The hottest Social Change Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
Category
Top World Politics Topics

Values Over Victory: Why We Should Prioritize Exemplifying Our Values Over Winning/Losing

Humanities in Revolt • 139 implied HN points • 10 Feb 23
📖 Philosophy Values Existentialism Social Change Ethics
  1. Contemporary politics often focuses on superficial party affiliations and short-term gains rather than deeper values and societal changes.
  2. It's crucial to prioritize living by our values over just seeking victory, as values like justice and love are what truly bring about social progress.
  3. Making a difference involves embodying our core values consistently, even in the face of setbacks, and recognizing that our actions should reflect our beliefs.

Unknown Tomorrow: Doing Our Best without Expecting Perfection

Humanities in Revolt • 119 implied HN points • 17 Feb 23
⛪ Faith & Spirituality Human Values Social Change Imperfection Optimism
  1. Do our best with what we have, be strategic, and recognize that even small contributions are valuable for social change.
  2. Reject the idea that perfection is necessary for worthwhile efforts, and avoid letting the pursuit of perfection lead to inaction.
  3. Social change can often defy expectations, and historic examples remind us that perseverance and action can lead to progress, even in the face of setbacks.

Sympathy for the devils

Banana Peel Pirouette • 59 implied HN points • 22 Oct 23
🎭️ Culture Gaming Online Communities Identity Social Change Subculture
  1. Identity crisis can fuel violence and separatisms as people strive to prove who they are and maintain their identity.
  2. The evolution of gamer identity shows how communities form around shared interests and act as a source of social significance.
  3. The Gamergate phenomenon highlighted how shifts in culture and inclusivity can trigger reactions from groups feeling their identity threatened.
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AI for Activism

Activist Futurism • 79 implied HN points • 04 Feb 23
🕹 Technology AI Activism Artificial Intelligence Social Change
  1. OpenAI's ChatGPT, an AI text generation tool, has become widely accessible and raised concerns about its potential misuse
  2. Despite OpenAI's restrictions, the technology's gullibility makes it difficult to prevent its influence on politics
  3. AI, like ChatGPT, is seen as a new tool for activism, potentially aiding in creating more effective social movements

Recap: November 2024

Creative Destruction • 3 implied HN points • 04 Dec 24
🎭️ Culture Social Change Philosophy Creativity
  1. There is a growing desire for significant change in society. People want to break free from shallow comforts and embrace a new vision for their lives.
  2. Shifting from worrying about aging to focusing on living fully can improve our outlook. We should celebrate life instead of fearing getting older.
  3. We need to create a new narrative around aging that inspires positivity. It's all about finding joy and purpose at every stage of life.

Tortoise Trumps Hare

Surfing the Future • 19 implied HN points • 04 Feb 24
🎭️ Culture Change Cities Social Change Urban planning
  1. Change can happen at different tempos - either slowly and steadily or in sudden bursts.
  2. Traditional cities evolved through trial-and-error, messily, embracing human messiness, while tech-centric areas opt for a more exclusive lifestyle.
  3. Engaging with exponential trends is important for shaping the future, but sometimes slow change can lead to radical transformation.

What's the Plan?

Daniel Pinchbeck’s Newsletter • 11 implied HN points • 18 Nov 24
🇺🇸 U.S. Politics Political Climate Authoritarianism Social Change Media influence
  1. The old political and social systems can't adapt quickly enough to tackle big problems like the ecological crisis, and change is needed.
  2. Right-wing populism is rising everywhere, fueled by issues like immigration and declining quality of life, creating uncertainty about the future.
  3. Even though things seem bleak, there is hope for a better society that is participatory and regenerative, but we have to be careful not to fall into authoritarian control.

Happy Birthday !

Activist Futurism • 79 implied HN points • 16 Mar 22
📖 Philosophy Reflections Identity Activism Social Change
  1. Adapting to major changes like the pandemic can lead to a redefinition of self and a shift in career focus.
  2. In the world of crypto, profits often come from having exclusive information that others don't possess, leading to a growing information gap.
  3. Increasing information asymmetry in society, seen in areas like Covid research and global conflicts, can make actions of the informed difficult to understand by those lacking knowledge.

Comparing Women's Choice in Career and Family in China, U.S.

Pekingnology • 37 implied HN points • 23 Jan 24
🌍 World Politics Women's Rights Workforce Family Dynamics Gender Equality Social Change
  1. In China, women's career development is limited by the 'career funnel' due to traditional culture and lack of flexible work policies.
  2. Historical data shows gradual increase in American women's employment rates over a century, with challenges like gender wage gap persisting.
  3. Comparison between Chinese and American women on family choices reveals differences in marriage rates, age at first marriage, and lifetime childlessness.

Yêu nước

Thái | Hacker | Kỹ sư tin tặc • 19 implied HN points • 20 Jan 16
🌍 World Politics Nationalism Global Influence Social Change Citizenship Identity
  1. Love for one's country is more than just a feeling; it involves a sense of connection and unity with people who share similar culture, language, and origins.
  2. Patriotism involves sacrifice and a desire to protect common rights and values for the benefit of oneself and future generations.
  3. Contributing positively to society and tackling significant issues can be a form of loving one's country, even transcending national boundaries.

Michael Bikeal: Skitching w/NPCs

Do Not Research • 0 implied HN points • 15 Feb 22
🎭️ Culture Capitalism Politics Social Change
  1. Psychogeography encourages unconventional ways of engaging with infrastructure to reconnect with more inventive and fun ways of navigating the world.
  2. Skitching involves riding a bicycle and getting pulled by a moving car, offering a unique and thrill-inducing DIY transportation experience.
  3. The concept of NPC memes dehumanizes individuals and reflects a societal struggle with dissociation caused by modern capitalism's impact on our minds and experiences.

On little-known books with large political impacts

Matt’s Five Points • 0 implied HN points • 06 Sep 11
📚 Literature Political Impact Historical context Book analysis Social Change Class conflict
  1. Some little-known books have had big effects on politics, like _The Impending Crisis of the South_ by Hinton Helper. This book challenged the idea that all white people in the South benefited from slavery.
  2. Helper's ideas created fears among plantation owners, as they showed that non-slaveholding whites could be united against them. This was a big threat to the existing power structure.
  3. The spread of Helper's book led to more control in the South and fear of anti-slavery movements, changing the political landscape as groups like the Republican Party gained strength.

Confronting radical uncertainty

Hypertext • 0 implied HN points • 27 Mar 24
💼 Business Social Change Policy Research Nonprofit Government
  1. Social science research needs a recalibration with a focus on feedback, reflection, and improvement.
  2. There is a significant amount of uncertainty in understanding how change happens in people's lives, challenging traditional evidence-based policy approaches.
  3. Collaboration, customer feedback, and adaptability are key in creating effective social programs rather than relying solely on evidence-based interventions.

Is transformational change the only thing that matters?

Hypertext • 0 implied HN points • 27 Mar 24
🏥 Health & Wellness Social Change Public Policy Criminal Justice
  1. Transformational change is difficult in various aspects of life, and most attempts do not lead to significant outcomes, but persistence is key to progress.
  2. Research and evaluation play a crucial role in understanding the effectiveness of interventions and innovations, although measuring programmatic effectiveness can be challenging.
  3. Randomized experiments, while powerful, are not the only form of high-quality evidence; various types of evidence contribute to building knowledge and understanding incremental changes over time.