Podcast interview about Buckminster Fuller on Utopian Horizons

Interview about Buckminster Fuller on podcast Utopian Horizons

Last year, I was the guest on the podcast Utopian Horizons, talking about my hero Buckminster Fuller.

Utopian Horizons is a podcast about various flavours of utopia or dystopia that have been proposed over the years. The topics range from fully automated luxury communism, to the apocalypse ‘prepping’ of Silicon Valley millionaires in New Zealand, as well as the philosophical outlook of the video game Grand Theft Auto V.

My topic: the life and work of Buckminster Fuller

I was asked to speak about the life and work of Buckminster Fuller. As you might remember, Bucky Fuller was the protagonist of my Energy Slaves comic, and is a figure who I have studied extensively.

Most famous for inventing the geodesic dome, Bucky also designed many other inventions such as the three-wheeled Dymaxion Vehicle, and affordable housing concepts such as the Dymaxion House. Perhaps more significantly, Bucky was an early advocate of sustainability, and the potential for humanity to ‘do more with less’ through efficient engineering.

Although he was often dubbed a designer, architect or inventor, Bucky Fuller referred to himself as a “comprehensive anticipatory design scientist”. Living to the age of 87, he worked incredibly long hours right up to his death, and used the following question to focus his efforts:

“How do we make the world work for 100% of humanity in the shortest possible time through spontaneous cooperation without ecological damage or disadvantage to anyone?” – Buckminster Fuller

The podcast interview: Bucky Fuller’s life and legacy

Listen to the podcast as I discuss Bucky Fuller’s proposed ‘design science revolution’, including his three-wheeled Dymaxion Car and geodesic domes. I also discuss some of Bucky’s more outlandish concepts, such as his floating Triton City in Tokyo Harbour, and his Cloud Nine spheres that would float in the atmosphere above the Earth’s surface.

Listen to the podcast episode via Soundcloud, iTunes, or via the below embedded player: