Conversations With

Our Presenters for The Age of Limits, 2013
Confirmed as of 2013 01 15

John Michael Greer is the Grand Archdruid of the Ancient Order of Druids in America and the author of more than twenty books on a wide range of subjects, including The Long Descent: A User's Guide to the End of the Industrial Age, The Ecotechnic Future: Exploring a Post-Peak World, and the forthcoming The Wealth of Nature: Economics As If Survival Mattered.

A scholar of ecological history, an award-winning author and an internationally renowned Peak Oil theorist whose blog, “The Archdruid Report”, has become one of the most widely cited online resources dealing with the future of industrial society. He is a certified Master Conserver, an organic gardener, and has been active in the alternative spirituality movement for more than 25 years. John lives in Cumberland, MD, an old red brick mill town in the north central Appalachians, with his wife Sara.

John posts every Thursday at The Archdruid Report, a highly regarded blog examining nature, culture and the future of industrial society.

Carolyn Baker, Ph.D., was an adjunct professor of history and psychology for 11 years and a psychotherapist in private practice for 17 years.

Her latest book Sacred Demise: Walking The Spiritual Path of Industrial Civilization’s Collapse, is unique in its offering of emotional and spiritual tools for preparing for living in a post-industrial world. Carolyn’s forthcoming book is Navigating The Coming Chaos: A Handbook For Inner Transition. Her other books include: Coming Out From Christian Fundamentalism: Affirming Sensuality, Social Justice, and The Sacred (2007) , U.S. History Uncensored: What Your High School Textbook Didn’t Tell You (2006) and The Journey of Forgiveness, (2000)·

Carolyn posts regularly to her web site, Speaking Truth to Power and can be contacted at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Dmitry Orlov is a Russian-American engineer and writer on subjects related to the "potential economic, ecological and political decline and collapse in the United States," something he has called “the permanent crisis”. Orlov believes collapse will be the result of huge military budgets, government deficits, an unresponsive political system and declining oil production.

Orlov was born in Saint Petersburg and moved to the United States at the age of 12, earning a BS in Computer Engineering and an MA in Applied Linguistics. Over several extended visits to his Russian homeland between the late 1980s and mid-1990s he was an eyewitness to the collapse of the Soviet Union which he  chronicled in a series of essays. His most recent book is Reinventing Collapse: The Soviet Experience and American Prospects.

"When faced with a collapsing economy, one should stop thinking of wealth in terms of money." · He continues to write regularly on his blog “Club Orlov”.

Gail Tverberg is a professional actuary and Mathematician, global limits analyst and writer. She has an M. S. from the University of Illinois, Chicago in Mathematics, and is a Fellow of the Casualty Actuarial Society and a Member of the American Academy of Actuaries. Her earlier professional work showed an interest in quantifying the financial effects of global climate and fossil fuel depletion. Since the mid 2,000's Gail has focused her research and writing on these subjects and additionally the world financial system within the context of industrial collapse. She is a regular contributor to the leading publications in the field and posts to her own blog "Our Finite World."

Hers is a clear and numerate voice discussing a complex subject.

Guy McPherson is Professor Emeritus of Natural Resources and Ecology & Evolutionary Biology at the University of Arizona. His blog, Nature Bats Last focuses on the natural world, with a particular emphasis on the twin sides of our fossil-fuel addiction: global climate change and energy decline. Guy’s outspoken social criticism and unflinching scientific analysis was muzzled by his university and eventually led him to turn away from the safety of his privileged academic position to adopt a rural smallholder’s lifestyle. His personal journey of embracing collapse is detailed in his book “Walking away from Empire” and his spine-tingling science lectures are accessible online by searching for “Guy McPherson videos.”      guymcpherson.com.

Orren Whiddon read the original "Limits to Growth" report in 1974 and has never looked back. Founding Four Quarters in 1994 has provided much practical experience in the art of growing a rural based community as well as the applied realities of local food production and shelter. As a consulting engineer he has stayed abreast of the technical developments and has "Engineered" Four Quarters with the ethic of reduce what you need and sustain what you use. He is the lead organizer for The Age of Limits and has written on both nature based spirituality and industrial collapse.

Patricia Allison has been teaching Permaculture Design courses since 1994 with a focus on culture – reflected by her passions for intentional community and consensus decision- making, about which she also gives lectures and workshops. Since 1996, Patricia has been a member of Earthaven Ecovillage, a Permaculture based intentional community. We are extremely pleased she will be presenting our Introduction to Sustainable Living prequel for The Age of Limits.
     www.patriciaallison.net

Albert Bates is author of The Biochar Solution: Carbon Farming and Climate Change, The Post Petroleum Survival Guide and Cookbook and numerous books, films and new media on energy, environment and history. A former environmental rights lawyer, paramedic, brick mason, flour miller, and horse trainer, he received the Right Livelihood Award in 1980 as part of the steering committee of Plenty, working to preserve the cultures of indigenous peoples, and board of directors of The Farm, a pioneering intentional community in Tennessee for the past 35 years. A co-founder and past president of the Global Ecovillage Network, he is presently GEN's representative to the UN climate talks. When not tinkering with fuel wringers for algae, hemp cheeses, or pyrolizing cookstoves, he teaches permaculture, ecovillage design and natural building and is a frequent guest on the ETC Podcast. He tweets at @peaksurfer and blogs at peaksurfer.blogspot.com.