean, Simple Ingredients | Extra Scrubbing Power | Unscented, 24 oz - 2 Pack ($21.99)

• Seventh Generation Triple Action Clean Automatic Dishwasher Detergent Packs with Bio-Enzyme Power, Free & Clear, Fights 48-hour Stuck-on Food, 54 count ($20)

4. Toilet Paper

This one inevitably evokes echoes of March 2020. Notably, toilet paper is the first good on this list that is not especially oil-intensive to manufacture. That said, it is freight-intensive to sell.

Toilet paper is bulky, low-margin, and expensive to move relative to its retail value. When diesel prices rise, that cost gets passed through quickly. This is why toilet paper is often one of the first products consumers notice during any supply disruption, because it is logistically inefficient and psychologically non-negotiable.

• ECO BOOM Unbleached Bamboo Toilet Paper, 48 Mega Rolls, 100% Tree-Free 3-Ply, Plastic-Free Packaging, 360 Sheets | PFAS Free, BPA Free, Septic Safe & FSC Certified ($68.39)

• Boardwalk BWK6144 Two-Ply Toilet Tissue, White, 4” x 3” Sheet, 400 Sheets per Roll (Case of 96 Rolls) ($48.93)

• Scott Professional 100% Recycled Fiber Standard Roll Bulk Toilet Paper (13217), 2-Ply, Elevated Design, White, Individually Wrapped (80 Rolls of 473 Sheets, 37,840 Sheet Total) ($56.72)

• Cottonelle Ultra Clean Toilet Paper with Active CleaningRipples Texture, Strong Bath Tissue, 32 Family Mega Rolls = 176 Regular Rolls (8 Packs of 4) ($34.79)

5. Paper Towels

Paper towels follow the same inflation logic as toilet paper, but often move even faster because they are more discretionary and more heavily marked up. They are bulky, cheap to produce, expensive to ship, and easy for retailers to reprice—that combination makes them especially sensitive to freight inflation.

Like toilet paper, paper towels are not flashy, but they are one of the easiest categories to buy ahead now and avoid paying more for later. (And yes, I think both toilet paper and paper towel math are dumb and manipulative).

• Pacific Blue Select 2-Ply Perforated Roll Paper Towel by GPPRO (Georgia-Pacific), White, 27700, 250 Sheets Per Roll, 12 Rolls Per Case ($48.40)

• Bounty Paper Towels Quick Size, White, 16 Family Rolls = 40 Regular Rolls ($43.49)

• Sparkle Pick-A-Size Paper Towels, 24 Double Rolls (2,640 Sheets Total) - Strong 2-Ply Towels for Kitchen Cleanup and Everyday Messes ($27.88)

6. Diapers

If your household uses diapers, these should be one of the highest-priority items on this list. Diapers combine nearly every inflation-sensitive input at once: petrochemical materials, plastic packaging, bulky shipping, and relentless repeat demand.

They are also one of the most punishing items to buy reactively because families do not have the option to delay purchasing them. The only constraint is sizing, which means the ideal strategy is not stockpiling a year’s worth now, but rather buying a few months ahead and rotating forward as you go.

• The Honest Company Comfort Dry Disposable Daytime Diapers for Sensitive Skin, Hypoallergenic, Above It All + All the Alpacas, Club Box Size Newborn 72 Count ($24.09)

• Pampers Swaddlers Diapers, Size 1 (8-14 lbs), 198 Count, Absorbent, Keeps Baby Dry and Comfortable, Skin Safe Disposable Baby Diaper (Packaging May Vary) ($55.87 with coupon)

• Pura Sensitive Skin Baby Diapers | Size 4 (18-31 lbs) | Hypoallergenic, Totally Chlorine Free, Fragrance Free, Up to 12-Hour Leak Protection | 6 Packs of 22 (132 Diapers) ($61.93)

• Huggies Size 1 Diapers, Little Snugglers Diapers, Size 1 (8-14 lbs), 198 Count (6 Packs of 33), Packaging May Vary ($49.22)

7. Feminine Hygiene Products

Feminine hygiene products are one of the most practical and (often) overlooked inflation hedges in the household. Pads and liners combine synthetic materials, plastic packaging, and predictable repeat consumption. They are compact, shelf-stable, easy to store, and difficult to substitute away from.

That makes them exactly the kind of product that gets more expensive in a cost shock and keeps getting bought anyway. These products are rarely included in mainstream “prep” lists, which is one reason they absolutely should be.

• Cora Organic Cotton Tampons ($18.49 for 36, $57.49 for 144)

• Tampax Pearl Tampons for Women Multipack, with LeakGuard Braid, Light/Regular/Super Absorbency, Unscented, 94 Count (2 Packs of 47) (Packaging May Vary) ($21.49)

• L. Ultra Thin Pads for Women, Regular Absorbency, Organic Cotton Top Layer, Unscented Pads with Wings, 112 Count (4 Packs of 28) ($24.24)

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8. Shampoo and Soap

Shampoo and soap are classic examples of the small household essentials people underestimate because they are cheap. Again, “low-ticket” household goods are often where inflation shows up first because they can be repriced or quietly shrunk (‘shrinkflation’) without generating much consumer resistance.

Shampoo in particular is vulnerable to plastic, freight, and packaging inflation. Soap is somewhat less exposed, but still easy to store and guaranteed to be used.

• Dr. Bronner’s Magic Soap-Pure-Castile Liquid Refill (Baby Unscented, 32 ounce, 2-Pack) - Made with Regenerative Organic Certified Oils, For Body, Hair, Laundry, Pets & Dishes, Concentrated, Vegan ($32.94)

• Pharmacopia Citrus Shampoo - Natural Hair Care with Plant Based & Organic Ingredients Aloe Vera, Jojoba Oil, Coconut Oil, and Chamomile Extract - Vegan, Cruelty Free, No Parabens or Sulfates, 16 oz ($33.95)

• Dr. Bronner’s Pure-Castile Magic Bar Soaps (5 Ounce Variety Gift Pack) Almond, Unscented, Lavender, Peppermint, Citrus, Rose - Made with Regenerative Organic Certified Oils, Vegan, Non-GMO ($28.99)

9. Water Essentials

Bottled water is one of the worst inflation-sensitive essentials in the average grocery store. It’s cost is mostly a combination of freight and plastic, sold as a necessity. That makes it a poor thing to buy reactively and a mediocre thing to stockpile at scale (while we’re at it, if you haven’t gotten a reusable water bottle yet, do it now!)

A more sensible strategy is to stock up on water filters, containers, and reusable bottles. All of the above are compact, shelf-stable, easy to store, and much more efficient than trying to warehouse bottled water.

• Owala FreeSip Sway Insulated Stainless Steel Water Bottle with Two-Way Spout, Built-In Straw and Bucket Handle, Made for Travel, School, and Sports, 30oz, BPA Free, Leak Proof ($34.99)

• WaterStorageCube BPA Free Collapsible Water Container with Spigot, Camping Water Storage Carrier Jug for Outdoors Hiking Backpack & Survival Kit, Foldable Portable Water Canteen (various sizes/prices)

• Brita 27 Cup Water Filter Dispenser with Elite Filter, NSF Certified to Remove 99% of Lead, Reduces 30 Contaminants Including Microplastics, Mercury & Chlorine, SmartLight Indicator, BPA-Free, Black ($49.98)

10. Zip Bags and Food Storage Bags

Zip bags are pure petrochemical convenience goods: plastic resin turned into a product everyone uses and almost no one thinks about.

They too are cheap (now), compact, shelf-stable, and almost guaranteed to get worse on both price and quality. This is also one of the easiest categories for manufacturers to quietly cut corners in (e.g., thinner bags, fewer per box, same shelf price, et al.)

• 24/7 Bags- Quart Zip Storage Bags, 200 Count, Double Zipper Seal, Easy Grip Open Tabs, Write-On Space, BPA-Free & Heavy Duty, Microwave Safe, Non-StandUp ($22.25)

• Ziploc Gallon Food Storage Freezer Bags, Stay Open Design, Easy to Fill, 66 Count ($11.89)

• 365 by Whole Foods Market, Quart Size Freezer Bags, Double Zipper, 40 Count ($3.18)

If you want to learn more about what the Strait of Hormuz Crisis is and how it will impact you, read my guide here:

Stay safe out there.

This piece is part of the Reality Studies Resilience & Preparedness Manual. For more, see the full Resilience & Prepping section.

Welcome to the Urgent Futures podcast, the show that finds {signals} in the noise. Each week, I sit down with leading thinkers whose research, concepts, and questions clarify the chaos, from culture to the cosmos.

👉 Never miss an episode! 👉 Subscribe to Urgent Futures now: Youtube | Apple Podcasts | Spotify.

And if you’re loving the show, please share it with a friend who you think would as well! You have no idea how much word-of-mouth helps the channel find new audiences (and thank you to everyone who has supported the show by leaving ratings and reviews on your preferred podcast apps!)

My guest this week is Vivek Shandas.

Vivek Shandas is a researcher, professor at Portland State University, and advisor helping cities navigate climate and public health challenges. Over two decades, he has worked with governments and communities to improve urban environments through data-driven, equitable strategies. He has authored 100+ journal articles and five books, and his work on urban heat, air quality, and environmental justice has been featured in major outlets including The New York Times and National Geographic. In 2023, he was appointed to the USDA’s National Urban and Community Forestry Advisory Council. He is also the lead scientific advisor to CAPA Strategies and enjoys the mountains and water of the Pacific Northwest, where he lives with his family.

When you think of threats from heat, your mind probably goes to wildfire threats. And don’t get me wrong, having lived through wildfires firsthand, they’re not to be underestimated! But the headline-grabbing nature of fires might overshadow the fact that plain old heat can be a real threat to your health. In fact, extreme heat is the leading cause of weather-related deaths in the U.S.; more than hurricanes and floods.

And this is pronounced in urban spaces, where a deadly cocktail of heat-exacerbating building materials and careless urban planning has created a situation in which, during heat events, cities can become especially dangerous. Today’s guest is an expert in the phenomenon of urban heat islands, areas that are significantly warmer than surrounding rural areas. Tree cover is one of the key interventions, but unfortunately, US cities are actually losing tree cover. A study from the Forest Service in 2018 found that US cities were losing trees at a rate of 36 million per year. And worse, what Vivek has found in his research is that many of the hottest neighborhoods in cities—those that already lack sufficient tree cover—are also losing trees at the fastest rates. While I absolutely hate this fact, it’s why I especially appreciate Vivek’s approach, weaving together sustainability, environmental justice, and urban planning—and doing so in such a clear-eyed, accessible way.

