Publication List – Samuel Alexander

Employment and Academic History

2024-present: Academic Director, Sustainability and Environmental Action, School for International Training
2011-present: Director of the Simplicity Institute
2011-2021: Lecturer with the Office for Environmental Programs, University of Melbourne, teaching ‘Consumerism and the Growth Economy: Critical Interdisciplinary Perspectives’ into the Master of Environment.
2013-2021: Research Fellow with the Melbourne Sustainable Society Institute, University of Melbourne.
2011: Co-founded the Simplicity Institute with Dr Simon Ussher.
2007: Lecturer with Melbourne Law School, University of Melbourne.
2006-2010: PhD candidate, Melbourne Law School. Thesis: ‘Property beyond Growth: Toward a Politics of Voluntary Simplicity’.

Articles, Books, and Book Chapters Currently Under Review or in Production

Samuel Alexander, ‘Democratising the Poet: William Morris and the Art of Everyday Life’ Fabian Review (Oct 2023, accepted).
Samuel Alexander, 2023. ‘Artful Descent: An Aesthetics of Existence’ in Cohabiting Earth: Forging a Bright Future for All Life (SUNY Press, 2023/4, under review).
Peter Burdon and Samuel Alexander, ‘Earth Jurisprudence: Anthropocentrism and Neoliberal Rationality’ (in production).

Peer-Reviewed Articles and Book Chapters

Samuel Alexander and Heather Shearer, 2023, ‘Tiny Houses and the Economics of Sufficiency: How “Shrinking Domesticities” fit within the Degrowth Paradigm’ in Ella Harris, Mel Nowicki, and Tim White (Eds), The Growing Trend of Living Small: A Critical Approach to Shrinking Domesticities, Ch. 12.

Samuel Alexander and Brendan Gleeson, 2022, ‘Collective Sufficiency: Degrowth as a Political Project’ in Samuel Alexander, Sangeetha Chandrashekeran, and Brendan Gleeson (eds), Post-Capitalist Futures: Paradigms, Politics, and Prospects, Ch. 5, pp. 53-64.

Samuel Alexander and Peter Burdon, 2022, ‘Extinction Rebellion: Crisis, Inaction, and the Question of Civil Disobedience as Ecosocialist Strategy’ in Leigh Brownhill et al (eds), The Routledge Handbook of Ecosocialism, Ch 23.

Samuel Alexander and Brendan Gleeson, 2021, ‘Urban Social Movements and the Degrowth Transition: Towards a Grassroots Theory of Change’ Journal of Australian Political Economy 86: 355-78 (available here).

Alex Baumann, Samuel Alexander and Peter Burdon, 2021, ‘Land Commodification as a Barrier to Political and Economic Agency: A Degrowth Perspective’ Journal of Australian Political Economy 86: 379-405 (available here).

Samuel Alexander, 2021, ‘Delusions of Sanity: Deconstructing Madness in an Insane World’ Griffith Review 72: pp. 238-247. (Available here; abridged version here).

Samuel Alexander and Josh Floyd, 2020. ‘The Political Economy of Deep Decarbonisation: Tradable Energy Quotas for Energy Descent Futures’ Energies 2020 13(17) 4304: https://doi.org/10.3390/en13174304

Samuel Alexander and Brendan Gleeson, 2020 ‘Suburban Practices of Energy Descent’ American Journal of Economics and Sociology 79(3): 907-940 (manuscript here).

Josh Floyd, Samuel Alexander, Manfed Lenzen, Patrick Moriarty, Graham Palmer, Sangeetha Chandra-Shekeran, Barney Foran, Lorenz Keyber, 2020. ‘Energy descent as a post-carbon transition scenario: how “knowledge humility” reshapes energy futures in post-normal times” Futures 122. (manuscript here).

Samuel Alexander and Brendan Gleeson, 2020 ‘Everything is thinkable, so what is to be done?’ Arena Quarterly (available here).

