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Collapse Curriculum Podcast: Daily Summaries Delivered
by Justin McAffee
Civilization is collapsing. This is the curriculum. collapsecurriculum.substack.com
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- Apr 29, 20261h 39m
The Supply Chain Is Cracking, and It Was Never Sustainable
Thank you for watching our combined Collapse Curriculum and Biocentric podcast. If you like watching, we ask for just one thing: Like and subscribe to our channels to keep independent media going.The supply chain is cracking. From fertilizer shortages to energy disruptions, the systems that feed and fuel the modern world are showing signs of strain.In this episode, we break down what’s really happening beneath the headlines:* Why global supply chains are more fragile than we’ve been led to believe* How industrial agriculture depends on unstable inputs* What these shortages reveal about the limits of a growth-based economy* And why this isn’t just an economic issue, but an ecological oneWe discuss greenwashing in an op-ed piece, and it’s failed market approach to addressing ecological issues. We chat about record low Arctic sea ice extents posted by Prof. Eliot Jacobson. Also mentioned and discussed: Collapse Curriculum is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Collapse Curriculum at collapsecurriculum.substack.com/subscribe
- Apr 1, 20261h 44m
The Industrial System is At War With the Planet
In this conversation, Justin McAffee and Max Wilbert discuss the state of the world, the unraveling of ecological systems, and the question of how we’re meant to live in a time like this.We talk about the coming heat, food instability, and the growing cracks in industrial civilization. From water scarcity in the Southwest to the fragility of global agriculture, the signs are everywhere.Margi Prideaux, PhD was mentioned as an excellent Substack publication, including this recent post about the hunger gap coming. At the center of this episode is a hard realization:“They are waging war against the planet and people… with economic weapons, with military weapons, with political weapons…” It’s a systemic, ongoing conflict against the natural world and, ultimately, against ourselves.We explore:* Why consumer choices and “green” lifestyles won’t solve systemic collapse* The difference and intersection of resilience and resistance* What history (like the Great Depression) can teach us about survival* The importance of direct relationship to land, food, and place* How industrial systems disconnect us, and why that matters* Why real change requires more than individual actionWe also share personal experiences from time spent living close to the land, to hunting, fishing, and witnessing what a truly non-industrial relationship with food looks like.We hope you enjoy the discussion. Let us know in the comments if you’d like to see more of this type of content, and if there are topics you are interested in seeing covered. Collapse Curriculum is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Collapse Curriculum at collapsecurriculum.substack.com/subscribe
- Feb 25, 20261h 48m
The State of Resistance: Live with Justin McAffee and Max Wilbert
Max Wilbert and Justin McAffee discuss a number of topics and current events related to political movements, resistance, rising fascism, climate change, and environmental degradation. Get full access to Collapse Curriculum at collapsecurriculum.substack.com/subscribe
- Jan 8, 20261h 13m
Questioning the Invasive Species Narrative
In this episode of the Collapse Curriculum Podcast, host Justin McAffee is joined by environmental advocates Nikki Hill and Kollibri terre Sonnenblume, author at Speaking for the Trees (no matter where they’re from), to explore the growing controversy around invasive species, ecological change, and the stories we tell about nature.Using the barred owl debate in the Pacific Northwest as a starting point, where one owl species is being lethally removed to protect another, the conversation moves beyond headlines and into deeper questions.They discuss personal journeys in environmental advocacy, the role of media in shaping perceptions, and the importance of relational understanding in addressing ecological challenges. The conversation emphasizes the need for respect and curiosity in our interactions with nature, as well as the potential for resilience in the face of environmental change.Kollibri terre Sonnenblume is a writer, photographer, tree hugger, animal lover, and cultural dissident, as well as the author of several books exploring the intersections of ecology and human culture. Their Substack is "Speaking for the Trees, No Matter Where They're From" at kollibri.substack com.Nikki Hill can be found chasing wildflowers throughout the western US. She is not sure when her adoration of plants began, but they share a kindred spirit. Nikki earned a bachelors degree in environmental science and botany which led her to the field of habitat restoration nearly 16 years ago. Disillusioned by methodology that focused on eradication, she struck off on her own. She spent six years growing food and medicine, first as an urban farmer and then as a nomadic rural farmer, and co-founded Daggawalla, a seed and herb company. Since 2014, she has been exploring her feral roots as a wildtender, planting gardens outside agricultural boundaries. Her hope is to foster habitat resilience by sowing a living seed bank for the future, in a spirit of collaboration with the non-human world. Her website can be found at www.walkingroots.net.Collapse Curriculum is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Collapse Curriculum at collapsecurriculum.substack.com/subscribe
