When We Are with Alex Steffen

Move.Move yourself out of the path of destruction.Relocation is one of the foundational responses to the climate crisis. If you’re one of the many millions living in communities facing escalating physical risks and deepening economic brittleness, not being there when things get really bad may be the smartest strategy you can have.It’s also, in some ways, a strategy with a deadline.See, to move away from a place with a collapsing future, you have to have somewhere to move to, and unfortunately you’re not the only one who sees what’s happening.All around the world, there are more people who need to relocate than there are places for them to go. Demand increasingly exceeds supply. Prices are already beginning to rise. And the biggest wave of awareness is just beginning to swell.The result is a climate relocation bottleneck.This podcast — part seven in my series on how to think about planning for climate chaos in our own lives — explains what this climate squeeze is and why delaying a needed move for too long might cost you.(Did you miss the start of the series? You can listen here.)If you find this discussion valuable, please share.If you’d like more new thinking about crisis foresight, sustainability solutions, systems thinking and personal climate strategies, please subscribe.Finally, if you’re already a subscriber and would like to support this work, please consider giving a gift subscription to a family member, friend or colleague.Thanks so much! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit alexsteffen.substack.com/subscribe

Growing climate and ecological discontinuity is now colliding with inaction and inertia from governments and major institutions. It is clear that different places and communities will have widely varying outcomes as the crisis worsens. We are forced to become students of the systems we depend on, looking to assess not only the risks we face but also the extent to which those systems will respond or collapse where we live. For some, the prospects are reasonably bright: ruggedized systems and sustained prosperity. Others face the retreat of systems from zones of unofficial abandonment and a spiraling loss of options.No one strategy will work for everyone.Here I offer a basic rubric for trying to figure out what kind of strategic relationship to systems might work for you, based on your resources, your skills, your risk tolerance, your time horizon, and your trust in your local governance and systems. The ultimate goal is getting a sense of what “the right home, in the right place, in the right systems with the right timing” means for your family and friends.If you find this discussion valuable, please share.If you want to get more thinking about crisis foresight, sustainability solutions, systems thinking and personal climate strategies, please subscribe.Finally, if you’re already a subscriber and would like to support this work, please consider giving a gift subscription to a family member, friend or colleague.Thanks so much!See you next time, when we discuss the rapid evolution of the Climate Relocation Bottleneck. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit alexsteffen.substack.com/subscribe

The gap between what we need to do to ruggedize for the climate chaos now unfolding and what we are doing is so large that whole regions, whole communities and many families will find themselves falling into brittleness.Over the next couple of weeks, we’re giving a short tour of the key questions in personal climate ruggedization. What are the major risks and how do we understand them? What does it mean to live in a time with no new normal? What are the fundamental steps we can take to survive, thrive and prosper in the midst of a planetary crisis?Today, I answer the question, “Why do I need my own climate strategy?”(Did you miss the start of the series? You can listen here.)Are you ready to step up to the challenge of ruggedizing your life? Now’s your chance.My Personal Climate Strategy Workshop will teach you how. In this eight-class workshop, you’ll learn a framework for making smart, practical decisions in a time of worsening crisis and deep uncertainty. There’s nothing else like this. With eight classes and discussions, a wrap-up call, resources and readings, guided writing prompts, discounts on private calls and access to an alumni group, this Workshop will help you start to make climate-savvy decisions about the things that matter most to you.This fall’s Workshop begins next Monday, September 21, 2026!Registration closes this coming Friday, September 18, or when enrollment reaches 25 participants. (There are seven specially priced discount seats left.) Learn more and save your seat.Questions? Feel free to email [email protected] This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit alexsteffen.substack.com/subscribe

Today we explore discontinuity risk.Not only do we face climate chaos from within brittle systems, but the sheer scale and scope of changes around us make it harder to know if we’re making valid decisions. Formally sound choices are transformed into new liabilities.Over the next couple of weeks, I’m leading a short tour of the key questions in personal climate ruggedization. What are the major risks and how do we understand them? What does it mean to live in a time with no new normal? What are the fundamental steps we can take to survive, thrive and prosper in the midst of a planetary crisis?Today, I explore the question, “How do I make good decisions when everything’s changing so fast?”(Did you miss the start of the series? You can listen here.)Want to learn more? My Personal Climate Strategy Workshop will arm you with a framework for making better decisions in a future defined by discontinuity. In this eight-class workshop, you’ll learn the patterns underneath changing systems, practical steps for improving your access to relevant information, and prepare your own strategic approach to guide you successfully through ongoing uncertainty.You’ll get the tools you need to anchor the life you’ve built — your career, your family, your goals — on ground that will stay solid during the storms ahead.The next Workshop begins next Monday, September 21, 2026! Registration closes this coming Friday, September 18, or when enrollment reaches 25 participants. (There are seven specially priced Access Rate seats left — save $700!) Learn more and save your seat. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit alexsteffen.substack.com/subscribe

Climate chaos is here. What’s the plan?Over the next couple weeks, we’re giving a short tour of the key questions in personal climate ruggedization. What are the major risks and how do we understand them? What does it mean to live in a time with no new normal? What are the fundamental steps we can take to survive, thrive and prosper in the midst of a planetary crisis?Today, I explore the question, “Will my community be able to bounce back as climate impacts worsen?”(Did you miss the start of the series? You can listen here.)Are you ready to take action? My Personal Climate Strategy Workshop will show you how. In this eight-class workshop, you’ll learn a framework for making smart, practical decisions in a time of worsening crisis and deep uncertainty.The next Workshop begins next Monday, September 21, 2026! Registration closes this coming Friday, September 18, or when enrollment reaches 25 participants. (There are eight specially priced Access Rate seats left.) Learn more and save your seat:When We Are is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast and other podcast platforms around the world. Please subscribe, rate and review!This series is public and free, not paywalled. Please share it with others. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit alexsteffen.substack.com/subscribe