Podcast Episode Details

a calm presence - hunkering down

Season 6

This is a narrated version of my 'hunkering down' essay on a a calm presence.

This essay is inspired by interviews with and writings by David Suzuki, Seth Klein, Joanna Macy and Thich Nhat Hanh. 

The episode also features excerpts from conscient podcast episodes é55 – un petit instant with France Trépanier, e177 - unknownness as a playground for artists with Asma Khan, e231 – what can we contribute?  with Kelly Wilhelm, e239 roundtable – imagining in public e2 - artist perspectives on social impact with Jesse Hirsh and e235 – art from the soil with Lallan.

My conclusion is that:

‘I don’t think humans will survive much longer as a species on earth and I worry about the suffering of current and future human and more-than-human communities.’

And

‘My own balance point between hope and despair lies in my belief that we are all living energy and that life in the cosmos will unfold as it should and the best course of action for someone like me is to be as calm a presence as I can while looking up at the stars in wonder and doing everything I can to reduce suffering and prepare for the future.’

The narration was recorded on August 11, 2025 while drifting in a kayak on the Preston River in Duhamel, Québec. This is an uninterrupted recording except for 10 seconds of silence in between sections. Quoted texts have been slightly processed for clarity. See the Transcript tab for a complete transcription. 

As always, feel free to respond in the public comments section of any of my social media or privately to me : claude@conscient.ca.

Thanks for listening. 

Below is there I list 15 resources that I narrate (also available in the written essay and in the episodie transcript): 

1. Climate Emergency Unit, led by Seth Klein, presses for the implementation of wartime-scale policies in Canada to confront the climate crisis. They produce the excellent Break In Case of Emergency podcast and campaigns such as the Youth Climate Corps. A good place to start is my conversation with their director of campaigns, Anjali Appadurai, e23 – what does a just transition look like? and my two conversations with Seith Klein : e26 – rallying through art and e77 seth klein – identifying a shared vision and a set of actions
2. Collapse 2050 by Sarah Connor (which is a pseudonym) explores the unspoken truth about humanity's frightening future. I’ve found her postings are grounded in fact and terrifying to read. I recommend it fo

   ---

   Published on 4 months ago