Stephen Williams and Samuel Alexander, 2020 ‘MMT, Post-Growth Economics, and Avoiding Collapse’ in Haydn Washington (ed) Ecological Economics: Solutions: for the Future, Chapter 7. (working paper here).

Samuel Alexander and Alex Baumann, 2020 ‘Neighbourhoods that Work and the Walden Wage: How Access to Land plus a Participation Income could Change the World’ in Haydn Washington (ed) Ecological Economics: Solutions: for the Future, Chapter 8.

Samuel Alexander, 2020. ‘Post-Capitalism by Design not Disaster’ Ecological Citizen 3 Sup. B: 13-21. (available here).

Samuel Alexander and Heather Shearer, 2019. ‘The Search for Freedom, Sustainability, and Economic Security: Henry David Thoreau as Tiny House Pioneer’ Ethical Perspectives (manuscript here).

Samuel Alexander and Jonathan Rutherford, 2019. ‘A Critique of Techno-Optimism’ in The Handbook of Global Governance, London: Routledge (book chapter here, manuscript here).

Ted Trainer and Samuel Alexander, 2019. ‘The Simpler Way: Envisioning a Sustainable Society in an Age of Limits’ Real-World Economics Review 87: 247-260 (available here).

Samuel Alexander, Brendan Gleeson, Tom Couple, Nick Matyevich, Rob Scott and Fred Schultz, 2019. ‘Bumps along the road of the tiny house movement: Practitioner notes with critical reflections’ The Australian Planner (Special Issue) (abstract here).

Samuel Alexander, Nicholas Bowles, and Michalis Hadjikakou, 2019 ‘The livestock sector and planetary boundaries: A ‘limits to growth’ perspective with dietary implications’ Ecological Economics.

Samuel Alexander, Bernadette McCabe, and Peter Harris, 2019 ‘Biogas in the Suburbs: An Untapped Source of Clean Energy?’ Journal of Cleaner Production 215: 1025-1035 (abstract here).

Samuel Alexander, Jacob Garrett, and Rupert Read, 2018 ‘Voluntary Simplicity: Strongly Backed by All Three Main Normative-Ethical Traditions’ Ethical Perspectives 25(1): 87-116 (available here).

Samuel Alexander, ‘What would a “sufficiency economy” look like?’ in Samuel Randalls (ed), Just Enough (2018, forthcoming). Palgrave Macmillan: London (forthcoming). (pre-published version here).

Samuel Alexander, Jonathan Rutherford, and Josh Floyd, 2018, ‘A Critique of the Australian National Outlook Decoupling Strategy: A “Limits to Growth” Perspective’ Ecological Economics 145: 10-17 (pre-published manuscript here).

Samuel Alexander and Peter Burdon, ‘Wild Democracy: A Biodiversity of Resistance and Renewal’ The Ecological Citizen (2017) (open-access available here).

Samuel Alexander and Jonathan Rutherford, ‘The Transition Towns Movement as a Model for Urban Transformation’ in Urban Sustainability Transitions: Australian Cases – International Perspectives (Springer, 2017) abstract here.

Samuel Alexander, ‘Frugal Abundance in an Age of Limits: Envisioning a Degrowth Society’, in Garcia, E., Mertinez-Iglesias, M, and Kirby, P (eds) Transitioning to a Post-Carbon Society: Degrowth, Austerity, and Wellbeing. Palgrave Macmillan, London, Chapter 7, pp.159-179. (pre-published manuscript here).

Samuel Alexander and John Wiseman, ‘A Degrowth Imperative: Reducing Energy and Resource Consumption as an Essential Component in Achieving Carbon Budget Targets’, in Garcia, E., Mertinez-Iglesias, M, and Kirby, P (eds) Transitioning to a Post-Carbon Society: Degrowth, Austerity, and Wellbeing. Palgrave Macmillan, London, Chapter 4, pp.87-108. (pre-published manuscript here).

