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Writer’s Voice: compelling conversations with authors who challenge, inspire, and inform
Episode Summary
On this episode of Writer’s Voice, we speak with science journalist Lizzie Wade about her groundbreaking book Apocalypse: How Catastrophe Transformed Our World and Can Forge New Futures. Through stories of ancient climate collapse, pandemic upheavals, colonial conquests, and societal reorganization, Wade shows that the end of a world is often the beginning of something new.
“Bringing to an end a type of society that isn’t working for the new world that’s emerging is not necessarily a bad thing. That’s called adaptation.” — Lizzie Wade
From the Neanderthal “extinction” to the fall of ancient Egypt, from the Great Drowning of Indigenous Australian coastlines to the climate-driven rise of El Niño societies in Peru, Wade explores how disasters reshaped political systems and economies. Crucially, she argues that today’s climate, social, and technological apocalypses offer not just threats, but transformative possibilities.
Then we re-connect with former Writer’s Voice guest Betsy McCulley who I interviewed recently on the new podcast I host, Changehampton Presents. That episode is about native grasslands and why we should protect and restore them and we air a short excerpt on WV.
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Key Words: Lizzie Wade, Apocalypse book, ancient disasters, rethinking apocalypse, end of the world, post-apocalyptic optimism, Changehampton, native grasslands
You Might Also Like: Betsy McCully, AT THE GLACIER’S EDGE
Segment 1: Lizzie Wade
Human societies have experienced numerous apocalypses. And each time, the survivors have emerged to build new societies, ones that work better for them.
We talk with science journalist Lizzie Wade about her groundbreaking book Apocalypse: How Catastrophe Transformed Our World and Can Forge New Futures. Through stories of ancient climate collapse, pandemic upheavals, colonial conquests, and societal reorganization, Wade shows that the end of a world is often the beginning of something new.Wade redefines the word “apocalypse”—not as doom, but as rapid, collective loss that sparks social transformation.
Drawing on archaeological case studies, she explains how past societies adapted to major upheavals, from sea level rise and plagues to the collapse of empires. Some became more equitable and resilient—others failed to recover.
We explore how inequality makes complex societies brittle, why colonialism was a permanent apocalypse for Indigenous cultures, and what lessons ancient disasters offer us today. Most of all, Wade challenges us to imagine better futures—rooted in community, care, and adaptability.
Key Topics
- What “apocalypse” really means (Wade’s definition)
- Climate collapse in ancient Peru and the rise of El Niño societies
- The “Great Drowning” and Aboriginal flood myths in Australia
- Why complexity and inequality make societies fragile
- The collapse and reinvention of Ancient Egypt and the Maya
- Colonialism as a permanent apocalypse
- What ancient DNA tells us about Neanderthals and Homo sapiens
- The possibilities of future collapse: city-states, new governance, local resilience
- How apocalypses can unleash political imagination
- The myth of linear progress vs. cyclical transformation
Read or Listen to a Sample from Apocalypse
Segment Two: Changehampton Presents
Last year, I interviewed environmental writer Betsy McCully about her book, At The Glacier’s Edge. In June I spoke with her again, this time about native grasslands, for the new podcast I’m hosting: Changehampton Presents.
Changehampton promotes private yards and public spaces that are good for wildlife and pollinators. McCulley and I were joined by Bruce Horwith, conservation biologist and ecologist, to unpack the rich ecological history, biodiversity, and climate resilience offered by grasslands. Here’s an excerpt from our conversation. We air a short clip from the podcast episode.
You can get the podcast Changehampton Presents anywhere you get your podcasts. It’s not just for the Hamptons!