(#7) Elise's Top Ten: The ghastly tragedy of the suburbs | James Howard Kunstler
Host Elise Hu introduces a 2004 TED talk by social critic James Howard Kunstler, in which he argues that the immersive ugliness of American suburban sprawl represents a massive misallocation of resources and erodes civic life. Kunstler explains how abandoning traditional civic design has produced places that are "not worth caring about," examines the psychological and social consequences of this built environment, and links these issues to an impending end to the era of cheap oil. He calls for rebuilding towns and cities at a human scale, living more locally, and reclaiming our role as citizens rather than consumers so that America becomes a place worth defending.
Sep 20, 2025
Society & Culture