I know this is not light fare, but given that we’re also potentially heading into what experts have literally called a “super-duper” El Niño, which they believe will produce new record-setting temperatures, I feel strongly that you need to familiarize yourself with this subject so that you’re best able to prepare and help do what you can to advocate for better heat planning in your hometowns. So without further ado, please enjoy this vital conversation with Professor Vivek Shandas.

Another episode you might like:

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In case you haven’t noticed, it’s time to take your digital hygiene seriously. There are a few super simple, effective things you can do to up your digital self-defense considerably, and the first is to get a VPN. ProtonVPN is the gold standard, with fast service and a commitment to transparency. I promise you: once you realize how easy it is to use your VPN, you’ll be kicking yourself that you didn’t start sooner. Click here to get 55% off VPN Plus ($4.49/mo).

1Password: Password managers may not make for the most riveting dinner party conversation, but listen: 1) They make your life so much easier—it’s called “1Password” because once you get set up it’s the only password you’ll ever need to remember again. 2) They make your online life so much safer, ensuring that you use unique passwords for every account, stored with a high degree of encryption. 3) They are not nearly as complicated to set up as you think they are! Head over to 1Password using this link for a free trial, and individual plans for less than $3/mo after that.

ZBiotics: Right now, get 10% off ZBiotics. Just head over to zbiotics.com and use code JESSEDAMIANI. If you have an evening with drinking and a morning you need to feel fresh, these are a great help. Genetically engineered by a team of PhD microbiologists, ZBiotics is a probiotic drink that breaks down the byproduct of alcohol responsible for rough mornings after drinking (acetaldehyde).

MUD\WTR: Right now, save $20 on starter packs using this link. There’s four different blends to choose from, but my current favorite is :rest. “This is our protest to hustle culture,” they say, and that resonates with me. Not only does it actually help me ramp down to sleep, but since I froth a little milk and make a latte with it, I get the warm cozy feeling of morning coffee at night. (For the evening tea drinkers out there: I’m not saying it’s better, just different!)

Mission Farms CBD: Right now, get 25% off your first order using this link to sign up for emails. Mission Farms CBD crafts full-spectrum CBD products for specific conditions like sleep, stress, and discomfort, using a combination of CBD and terpenes found in essential oils. I swear by this stuff. All of Mission Farms’s CBD comes from a small farm in Bend, Oregon. They farm the hemp organically, tend every plant by hand, and test for purity four times: the soil, the hemp, the hemp-extract, and the final products. This CBD is designed for wellness and it shows.

CREDITS: This podcast is edited and produced by Adam Labrie and me, Jesse Damiani. Adam Labrie also edited the video version, which is available on YouTube. The podcast is presented by Reality Studies. If you appreciate the work I’m doing, please subscribe and share it with someone you think would enjoy it.

Find more episodes of Urgent Futures at: youtube.com/@UrgentFutures. Past conversations include Taylor Lorenz, Lisa Messeri, Legacy Russell, William E. Rees, Renée DiResta, and more. Here is another recent episode with Sam Bloch, Founder of Camp DoomsDaddy:

This piece is part of the Reality Studies Resilience & Preparedness Manual. For more, see the full Resilience & Prepping section.

As I wrote last week, fallout from the Iran War is going to hit the rest of the world financially. I got a number of requests asking what the cheapest items folks could buy that would have the highest impact. There’s no one list that magically solves all your problems, but I thought it’d be worthwhile to address this question.

If you only have $50-$100 to spend, the highest-impact move is not what’s commonly considered (and marketed as) “survival gear.” As Sam Bloch, Founder of Camp DoomsDaddy recently explained on the Urgent Futures Podcast: “I’ve even had a lot of friends who [say], ‘Oh, well, like, the state of the world is getting crazy, climate change, everything. I’m going to go…take a wilderness survival course. I tell people all the time, like 20 years on the front lines, I’ve never seen somebody have to rub two sticks together to start a fire.”

SO. The immediate dimensions you want to cover on a shoestring budget should hit: cheap calories, clean breathing, off-grid cooking, off-grid information, & light. Some of those might only be necessary if a crisis turns severe—but you’ll be thankful you have them if such a time occurs—and they’re good to have as a general preparedness practice.

Rather than a flashy wilderness survival pack with lots of bells and whistles you may never use, this list focuses on what’s actually useful relative to the obstacles you might face in the coming months.

5 Items to Buy on a Shoestring Budget

1) Rice (Bonus: Add Beans)

The cheapest hedge against inflation is shelf-stable calories. A 20lb bag of rice gives you weeks of cheap baseline calories, stores easily (for as much as 30 years under the right conditions!), and becomes a force multiplier when groceries spike or supply chains get weird. This is the single highest “dollars to resilience” buy on the list. Pair it with dry beans if you want to stretch protein without substantially increasing cost.

At current prices, a 20lb bag is still roughly the cost of one takeout meal and can cover a meaningful chunk of a household’s emergency calories. Great Value Enriched Long Grain Rice is about as cheap as preparedness gets—currently $11.46 for a 20lb bag—and it solves the most expensive problem first: food (I know, I know, but I’m trying to live up to the promise of the headline; use your own ethics and budget constraints to determine what’s right for you). Costco also has some good offerings.

Other options include:

• Mahatma Extra Long Grain Rice 5 Pound Rice-Bag, Gluten Free and Non-GMO White Rice Bulk Bag, (Pack of 4)

• Iberia Jasmine Long Grain Fragrant Rice, 18 Pound

• Carolina long grain rice 25 LB

• Authentic Royal Basmati White Rice, 15 lbs (Pack of 2)

• BEN’S ORIGINAL Enriched Long Grain White Rice, Parboiled Rice, 10 lb Bag (Pack of 3)

By the way, I have a full food prepping guide here:

2) N95 Masks

This is the cheapest insurance against the “secondary effects” people forget. It’s not just for respiratory illnesses (though, hey, you definitely don’t want those either!)—they offer some protection against: smoke, fires, industrial haze, and poor indoor air during power outages. This is especially important as we approach the summer, which experts are concerned will entail a dangerous fire season. And let’s not forget that, unlike other respiratory illnesses, Covid-19 often sees summer surges.

Note: N95 masks aren’t directly tied to the Strait of Hormuz, but they are exposed through the petrochemical supply chain. Their key filter layer is made from melt-blown polypropylene, a plastic derived from oil-based feedstocks, which means disruptions in Gulf energy flows can raise costs and tighten supply for the raw materials that make masks possible. Even when N95s are assembled domestically, they often still depend on imported resin, elastic, nose clips, packaging, and freight networks, so a Hormuz shock is more likely to make masks pricier, lower quality, and less consistently available than to make them disappear outright.

This 20-pack of 3M Aura N95 Particulate Respirators is currently $15.11.

3) Butane Camp Stove

Because of the impact to energy flows brought on by the Strait of Hormuz Crisis, it is possible you’ll face rolling blackouts or energy rationing, depending on where you live. One scenario you want to avoid is having food but no way to cook it when your power source gets disrupted. A cheap single-burner stove turns your pantry into usable calories, lets you boil water, and gives you optionality when the grid is unreliable.

Coleman and Olympia both have options for around $40, and if budget is especially tight, this backpacking stove is only $15 at the time of this writing. Butane itself is also still pretty affordable; this pack of 12 canisters is currently around $27.

4) Hand-Crank Radio

We’re so accustomed to instant information via our devices that it’s hard to imagine life without it. What you don’t want is to have no way to get information in the event of a serious disruption, whether induced by a natural disaster or civil unrest. A hand-crank radio gives you grid-independent access to weather, emergency broadcasts, and infrastructure updates without relying on cell towers, broadband, or a charged phone.

This radio/flashlight combo is only ~$16, and there’s a higher-end option for about double that price that is well-reviewed, but honestly just pick whichever one seems the best for your situation (there’s no shortage of options).

5) Extra Lighting (Flashlights & Lanterns)

Cheap, redundant light buys you safety, mobility, and immediate stress reduction in the event of a grid-down situation. Critically, it also preserves battery life on your phone, which matters more than you might initially realize in a prolonged disruption.

The reason this makes the top five is simple: it’s cheap, it’s instantly useful, and it solves one of the first quality-of-life failures in any outage. FEMA and Red Cross both still treat lighting as a first-line essential for good reason.

I use a few of these EVER flashlights (they’re great and only about $10), but you also might consider this or this more powerful option, and it never hurts to have a few extra headlamps if budget allows.

Note: this is not meant to be a comprehensive list—far from it—but hopefully it gives you a place to start in assembling your basic prep.

That said, what’s arguably the most important thing you can be doing is engaging with other people. It’s time for frank conversations and preliminary planning with families, friends, and neighbors, and if you feel up for it, connecting with local mutual aid groups, community kitchens, local farmers, et al. In the event of serious disruptions, we always do better together (not for nothing, it’s how our species outperformed other hominids against the hostile ice-age conditions of our distant past). If you’ve built up your networks in advance, you’ll be much better buffered and prepared to contribute if disaster strikes.

Stay safe out there.

This piece is part of the Reality Studies Resilience & Preparedness Manual. For more, see the full Resilience & Prepping section.

On Feb. 28, 2026, the United States and Israel launched Operation Epic Fury against Iran. Within days, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) had effectively shut down the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow maritime chokepoint through which roughly 20% of global petroleum consumption, more than 20% of global LNG trade, and about one-third of global seaborne fertilizer trade normally move. The International Energy Agency has called it “the largest supply disruption in the history of the global oil market.”

Nearly eight weeks later, the strait remains severely disrupted. Ceasefire talks in Islamabad on April 12 failed to produce a deal, and a second round planned for this week fell apart after Iran refused to send a delegation.

In a truly remarkable self-own, the Trump administration imposed a U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports on April 13 following the collapse of the Islamabad Talks, creating a ‘dual blockade’ of the strait. On April 19, the U.S. Navy seized an Iranian container ship in the Gulf of Oman—the first interception under the blockade—and Iran has since attacked multiple commercial vessels in the strait in retaliation.

Most recently, China has deployed a 352-meter floating barrier and multiple coast guard/militia vessels to restrict access to Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea. Given that the South China Sea carries nearly a third of global shipping, even localized disruptions can produce broader economic effects.

Oil surged to nearly $120 a barrel at its peak, briefly plunged below $91 on April 17 when Iran declared the strait open during the Lebanon ceasefire, then surged back to around $106 this week as the U.S. blockade and renewed Iranian attacks on shipping escalated (Brent was around $72 before the war).

U.S. gas prices crossed $4 a gallon nationally in early April and peaked at $4.16 on April 9, with California averaging $5.89 (and some stations well above $6). As of April 23, the national average sits at $4.02, about 35% higher than before the war began. Diesel is up over 50% year-over-year, averaging $5.40 nationally. And these are just the initial first-order effects!

