Collapse: Is voluntary simplification possible?

Grégoire Chambaz is deputy editor of the Swiss Military Review (RMS), an officer in the Swiss army (captain) and a sustainability specialist. His current research focuses on the processes of collapse of complex societies, existential risks and dangers, and the security impacts of anthropogenic trajectories.

Abstract: "In the face of future challenges and the risk of collapse, voluntary simplification is regularly presented as a difficult but functional solution. Its objective would be to strengthen the sustainability of societies by reducing the overall consumption of resources. But is it really a feasible, even credible strategy? To answer this question, this conference explores the ins and outs of voluntary simplification. In particular, the viability of this strategy will be analyzed in the light of J.A. Tainter's reflections on the evolution of societies. This critique will then invite us to consider the blind spots in the thinking on sustainability, among which the functioning of elites and competition. »