Imagine you can live large – trophy house, fancy toys, caveman diet – but the costs are miniscule. Would you find that appealing? Or would you rather simplify your lifestyle and make your footprint the thing that’s miniscule? Is downsizing simply a way to supersize your consumption without maximizing your footprint? The latest episode of the GrowthBusters podcast examines these questions, as explored in the film, Downsizing.

“Downsizing may be about a small world, but it is an audacious, out-sized peach of a picture.”  – Ian Freer, Empire Magazine

The film, starring Matt Damon and Kristen Wiig, is now available for rent and purchase – on Amazon, GooglePlay and YouTube. The DVD is available on Netflix. GrowthBusters director Dave Gardner is joined by new co-host Dana Hicky to discuss the film, and that means overpopulation, overshoot, overconsumption, and climate change are on the agenda. . . .

Are human beings too stupid to manage the planet? Just asking the question invokes some misplaced conceit; we’ve wreaked havoc on the Earth largely because of our assumption that Earth is all about us. The truth is, we have no business trying to “manage” the planet. But, the scale of the human enterprise has become so gargantuan, that – in many respects – we ARE managing the planet (managing it into oblivion).

In the newest episode of the GrowthBusters podcast, we discuss a Raw Story interview with the great, great grandson of Charles Darwin. One of Chris Darwin’s thoughts is that we are poorly equipped to manage the planet. Of course he is right. Chris has launched an app called Darwin Challenge (link below). He’s also focusing a lot of attention on the destructive, unsustainable nature of our appetite for meat. . . .

Hurricanes Harvey and Irma highlight the fact that cities have prioritized growth over safety, valued concrete over nature, and bought into the myth of prosperity from growth over sustainability. Dave, Kaitlyn and Ben discuss the civic addiction to growth. What would be more appropriate metrics for success than high rates of population growth?

Also: Living with your parents is green. So is patronizing restaurants that source locally, and skipping the plastic bags offered in the produce department.

Links of Interest:

Subscribe to the GrowthBusters podcast on iTunes

Does Population Growth Mean a City is Thriving?

Conversation Earth interviews      (vote for another season of this important radio/podcast series) . . .

The new GrowthBusters podcast is now active, with three episodes available now for your enjoyment and enlightenment.

Why a GrowthBusters podcast?

Many lively discussions begin on our webinars, on my media bias analysis at www.growthbiasbusted.org, and in response to Facebook posts. And those have continued here in the office (thanks to the presence of our two student interns, Kaitlyn and Ben). So, we decided the time is right to launch an official GrowthBusters podcast.

You can listen to the first episodes right here (just below, in this post), or you can find the GrowthBusters podcast (and subscribe, for free) at iTunes, Stitcher or the Apple Podcasts app. Subscribing means you’ll automatically get new episodes when available. (You’ll also find a couple of old episodes of our Paving Paradise podcast, which I started last summer but abandoned due to lack of time.) . . .

World Population Day (today, July 11, 2016) seems a fitting date to launch our new podcast, Paving Paradise: Tales from the Front Lines of GrowthBusting. On a somewhat regular basis I intend to share news, information and commentary to help you stomp out growth addiction in your community.

You can play today’s episode right here:

Today’s episode features some revealing observations from Eben Fodor, the community planning consultant who penned the excellent book, Better, Not Bigger. You probably always suspected the game is rigged in your own community – real estate developers pull all the strings. This comes up as I unpack the insanity of economic developers recruiting new businesses (and the population growth that follows) in places like Arizona and Nevada, as the water level in Lake Mead drops to levels not seen in over 30 years. . . .