The second- and third-order effects—on food prices, fertilizer availability, medical supplies, manufacturing, shipping costs, and the broader inflationary environment—are only just beginning to unfurl. Some won’t be felt for weeks; others will take months and even years. Unless something dramatic happens, this is looking really, really troubling. In this piece, I won’t spend much time on the moral injury of being an American or Israeli and watching your nation wage an ill-advised, illegal war that will cause completely unnecessary suffering among Iranians (as well as casualties among our own servicepeople). Suffice it to say: this continues to weigh on me personally. The focus of this piece is how fallout from the war will impact your life and what you need to do to prepare.

This can all feel abstract now, but soon it will not. Lots of Americans have been comparing this to the first couple months of 2020, when Covid was clearly spreading around the world but hadn’t yet hit the U.S. I’m a bit tired of this analogy, but all the same I think it is accurate.

What follows is my attempt to map the most obvious (but by no means comprehensive) cascade of impacts of the Strait of Hormuz Crisis, and ground all of this in an actionable plan for you. My hope is to clarify what’s already getting more expensive, what’s about to, what might become scarce, and what you can do right now to prepare.

Energy: Gas, Heating, & Electricity

Gasoline

The national average crossed $4 per gallon on April 2, its highest since August 2022. The March CPI report showed gas prices rose 21.2% in a single month, the largest monthly increase since 1967. If the strait remains disrupted through Q2, analysts project prices could top $5 nationally. The EIA’s April Short-Term Energy Outlook forecasts U.S. retail gasoline to average near $4.30/gal in April, with peak-of-crisis projections of Brent at $115 per barrel in Q2 in their high-disruption scenario.

Diesel

Diesel matters more than gasoline for the broader economy because it’s the energy source powering the trucks, trains, and ships that move everything you buy. Diesel has surged over 50% year-over-year, climbing as high as $5.64 per gallon and currently averaging $5.40. Nearly every single product that arrives at your door, your grocery store, or your workplace by truck is absorbing that cost increase. RSM U.S. chief economist Joe Brusuelas told Bloomberg that a 10% rise in diesel pushes the consumer price index up by 0.1% (and note that diesel is up considerably more than 10%).

Natural Gas

Natural gas and heating oil are climbing, though the U.S. is somewhat buffered by its domestic production. European and Asian natural gas prices have surged (up by as much as 45% and 140%, respectively) since the war started, in so small part because of Qatar’s significantly disrupted liquified natural gas (LNG) export capacity. Iranian drone strikes damaged the Ras Laffan complex, the world’s largest LNG facility, where repairs to damaged capacity are projected to take 3-5 years. U.S. natural gas prices are more insulated since they reflect domestic supply and demand, but heating oil, a refined petroleum product linked to global crude prices, is already rising. So if you heat with oil, expect significantly higher bills next winter.

Electricity

Electricity prices are affected indirectly. About 40% of U.S. electricity comes from natural gas. While domestic gas prices haven’t spiked as dramatically as global LNG, electricity was already getting more expensive before the war; retail prices rose 4.6% over the prior 12 months in March 2026. The war will only amplify that trajectory.

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What You Can Do

Note: none of the below—or the commensurate “What You Can Do” sections that follow—will “solve” these problems, but preparedness is about increasing your own adaptability to face whatever might emerge, not removing the problem outright. Additionally, because some of this deals with financial matters, DISCLAIMER: None of the below is financial advice.

• Consider reducing discretionary driving wherever possible, whether through walking, riding your bike, investing in an e-bike if your budget allows, consolidating errands, carpooling, et al.

• Related: start discussing work-from-home options with your employer if possible (I recognize this is a privileged position, but if you have that privilege, use it—this also helps make sure folks who do have to commute have access to gas in the event of energy rationing).

• If you were considering switching to solar power or a more fuel-efficient vehicle (hybrid, EV, et al.), this may be your sign—but only if you can do so without taking on unjustifiable debt (it’s probably not an ideal time to spend recklessly).

• If you heat with oil, consider locking in a delivery price now rather than waiting for winter, and explore whether a heat pump or alternative heating source makes sense for your situation.

• Reduce electricity consumption: LED bulbs, smart thermostats, weatherization, and behavioral changes all compound. Every dollar you save on energy is a dollar available for the price increases headed your way in other categories.

Food: Fertilizer, Farming, & Grocery Prices

This is the impact that has been stressing me the most; its impacts are profound, but they’re on a lag, so most Americans haven’t experienced them yet.

Again, about one-third of global seaborne fertilizer trade normally passes through the Strait of Hormuz. The Gulf region exports nearly half the world’s urea and 30% of its ammonia. Natural gas, the primary feedstock for nitrogen fertilizer, has seen a 20% drop in production and price increases of up to 70% in some regions due to the Iran War—and curtailed production in key exporting hubs such as Qatar. U.S. fertilizer prices rose as much as 40% in the first month after the war began. On March 27, Iran agreed to a UN request to allow humanitarian and fertilizer shipments through the strait, though actual transit volumes remain far below pre-war levels.

The timing is spectacularly bad. The war started just as American farmers were beginning spring planting. In mid-March, U.S. fertilizer supply was at roughly 75% of normal levels according to UPI. Corn Belt farmers who couldn’t secure affordable fertilizer are now making agonizing decisions: apply less fertilizer (reducing yields), switch to soybeans (which need less fertilizer), or plant fewer acres entirely. Any of those choices reduces the corn supply, which feeds into livestock feed, ethanol, corn syrup, and hundreds of other products. (Related: beef prices were already up 16% since March 2025, with projections to continue increasing even prior to the war).

Meanwhile, Russia has suspended exports of ammonium nitrate to preserve domestic supply. China has blocked phosphate exports, removing around a quarter of global seaborne phosphate exports. The combined effect is a global fertilizer squeeze that mirrors—and could in fact exceed—the 2022 crisis following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The UN World Food Programme projects that an additional 45 million people worldwide could face acute food insecurity or worse if the conflict does not end by mid-year and oil prices remain above $100 a barrel. For Americans, the impact will be felt more in the wallet than in empty shelves. Analysts warn that if the strait remains disrupted through planting season, the effects will compound through the fall harvest and into 2027.

What to do

• Today’s prices vs. Tomorrow’s Prices. The most straightforward hedge available to any household is to stock up on shelf-stable staples—rice, dried beans, pasta, canned goods, cooking oil, flour—when prices are lower. Current educated guesswork would tell us that these goods will cost more in 60-90 days than they do today. Buying a month’s extra supply now is not hoarding; it’s purchasing ahead of (predictable) inflation. Rotate as always.

• Support local food systems. Local producers are not immune to fertilizer, fuel, or packaging costs, but shorter supply chains can be more resilient than long global ones. CSA memberships, farmers’ markets, local food cooperatives, and community gardens are all forms of supply chain resilience. If you don’t already have relationships with local food producers, it’s a good time to build them.

• Grow what you can. Even a small garden reduces your dependence on global supply chains. Herbs, salad greens, tomatoes, peppers, and beans are high-value crops that thrive in containers and small spaces (and you can dehydrate them to increase shelf-life—I’ve recently been having a blast making things in my dehydrator). A small garden won’t feed your family, but it reduces how much exposure you have to surging prices—and the skills you develop now compound over time.

• Cook from scratch. You may be tired of hearing this, but it’s still worth repeating. Processed and prepared foods absorb energy, packaging, and transportation cost increases faster than raw ingredients. A household that cooks from basic staples will feel this crisis less than one dependent on frozen meals and takeout.

• Reduce food waste. The average American household wastes roughly 32% of the food it buys. In an inflationary environment, that waste is getting more expensive by the week. Meal planning, proper storage, and using leftovers are both ethically and financially advisable actions you can take.

Psst: after I received some comments expressing frustration about being budget-constrained, I decided to publish a guide outlining 5 cheap, high-impact preps. Find that here:

Beyond Energy & Food: Hidden Supply Chains

The Strait of Hormuz isn’t just an oil highway. It’s a chokepoint for a web of industrial commodities that feed into practically everything modern life depends on. The World Economic Forum and other industry analyses have mapped out at least nine major non-oil commodity categories affected:

Helium

Qatar produces roughly a third of the world’s helium supply. Spot helium prices have risen sharply, with some reports saying they roughly doubled. This matters because helium is essential to MRI systems and to parts of semiconductor manufacturing and other high-tech industrial processes. Industry executives and analysts warn prolonged shortages could slow chip output and disrupt production plans. For consumers, this means potential delays and price increases on electronics, medical imaging, and anything that depends on semiconductor supply.

Aluminum

Gulf states account for about 8% of global aluminum production and a meaningful share of global exports. Iranian strikes on Emirates Global Aluminium caused massive production disruptions. Aluminum feeds into automotive manufacturing, aerospace, construction, packaging (including food and beverage cans), and consumer electronics. Prices have already increased, and supply constraints could persist even after the strait reopens if damage to production capacity takes time to repair.

Plastics, Resins, & Synthetic Fibers

The Gulf is a major source of petrochemical feedstocks including methanol, monoethylene glycol, and naphtha, which are used to make plastics, polyester, packaging, and textiles. Around 85% of Middle Eastern polyethylene exports go through the strait. Shortages are already pushing plastic prices up by double-digit percentages across most manufacturing categories.

Sulfur

Half of global seaborne sulfur came from the Gulf. Sulfur is critical to fertilizer production, metal processing, and semiconductor manufacturing. Disruption ripples into agriculture, mining, and tech simultaneously.

Automotive & EV Production

The cascade is especially acute for automakers: aluminum, plastics, rubber, steel feedstocks, synthetic graphite for EV batteries (produced from petroleum coke, a byproduct of oil refining), and helium for semiconductor fabrication all converge. Toyota has already cut production by nearly 40,000 units. New vehicle prices and availability will likely be affected.

What to do

• Consider accelerating planned purchases of durable goods. If you need a new appliance, vehicle, computer, or phone in the next 6-12 months, you will likely save money buying it before inflationary events.

• Prioritize repair over replacement. Every item you fix instead of replacing avoids the inflated replacement cost. Invest in basic repair skills and tools. The iFixit community provides free guides for thousands of products.

• Consider stocking up on maintenance consumables. Oil filters, air filters, wiper blades, batteries, light bulbs, phone cables are all small items that are heavily import-dependent and likely to see price increases or spot shortages.

Financial & Economic Fallout: Prepping Finances

The macroeconomic picture is grim. The March CPI showed energy prices up 10.9% month-over-month, and meanwhile airline fares rose 14.9% year-over-year that same month. The Fed is trapped between cutting rates to support a slowing economy and holding rates to combat surging inflation, the dreaded ‘stagflation’ scenario. Financial markets have been volatile, even as major U.S. stock indexes have remained relatively resilient. The word “recession” is back in the conversation.

For households, this translates into a squeeze from multiple directions simultaneously: higher energy costs, higher food costs, rising prices on goods and services across the board, potential job market softening, and continued uncertainty about how long the disruption lasts.