Samuel Alexander, 2017, ‘The Paradox of Oil: The Cheaper it is, the More it Costs’ in Dodson, J, Sipe, N., Nelson, A. (eds) Planning after petroleum: Preparing cities for the age beyond oil. Routledge, New York. Chapter 3, pp 24-36. (working paper here).

Samuel Alexander and Paul Yacoumis, 2016, ‘Degrowth, Energy Descent, and Low-Tech Living: Potential Pathways to Increased Resilience in Times of Crisis’ Journal of Cleaner Production (in press, available online). (book version here).

Samuel Alexander, 2016, ‘A Prosperous Descent: Telling New Stories as the Old Book Closes‘ Griffith Review 52.

Samuel Alexander, 2016, ‘Policies for a Post-Growth Economy‘ MSSI Issues Paper, April, 2016.

Samuel Alexander, ‘Post-Growth Economics: A Paradigm Shift in Progress’ Arena (2014) 41/42: 93-122. (book version here).

Samuel Alexander, ‘Ted Trainer and The Simpler Way: A Sympathetic Critique’ Capitalism Nature Socialism (2014) 25(2): 95-111. (book version here).

Samuel Alexander, ‘Voluntary Simplification as an Alternative to Collapse’ Foresight (‘Descent Pathways’ Special Issue) (2014) 16(6): 550-566. (book version here).

Samuel Alexander, ‘Wild Law from Below: Examining the Anarchist Challenge to Earth Jurisprudence’ in Michelle Maloney and Peter Burdon (eds.), Wild Law – In Practice (2014) chapter 3: 31-44. Routledge: New York. (alternate book version here).

Samuel Alexander, ‘Disruptive Social Innovation for a Low-Carbon World’ in David Humphreys and Spencer Stober, (eds.), Transitions to Sustainability: Theoretical Debates for a Changing Planet (2014) chapter 19, 296-315. Commonground Publishing: Champaign. (alternate book version here).

Samuel Alexander, ‘Simplicity’ in D’Alisa, F. Demaria, and G. Kallis (eds.) Degrowth: A Vocabulary for a New Era (2014) Chapter 29, pp 133-136. Routledge: New York. (pre-published text here and audio here).

Samuel Alexander, ‘Basic Income and Maximum Income’ in D’Alisa, F. Demaria, and G. Kallis (eds.) Degrowth: A Vocabulary for a New Era (2014) Chapter 32, pp. 146-8. Routledge: New York. (pre-published text here and audio here).

Samuel Alexander, ‘Voluntary Simplicity and the Social Reconstruction of Law: Degrowth from the Grassroots Up’ Environmental Values (2013) 22(2): 287-308. (book version here).

Samuel Alexander, ‘The Optimal Material Threshold: Toward an Economics of Sufficiency’ Real-World Economics Review (2012) 61: 2-21. (book version here).

Samuel Alexander, ‘Degrowth, Expensive Oil, and the New Economics of Energy’ Real-World Economics Review (2012) 61: 40-51.

Samuel Alexander, ‘Peak Oil and the Twilight of Growth’ Alternative Law Journal (2012) 37(2): 86-90.

Samuel Alexander (primary author) and Simon Ussher, ‘The Voluntary Simplicity Movement: A Multi-National Survey Analysis in Theoretical Context’ Journal of Consumer Culture (2012) 12(1): 66-86. (book version here).

Samuel Alexander, ‘Planned Economic Contraction: The Emerging Case for Degrowth’ Environmental Politics (2012) 21(3): 349-368. (book version here).

Samuel Alexander, ‘Earth Jurisprudence and the Ecological Case for Degrowth’ in Peter Burdon (ed), Exploring Wild Law: The Philosophy of Earth Jurisprudence (2011) 293-302. Wakefield Press: Kent Town.

