The Political Economy of Car Dependence: Understanding Systems of Provision w/ Giulio Mattioli & Julia Steinberger (E74)

This is a conversation with Giulio Mattioli and Julia Steinberger about their article ‘the political economy of car dependence: A systems of provision approach‘ published in the ‘Energy Research & Social Science‘ journal. We also discussed the topics below.Topics Discussed:The five key elements of what we’re calling the ‘car-dependent  transport system’: i) the automotive industry; ii) the provision of car  infrastructure; iii) the political economy of urban sprawl; iv) the  provision of public transport; v) cultures of car consumptionThe problem with focusing too much on consumption and the importance of covering the production sideHow where we live can influence our politics, and how suburban car-oriented lifestyles are actually subsidized by the stateThe importance of network planningLooking for decoupling and finding degrowth insteadThe problem with ‘sustainable’ growthHow the car industry shows the necessity of degrowthWhy more equitable societies are easier to decarbonizeThe problem with the argument that personal choices do not matterDealing with climate anxiety through activism, work, research, learningHow come we knew so much and did so little?Working with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)What is ecologial economics?Recommended BooksSpillover: Animal Infections and the Next Human Pandemic by David QuammenThe Grapes of Wrath by John SteinbeckDecolonising the Mind: the Politics of Language in African Literature by  Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’oLess is More: How Degrowth Will Save The World by Jason HickelDegrowth / Postwachstum zur Einführung by Matthias Schmelzer and Andrea VetterDoughnut Economics: Seven Ways to Think Like a 21st-Century Economist by Kate RaworthMusic by Tarabeat.Photo by Denys Nevozhai on Unsplash