Episode 29 – Colonizing the Ocean and Mars?

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What if humans colonized the oceans? What if Elon Musk’s dream of a Mars colony came true?

This week we’re looking at the human desire to solve all our problems elsewhere, rather than where we already are. Olivia takes us through the blueprints for entire underwater cities, and Elise leaves the planet entirely: why are billionaires so keen on Mars?

We talk about how colonization rehashes patterns of violence that already exist on land, and how we can spark a cultural shift that dismantles extractive practices and encourages regenerative giving.

Story #1: Underwater Cities and Colonizing the Ocean (Olivia)

Sources:
Ocean Spiral is a conceptual city proposed beneath the surface of the ocean, Sebastian Jordahn for Dezeen, November 6 2017
OCEAN SPIRAL, Deep Sea Future City Concept page by Shimizu Corporation
Would You Live in an Oceanscraper?, The B1M
Floating cities, the LEGO House and other architectural forms of the future, Bjarke Ingels for TED, July 1 2019 (Bee-ahr-kuh)
What If We Colonize The Ocean?, Unveiled, July 5, 2019
Lilypad floating city project, Vincent Callebaut

The cruise documentary we mentioned in passing is Hulu’s The Last Cruise.

Bjarke Ingel’s Urban Riggers project:

Story #2: Colonizing Mars (Elise)

Sources:
Elon Musk tweeted a photo of the moon and called it Mars — and this isn’t the first time, Business Insider, March 2020
Elon Musk is flirting with Mars on Twitter and it’s weird, CNET, Feb 2019
Designing A Mars Rover To Launch In 2020, NASA
Elon Musk Says He’ll Put A Million People on Mars by 2050, Futurism, Jan 2020
Five steps to colonising Mars, BBC, Oct 2014
On a planet where you cannot breathe, is living on Mars the best idea?, USA Today, Dec 2020
We’re Already Colonizing Mars, Slate, March 2021

We don’t know how big Mars is, but wanna know who does? NASA!

Here’s a little rundown of how Mars stacks up to Earth:

The Dump

We’re watching a lot of TV!
– Search Party
– Mare of Easttown
– The Other Two

For more on how patterns of colonial violence on land relate to climate change, read this great article by Brian Kahn for Earther: Palestine Is Suffering an Ecological Apartheid.

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Thanks for listening!

Ep. 74 – Burning Questions Part II – World Is Burning

Can you believe we've gone 2 1/2 years without creating our very own game show about us? Neither can we! Test your climate knowledge alongside us as we ask ourselves the burning questions: Where are tumbleweeds from? What are our favorite climate activists' favorite insects? and How do you do fractions again? Subscribe/follow/press the button to keep up with new episodes every Wednesday! You can also follow us @worldisburnin on Instagram and Twitter or @worldisburning on TikTok, and check out our website worldisburning.com for extended show notes including sources and photos. World Is Burning is hosted by Olivia Hamilton and Elise Nye. Our theme music is by Kaycie Satterfield, and our logo was made by Sonja Katanic. — Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/worldisburning/message

1. Ep. 74 – Burning Questions Part II 41:18
2. Ep 73 – Burning Questions 24:05
3. Ep. 72 – It’s A Joke Until It’s Not – the Overton Window and AI 01:18:22
4. Ep. 71 – Oil Spills – Deepwater Horizon and Dawn Dish Soap 01:26:02
5. Ep. 70 – Deep Sea Explorers – Jacques Cousteau & Dr. Sylvia Earle 01:25:48