In this expansive and poetic conversation, writer and activist Rebecca Solnit joins May Boeve to talk about her new book No Straight Road Takes You There, and the urgent need to reclaim hope—not as naive optimism, but as a strategic force in uncertain times. Solnit explores why movements often succeed indirectly, why despair is a luxury we can’t afford, and how poetic language helps shape public imagination. From climate justice to feminist history, this episode is a powerful meditation on connectedness,  endurance, and the often invisible victories that build the world we want to live in.

How We Build This is created and hosted by May Boeve

Producer: Phil Surkis

Theme music: ‘Within’, composed by Ruthie Dineen, and performed by Negative Press Project.

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can find us on Instagram and Bluesky at HWBT Pod, and on Linked in and Substack at How We Build this Pod. 

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