What to do

REMINDER: This is not financial advice.

• Consider building or fortifying your emergency fund. The economic environment just became substantially more uncertain. If you can set aside even an extra $50 per week, that’s extra cushion for the future.

• Consider reducing discretionary spending preemptively. It’s not prudent to wait until your budget is stretched to then start cutting. This category includes: non-essential subscriptions, dining out, impulse purchases, and convenience spending—things you might reduce now to free up cash for the rising cost of essentials.

• Consider locking in costs where possible. Fixed-rate contracts for heating oil, insurance renewals at current rates, annual subscriptions versus monthly—anywhere you can lock in a price before the next round of increases flows through, do it.

• Consider holding cash. In general it’s a good preparedness practice to hold some cash, but that’s especially true during periods of geopolitical instability. Systems can go down and payment networks can be disrupted. Having 1-4 weeks of essential expenses in small bills at home is a baseline prep.

• Be wary of panic-selling. Selling long-term investment portfolios may not be the best choice of action; markets have recovered from every geopolitical crisis in history. The risk of selling now is locking in losses and forfeiting the prospective recovery, though the right answer will be unique to each person’s individual circumstances. Basically just stay frosty; be extremely careful and deliberate about decisions you make under duress, and ideally speak with a financial planner before doing anything dramatic.

Transportation & Mobility

Diesel price increases flow directly into shipping, public transit, and air travel costs. Airlines have already begun passing through higher fuel costs via fare increases and fee hikes, and Delta CEO Ed Bastian said strong demand leaves room to recover more of those costs. JetBlue and other airlines have raised some fees, while higher fuel costs are also pressuring freight and delivery networks more broadly. If your commute depends on driving, every additional dollar per gallon is a direct cost increase.

What to do

• Optimize your commute. Carpool, combine trips, work from home when possible. If you have two vehicles, preferentially use the more fuel-efficient one.

• Maintain your vehicle. Properly inflated tires, clean air filters, and timely oil changes improve fuel efficiency by 3-10%. In a high-price environment, these small efficiencies compound.

• Rethink air travel. If you’re planning discretionary flights in the next 6 months, be aware that fares are rising and will likely continue to do so. Book early if you must fly; consider ground transportation alternatives for shorter trips.

Medical & Pharmaceutical Considerations

The pharmaceutical supply chain is exposed to the Hormuz crisis in two ways: direct disruption of raw materials and energy costs that increase manufacturing expenses.

The FDA claims that about 78% of active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) manufacturers serving the U.S. market are located outside the United States, with India and China accounting for close to a third. India buys over 40% of its urea from the Gulf region and has already reduced production at some chemical facilities. Additionally, helium shortages could affect MRI availability and other high-tech manufacturing processes.

These effects are less immediate than energy and food price increases, but they’re potentially more dangerous for vulnerable individuals.

What to do

• Maintain a 90-day supply of all prescription medications. If you haven’t done this yet, make it a priority this week. Talk to your doctor and insurer about 90-day mail-order prescriptions.

• Stock backup OTC medications. Pain relievers, allergy medication, cold medicine, digestive aids, first aid supplies, anything you use regularly. Buy a backup supply now, at today’s prices.

• If you or a family member depends on an MRI for ongoing diagnosis, communicate with your provider about potential scheduling delays and whether alternative imaging modalities might serve as interim options.

The Psychological Dimension

I know this is a lot. The Iran war comes on the heels of an already exhausting sequence of crises in this decade—pandemic, inflation, tariffs, political upheaval, climate disasters, to name a few—and adds a genuine wartime economy on top. The temptation to either panic or dissociate is strong (believe me, I get it)

Neither helps. Panic leads to bad decisions (impulse purchases, hoarding, financial mistakes driven by fear) and dissociation leads to inaction (the “I’ll deal with it later” response that leaves you exposed when the price increases hit). The middle path is structured preparedness. Not everything at once, not in a frenzy; pick one domain from this guide and take one concrete action on it today. Then another tomorrow. Ibid the day after. Convert the anxiety into a checklist, and work the checklist at human speed.

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Sample Consolidated Checklist

Reminder: This is not financial advice. This is a sample checklist I made for myself that I am sharing with you below.

This week:

• Fill your gas tank and keep it above half (avoid being caught in a price spike or shortage)

• Buy a month’s extra supply of shelf-stable staples at current prices

• Refill all prescriptions to maximum supply; order 90-day refills where possible

• Review your household budget for areas to cut in anticipation of rising costs

This month:

• Build or reinforce your emergency fund (even $200 matters)

• Lock in any fixed-rate contracts where possible (heating oil, insurance)

• Make any planned major purchases (appliances, electronics, vehicles) sooner rather than later

• Start or expand a home food garden, even if it’s just herbs and greens

This quarter:

• Establish or deepen relationships with local food producers

• Develop repair skills that reduce dependence on replacement purchases

• Reduce energy consumption through weatherization, LED lighting, and behavioral changes

• Build a 2-4 week supply of household essentials including OTC medications

Ongoing:

• Follow the conflict’s trajectory and its effects on commodity prices

• Adjust your budget as new price realities set in

• Share information and resources with your community

• Vote, organize, and advocate for the policies and systems you believe would prevent the next crisis

To Bang My ‘Resilience’ Drum One More Time

The Hormuz crisis is a systems crisis that demonstrates how interconnected the modern world is, and how a single chokepoint failure cascades across industries, continents, and households.

The deeper lesson is that resilience is a mindset, and it takes time to cultivate. The sooner you start, the better prepared you’ll be for whatever might come. The households that entered this crisis with pantries stocked, emergency funds built, debts paid down, and community ties established are obviously better prepared to weather it than those who didn’t. General preparedness is broadly applicable.

You can’t control anything to do with the Strait of Hormuz. Nor can you control oil prices, fertilizer markets, or Federal Reserve policy. But you can control building a strong community (both locally and digitally), the skills you’ve developed, and what’s in your pantry. Most of all, you can control how you think about prepping—shifting it from stock stereotypes of survivalists to the opportunity to develop a sense of empowerment and agency in a moment where those are hard to come by. And you can share that with your friends, families, and neighbors. The situation is deteriorating rather than stabilizing; the dual blockade is active, Iran has resumed attacking ships in the strait, and a second round of talks collapsed this week. If the strait remains closed through summer, things could get extremely hairy.

Stay safe out there.

This piece is part of the Reality Studies Resilience & Preparedness Manual. For more, see the full Resilience & Prepping section.

Welcome to the Urgent Futures podcast, the show that finds {signals} in the noise. Each week, I sit down with leading thinkers whose research, concepts, and questions clarify the chaos, from culture to the cosmos.

👉 Never miss an episode! 👉 Subscribe to Urgent Futures now: Youtube | Apple Podcasts | Spotify.

And if you’re loving the show, please share it with a friend who you think would as well! You have no idea how much word-of-mouth helps the channel find new audiences (and thank you to everyone who has supported the show by leaving ratings and reviews on your preferred podcast apps!)

My guest this week is Sam Bloch.

Sam Bloch is the founder and lead trainer at Camp DoomsDaddy. Sam comes with 20+ years of emergency response experience at the front-lines of disasters worldwide, from tsunamis and earthquakes to wildfires and war zones. A co-founder of Communitere International and former Director of Emergency Response at World Central Kitchen, he has led response efforts in more than 50 countries and worked at the epicenter of them in more than 30 U.S. disasters alone. After decades helping people who weren’t prepared, Sam is now focused on ensuring individuals and communities have the skills they need to take care of themselves and each other before disaster strikes. Sam is also on the Advisory Board of Watch Duty, and a trained wild land firefighter.

As I’ve discussed in a few other episodes, I’m of the mind that we need to reclaim the notion of prepping and shift it away from a stock stereotype about loner survivalists (though, hey, good for them). Rather, I’m excited by the version of prepping that’s growing out of the mutual aid movement, which foregrounds community care and self-empowerment. I did a collaborative video with forecasting agency Death to Stock outlining some of these ideas, which went a little viral, and beyond vanity, I’m glad it did; it led me to meet Sam Bloch, founder of Camp DoomsDaddy.

Want to go to the next Camp DoomsDaddy? Sign up here.

What Sam is doing is precisely what I see as the potential of turning preparedness and resilience into commonplace aspects of our lives. Essentially, he moves from the twinned premise that community is a superpower and resilience should be fun. He’s run two camps already—and has one coming up in May that, if you can go, you really should!—and if the documentation of their time is to be believed, they really did have a blast. All while learning critical skills to navigate volatile futures.

And Sam is the perfect person to do this; he’s a sort of preparedness and disaster relief auto-didact, having kicked off his career in Southeast Asia two decades ago, and becoming a leading figure in humanitarianism along the way. He sensed—rightly, in my estimation—that while disaster relief remains critical, a missing piece is building communities of people who have learned how to prepare in advance.

In this conversation, we talk about his background in disaster relief, his focus on dignity and community empowerment vs. “aid” in the traditional sense, as well as his present work with DoomsDaddy and what’s on the way. His work inspires me tremendously and I’m sure you will feel the same, so please enjoy this rigorous and fun conversation with Sam Bloch.

Another episode you might like:

Support Reality Studies

NOTE: Thank you for supporting my work by purchasing these products through the links provided. I will only ever share products I actually believe in.

In case you haven’t noticed, it’s time to take your digital hygiene seriously. There are a few super simple, effective things you can do to up your digital self-defense considerably, and the first is to get a VPN. ProtonVPN is the gold standard, with fast service and a commitment to transparency. I promise you: once you realize how easy it is to use your VPN, you’ll be kicking yourself that you didn’t start sooner. Click here to get 55% off VPN Plus ($4.49/mo).

1Password: Password managers may not make for the most riveting dinner party conversation, but listen: 1) They make your life so much easier—it’s called “1Password” because once you get set up it’s the only password you’ll ever need to remember again. 2) They make your online life so much safer, ensuring that you use unique passwords for every account, stored with a high degree of encryption. 3) They are not nearly as complicated to set up as you think they are! Head over to 1Password using this link for a free trial, and individual plans for less than $3/mo after that.

ZBiotics: Right now, get 10% off ZBiotics. Just head over to zbiotics.com and use code JESSEDAMIANI. If you have an evening with drinking and a morning you need to feel fresh, these are a great help. Genetically engineered by a team of PhD microbiologists, ZBiotics is a probiotic drink that breaks down the byproduct of alcohol responsible for rough mornings after drinking (acetaldehyde).

MUD\WTR: Right now, save $20 on starter packs using this link. There’s four different blends to choose from, but my current favorite is :rest. “This is our protest to hustle culture,” they say, and that resonates with me. Not only does it actually help me ramp down to sleep, but since I froth a little milk and make a latte with it, I get the warm cozy feeling of morning coffee at night. (For the evening tea drinkers out there: I’m not saying it’s better, just different!)

