I always appreciate Dave Ewoldt’s inclusion of reconnecting with the natural world as an essential element in creating a sustainable future. It’s there in almost everything he writes. It makes sense. As this psychologist noted in our conversation, what goes on inside us is embedded in the human and natural communities “outside.”

I’ve been reading his thoughtful essays since 2006, when we learned of his Sustainable Bellingham (WA), which he co-founded. But like ships passing through the night, he and Allison moved to Arizona just before we arrived in Bellingham to tape Peak Moment programs that summer. So when they contacted us recently during their west coast “Coalitions of Mutual Endeavor” tour, the only answer was a long-awaited Yes.

I kicked off our Peak Moment conversation quoting Dave: “The fact is that we’re not in a recession; we’re at the end of an historic period in Western civilization.”  Dave noted this period began when the commons were progressively taken over by the wealthy, and an economy emerged which required infinite growth. Infinite growth is impossible on a finite planet. And here we are, meeting the limits to growth in what Dave calls the Triumvirate of Collapse - Peak Oil, global warming, and corporatism.

What’s the alternative? I asked. Dave believes a technologically advanced society can exist within the carrying capacity of our supportive ecosystems — but must balance population, consumption and waste assimilation. How? by following natural systems principles that ecosystems use. Relocalization. Steady-state local living economies. And reconnecting with our roots in nature — and that capability is already there in us, even if obscured by industrial civilization.

After taping the conversation with Dave, we hosted a salon, an informal dialogue with a small group of community members, to learn  about Dave’s vision of forming coalitions to effect critical change in this culture that is destroying the planet, and the workshops in which he and Allison provide tools and models for local coalition-builders.

Look forward to big picture perspectives and optimism from a man who ran as an independent in the Arizona state senator race in 2010 to get the issues out there. I think Dave passionately wants to contribute to turning the ship of human culture in the right direction before it’s too late for many of the more-than-human beings and places on the planet. Read his essays (and sign up for his emails) at naturalsystems.blogspot.com.

(Top photo by Allison Ewoldt; Bottom photos by Robyn Mallgren).

At the GreenLife EcoFest on May 22, 2011 in Grass Valley, California, Dmitry Orlov presented “The Twilight of the Antipodes and the Cultural Flip” about swapping the market economy for gift economies, as humans have done throughout most of history.

He was followed by Michael C. Ruppert, announcing the presence of a new species on the planet — “Post-Petroleum Human.” Afterwards Dmitry and Mike shared the podium with a question and answer session.Listen to Mike’s presentation on The Lifeboat Hour radio show and watch the video, “Birth of the Post-Petroleum Human.” Watch Dmitry’s presentation video, “The Twilight of the Antipodes and the Cultural Flip.” I’ll post a link to their Q&A when it’s available.

In our Peak Moment Conversation, Mike Ruppert spoke about his observation of this new species of human that is emerging. Post-Petroleum Humans are not distinguished by physical characteristics but by a state of consciousness. They are reaching back into the long human history to remember their essential connection to Mother Earth and all of Life. And they are forging a path to relocalizing their lives while shedding their need for the artifacts and services of this planet-destroying industrial civilization. He also spoke about his work at CollapseNet, daily disseminating important news, empowering members to find one another in their region, and providing other resources. Mike is the author of Confronting Collapse, and the star of the movie Collapse. 

Raised in the Soviet Union, Dmitry emigrated in his teens to the US, but visited the USSR during and after its collapse. His book Reinventing Collapse: The Soviet Example and American Prospects draws similarities between the Soviet collapse and what’s now happening in the US. In our Conversation, he pointed out that the USSR was more resilient than America, because they didn’t have the efficient but vulnerable delivery systems the US has. Dmitry encourages people to simplify and reduce their needs. I’m fascinated by his choice to live with his wife aboard a sailboat, and his idea of creating forest gardens on little-used tropical islands. View his presentation here.

Watch or hear Mike: Arrival of the Post-Petroleum Human (Peak Moment episode 196.)

Watch or hear Dmitry: Collapse of the Titans (Peak Moment episode 201).

(Photos courtesy of Darren Aboulafia, CollapseNet.)

December 5, 2010. The conversation I had with Jon Cooksey, the writer-director of “How to Boil A Frog,” was a torrent of serious content, humorous side notes, and laughter spilling over the edges.

In his film Jon dares to cover the biggest, hardest stuff: overshoot, global warming, peak oil, the growing gap between rich and poor, our war on nature. But when you see the tag line — Make Friends. Make Fun. Make Trouble — you know there’s  more.

As the sole actor, Jon provides the narrative thread connecting interviews, animations, historic film footage, and his own story. He adopts different comedic personnas who deliver (or receive) the story of the Big Five problems, his personal feelings in response (all over the map), and his Big Five solutions. He even tapdances lightly on taboos.

I loved his evangelist preaching to boycott the world’s biggest oil company, the French-accented lover whipping out the condom persuading us to have only one child, and the kick-ass activist rocker advocating that we push back the corporations and reclaim the commons.

Along with the big problems, Jon suggests some responses as well as visions for a better future. One of the gifts of meeting this challenge, he said, is that we’ll break out of the loneliness perpetuated by this consumerist culture. When he became an activist, he began making a lot of new friends.

One of Jon’s five solutions is Relocalizing, shrinking our economies and activities back to where we live. In a computer animation he offers a visualization of what a small city might look like as it transitions towards relocalizing. The buildings get smaller and sprout photovoltaic panels and wind turbines; the cars are replaced by a trolley; people are out walking and biking; gathering in a town square and working in community gardens. By imagining it for us, he helps those ideas become a reality.

After we whipped through our half-hour conversation, I asked Jon if he could give us a little nugget, about a minute long, something short and sweet as a possible “teaser” to use before the Peak Moment video introduction. He launched in, and it was so engaging that he couldn’t stop. I joined in. We couldn’t stop. Forty-five minutes later, we wrapped it up with a big hug.

Afterward, we widened the conversation to include Robyn and our hosts Rick Flug and Gary Koch, who said it was like watching “My Dinner with Andre”, a movie entirely comprised of a single fascinating conversation. (Don’t feel left out — we’ll probably produce TWO Peak Moment shows with Jon, so you get in on most of it!).

Jon Cooksey has a very big heart. That heart greets you at the beginning of the film, lifts you in the middle, and empowers you at the end. Watch this film.  Share it with friends and neighbors. Talk about it afterwards. Then join the party and make it a movement: Make Fun, Make Friends, Make Trouble. I think you’ll be glad you did.

You can order DVDs of the film at howtoboilafrog.com.

View video stills of Jon’s expressive self at The Many Faces of Jon Cooksey, Star of “How to Boil a Frog.”

Watch the final program How to Boil a Frog - Meet the Filmmaker (Peak Moment episode 187).