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Finite Climate Change & Environment episodes
- Iss1/Ch3 How Many Cameroonians Does It Take to Change a Light Bulb? Trick Question: IMF Shut Off the Electricity
Chris and Charlie discuss the global scandal of debt and structural adjustments, how it came to Cameroon and contributed to poverty, underdevelopment, and desertification. Then, they compare IMF structural adjustments to a proven anti-desertification model: how the American New Deal beat the Dust Bowl. To end, they discuss the dire situation of rural Cameroonians, and why desertification can’t be beat without addressing poverty. Remember: land degradation is responsible for a quarter of humanity’s greenhouse gas emissions. We can’t stop catastrophic climate change without fixing the Sahelian desertification crisis.
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Issue 1: Climate Change and Freshwater
Intro: Why did Lake Chad collapse and why are Cameroonians so thirsty?
Chapter 1: Desertification of the Sahel and Cameroon’s water infrastructure
Chapter 2: Cameroon gains “independence” from France
Chapter 3: Poverty, structural adjustments, and dictators
Chapter 4: The US New Deal’s Soil Conservation Service is a proven model
Bonus 1: More on Cameroon’s independence movement
Bonus 2: How did Ahidjo make himself a dictator?
Bonus 3: How did Biya take control from Ahidjo?
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Issue 1 is available in written and podcast format
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1 hr 49 min - Iss1/B1 Cameroon’s Independence Movement: in which the French Send People to the Hospital for Waving a UN Flag
Chris and Charley relate the gripping story of the Cameroonian Independence Movement 1945-1957, covering parts we didn’t have time for in Chapter 2.
Subscriber link to bonus chapter: https://www.finitemag.org/2025/03/cameroon-independence-upc-france-um-nyobe-ahmaduo-ahidjo-pierre-messmer/
Not a subscriber? Subscribe here: https://www.finitemag.org/shop/
____________________________________
Issue 1: Climate Change and Freshwater
Intro: Why did Lake Chad collapse and why are Cameroonians so thirsty?
Chapter 1: Desertification of the Sahel and Cameroon’s water infrastructure
Chapter 2: Cameroon gains “independence” from France
Chapter 3: Poverty, structural adjustments, and dictators
Chapter 4: The US New Deal’s Soil Conservation Service is a proven model
Bonus 1: More on Cameroon’s independence movement
Bonus 2: How did Ahidjo make himself a dictator?
Bonus 3: How did Biya take control from Ahidjo?
_____
Issue 1 is available in written and podcast format
__________
1 min - Iss1/Ch2 Independence* Day
Chris and Charley discuss the incredible story of how Cameroon’s independence movement took on the French Empire and almost won. Then, they trace the sad story of how the French fought back, installed a dictator, and continue to exploit an “independent” Cameroon. Both agree that with France’s dark influence from independence to today, it is no surprise that Cameroon is one of the poorest countries on earth. Poverty is no accident; it’s exploitation.
____________________________________
Issue 1: Climate Change and Freshwater
Intro: Why did Lake Chad collapse and why are Cameroonians so thirsty?
Chapter 1: Desertification of the Sahel and Cameroon’s water infrastructure
Chapter 2: Cameroon gains “independence” from France
Chapter 3: Poverty, structural adjustments, and dictators
Chapter 4: The US New Deal’s Soil Conservation Service is a proven model
Bonus 1: More on Cameroon’s independence movement
Bonus 2: How did Ahidjo make himself a dictator?
Bonus 3: How did Biya take control from Ahidjo?
_____
Issue 1 is available in written and podcast format
__________
1 hr 49 min - Iss1/Ch1 Desertification Happens When Raindrops Meet Him at the Bar Instead of Percolating into Groundwater: Stay Thirsty, My Friends
Chris and Charley discuss the Sahel’s desertification crisis, and how this has led to the collapse of Lake Chad. Then, they try to decide whether global poverty statistics characterize poverty or are an exercise in concealing the severity of the problem before reviewing those statistics for Cameroon. Then they turn to and water infrastructure in Cameroon with more obfuscating statistics. Finally, we meet some of the villains of the story.
____________________________________
Issue 1: Climate Change and Freshwater
Intro: Why did Lake Chad collapse and why are Cameroonians so thirsty?