Mission Farms CBD: Right now, get 25% off your first order using this link to sign up for emails. Mission Farms CBD crafts full-spectrum CBD products for specific conditions like sleep, stress, and discomfort, using a combination of CBD and terpenes found in essential oils. I swear by this stuff. All of Mission Farms’s CBD comes from a small farm in Bend, Oregon. They farm the hemp organically, tend every plant by hand, and test for purity four times: the soil, the hemp, the hemp-extract, and the final products. This CBD is designed for wellness and it shows.

CREDITS: This podcast is edited and produced by Adam Labrie and me, Jesse Damiani. Adam Labrie also edited the video version, which is available on YouTube. The podcast is presented by Reality Studies. If you appreciate the work I’m doing, please subscribe and share it with someone you think would enjoy it.

Find more episodes of Urgent Futures at: youtube.com/@UrgentFutures. Past conversations include Taylor Lorenz, Lisa Messeri, Legacy Russell, William E. Rees, Renée DiResta, and more. Here is another recent episode with about Orbán’s loss and fallout from the Iran War:

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My guest today is Eric Czuleger.

is a geopolitical analyst and journalist who has worked across 45+ countries. Trained under George Friedman at Stratfor, he holds a Master's in National Security from the RAND School of Public Policy and an MSt in Creative Writing from Oxford. He is the author of You Are Not Here: Travels Through Countries That Don't Exist. A returned Peace Corps volunteer (Albania, 2011–2013) and former ambassador from Liberland to Somaliland, he splits his time between Tirana, Albania and Los Angeles.

Eric also runs The Under Report, which you should subscribe to here!

Viktor Orbán is widely regarded as having written the playbook for ‘illiberal democracy’ that has been used by those aspiring to turn democracies into autocracies—including Donald Trump. But last week, he lost the election—and miraculously, actually stepped down. What should we make of all this? What does it mean for Hungary, the EU, and the world? I chat with friend of the pod Eric Czuleger to find out.

We also spend some time at the end discussing Iran—and though the news has swerved a bunch since then, the gist remains the same: the Strait of Hormuz Crisis is going to hit us hard.

Another episode you might like:

Support Reality Studies

NOTE: Thank you for supporting my work by purchasing these products through the links provided. I will only ever share products I actually believe in.

In case you haven’t noticed, it’s time to take your digital hygiene seriously. There are a few super simple, effective things you can do to up your digital self-defense considerably, and the first is to get a VPN. ProtonVPN is the gold standard, with fast service and a commitment to transparency. I promise you: once you realize how easy it is to use your VPN, you’ll be kicking yourself that you didn’t start sooner. Click here to get 55% off VPN Plus ($4.49/mo).

1Password: Password managers may not make for the most riveting dinner party conversation, but listen: 1) They make your life so much easier—it’s called “1Password” because once you get set up it’s the only password you’ll ever need to remember again. 2) They make your online life so much safer, ensuring that you use unique passwords for every account, stored with a high degree of encryption. 3) They are not nearly as complicated to set up as you think they are! Head over to 1Password using this link for a free trial, and individual plans for less than $3/mo after that.

ZBiotics: Right now, get 10% off ZBiotics. Just head over to zbiotics.com and use code JESSEDAMIANI. If you have an evening with drinking and a morning you need to feel fresh, these are a great help. Genetically engineered by a team of PhD microbiologists, ZBiotics is a probiotic drink that breaks down the byproduct of alcohol responsible for rough mornings after drinking (acetaldehyde).

MUD\WTR: Right now, save $20 on starter packs using this link. There’s four different blends to choose from, but my current favorite is :rest. “This is our protest to hustle culture,” they say, and that resonates with me. Not only does it actually help me ramp down to sleep, but since I froth a little milk and make a latte with it, I get the warm cozy feeling of morning coffee at night. (For the evening tea drinkers out there: I’m not saying it’s better, just different!)

Mission Farms CBD: Right now, get 25% off your first order using this link to sign up for emails. Mission Farms CBD crafts full-spectrum CBD products for specific conditions like sleep, stress, and discomfort, using a combination of CBD and terpenes found in essential oils. I swear by this stuff. All of Mission Farms’s CBD comes from a small farm in Bend, Oregon. They farm the hemp organically, tend every plant by hand, and test for purity four times: the soil, the hemp, the hemp-extract, and the final products. This CBD is designed for wellness and it shows.

CREDITS: This podcast is edited and produced by Adam Labrie and me, Jesse Damiani. Adam Labrie also directed, shot, and edited the video version of the podcast, which is available on YouTube. The podcast is presented by Reality Studies. If you appreciate the work I’m doing, please subscribe and share it with someone you think would enjoy it.

Find more episodes of Urgent Futures at: youtube.com/@UrgentFutures. Past conversations include Taylor Lorenz, Lisa Messeri, Legacy Russell, William E. Rees, Renée DiResta, and more. Here is another recent episode with Lee Buck on the hows and whys of decarbonization:

Welcome to the Urgent Futures podcast, the show that finds {signals} in the noise. Each week, I sit down with leading thinkers whose research, concepts, and questions clarify the chaos, from culture to the cosmos.

👉 Never miss an episode! 👉 Subscribe to Urgent Futures now: Youtube | Apple Podcasts | Spotify.

And if you’re loving the show, please share it with a friend who you think would as well! You have no idea how much word-of-mouth helps the channel find new audiences (and thank you to everyone who has supported the show by leaving ratings and reviews on your preferred podcast apps!)

My guest this week is Lee Buck.

Leonard Buck is an investor and philanthropist focused on the challenges and opportunities presented by climate change.

He previously supported the regional entrepreneurial ecosystem as an early-stage investor, mentor, and board member. He has served on dozens of boards, including NC IDEA, CED, and the UNC Board of Visitors, and was a Blackstone Entrepreneur-in-Residence.

Earlier in his career, Buck founded a succession of software companies that partnered with leading technology firms such as Apple, Oracle, Microsoft, and Sun Microsystems. He also contributed to early internet standards through a working group of the W3C.

Buck lives in Hillsborough, North Carolina, with his wife, Libby.

I had the good fortune to meet Lee last summer in Maine while my partner was in residency at Reach Projects in Blue Hill. It’s a really lovely community of people up there, and Lee is an esteemed member, a great host, and grills a mean burger to boot—and we quickly bonded over both our commitment to climate-related work and our background in tech.

Lee’s perspective on climate progress (or lack thereof) stems from his work as an investor and philanthropist, which gives him a unique view into what’s afoot in ClimateTech, as well as the struggles that startups and even more established companies face in implementing effective responses under current social, cultural, political, and economic conditions. It’s a perspective I haven’t yet had the chance to feature on the show, so I’m glad Lee agreed to sit down with me.

You’ll also hear his reflections on solar power, on what Silicon Valley felt like during the dot-com boom, and his advocacy for Apple vs. Android products, and much more. So without further ado, please enjoy this illuminating conversation with Lee Buck.

Another episode you might like:

Support Reality Studies

NOTE: Thank you for supporting my work by purchasing these products through the links provided. I will only ever share products I actually believe in.

In case you haven’t noticed, it’s time to take your digital hygiene seriously. There are a few super simple, effective things you can do to up your digital self-defense considerably, and the first is to get a VPN. ProtonVPN is the gold standard, with fast service and a commitment to transparency. I promise you: once you realize how easy it is to use your VPN, you’ll be kicking yourself that you didn’t start sooner. Click here to get 55% off VPN Plus ($4.49/mo).

1Password: Password managers may not make for the most riveting dinner party conversation, but listen: 1) They make your life so much easier—it’s called “1Password” because once you get set up it’s the only password you’ll ever need to remember again. 2) They make your online life so much safer, ensuring that you use unique passwords for every account, stored with a high degree of encryption. 3) They are not nearly as complicated to set up as you think they are! Head over to 1Password using this link for a free trial, and individual plans for less than $3/mo after that.

ZBiotics: Right now, get 10% off ZBiotics. Just head over to zbiotics.com and use code JESSEDAMIANI. If you have an evening with drinking and a morning you need to feel fresh, these are a great help. Genetically engineered by a team of PhD microbiologists, ZBiotics is a probiotic drink that breaks down the byproduct of alcohol responsible for rough mornings after drinking (acetaldehyde).

MUD\WTR: Right now, save $20 on starter packs using this link. There’s four different blends to choose from, but my current favorite is :rest. “This is our protest to hustle culture,” they say, and that resonates with me. Not only does it actually help me ramp down to sleep, but since I froth a little milk and make a latte with it, I get the warm cozy feeling of morning coffee at night. (For the evening tea drinkers out there: I’m not saying it’s better, just different!)

Mission Farms CBD: Right now, get 25% off your first order using this link to sign up for emails. Mission Farms CBD crafts full-spectrum CBD products for specific conditions like sleep, stress, and discomfort, using a combination of CBD and terpenes found in essential oils. I swear by this stuff. All of Mission Farms’s CBD comes from a small farm in Bend, Oregon. They farm the hemp organically, tend every plant by hand, and test for purity four times: the soil, the hemp, the hemp-extract, and the final products. This CBD is designed for wellness and it shows.

CREDITS: This podcast is edited and produced by Adam Labrie and me, Jesse Damiani. Adam Labrie also edited the video version, which is available on YouTube. The podcast is presented by Reality Studies. If you appreciate the work I’m doing, please subscribe and share it with someone you think would enjoy it.

Find more episodes of Urgent Futures at: youtube.com/@UrgentFutures. Past conversations include Taylor Lorenz, Lisa Messeri, Legacy Russell, William E. Rees, Renée DiResta, and more. Here is another recent episode with on ‘enshittification’:

If current events are any indication, you need to start taking personal and collective resilience seriously, and part of that is focusing on preparedness. Not just in terms of stockpiling resources, but in connecting with your local communities and developing key skills that will help in the event of an unexpected disruption. This is a thread I’ve been pulling for years now, so I’m organizing my existing writing on Reality Studies into one place, with more on the way! Thus, I present you…

The Reality Studies Resilience & Preparedness Manual

The Resilience & Preparedness Manual is a collection of explainers, analysis, essays, and other posts that help clarify the many dimensions of the term “resilience.” My hope is that this can be a one-stop shop for all things resilience, a term that has become all the more relevant given how the 2020s have progressed. *sad emoji*

This list is continuously updated, so bookmark it and make sure to check back—or subscribe now so they go straight to your inbox:

NOW: Strait of Hormuz Crisis

• How to Prepare for Iran War Fallout: What to Do, Buy, & Plan for as the Strait of Hormuz Crisis Intensifies

• Strait of Hormuz Crisis: 5 Cheap, High-Impact Items You Can Buy Right Now to Prep for Fallout from the Iran War on a Budget

• 10 Household Items to Stock Up on Before the Strait of Hormuz Price Shock

• The Iran War is Proving Why We Need to Fight for Solar Energy

Resilience: The Basics

• Resilience FAQ

• Psychological Resilience and the Benefits of Resilience Counseling

• What is Resilience? Understanding Individual and Collective Resilience

  • Resilience vs. Resiliency. Which is Correct?