- Oct 15, 202548 min
Societal Collapse Through Loss of Connection and Meaning
Collapse isn’t the end of the world… unless we let it be. In this episode of Collapse Curriculum, Justin McAffee and co-host Mike delve into the final three stages of collapse: social, cultural and environmental... and why humanity must hold the line before the worst outcomes take root. Drawing on Dmitry Orlov’s framework, they explore how societies unravel from within, and how meaning and morality are the last defenses against total annihilation. You’ll hear why rebuilding trust, cooperation, and shared purpose not only more important to survival and storing canned beans and water, but why it’s a moral obligation to prevent the ultimate collapse: environmental destruction and mass extinction. Signs of Renewal: Justin closes with a look at war-torn eastern Ukraine, where abandoned farmland and villages are rewilding... proof that even in the ruins, life returns when the machine stops. Collapse Curriculum Assignment: Begin the work of renewal. Reconnect with one person, share a story or skill, and help rebuild the small bonds that make civilization worth saving. Collapse Curriculum Collapse Curriculum is survival education for a collapsing world, helping you understand what’s breaking, why it matters, and how to rebuild meaning and resilience in the ruins of modernity.Collapse Curriculum is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Collapse Curriculum at collapsecurriculum.substack.com/subscribe
- Oct 7, 20251h 11m
Navigating the Stages of Collapse
“If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. But if it is broken, can it be fixed?”In this episode, Justin McAffee is joined by his former college mathematics professor, Mike Paxinos, as they dive deep into the stages of societal collapse as outlined by Dmitry Orlov, exploring what happens when the systems we depend on begin to fail… financially, politically, culturally, and ecologically.From the fragility of global markets to the rise of decentralized communities, from the moral consequences of greed to the promise of cooperation, this conversation asks:What’s worth fixing? What should we let fall? And what new systems might emerge from the rubble?Join us as we unpack collapse as a crossroads and explore how humanity might still choose care, despite ruin.Here’s the article mentioned in the podcast. Get full access to Collapse Curriculum at collapsecurriculum.substack.com/subscribe
- Sep 25, 202549 min
The World Is on the Collapse Train
50 years ago, MIT scientists released The Limits to Growth, a computer model that warned civilization was on an unsustainable path. In 2022, sustainability researcher Gaya Herrington revisited that work and found that real-world data matches the collapse scenarios almost exactly. In this episode of Collapse Curriculum, I’m joined by my old college math professor and now my co-host. For those deep in the “doomersphere,” he’s kind of a normie. Which makes this a fun and engaging conversation: one collapse-aware perspective, one mainstream perspective, clashing and finding common ground. We discuss: * The Limits to Growth model (1972) and its “business-as-usual” collapse trajectory* Gaya Herrington’s 2020 re-analysis and why it’s so alarming * Is “green growth” is a myth? * What collapse actually means (not Hollywood apocalypse, but steep decline in complexity and capacity) * Signs of collapse all around us in 2025 Collapse Curriculum is survival education for a collapsing world. If you’ve ever felt the machine is breaking down and wondered how to prepare, you’re in the right place.Collapse Curriculum is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.Today’s discussion includes reference to these posts:And this is the 9 Planetary Boundaries reference:https://www.stockholmresilience.org/research/planetary-boundaries.html Get full access to Collapse Curriculum at collapsecurriculum.substack.com/subscribe
- Sep 18, 202558 min
The Patterns of Collapse: From Rome to Today
Why do great civilizations rise to power only to fall apart? In this first episode of the Collapse Curriculum Podcast, I’m joined by my former college math professor, Mike Paxinos, where we explore the common threads in societies that collapse, drawing on Jared Diamond’s insights from his Tedtalk and historical examples like Rome, the Maya, and the Soviet Union.We discuss:* Jared Diamond’s three major threads of collapse* Why civilizations often collapse rapidly after reaching their peak* How strongly held cultural values can accelerate collapse* The conflict between short-term elite interests and long-term survival* Signs of collapse in today’s worldMentioned in the podcast: There’s a 90% chance of collapse by 2050 due to deforestationThe Happiness Machines… and the story of Edward Bernays and American Marketing.Collapse Curriculum is survival education for a collapsing world. This podcast is where philosophy, history, and practical skills meet to help you navigate the unraveling of industrial civilization.Collapse Curriculum is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber. Get full access to Collapse Curriculum at collapsecurriculum.substack.com/subscribe
About Collapse Curriculum Podcast
Civilization is collapsing. This is the curriculum. collapsecurriculum.substack.com
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