EPISODE 2
GUEST:
DR MARK DIESENDORF – Honorary Associate Professor in the School of Humanities & Languages, Faculty of Arts, Design and Architecture, UNSW Sydney.
SUMMARY
In this episode, we speak with Dr Mark Diesendorf, an environmental scientist with a background in physics and applied mathematics, whose work spans ecological economics, sustainable energy, and sustainability theory. He highlights the destructive influence of vested interests operating within an exploitative economic system, warning of a dystopian future marked by ecological collapse and social disruption. However, our conversation also focuses on his hopeful and actionable vision for a sustainable and fairer future—one that includes weakening state capture, building mass movements, and transitioning to a steady state economy with universal basic services. Drawing on his recent book The Path to a Sustainable Civilisation and a free 2025 research paper, A Strategy for Resisting the Vested Interests Driving the Collapse of the Biosphere and Civilisation, Dr Diesendorf outlines strategic steps toward a flourishing future for both people and planet.