  • Individual Resilience vs. Community Resilience

  • Professional Resilience: Training, Retreats, and Leadership for a Thriving Career

  • Professional Resilience: Training, Retreats, and Leadership for a Thriving Career

Preparedness (aka “Prepping”)

• The Prepper FAQ: Practical Answers to Top Emergency Prep Questions

• What Is a Prepper? Meaning, Mindset & Myths Debunked

• Community Prepping: Build a Resilient Neighborhood & Thrive in Any Emergency

• What Food Should a Prepper Buy? | 2026 Smart-Storage Guide

• Emergency Water Disinfection: Boiling, Bleach & Filters (2026 Guide)

• Lefty Preppers: Sustainable & Community-Focused Preparedness in 2026

• How Many Americans Are Preppers? 2025 Stats & Trends

Climate & Polycrisis

• Climate Resilience: Defining and Building Capacity in the Polycrisis

• Ecological Resilience: What Does it Mean for an Ecosystem to Be Resilient?

• Supply Chain Resilience Explained: What It Is and Why It Matters

Miscellaneous

• 1Password Travel Mode: How to Protect Your Phone and Login Information at the Border (2025 Guide)

• 32 Famous Quotes About Resilience

• It’s Time to Get Serious.

Welcome to the Urgent Futures podcast, the show that finds {signals} in the noise. Each week, I sit down with leading thinkers whose research, concepts, and questions clarify the chaos, from culture to the cosmos.

👉 Never miss an episode! 👉 Subscribe to Urgent Futures now: Youtube | Apple Podcasts | Spotify.

And if you’re loving the show, please share it with a friend who you think would as well! You have no idea how much word-of-mouth helps the channel find new audiences (and thank you to everyone who has supported the show by leaving ratings and reviews on your preferred podcast apps!)

My guest this week is Cory Doctorow.

is a blogger, journalist, and activist. For more than twenty years, he has worked with the Electronic Frontier Foundation on campaigns to safeguard and further our human rights online. He was coeditor of the weblog Boing Boing for nineteen years and now maintains a daily(ish) newsletter at Pluralistic.net. He has written more than thirty books, including nonfiction books, many science fiction novels, collections of short stories and essays, young adult novels, graphic novels, and even a picture book. Born in Toronto, he now lives in Burbank, California. He was awarded an honorary doctorate in laws by York University and an honorary doctorate in computer science by the Open University. He has been inducted into the Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Association Hall of Fame and was awarded the Sir Arthur C. Clarke Award for Imagination in Service to Society. He holds visiting professorship and research appointments at MIT, the University of North Carolina, Cornell University, and the Open University.

Enshittification. It’s a word that has taken the world by storm, dubbed the 2023 Word of the Year by the American Dialect Society and the 2024 Word of the Year by the Macquarie Dictionary. It’s a delicious word—playfully naughty and piercingly descriptive.

Today’s guest is the man behind the word, and he’s something of an expert in crystallizing complex ideas with memorable turns of phrase. What started as a blog post a few years back has become a full-blown book (and a great one, at that, so pick your copy now!).

Grab Enshittification: Why Everything Suddenly Got Worse and What to Do About It here!

The concept describes the process by which tech products degrade over time—specifically through economic and political pressures and incentive structures—and the book breaks this down in page-turning detail, with case studies that make your stomach turn. If you’ve interacted with tech products at all over the past couple decades, everything about this book will ring painfully true to you.

But all hope is not lost; Cory also outlines how we fight against these enshittificatory processes. It’s truly a must-read, and in the meantime, I hope this conversation is an invitation into this vital body of ideas. So without further ado, please enjoy this illuminating conversation with Cory Doctorow.

Another episode you might like:

Support Reality Studies

NOTE: Thank you for supporting my work by purchasing these products through the links provided. I will only ever share products I actually believe in.

In case you haven’t noticed, it’s time to take your digital hygiene seriously. There are a few super simple, effective things you can do to up your digital self-defense considerably, and the first is to get a VPN. ProtonVPN is the gold standard, with fast service and a commitment to transparency. I promise you: once you realize how easy it is to use your VPN, you’ll be kicking yourself that you didn’t start sooner. Click here to get 55% off VPN Plus ($4.49/mo).

1Password: Password managers may not make for the most riveting dinner party conversation, but listen: 1) They make your life so much easier—it’s called “1Password” because once you get set up it’s the only password you’ll ever need to remember again. 2) They make your online life so much safer, ensuring that you use unique passwords for every account, stored with a high degree of encryption. 3) They are not nearly as complicated to set up as you think they are! Head over to 1Password using this link for a free trial, and individual plans for less than $3/mo after that.

ZBiotics: Right now, get 10% off ZBiotics. Just head over to zbiotics.com and use code JESSEDAMIANI. If you have an evening with drinking and a morning you need to feel fresh, these are a great help. Genetically engineered by a team of PhD microbiologists, ZBiotics is a probiotic drink that breaks down the byproduct of alcohol responsible for rough mornings after drinking (acetaldehyde).

MUD\WTR: Right now, save $20 on starter packs using this link. There’s four different blends to choose from, but my current favorite is :rest. “This is our protest to hustle culture,” they say, and that resonates with me. Not only does it actually help me ramp down to sleep, but since I froth a little milk and make a latte with it, I get the warm cozy feeling of morning coffee at night. (For the evening tea drinkers out there: I’m not saying it’s better, just different!)

Mission Farms CBD: Right now, get 25% off your first order using this link to sign up for emails. Mission Farms CBD crafts full-spectrum CBD products for specific conditions like sleep, stress, and discomfort, using a combination of CBD and terpenes found in essential oils. I swear by this stuff. All of Mission Farms’s CBD comes from a small farm in Bend, Oregon. They farm the hemp organically, tend every plant by hand, and test for purity four times: the soil, the hemp, the hemp-extract, and the final products. This CBD is designed for wellness and it shows.

CREDITS: This podcast is edited and produced by Adam Labrie and me, Jesse Damiani. Adam Labrie also edited the video version, which is available on YouTube. The podcast is presented by Reality Studies. If you appreciate the work I’m doing, please subscribe and share it with someone you think would enjoy it.

Find more episodes of Urgent Futures at: youtube.com/@UrgentFutures. Past conversations include Taylor Lorenz, Lisa Messeri, Legacy Russell, William E. Rees, Renée DiResta, and more. Here is another recent episode with on quantum computing:

Welcome to the Urgent Futures podcast, the show that finds {signals} in the noise. Each week, I sit down with leading thinkers whose research, concepts, and questions clarify the chaos, from culture to the cosmos.

👉 Never miss an episode! 👉 Subscribe to Urgent Futures now: Youtube | Apple Podcasts | Spotify.

And if you’re loving the show, please share it with a friend who you think would as well! You have no idea how much word-of-mouth helps the channel find new audiences (and thank you to everyone who has supported the show by leaving ratings and reviews on your preferred podcast apps!)

My guest this week is Dr. Bob Sutor

has been a technical leader and executive in the computer and DeepTech industry for over 40 years. He is a theoretical mathematician by training, with a Ph.D. from Princeton University and an undergraduate degree from Harvard College.

During his career, Dr. Sutor has spoken to and briefed government legislators and policymakers around the world, such as his 2022 testimony before the United States Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation on “Securing U.S. Leadership in Emerging Compute Technologies.” He was a co-author of the 2024 Quantum Economy Blueprint from the World Economic Forum.

Dr. Sutor is the CEO and Founder of Sutor Group Intelligence and Advisory. He helps clients and investors understand sophisticated technologies such as quantum computing and use them effectively to succeed in their organizations and industries. Bob is a member of the Board of Directors of Nu Quantum and an advisor to the Forma Prime venture capital firm. He is also an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at the University of Buffalo, New York, and spent over two decades at the IBM Thomas J. Watson Research Center. Dr. Sutor is the author of the bestselling 2019 quantum computing book Dancing with Qubits.

Grab your copy of Dancing with Qubits here!

Over the years, you’ve probably heard many references to quantum computing. In geopolitics and tech matters, it’s considered an area of extreme interest, and yet it remains a subject that many don’t fully understand (even within the tech commentariat). That’s why it felt important to host a conversation with somebody who could cut through the noise and explain the basics of the technology, including its promise and peril. Among Dr. Bob’s many talents, he’s a gifted communicator about this particular subject, and this conversation does not disappoint. If you’ve been looking for the opportunity to grasp the basics of quantum computing, this is a perfect starting point. So, without further ado, please enjoy this conversation with Dr. Bob Sutor.

Another episode you might like:

Support Reality Studies

NOTE: Thank you for supporting my work by purchasing these products through the links provided. I will only ever share products I actually believe in.

In case you haven’t noticed, it’s time to take your digital hygiene seriously. There are a few super simple, effective things you can do to up your digital self-defense considerably, and the first is to get a VPN. ProtonVPN is the gold standard, with fast service and a commitment to transparency. I promise you: once you realize how easy it is to use your VPN, you’ll be kicking yourself that you didn’t start sooner. Click here to get 55% off VPN Plus ($4.49/mo).

1Password: Password managers may not make for the most riveting dinner party conversation, but listen: 1) They make your life so much easier—it’s called “1Password” because once you get set up it’s the only password you’ll ever need to remember again. 2) They make your online life so much safer, ensuring that you use unique passwords for every account, stored with a high degree of encryption. 3) They are not nearly as complicated to set up as you think they are! Head over to 1Password using this link for a free trial, and individual plans for less than $3/mo after that.

ZBiotics: Right now, get 10% off ZBiotics. Just head over to zbiotics.com and use code JESSEDAMIANI. If you have an evening with drinking and a morning you need to feel fresh, these are a great help. Genetically engineered by a team of PhD microbiologists, ZBiotics is a probiotic drink that breaks down the byproduct of alcohol responsible for rough mornings after drinking (acetaldehyde).

MUD\WTR: Right now, save $20 on starter packs using this link. There’s four different blends to choose from, but my current favorite is :rest. “This is our protest to hustle culture,” they say, and that resonates with me. Not only does it actually help me ramp down to sleep, but since I froth a little milk and make a latte with it, I get the warm cozy feeling of morning coffee at night. (For the evening tea drinkers out there: I’m not saying it’s better, just different!)

