Invisible Handcuffs: Unchaining Economics

In what way might economists’ flawed understanding of progress be driving the many risks we face today?

This episode's guest is Luke Kemp, Research Affiliate at the Cambridge Center for the Study of Existential Risk and author of the best-selling, critically acclaimed book Goliath’s Curse, The History and Future of Societal Collapse.

Luke actually trained and worked as a climate economist.

Indeed he was drawn to researching civilisational collapse when he saw that climate economic models were tending to look only at average trajectories and not so-called tail risks — these are the worst case outcomes which may have a...

Our latest episode of Invisible Handcuffs I was delighted to be joined by Bhumika Muchhala, Political Economist and Senior Advisor at Third World Network as well as Part-Time Faculty at The New School.

Our discussion centres on the problem of Eurocentrism in economics, and its impact on a region where neoliberal economics is arguably doing most damage: the Global South.

Eurocentrism refers to the global dominance of western ideas and ideologies in economics and by default — in our international trade and financial institutions.

In our discussion Bhumika argues that while the violence and looting of political colonisation in the...

How can philosophy of science help us in the fight to reclaim economics?

That is the topic of discussion in our latest episode of Invisible Handcuffs, where I was delighted to be joined by leading a social-ecological economist Clive Spash.

This discussion brought a whole new language to problems with economics that I have long sensed, but been unable to put into words.

We delve deep into philosophy of science which Clive argues is crucial not just for deconstructing mainstream economics - which Clive says is literally walking us into disaster - but also, if we wish to build a...

This week we discuss the need to overthrow the current economic paradigm, and what a new one could look like, with Professor Steve Keen.

Steve is a prolific writer, teacher, blogger and vlogger, known as one of few economists to have predicted the global financial crash and a thorn in the side of mainstream or neoclassical economics for over 50 years.

A former professor of economics at Kingston university in the UK, today you’re most likely to find him on YouTube or one of his weekly online seminars talking about the crisis of capitalism and the various flaws in mainstream...