Chapter 1: Desertification of the Sahel and Cameroon’s water infrastructure
Chapter 2: Cameroon gains “independence” from France
Chapter 3: Poverty, structural adjustments, and dictators
Chapter 4: The US New Deal’s Soil Conservation Service is a proven model
Bonus 1: More on Cameroon’s independence movement
Bonus 2: How did Ahidjo make himself a dictator?
Bonus 3: How did Biya take control from Ahidjo?
_____
Issue 1 is available in written and podcast format
__________
1 hr 38 min - Iss1/Intro Lake Chad: Shorty got low low low low low low low
Chris explains the stakes of Issue 1. We begin with atrocious statistics on humanity’s access to drinking water and uncover some shocking examples of the collapse of freshwater resources. We cover the source of a quarter of humanity’s greenhouse gas emissions — a source you may never even have heard of.
____________________________________
Issue 1: Climate Change and Freshwater
Intro: Why did Lake Chad collapse and why are Cameroonians so thirsty?
Chapter 1: Desertification of the Sahel and Cameroon’s water infrastructure
Chapter 2: Cameroon gains “independence” from France
Chapter 3: Poverty, structural adjustments, and dictators
Chapter 4: The US New Deal’s Soil Conservation Service is a proven model
Bonus 1: More on Cameroon’s independence movement
Bonus 2: How did Ahidjo make himself a dictator?
Bonus 3: How did Biya take control from Ahidjo?
_____
Issue 1 is available in written and podcast format
__________
15 min - Check out 4 episodes of Housing for All
You’ve made it to the very beginning of Finite, but did you know Finite was inspired by the Housing for All podcast? Housing for All is everything you need to know about reforming the American housing system, in just four episodes:
A better housing system is possible!Episodes 1 and 2 focus on housing systems around the world that do not have the problems of the American housing system. What can we learn from these examples?
- In episode 1 part 1, Chris shocks Mary and Andrew with the two worst things he’s ever heard about housing in America.
- In episode 1 part 2, we learn about the housing systems of Norway and Singapore. Both have a 90%+ homeownership rate (the US’s is only 65%), and over 80% of people in Singapore live in luxurious public housing.
- In episode 2 part 1, we learn about the housing system of the Netherlands, where the vast majority of rental housing is public, and almost all for-profit rental housing has the same rent controls as public housing.
- In episode 2 part 2, we learn about the housing system of Austria, which also boasts luxurious public housing. Rent controls and landlord-tenant regulations are so strict that renting is a more secure than owning, and people often choose to rent when they could afford to buy. We also learn about Sweden, which has a mix of homeownership, housing cooperatives, public housing, and strictly regulated for-profit rental housing.
We all live in public housing!Episodes 3 and 4 highlight the trillions of dollars devoted to subsidizing housing in the United States. It is no exaggeration to say that we all live in public housing.
- In episode 3 part 1, we learn about what the American housing system was like before the major New Deal reforms that are still in place today. Once we understand the problems they were meant to solve, we can understand how these programs, like Fannie Mae and the Federal Housing Administration, make our housing system possible.
- In episode 3 part 2 — armed with knowledge of how Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, the Federal Housing Administration, and the Federal Home Loan Bank System work — we can see how all homeowners live in public housing. Without trillions of dollars of federal government subsidy, very few of us could hope to become homeowners, and we would pay more for worse housing.
- In episode 4 part 1, we learn how the federal government supports for-profit rental housing. As with home ownership, these subsidies are not obvious and usually not a matter of public record. Nevertheless, nearly all for-profit rental housing has been directly — and massively — subsidized by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, HUD, the USDA, the Federal Housing Administration, the IRS, and others.
- In episode 4 part 2, we look at the big picture. Despite tremendous public resources supporting housing, the public gets little to no say in the crucial decisions of our housing system. Without exaggeration, Americans are paying taxes to support the landlords who hike rents and evict them, the banks that aggressively foreclose on them, and the developers who are gentrifying them out of their own neighborhoods.
Equally frustrating and hopeful, we already spend enough money on housing to ensure high quality, affordable housing for all.
1 min
About Finite Climate Change & Environment
From the publisher's feed
Long form magazine & podcast. Each issue looks in depth at a critical climate change or environmental problem.