Sustainability Matters

126 Episodes

Reverse

The Radical Possibility of Joy

2026-10-0738:39

On this episode of Sustainability Matters, we ask: What is joy, and how is it different from happiness? Can joy coexist with pain and suffering? And can it help us remain open to the world in difficult times? All this and more with Dr. Jana Tirey and Dr. Roger Berkowitz, editors of Joy: Loving the World in Dark Times—which is part of the series HA: The Yearbook of the Hannah Arendt Center for Politics and Humanities and is set to be published this December by De Gruyter Brill. Host: R...

Post-Enlightenment Society, Part 2: What Lies Ahead?

2026-09-1738:03

In the second half of this double episode of Sustainability Matters, we explore the rise of the Post-Enlightenment Society. What happens when opinion travels faster than knowledge? How do digital communication, education, and mass politics affect democracy? And is the erosion of Enlightenment values a failure of citizens, institutions, or both? All this and more with Prof. Dr. Markus Tiedemann, author of Post-Enlightenment-Society: What we are losing and what lies ahead, published by De Gruyt...

Post-Enlightenment Society, Part 1: Truth, Reason, and Human Rights

2026-09-0245:17

In the first half of this double episode of Sustainability Matters, we ask: what are the roles of truth, objectivity, and reason in society? How should we understand Enlightenment in relation to human rights, racism, slavery, and Eurocentrism? And what do we risk losing when universal standards are replaced by competing narratives? All this and more with Prof. Dr. Markus Tiedemann, author of Post-Enlightenment-Society: What we are losing and what lies ahead, published by De Gruyter Brill. H...

The Stories that Make a Nation

2026-08-0501:21:27

On this episode of Sustainability Matters, we explore how history textbooks shape collective memory in Lebanon. How are national narratives constructed? Are these textbooks as divided as the country's politics, or do they tell a more unified story? And what happens when different communities hold competing versions of the past? All this and more with Dr. Bouchra Saab, author of History Education in Lebanon and the Borders of the Nation, which is Volume 56 in the series “Studies on Modern Orie...

Can We Still Trust Science?

2026-07-0101:17:10

On this episode of Sustainability Matters, we explore what having confidence in science really means. What separates healthy skepticism from deliberate doubt? How do politics, economic interests, and misinformation shape public opinion around scientific research? And what role can scientists themselves play in rebuilding trust? All this and more with Dr. Peter Mahaffy, member of the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry's (IUPAC) Committee on Ethics, Diversity, Equity and Inclusio...

#box-pro-ellipsis-179194716545014{-webkit-line-clamp:2;}Sustainability Matters