About

In the first episode of the "Climate and Capitalism" podcast series from GMU Cultural Studies, Richard Todd Stafford talks with John Cook, research assistant professor at the Center for Climate Change Communication, about climate change denial and what can be done to inoculate the public against misinformation in "post-truth" society. This podcast series is associated with George Mason University Cultural Studies' Colloquium Series. This year's series is called "Climate and Capitalism." The industrial revolution liberated human beings from the cycles of nature — or so it once seemed. It turns out that greenhouse gases, a natural byproduct of coal- and petroleum-burning industries, lead to global warming, and that we are now locked into a long warming trend: a trend that will raise sea levels, enhance the occurrence of extreme weather events, and ultimately could threaten food supplies and other vital supports for modern civilization. This podcast series examines the cultural and political-economic dimensions of our ongoing, slow-moving climate crisis. We engage experts from a variety of fields and disciplines to ask questions about capitalism and the environment. How did we get into this mess? How bad is it? Where do we go from here? What sorts of steps might mitigate the damage — or perhaps someday reverse it? At stake are deep questions about humanity’s place in and relationship to nature — and what our systems of governance, production, and distribution might look like in the future. — Roger Lancaster, Colloquium OrganizerLearn more about the Cultural Studies Program at GMU: http://culturalstudies.gmu.eduLearn more about the Center for Climate Change Communication at GMU: https://www.climatechangecommunication.org/Learn more about John Cook: http://www.climatechangecommunication.org/portfolio-view/john-cook/ See John Cook's website Skeptical Science: https://www.skepticalscience.com/