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Kim Stanley Robinson on Pre Traumatic Imagination and the stories that change us

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Manage episode 521420039 series 2503950
Content provided by Persephonica and Global Optimism. All podcast content including episodes, graphics, and podcast descriptions are uploaded and provided directly by Persephonica and Global Optimism or their podcast platform partner. If you believe someone is using your copyrighted work without your permission, you can follow the process outlined here https://podcastplayer.com/legal.

This week on Outrage + Optimism, we’re taking a breath.


After two intense weeks of daily updates from COP30 in Belém, we’re returning to weekly programming with something different - a slower, deeper, more reflective conversation that felt too valuable to cut.


While in the Blue Zone, we sat down with Kim Stanley Robinson, the acclaimed author of The Ministry for the Future, 2312, The Mars trilogy, and the Science in the Capital series. His writing has been read by negotiators, ministers, campaigners, and many of you.


In our conversation, Kim Stanley Robinson reflects on why The Ministry for the Future begins with such a devastating opening chapter, a “punch in the gut” designed to reveal the human limits of adaptation. He introduces the idea of “pre-traumatic syndrome,” the unsettling clarity that comes from imagining a catastrophe before it happens, and how this can motivate us rather than paralyse us. We explore storytelling as a cultural tool for moving from despair to determination, and why each of us needs a a unifying purpose that gives shape to our actions in a chaotic world.


At a COP defined by urgency, exhaustion, and flashes of courage, this wide-ranging conversation with Kim Stanley Robinson felt like a necessary exhale, a moment to step back and reflect on why we do this work, and what kind of future we’re choosing to build.

We’re airing the conversation almost exactly as it happened.


🎤 Leave us your voice notes and questions for upcoming episodes on SpeakPipe


Follow us on social media for behind the scenes moments and to watch our videos:


Instagram @outrageoptimism

LinkedIn @outrageoptimism


Or get in touch with us via this form.


Series Producer: Ben Weaver-Hincks

Planning Producer: Caitlin Hanrahan


Edited by: Miles Martignoni


Exec Producer: Ellie Clifford


This is a Persephonica production for Global Optimism and is part of the Acast Creator Network.



Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  continue reading

370 episodes

Artwork
iconShare
 
Manage episode 521420039 series 2503950
Content provided by Persephonica and Global Optimism. All podcast content including episodes, graphics, and podcast descriptions are uploaded and provided directly by Persephonica and Global Optimism or their podcast platform partner. If you believe someone is using your copyrighted work without your permission, you can follow the process outlined here https://podcastplayer.com/legal.

This week on Outrage + Optimism, we’re taking a breath.


After two intense weeks of daily updates from COP30 in Belém, we’re returning to weekly programming with something different - a slower, deeper, more reflective conversation that felt too valuable to cut.


While in the Blue Zone, we sat down with Kim Stanley Robinson, the acclaimed author of The Ministry for the Future, 2312, The Mars trilogy, and the Science in the Capital series. His writing has been read by negotiators, ministers, campaigners, and many of you.


In our conversation, Kim Stanley Robinson reflects on why The Ministry for the Future begins with such a devastating opening chapter, a “punch in the gut” designed to reveal the human limits of adaptation. He introduces the idea of “pre-traumatic syndrome,” the unsettling clarity that comes from imagining a catastrophe before it happens, and how this can motivate us rather than paralyse us. We explore storytelling as a cultural tool for moving from despair to determination, and why each of us needs a a unifying purpose that gives shape to our actions in a chaotic world.


At a COP defined by urgency, exhaustion, and flashes of courage, this wide-ranging conversation with Kim Stanley Robinson felt like a necessary exhale, a moment to step back and reflect on why we do this work, and what kind of future we’re choosing to build.

We’re airing the conversation almost exactly as it happened.


🎤 Leave us your voice notes and questions for upcoming episodes on SpeakPipe


Follow us on social media for behind the scenes moments and to watch our videos:


Instagram @outrageoptimism

LinkedIn @outrageoptimism


Or get in touch with us via this form.


Series Producer: Ben Weaver-Hincks

Planning Producer: Caitlin Hanrahan


Edited by: Miles Martignoni


Exec Producer: Ellie Clifford


This is a Persephonica production for Global Optimism and is part of the Acast Creator Network.



Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

  continue reading

370 episodes

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