Samuel Alexander, ‘The Voluntary Simplicity Movement: Reimagining the Good Life beyond Consumer Culture’ International Journal of Environmental, Cultural, Economic, and Social Sustainability (2011) 7(3): 133-150. (book version here).

Samuel Alexander, ‘Property beyond Growth: Toward a Politics of Voluntary Simplicity’ in David Grinlinton and Prue Taylor (eds), Property Rights and Sustainability: The Evolution of Property Rights to Meet Ecological Challenges (2011) 117-148.

Samuel Alexander, ‘Deconstructing the Shed: Where I Live and What I Live For’ The Concord Saunterer: A Journal of Thoreau Studies (2010) 18: 125-143. (available here).

Books

S M P L C T Y: Ecological Civilisation and the Will to Art (2023), Samuel Alexander (paperback, hardback, pdf).
Post-Capitalist Futures: Paradigms, Politics, and Prospects, edited by Samuel Alexander, Sangeetha Chandrashekeran, and Brendan Gleeson (2022, Palgrave Macmillan) (hardback, EPUB, and pdf here).
Beyond Capitalist Realism: The Politics, Energetics, and Aesthetics of Degrowth (2021, Collected Essays Vol VI) (paperback here and pdf here)
Urban Awakenings: Disturbance and Enchantment in the Industrial City (Palgrave, 2020, co-authored with Brendan Gleeson) (available here).
Extinction Rebellion: Insights from the Inside (2020, edited collection of Rupert Read’s essays) (paperback, Kindle, pdf)
Death for Gaia: Ecocide and the Righteous Assassins (2020, co-authored with Peter Burdon) (paperback and ebook).
The Simpler Way: Collected Writings of Ted Trainer (2020, co-edited with Jonathan Rutherford) (paperback and ebook).
Degrowth in the Suburbs: A Radical Urban Imaginary (2019, co-authored with Brendan Gleeson) hardback and ebook.
This Civilisation is Finished: Conversations on the End of Empire – and What Lies Beyond (2019, co-authored with Rupert Read) (paperback and ebook).
Carbon Civilisation and the Energy Descent Future: Life Beyond This Brief Anomaly (2018, co-authored with Josh Floyd) paperback and ebook.
Art Against Empire: Toward an Aesthetics of Degrowth (2017) – paperback and ebook
Compost Capitalism: The Art and Aesthetics of Degrowth (2017) – paperback
Wild Democracy: Degrowth, Permaculture, and the Simpler Way (2017, Collected Essays Vol III) – paperback and ebook
Words for Awakening: Voices of Inspired Revolt (2017) paperback (pdf to come)
Just Enough is Plenty: Thoreau’s Alternative Economics (2016) – paperback and ebook
Deface the Currency: The Lost Dialogues of Diogenes (2016) – paperback and ebook
Sufficiency Economy: Enough, for Everyone, Forever (2015, Collected Essays Vol II) – paperback and ebook
Prosperous Descent: Crisis as Opportunity in an Age of Limits (2015, Collected Essays Vol I) – paperback and ebook
Simple Living in History: Pioneers of the Deep Future (2014) – paperback and ebook
Entropia: Life Beyond Industrial Civilisation (2013) – paperback / ebook / Kindle
Voluntary Simplicity: The Poetic Alternative to Consumer Culture (2009) – paperback

Other Academic Publications

Samuel Alexander and Brendan Gleeson, 2021 ‘What if Ivan Illich Were Elected Mayor? A Miraculous Epilogue to the Industrial City’ Arena (winner of the Alan Roberts’ prize).

Samuel Alexander and Joshua Floyd, ‘Energy Descent Futures (Alexander and Floyd)‘ in Knowledge Base of Futures Studies, edited by Richard Slaughter and Andy Hines.

Samuel Alexander and Brendan Gleeson, ‘Degrowth “from below”: The role of urban social movements in a post-capitalist transition‘ (MSSI Research Paper).

