Michael Strong on SF Bay/Seattle Radio

Update: The show is now available as a podcast/mp3.

This Sunday (9/17, 8-9am PACIFIC) I will have the privilege of interviewing Michael Strong, alongside guest host and Seasteading author Joe Quirk. The topics are startup cities, education, entrepreneurship, and human flourishing. You can listen online here, or on 860 AM in the SF Bay.

The colonies were startup cities of a sort… But are they a good model?

Michael Strong is a contributor to this blog, founder of multiple charter schools,  author of BE THE SOLUTION:  HOW ENTREPRENEURS AND CONSCIOUS CAPITALISTS CAN SOLVE ALL THE WORLD’S PROBLEMS, and co-founder (with Whole Foods CEO John Mackey) of Conscious Capitalism, Inc.

I’m fascinated by startup cities for all of the obvious reasons, but I’m especially interested in Michael’s perspective as an entrepreneur and defender of capitalism who also speaks disparagingly of materialism, and owns very few things. He heralds a shift in the things people value, from “stuff” to meaningful experience. Our conversation will look at whether the imperatives for the under-developed world, where material scarcity is still a reality, are different from those in the developed world, where people are drowning in worthless possessions, and where infrastructure seems better suited to a bygone era. We’ll also discuss the relationship intellectuals have to capitalism, and why they have historically been hostile to the system that made them wealthy. Do they have some good points? How can we incorporate the best critiques into the foundations of the new forms of government we want to build?

It ‘s also worth mentioning that Michael is about to move from Austin to the San Francisco Bay Area to start a new school, and that Conscious Capitalism has a (dormant) Bay Area Chapter. From the website:

If there’s one place that positive change is alive and well, it’s the San Francisco Bay Area.

In the comments, I’d like to hear whether Bay Area-ites agree with this statement.

I am grateful to Bob Zadek (whose weekly show I produce) for the opportunity to sub for him this weekend. Joe and I welcome your calls at any time during the show, at (424) BOB – SHOW. Let’s give Michael a warm welcome to the Bay Area.