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The Progress Network is based at the organization New America.

Chicken little forecast

Still Chugging Along

Volcanoes are erupting in The Philippines, but on-fire Australia received some welcome rain. The Iran war cries have been called off and The Donald’s military powers are about to be hamstrung by the Senate. Meanwhile, his impeachment trial is starting, and we’re all on Twitter for a front-row seat.

What Could Go Right? Season 5

Featuring Zachary Karabell & Emma Varvaloucas

Negative news can be overwhelming, but it’s important to question whether it accurately reflects our world. Join “What Could Go Right?” to hear positive stories from various experts that challenge the negative narrative. Let’s strive for a more balanced view of what’s happening today.

Whether you need a change of perspective or change of heart, check out “What Could Go Right?” from The Progress Network, with Zachary Karabell and Emma Varvaloucas — Season 5 begins October 4th, 2023.

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Prefer to read? Check out the Audio Transcript

Emma Varvaloucas (EV): Is it just me, or does it seem like we’re all a little overwhelmed by the constant stream of negative news? So many news items these days seem bleak and hopeless. But it’s essential to consider whether this negativity is actually an accurate representation of our world, and whether it’s shaping our perception of it for the worse.

Wildfires and record temperatures continue to move … we’re all doomed … the verge of World War III. 

EV: Causing us to overlook the positive things that are happening every day. 

If we could eliminate so much work and so much drudgery and so much labor, then what will we do with all that time?

We should consider basic income as venture capital for the people.

EV: Because despite what the news will tell you, many positive things are happening in the world every day. 

We’ve had an amazing quarter millennium of progress. But yet people think they’re always living in the end of days, that this is it.

Give us the resources to not predict the future but sort of invent the future.

EV: That’s why we invite you to join us on What Could Go Right?, where we speak with leaders from various fields, including environmental experts, social and tech entrepreneurs, policy setters, and more, to challenge the negative narrative with evidence.

If both the United States and China were to find ways to exercise more restraint, we could arrive at some kind of modus vivendi that would be certainly safer than where we are today. 

EV: And share stories that often go unnoticed by the media, providing you with a more balanced view of what’s going on today.

In the absence of hope, you have cynicism and apathy and you have no change. Hope or faith, if not in yourself or in something, gives you enough fuel to get up and say, you know what, I’m going to do something. 

EV: Whether you need a change of perspective or a change of heart, check out What Could Go Right? from the Progress Network.

Zachary Karabell: Which is a weekly attempt to change the tone of our collective dialogue from one of dyspeptic, dystopian despair to a more positive case for a brighter future.

EV: With Zachary Karabell and me, Emma Varvaloucas, available wherever you listen to podcasts. Stay tuned for new episodes coming October 4th.

 

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Meet the Hosts

Zachary Karabell

Emma Varvaloucas

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Why is there a need for optimism? Are we really worse off than we were decades and centuries ago? How could the next generation be the "greatest generation"? Zachary and Emma speak with Bill Burke, founder of the Optimism Institute and host of its Blue Sky podcast. They discuss the world's shift from utopian technology glee to dystopian AI fear, the ways that pessimism could halt progress, and how looking back through history can brighten one's outlook.

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What is going on in the Middle East now that the conflict has expanded to include Hezbollah? How has the United States struggled to bring resolution and peace to this part of the world? And where does the region go from here? Zachary and Emma speak with Steven A. Cook, expert on U.S.-Middle East policy and Arab politics, and author of "The End of Ambition: America's Past, Present, and Future in the Middle East." They discuss politics, economics, and power across various states, not limited to Israel and Palestine but including Iran, Lebanon, Egypt, and growing Qatar, as well as Steven's recent time spent in the West Bank.