In conversation with Kate Raworth, Indy Johar and James Lock

Link to original - Festival of Debate

We face a complex entanglement of crises – economic, social and environmental – and the coming decade will test our collective ability to respond. But by working together, we can chart sustainable social and ecological paths to safeguard human and more-than-human life on this planet.

Activists and academics have offered many visions of the future, from good growth, green growth and deep green to post-growth and degrowth. Each presents a different pathway, yet the deeper question is not just which future we choose, but how we build the shared reasoning necessary to navigate these choices together.

At the heart of this challenge is the ability to hold a meaningful conversation: one that allows us to collectively recognise the futures we face, the ones we desire, and the tensions between them. It is at this intersection – between competing realities and aspirations – that legitimacy is forged, and truly consequential decisions can be made.

How do we cultivate the conditions for such a conversation? And how do we design the frameworks that enable real, shared decision-making in the face of complexity? Join ‘Doughnut Economics’ author Kate Raworth and systems change practitioner Indy Johar as they explore the scale of the challenges we face, their complexity, and how understanding their entanglement is critical to our future.

Filmed at the Festival of Debate 2025, Pennine Lecture Theatre, Sheffield Hallam University by Opus Productions