logo
episode-header-image
Nov 2024
11m 6s

How to be an "apocalyptic optimist" | Da...

TED
About this episode

Dana R. Fisher calls herself an "apocalyptic optimist" based on her research as a sociologist of large social movements. Her studies suggest that ever-increasing climate disasters will get people out in the streets demanding the action we need. She breaks down how to cultivate resilience to catastrophe in yourself and your community — and how to rally for change in the face of seemingly intractable problems.



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

Up next
Yesterday
How AI is unearthing hidden scientific knowledge | Sara Beery
<p>Scientists estimate that 80 percent of life on Earth is still unknown to humanity. But as global temperatures rise, habitats shrink and food and water sources dry up, we're losing these species faster than we can discover them. AI naturalist Sara Beery reveals how the knowledg ... Show More
14m 21s
Nov 24
How the fridge changed food | Nicola Twilley
<p>What if your kitchen fridge is just the tip of an iceberg that's reshaping the world? Food storyteller Nicola Twilley reveals how the massive “artificial Arctic” we built to keep our food fresh is simultaneously melting the real one. She shows why we're at a critical moment to ... Show More
13m 27s
Nov 23
Sunday Pick: How to love your hometown (w/ Hanif Abdurraqib & Sarah Kay) | How to Be a Better Human
<p>Loving where you live means caring for the people who make that place home, says cultural critic Hanif Abdurraqib. He invites poet Sarah Kay and Chris Duffy, host of the podcast “How to Be a Better Human,” to his hometown of Columbus, Ohio, to show off what makes it so special ... Show More
15m 29s
Recommended Episodes
Apr 2024
TED Climate: What to do when climate change feels unstoppable | Clover Hogan
<p>Today's youth have inherited a big, unprecedented climate problem to solve — and the eco-anxiety to go with it. Gen-Zer and activist Clover Hogan knows the struggle firsthand, but she also understands the path to climate action starts with the one thing you can control: your m ... Show More
24m 44s
Feb 2025
‘Researching climate change feels like standing in the path of an approaching train’
Three researchers with personal experience of anxiety and depression triggered by studying the environmental destruction caused by a changing climate describe the steps they take to protect their mental health.Ruth Cerezo-Mota, a climate scientist based at the National Autonomous ... Show More
24m 43s
Jan 2025
How to turn climate anxiety into action (w/ Luisa Neubauer) (re-release)
<p>Amidst the multiple devastating fires in Los Angeles, where Chris lives, extreme weather events and shifting climate patterns are occurring across the globe, making our everyday lives all the more unpredictable. Today we are re-airing this episode from the very first season of ... Show More
31m 29s
Sep 29
Why Do Some Hurricane Survivors Thrive After Disaster?
You’ve probably heard of PTSD, post-traumatic stress disorder. But what about its counterpart, post-traumatic growth?The term was coined in the 90s to describe the positive psychological growth that researchers documented in people who had been through traumatic or highly stressf ... Show More
13m 18s
Jul 2022
Climat : peut-on sauver la planète avec des petits gestes ?
<p>A quel point les gestes individuels contribuent-ils à limiter notre empreinte carbone ? Faut-il arrêter de prendre l'avion, cesser de manger de la viande, changer sa chaudière à gaz ? Ou bien est-ce que c'est d'abord à l'Etat, aux grandes entreprises de faire des efforts ?</p> ... Show More
45m 59s
Feb 2025
How To Survive the News. CNN's Bill Weir on Moving From Anger and Despair to Optimism and Resiliency.
<p><span style= "font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'Segoe UI', Roboto, Oxygen, Ubuntu, Cantarell, 'Open Sans', 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif;"> A node of sanity in these challenging times.</span></p> <p> </p> <p><a href="https://www.billweirclimate.com/" target="_bla ... Show More
1h 13m
Jul 2025
162. Will We Solve the Climate Problem?
<p>Kate Marvel spends her days playing with climate models, which she says are “like a very expensive version of <i>The Sims</i>.” As a physicist she gets tired of being asked to weigh in on economics, geopolitics, and despair — but she still defends the right of scientists to ha ... Show More
57m 56s
Sep 2023
Rebecca Solnit and Thelma Young Lutunatabua, "Not Too Late: Changing the Climate Story from Despair to Possibility" (Haymarket, 2023)
These days, with catastrophe after catastrophe, it can be easy to turn to despair and to believe that there is nothing we can do. But writer Rebecca Solnit is determined to change that narrative. Over the course of her career, Solnit has published twenty-five books on feminism, p ... Show More
1h 1m