Welcome to Making New Worlds
This post is just the scrolling title card overstuffed with backstory
Hi, there!
This is Making New Worlds, the newsletter that asks: How can we learn to build thriving communities in space, without repeating the mistakes of humanity’s past?
I’m an astrophysicist (and video game developer— I was as surprised as anyone at that turn of events) who got interested in the non-STEM challenges of space exploration and settlement a few years ago. Sure, reusable rockets and radiation-shielded habitats and closed food recycling systems are technically interesting, but I started wondering about the other problems we’ll face as we continue moving out into space, like:
What sort of conflicts will we have over territory and resources in space?
How can we avoid damaging the space environment like we’ve damaged Earth’s?
How will we protect workers’ rights in an environment where the employer provides all the air and water and food?
What kind of local governments will we end up with?
How will we manage over- or underpopulation?
…really, I could go on all day. But let’s move on to the…
Origin story
Around 2016, I had the opportunity to talk to several people working in the “NewSpace” industry and I noticed that none of them were particularly concerned about these kinds of questions. “Why isn’t anyone talking about this??” I wondered. Like every other time that question has been asked, the answer turned out to be: Plenty of people are talking about these things, I just hadn’t been paying attention.
So, because I’m a Millennial, I channeled that interest into producing a podcast, also called Making New Worlds, which ran from 2017-2018. (You can still listen to any of the thirteen episodes or read the transcripts here). I interviewed historians, sociologists, philosophers, anthropologists, and other experts in fields that rocket scientists don’t usually get much training in, and asked them to extend their work into space to imagine what the future of our civilization might look like, and what pitfalls we might face.
Since the podcast miniseries wrapped up, I’ve continued thinking and talking about space-specific ethics and human rights challenges. I cofounded a nonprofit called the JustSpace Alliance to advocate for a more just and equitable future in space. I also wrote a book based on the podcast called Off-Earth: Ethical Questions and Quandaries for Living in Outer Space (coming out in March 2023, but you can preorder now!).
Making New Worlds: The Substack Sequel
But there’s so much more to talk about! And I want to talk about it with you— to build a community of people interested in imagining what life in space will look like, and what kind of work we can do now to give our descendants a better chance of thriving together off-Earth someday.
So, once a week, on Tuesdays, I’ll be sending you some of my thoughts on life in space, along with links to news stories, articles, and essays that have caught my eye. I have a whole stack of book recommendations from my own book research that I’d love to share with you, and I’m sure won’t be able to help myself from chatting about some of my favorite sci-fi stories that explore these issues. At the moment, my plan is to keep this newsletter completely free.
One of the main reasons I went with Substack for my newsletter platform is because I’m really looking forward to hearing your thoughts in the comment sections. So please spread the word to anyone you think might be interested to joining the conversation about building a better future for all of us in space (and on Earth!)