THIS CHANGES EVERYTHING?: learning from crises of the past
In this episode:
What determines whether crises lead to major social change? We talk to two historians about lessons from the past. Walter Scheidel explains his argument that economic inequality has only ever been significantly reduced by catastrophes and war. Then Theda Skocpol discusses the impact that ideas and social movements can have.
Plus ParkRun founder Paul Sinton-Hewitt on the story behind its phenomenal success.
Guests
Walter Scheidel (@WalterScheidel) , professor of history at Stanford University and author of ‘The Great Leveler: Violence and the History of Inequality from the Stone Age to the Twenty-First Century’
Theda Skocpol, professor of government and sociology at Harvard University
Paul Sinton-Hewitt (@paulsintonhewit), founder of ParkRun
More info
NYT: After the Coronavirus Pandemic, the Big Reset (Apr 2020)
FT: The danger in the global coronavirus recovery will be inertia (Apr 2020)
Economist: Through history, pandemics have had profound effects (Mar 2020)
Walter Scheidel
Vox: Can a pandemic remake society? Interview with Scheidel (Apr 2020)
In These Times: Interview with Walter Scheidel (Apr 2020)
Scheidel: How will coronavirus affect workers? Look at past plagues (Apr 2020)
Vox.eu: Scheidel: Total war as a great leveller (Sept 2019)
Walter Scheidel: The Great Leveler book (2018)
Theda Skocpol
NYT on Skocpol: How the Safety Net Got Torn (Jan 1993)
Boston Globe: Coronavirus will exacerbate worrying trends (Apr 2020)