Mission Farms CBD: Right now, get 25% off your first order using this link to sign up for emails. Mission Farms CBD crafts full-spectrum CBD products for specific conditions like sleep, stress, and discomfort, using a combination of CBD and terpenes found in essential oils. I swear by this stuff. All of Mission Farms’s CBD comes from a small farm in Bend, Oregon. They farm the hemp organically, tend every plant by hand, and test for purity four times: the soil, the hemp, the hemp-extract, and the final products. This CBD is designed for wellness and it shows.

CREDITS: This podcast is edited and produced by Adam Labrie and me, Jesse Damiani. Adam Labrie also edited the video version, which is available on YouTube. The podcast is presented by Reality Studies. If you appreciate the work I’m doing, please subscribe and share it with someone you think would enjoy it.

Find more episodes of Urgent Futures at: youtube.com/@UrgentFutures. Past conversations include Taylor Lorenz, Lisa Messeri, Legacy Russell, William E. Rees, Renée DiResta, and more. Here is another recent episode with on Internet freedoms:

History repeats itself: a major oil-producing nation is attacked, oil markets react, prices surge. Kuwait in 1990, Iraq in 2003, Libya in 2011, Saudi Arabia in 2019, Ukraine in 2022. In “normal” times, folks in the comfortable West don’t think much about energy (beyond the American public’s pathological obsession with gas prices), but when moments like these happen—as with the war on Iran right now—we’re painfully reminded how much of our daily lives depend on things happening very far away that we have precisely zero control over. And by proxy, we’re reminded how much of our entire existence is predicated on the availability of cheap energy, propped up by the global infrastructure and cooperation required to move that energy around the world.

What’s unfolding in Iran right now is repeating the cycle, and of course the stakes are always higher when Iran is involved because of the Strait of Hormuz; roughly 20% of the world’s oil (and a similar percentage of the world’s fertilizer) passes through this single, narrow route.

Astonishingly—I mean that literally; it’s genuinely astonishing—the Trump administration purportedly “underestimated Iran’s willingness to close the Strait of Hormuz,” even though, as one former U.S. official explained: “Planning around preventing this exact scenario … has been a bedrock principle of US national security policy for decades.”

There’s plenty more I could say about how foolish, unnecessary, poorly planned, and unpopular the war on Iran is, but that’s not the focus of this piece. This piece is about energy security.

The Role of Fossil Fuels in Modern Life

Fossil fuels are known for their potency and portability. As we’re seeing, under current conditions, the former is heavily impacted by the latter. When portable energy can’t be, well, ported, and demand must look elsewhere, supply costs increase (oftentimes based more on perception and opportunism than actual supply-demand economics). Thus, the simple fact that fossil fuels have to be extracted and transported across vast distances becomes a flaw when global cooperation breaks down.

Unfortunately, life as many Americans, Europeans, and other wealthy populations know it is predicated on uninterrupted “good times,” which is why you may be suddenly hearing about soaring gas prices and, depending on where you live, energy rationing, rolling blackouts, and other fun/not-at-all disruptive prospects.

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The part that’s easy to miss is how quickly this stops being just “about oil” and starts being about…everything else. The price of fuel is baked into nearly every step of modern life—growing food, transporting it, keeping buildings running, manufacturing basic goods. As referenced above, supply doesn’t even need to collapse—just the threat of disruption is enough to induce chaos. Markets move on anticipation and oil companies preemptively hike pries. It’s a structural vulnerability; we’ve built a world where stability depends on a long chain of things consistently going right (geo)politically, militarily, and logistically.

Solar Now, Please?

At some point, we ought to stop and ask ourselves: how many times will we need to relearn this lesson before we actually change our behavior?

It’d be one thing if this switch were far out of reach, but it’s not. Solar energy has seen a meteoric pace of innovation and reduction in production costs over the past few decades. If we exerted the political will to incentivize it and fought to overhaul utilities as public goods rather than profit-making enterprises, we would not only decrease our dependence on fragile global systems, we would—depending on where we respectively live and the available sunlight—likely pay a lot less for energy in the long run. And to state the obvious: once installed, solar is not dependent on globalization and just-in-time logistics. It simply depends on the sun, which we have good reason to believe will keep on shining for the next ~5 billion years.

To understand how fossil fuel infrastructure is throttling the energy transition, watch this episode of Urgent Futures with Prof. Brett Christophers:

Resilience is a cool word, but it often looks boring in practice. It looks like decentralization—like millions of small, unremarkable systems quietly doing their job instead of a few massive ones (which create isolated points-of-failure) that everything depends on. It’s essentially redundancy vs. efficiency. It’s not a silver bullet—we will continue to face a number of other immense obstacles—but if lots of us had rooftop or ground-mounted solar; if we pushed our local communities to implement public solar energy and utilities optimized for it, we’d be going a great way toward ensuring that we could meet our basic energy needs and take care of each other, regardless of what's happening in shipping routes.

I’m in no way trying to glass-half-full the war, here; again, it’s reckless and as conducted is only producing suffering. But I’m encouraging us to recognize it as an occasion to eke out one modest but profound win in the face of a tentacular catastrophe. Solar is a darling of the climate community for good reason—make no mistake: we absolutely must curb carbon emissions if we’re going to survive this century—but this isn’t even a moral argument, it’s a security argument.

Resilient Energy for VUCA Futures

For all the ways Biden’s IRA was a step in the right direction, it embedded the assumption that top-down approaches to the energy transition would be the way the U.S. would decarbonize. Yes, some of the barriers to adoption are federal, and we need to fight for these too—things like sanction policies and tax incentives—but so much else can be addressed at the local level. Ask yourself: what could happen in my community that would spur solar adoption and decrease fossil fuel dependence? Then ask yourself: how could I bring those about? No wrong answers here; creative workarounds encouraged!

We tend to treat moments like the war in Iran as interruptions—temporary shocks to an otherwise stable system, from which we’ll eventually return to “normal.” I’m asking you to view moments like this as your normal now; they are instances of a failing system revealing its true self. More will come, and probably with higher frequency, more startling volatility, and more lasting consequences.

The 21st century is and will continue to be the story of VUCA: volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity. We all—but especially those of us in wealthy western nations—have to stop pretending that we live in a relatively stable and abundant mid-20th century paradigm (all requisite asterisks here about stability and abundance for whom). We have to face reality as we encounter it in fact, and act accordingly. The most painful outcome of our fossil-fuel dependence is the ongoing destruction of the biosphere, but let’s not forget that it’s also just going to cost us a whole lot more than the alternative(s)—literally, emotionally, and psychologically.

We know we have to end our addiction to fossil fuels; why not go ahead and kickstart the transition to solar (and, yes, wind + other “renewable” sources)? It might seem like an uphill battle now, but as the war in Iran is clearly communicating: it’s only going to get harder as time marches on.

Another post you might like:

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Audio versions of this episode can be found here on Substack, Apple Podcasts, and Spotify.

My guest today is Noelle Perdue.

is a writer, producer, and Internet porn historian with nearly ten years of experience working platform-side for multiple mainstream and independent adult companies. Having written everything from Food Network porn parodies to legally binding terms and conditions, much of her current work explores obscenity law and how pornography’s history can influence our digital and political futures. Noelle’s writing work has been published on Wired, Washington Post, Pornhub, Slate, Brazzers, Input, etc., she’s also been featured as an industry expert on multiple programs including the BBC, CBC, The Guardian, Rolling Stone, and on Netflix’s 2023 documentary Money Shot.

This marks Noelle’s—count it!—fourth time on Urgent Futures, and I continue to be grateful to have her as a dialogue partner on all things Internet freedoms. This conversation most directly builds on our Aug. 2025 episode, which focused foremost on the threats to privacy and security smuggled in with ‘age verification’ laws. That conversation is as timely and relevant today, so if you want to learn more, be sure to check that episode out as well.

Noelle also runs the excellent Porn World with Noelle Perdue newsletter—so pop over there and subscribe for smart takes on spicy topics!

In today’s episode, we jump off from her recent founding of the Anti-Censorship Coalition with . They’ve both been doing great work explaining the stakes, particularly involving a possible repeal of Section 230, part of the 1996 Communications Decency Act, which protects online platforms (websites, apps, ISPs) from liability for content generated by users on said platforms.

I recognize this might feel too tech-centric or legalistic for some folks, but I feel obligated to encourage you to think otherwise; our ability to communicate freely on the Internet is a baseline need for intervening in the polycrisis, and moreover, pushing against the ongoing surveillance creep occurring in much of the “modern” world.

Another episode you might like:

Support Reality Studies

NOTE: Thank you for supporting my work by purchasing these products through the links provided. I will only ever share products I actually believe in.

In case you haven’t noticed, it’s time to take your digital hygiene seriously. There are a few super simple, effective things you can do to up your digital self-defense considerably, and the first is to get a VPN. ProtonVPN is the gold standard, with fast service and a commitment to transparency. I promise you: once you realize how easy it is to use your VPN, you’ll be kicking yourself that you didn’t start sooner. Click here to get 55% off VPN Plus ($4.49/mo).

1Password: Password managers may not make for the most riveting dinner party conversation, but listen: 1) They make your life so much easier—it’s called “1Password” because once you get set up it’s the only password you’ll ever need to remember again. 2) They make your online life so much safer, ensuring that you use unique passwords for every account, stored with a high degree of encryption. 3) They are not nearly as complicated to set up as you think they are! Head over to 1Password using this link for a free trial, and individual plans for less than $3/mo after that.

ZBiotics: Right now, get 10% off ZBiotics. Just head over to zbiotics.com and use code JESSEDAMIANI. If you have an evening with drinking and a morning you need to feel fresh, these are a great help. Genetically engineered by a team of PhD microbiologists, ZBiotics is a probiotic drink that breaks down the byproduct of alcohol responsible for rough mornings after drinking (acetaldehyde).

MUD\WTR: Right now, save $20 on starter packs using this link. There’s four different blends to choose from, but my current favorite is :rest. “This is our protest to hustle culture,” they say, and that resonates with me. Not only does it actually help me ramp down to sleep, but since I froth a little milk and make a latte with it, I get the warm cozy feeling of morning coffee at night. (For the evening tea drinkers out there: I’m not saying it’s better, just different!)

Mission Farms CBD: Right now, get 25% off your first order using this link to sign up for emails. Mission Farms CBD crafts full-spectrum CBD products for specific conditions like sleep, stress, and discomfort, using a combination of CBD and terpenes found in essential oils. I swear by this stuff. All of Mission Farms’s CBD comes from a small farm in Bend, Oregon. They farm the hemp organically, tend every plant by hand, and test for purity four times: the soil, the hemp, the hemp-extract, and the final products. This CBD is designed for wellness and it shows.

