Podcasts · Science
The Great Simplification with Nate Hagens
397 episodes · 20 with AI analysis
The Great Simplification is a podcast that explores the systems science underpinning the human predicament. Through conversations with experts and leaders hosted by Dr. Nate Hagens, we explore topics spanning ecology, economics, energy, geopolitics, human behavior, and monetary/financial systems. Our goal is to provide a simple educational resource for the complex energetic, physical, and social constraints ahead, and to inspire people to play a role in our collective future. Ultimately, we aim to normalize these conversations and, in doing so, change the initial conditions of future events.
AI Intelligence · across all analyzed episodes
People · top 20
Companies · top 20
Ford×2Netflix×2Saudi Aramco×2Microsoft×2Meta×2Google×2International Bateson InstituteWestinghouseGE VernovaVeterans Green JobsOkloExxonMobilPaine Institute for Public Policy at Colorado School of MinesCharacter.AIWarm Data LabsOregon State UniversityCity of Boulder Climate InitiativesGreenpeace InternationalRabobankOPEC
Topics · top 10
Technological Adolescence and Species Maturity×2Warm Data Labs and transcontextual research methodologyCommuning vs. community buildingRadical hospitality and gift economiesSchismogenesis and systems hold-back in relationshipsIdentity suspension through contextual storytellingMutual learning and aesthetic practicesPre-crisis community resilience buildingAlgorithmic fragmentation of human connectionMicrobiome and interconnected selfhood
Analyzed Episodes
Jun 10, 2026
Why 'Community' Fails: Everyone Wants a Village, Nobody Wants to Be a Villager with Nora Bateson, Jonathan Goldsmith & Lucas Jackson | RR 26
Warm Data Labs and transcontextual research methodologyCommuning vs. community buildingRadical hospitality and gift economies
View AnalysisJan 9, 2026
The Things We Take for Granted | Frankly 118
Health and bodily function as invisible wealthCreature comforts and basic infrastructure stabilitySocial relationships and community as forms of wealth
View AnalysisMay 20, 2026
Learning in a Way that Actually Matters: Why Standardized Testing Contributed to the Metacrisis – and How to Fix It with Theo Dawson & Zak Stein | RR 25
Standardized Testing Harms and AlternativesHierarchical Complexity Measurement in EducationEmbodied Learning and Connectome Development
View AnalysisMay 22, 2026
A Guide to Staying Human (Part 3): Why Mindfulness Matters When the World Is Breaking Down
Default Mode Network (DMN) neuroscience and functionTask Positive Network (TPN) and attention switchingMetacrisis awareness and psychological impact
View AnalysisMay 27, 2026
Darkness Deficit Disorder: How Constant Stimulation Has Shaped our Consumption with Andrew Holecek
Dark Retreat Practice and MethodologyDarkness Deficit Disorder and Light PollutionNon-Dual Philosophy and Consciousness
View AnalysisMay 29, 2026
A Word I Can't Seem to Understand: Non-Duality and Our Living World | Frankly 144
Non-duality and consciousnessWestern language and dualistic thinkingEnvironmental destruction and separation from nature
View AnalysisJun 1, 2026
Casting Call for a Future Frankly
Goldilocks TechnologySocial InnovationInner Tech Stacks
View AnalysisJun 3, 2026
Back to the Land: Why Restoring Earth's Capacity Will Take All of Us with Brett KenCairn
Living Systems Regeneration and Ecological ManagementLand Degradation and Soil Carbon LossWater Cycle Disruption and Hydrological Restoration
View AnalysisJun 12, 2026
The U.S. Can't Back Down: The Strait of Hormuz Closure Is Messier Than You Think with Michael Every
Strait of Hormuz Closure and Energy BlockadeIran Nuclear Program and Uranium EnrichmentUS Geopolitical Strategy and Dollar Hegemony
View AnalysisJan 14, 2026
Why the West Can't Defend Itself: How Material Scarcity Is Reshaping Global Power with Craig Tindale
Critical metals supply chain vulnerability and China's refining monopolyCentral banking policy impact on long-duration infrastructure investmentGeopolitical competition for rare earth elements and defense implications
View AnalysisJan 16, 2026
Technology and Wealth: The Straw, the Siphon, and the Sieve | Frankly 119
Technology and wealth creation at civilization scaleResource extraction acceleration and drawdown dynamicsWealth concentration through platform gatekeeping
View AnalysisJan 21, 2026
Arms Race or the Human Race? Governance in the Age of AI, Nuclear Threats, and Geopolitical Brinkmanship | RR 21
New START Treaty Expiration and Nuclear Arms ControlGovernance Definition and Rule of Law vs. Rules-Based OrderAI Bias in Leadership Decision-Making
View AnalysisJan 23, 2026
The Creature in the Machine | Frankly 120
Technology and human agencyEmbodied practice and resistanceEconomic superorganism dynamics
View AnalysisJan 28, 2026
The New Generation of Environmental Leadership: Stubborn Optimism, Tending Your Inner Fire, and Why Hope Is Not Enough with Xiye Bastida
Indigenous stewardship and cosmology as climate solutions frameworkYouth climate activism evolution and intergenerational knowledge transferPhilanthropic funding gaps for youth-led organizations and participatory grantmaking models
View AnalysisJan 30, 2026
Wide Boundary News: Japan, Silver, Venezuela, and More – the Biophysical Phase Shift Cometh
Biophysical Phase Shift and Systemic ConstraintsJapanese Government Bonds and Currency StabilitySilver Market Dynamics and Financial Leverage
View AnalysisFeb 2, 2026
A Country of Geniuses: Anthropic CEO's Warnings, Plus Wide-Boundary Considerations on AI
AI Safety and Risk AssessmentAI Governance and RegulationTechnological Adolescence and Species Maturity
View AnalysisMar 20, 2026
What to Do as the World Falls Apart: A Framework for Action | Frankly 132
Ecological overshoot and planetary boundariesEnergy systems redesign and demand reductionLocal food systems and soil regeneration
View AnalysisMar 25, 2026
Ending the AI Arms Race: Why Safer Futures Are Still Possible & What You Can Do to Help with Tristan Harris
AI Arms Race Dynamics and Game TheoryAI Safety Research Funding GapPsychological Harms and AI Attachment Hacking
View AnalysisMar 27, 2026
Iran, U.S., and the Rest: The Unavoidable Pig in the Python | Frankly 133
Middle East geopolitical conflict and supply chain disruptionGlobal fossil fuel import dependencies and energy securityJust-in-time supply chain vulnerability
View AnalysisApr 1, 2026
Scrambling for Energy Security: Navigating Unstable Energy Supplies Amidst Global Conflict with Chris Keefer
LNG Supply Chain Vulnerability and Geopolitical RiskNuclear Power Plant Construction Economics and TimelineEnergy Security vs. Climate Policy Trade-offs
View Analysis