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I looked through my notes, trying to find where I heard KSR walking back the Carbon Coin… and couldn’t find any links, just my notes about it. Separately, I did find this interview (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z6E34AYmY6A) where he was clear that he didn’t believe in blockchain or crypto as being “the answer.” And that people assume he endorses everything in the books, but he definitely doesn’t (especially the violence, but I think that was the context that I heard him caveat the Carbon Coin as well).
It was the part of the book I was least fond of — not that I have any hesitation about discussing money (or monetary policy) in the context of climate, but Carbon Coin felt way too much like a magic pill, a “tech will save us” (in this case money-tech) solution. Especially with how excited people got about it, I can see how KSR would be uncomfortable with that. Regardless, it’s certainly an idea that’s out in the wild and has (*cough*) currency now. And that’s fine. As KSR also has said many times, it’s an “all hands on deck” situation, so we have to consider all the options (I just hope we’ll reject the bad ones).
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Kim Stanley Robinson | Climate Futures: Beyond 02022
Long Now continues our dialog with the acclaimed writer Kim Stanley Robinson around COP26 and his most recent book "The Ministry for the Future". Tickets for...