CREDITS: This podcast is edited and produced by Adam Labrie and me, Jesse Damiani. Adam Labrie also directed, shot, and edited the video version of the podcast, which is available on YouTube. The podcast is presented by Reality Studies. If you appreciate the work I’m doing, please subscribe and share it with someone you think would enjoy it.

Find more episodes of Urgent Futures at: youtube.com/@UrgentFutures. Past conversations include Taylor Lorenz, Lisa Messeri, Legacy Russell, William E. Rees, Renée DiResta, and more. Here is another recent episode with on the contentious subject of geoengineering:

Welcome to the Urgent Futures podcast, the show that finds {signals} in the noise. Each week, I sit down with leading thinkers whose research, concepts, and questions clarify the chaos, from culture to the cosmos.

👉 Never miss an episode! 👉 Subscribe to Urgent Futures now: Youtube | Apple Podcasts | Spotify.

And if you’re loving the show, please share it with a friend who you think would as well! You have no idea how much word-of-mouth helps the channel find new audiences (and thank you to everyone who has supported the show by leaving ratings and reviews on your preferred podcast apps!)

My guest this week is Wim Carton.

is Associate Professor of Sustainability Science at Lund University, Sweden. He’s the author of over 20 academic articles and book chapters on climate politics. His work has appeared in top journals such as Nature Climate Change, WIRES Climate Change and Antipode. He co-wrote both Overshoot: How the World Surrendered to Climate Breakdown and The Long Heat: Climate Politics When It’s Too Late with Andreas Malm.

Grab your copy of The Long Heat here!

It is a loud, chaotic time. There are so many worrying developments that demand our immediate attention, action, and solidarity. I know that we all have limits to how much depressing information we can withstand. The not-so-awesome followup here is that there are things unfolding in the background that are also worthy of your attention, but they get virtually zero airplay because they’re not immediate disasters. If you’ve followed my channel for a while, you’re already familiar with a bunch of these, so I won’t belabor this point.

One of the most critical ones you need to be aware of is solar geoengineering, an umbrella term for speculative technologies designed to temporarily cool the Earth by reflecting sunlight back into space, typically through dispersing large quantities of sulfates in the atmosphere. At first blush, this may not sound like the worst idea. We know from researching the aftermath of volcanic eruptions that the cooling effect is real, not hypothetical, and especially given the unprecedented heat of the past three years, finding a seemingly straightforward way to cool the planet down might seem like a no-brainer. Unfortunately, it’s too good to be true, which is what today’s guest Wim Carton—along with his co-author Andreas Malm—go to great lengths to demonstrate in their absolute must-read book, The Long Heat. This book is something of a sequel to their likewise superb Overshoot (and for an invitation into that book, be sure to check out my earlier episode with the two of them).

Grab your copy of Overshoot here!

Having learned from folks like Wim, I think this issue is one of the single most important topics we need to be discussing right now, before it spirals out of control. Because make no mistake: even though we aren’t yet witnessing much geoengineering—and therefore not seeing its knock-on effects—interest is increasing. Israeli-US startup Stardust Solutions announced it had raised $60 million last year, claiming they would begin with experiments in April 2026. And of course, as the impacts of climate change and extreme weather become more pronounced—and we emit ever more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere—desperate times might cause many to turn to desperate measures.

After reading The Long Heat, I could spend all day explaining all the ways this go wrong, but instead, I’m going to let you hear it from the author himself. Please enjoy this vital conversation with Wim Carton.

Another episode you might like:

Support Reality Studies

NOTE: Thank you for supporting my work by purchasing these products through the links provided. I will only ever share products I actually believe in.

In case you haven’t noticed, it’s time to take your digital hygiene seriously. There are a few super simple, effective things you can do to up your digital self-defense considerably, and the first is to get a VPN. ProtonVPN is the gold standard, with fast service and a commitment to transparency. I promise you: once you realize how easy it is to use your VPN, you’ll be kicking yourself that you didn’t start sooner. Click here to get 55% off VPN Plus ($4.49/mo).

1Password: Password managers may not make for the most riveting dinner party conversation, but listen: 1) They make your life so much easier—it’s called “1Password” because once you get set up it’s the only password you’ll ever need to remember again. 2) They make your online life so much safer, ensuring that you use unique passwords for every account, stored with a high degree of encryption. 3) They are not nearly as complicated to set up as you think they are! Head over to 1Password using this link for a free trial, and individual plans for less than $3/mo after that.

ZBiotics: Right now, get 10% off ZBiotics. Just head over to zbiotics.com and use code JESSEDAMIANI. If you have an evening with drinking and a morning you need to feel fresh, these are a great help. Genetically engineered by a team of PhD microbiologists, ZBiotics is a probiotic drink that breaks down the byproduct of alcohol responsible for rough mornings after drinking (acetaldehyde).

MUD\WTR: Right now, save $20 on starter packs using this link. There’s four different blends to choose from, but my current favorite is :rest. “This is our protest to hustle culture,” they say, and that resonates with me. Not only does it actually help me ramp down to sleep, but since I froth a little milk and make a latte with it, I get the warm cozy feeling of morning coffee at night. (For the evening tea drinkers out there: I’m not saying it’s better, just different!)

Mission Farms CBD: Right now, get 25% off your first order using this link to sign up for emails. Mission Farms CBD crafts full-spectrum CBD products for specific conditions like sleep, stress, and discomfort, using a combination of CBD and terpenes found in essential oils. I swear by this stuff. All of Mission Farms’s CBD comes from a small farm in Bend, Oregon. They farm the hemp organically, tend every plant by hand, and test for purity four times: the soil, the hemp, the hemp-extract, and the final products. This CBD is designed for wellness and it shows.

CREDITS: This podcast is edited and produced by Adam Labrie and me, Jesse Damiani. Adam Labrie also edited the video version, which is available on YouTube. The podcast is presented by Reality Studies. If you appreciate the work I’m doing, please subscribe and share it with someone you think would enjoy it.

Find more episodes of Urgent Futures at: youtube.com/@UrgentFutures. Past conversations include Taylor Lorenz, Lisa Messeri, Legacy Russell, William E. Rees, Renée DiResta, and more. Here is another recent episode with Stephen Marche about the ‘Next Civil War.’

Welcome to the Urgent Futures podcast, the show that finds {signals} in the noise. Each week, I sit down with leading thinkers whose research, concepts, and questions clarify the chaos, from culture to the cosmos.

👉 Never miss an episode! 👉 Subscribe to Urgent Futures now: Youtube | Apple Podcasts | Spotify.

And if you’re loving the show, please share it with a friend who you think would as well! You have no idea how much word-of-mouth helps the channel find new audiences (and thank you to everyone who has supported the show by leaving ratings and reviews on your preferred podcast apps!)

My guest this week is Stephen Marche.

Stephen Marche is the author of The Next Civil War and On Writing and Failure. He frequently experiments with literary AI.

That modest bio doesn’t do justice to Stephen’s extensive writing and public intellectualism across culture, politics, and technology. We’ve been connected for a few years because of his early experiments with AI in writing—and as you’ll hear in the episode, he actually holds a number of historical firsts in this regard. In 2022, he published The Next Civil War, a book that is exactly what it sounds like: speculative scenarios rooted in rigorous research—including roughly 200 interviews with subject matter experts—about how the next American Civil War might transpire. It’s a bracing read, and unfortunately, much of what he put in that book is coming true.

Grab your copy of The Next Civil War here!

So it might also come as a surprise to discover that Stephen is Canadian, though he lived in the US for many years. This insider-outsider perspective is critical for discussing such a fraught topic. And his Canadian-ness is also what led me to host this rapid response episode—I’d been meaning to invite him on the show for a while to discuss the aforementioned, but then Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney gave his address at the World Economic Forum. Fans of the channel will know that I have closely tracked the prospect of the “rules based” international order’s collapse, and Carney pretty baldly named this.

If you haven’t watched the address or read about it, I encourage you to do so now. Suffice to say, it felt critical to foreground Stephen’s analysis. And then, toward the end of the episode, we also discuss his literary AI experiments, his take on the current state of affairs, and much more.

So buckle up. I’m sure you’ll enjoy this wide-ranging conversation with Stephen Marche.

Another episode you might like:

Support Reality Studies

NOTE: Thank you for supporting my work by purchasing these products through the links provided. I will only ever share products I actually believe in.

In case you haven’t noticed, it’s time to take your digital hygiene seriously. There are a few super simple, effective things you can do to up your digital self-defense considerably, and the first is to get a VPN. ProtonVPN is the gold standard, with fast service and a commitment to transparency. I promise you: once you realize how easy it is to use your VPN, you’ll be kicking yourself that you didn’t start sooner. Click here to get 55% off VPN Plus ($4.49/mo).

1Password: Password managers may not make for the most riveting dinner party conversation, but listen: 1) They make your life so much easier—it’s called “1Password” because once you get set up it’s the only password you’ll ever need to remember again. 2) They make your online life so much safer, ensuring that you use unique passwords for every account, stored with a high degree of encryption. 3) They are not nearly as complicated to set up as you think they are! Head over to 1Password using this link for a free trial, and individual plans for less than $3/mo after that.

ZBiotics: Right now, get 10% off ZBiotics. Just head over to zbiotics.com and use code JESSEDAMIANI. If you have an evening with drinking and a morning you need to feel fresh, these are a great help. Genetically engineered by a team of PhD microbiologists, ZBiotics is a probiotic drink that breaks down the byproduct of alcohol responsible for rough mornings after drinking (acetaldehyde).

MUD\WTR: Right now, save $20 on starter packs using this link. There’s four different blends to choose from, but my current favorite is :rest. “This is our protest to hustle culture,” they say, and that resonates with me. Not only does it actually help me ramp down to sleep, but since I froth a little milk and make a latte with it, I get the warm cozy feeling of morning coffee at night. (For the evening tea drinkers out there: I’m not saying it’s better, just different!)

Mission Farms CBD: Right now, get 25% off your first order using this link to sign up for emails. Mission Farms CBD crafts full-spectrum CBD products for specific conditions like sleep, stress, and discomfort, using a combination of CBD and terpenes found in essential oils. I swear by this stuff. All of Mission Farms’s CBD comes from a small farm in Bend, Oregon. They farm the hemp organically, tend every plant by hand, and test for purity four times: the soil, the hemp, the hemp-extract, and the final products. This CBD is designed for wellness and it shows.

CREDITS: This podcast is edited and produced by Adam Labrie and me, Jesse Damiani. Adam Labrie also edited the video version, which is available on YouTube. The podcast is presented by Reality Studies. If you appreciate the work I’m doing, please subscribe and share it with someone you think would enjoy it.

Find more episodes of Urgent Futures at: youtube.com/@UrgentFutures. Past conversations include Taylor Lorenz, Lisa Messeri, Legacy Russell, William E. Rees, Renée DiResta, and more. Here is another recent episode with Prof. :