Samuel Alexander, ‘Degrowth as an “Aesthetics of Existence” (MSSI Monograph, 2017) (available here).

Samuel Alexander and Jacob Garrett, ‘The Moral and Ethical Weight of Voluntary Simplicity’ Simplicity Institute Report 17a (2017) 1-19.

Samuel Alexander, 2016 ‘Wild Democracy: a Biodiversity of Resistance and Renewal‘ Simplicity Institute Report 16a, 2016.

Samuel Alexander, ‘The New Economics of Oil’, MSSI Issues paper, No. 2, March, (2014) 1-14. (book version here).

Samuel Alexander, ‘A Critique of Techno-Optimism: Efficiency without Sufficiency is Lost’ Post Carbon Pathways Report (January, 2014) 1-21. (book version here).

Samuel Alexander ‘Degrowth and the Carbon Budget: Powerdown Strategies for Climate Stability’ Simplicity Institute Report 14h (2014) 1-24. (book version here).

Samuel Alexander and Esther Alloun, ‘The Transition movement: Questions of Diversity, Power, and Affluence’ Simplicity Institute Report 14g (2014) 1-24. (book version here).

Samuel Alexander and Jonathan Rutherford, ‘The Deep Green Alternative: Debating Strategies of Transition’ Simplicity Institute Report 14a (2014) 1-24. (book version here).

Samuel Alexander ‘The Sufficiency Economy: Envisioning a Prosperous Way Down’, Simplicity Institute Report 12s (2012) 1-31. (book version here).

Samuel Alexander, ‘Radical Simplicity and the Middle Class: Exploring the Lifestyle Implications of a “Great Disruption”’ Simplicity Institute Report 12p (2012) 1-16. (book version here).

Samuel Alexander, ‘Resilience through Simplification: Revisiting Tainter’s Theory of Collapse’ Simplicity Institute Report 12h (2012) 1-20. (book version here).

Samuel Alexander, ‘Living Better on Less? Toward an Economics of Sufficiency’ Simplicity Institute Report 12c (2012) 1-19. (book version here).

Samuel Alexander, ‘Degrowth implies Voluntary Simplicity: Overcoming Barriers to Sustainable Consumption,’ Simplicity Institute Report 12b (2012) 1-17. (book version here).

Samuel Alexander, ‘Looking Backward from the Year 2099: Ecozoic Reflections on the Future’ Earth Jurisprudence and Environmental Justice Journal (2011) 1(1): 25-59. (book version here).

Samuel Alexander, ‘Property beyond Growth: Toward a Politics of Voluntary Simplicity’ (doctoral thesis, Melbourne Law School, 2011).

Samuel Alexander, ‘Peak Oil, Energy Descent, and the Fate of Consumerism,’ Simplicity Institute Report 11b (2011) 1-21.

Samuel Alexander, ‘Imagining a Post-Growth Jurisprudence of Property’ Proceedings of the Second International Conference on Economic Degrowth for Ecological Sustainability and Social Equity (2010) 1-14.

Samuel Alexander, ‘Earth Jurisprudence and the Ecological Case for Degrowth’ The Journal Jurisprudence (2010) 6: 131-148.

Selected Other Publications

Samuel Alexander, 2022. ‘Ambivalence about Albanese: A Reality Check on the Election’ Arena Online (14 July 2022).

Samuel Alexander and Alex Baumann, 2021, ‘We are NOT the 99%’ Resilience (Feb 8, 2021).

Samuel Alexander and Brendan Gleeson, 2020. ‘Tramping the city to find enchantment in a disenchanting world.‘ The Conversation (11 December 2020).

Rupert Read and Samuel Alexander, 2020, first chapter of This Civilisation is Finished translated into Esperanto (many thanks to Wolfgang Gunther for this translation).

Samuel Alexander and Brendan Gleeson, 2020. ‘Unsettling the story of disenchantment: excerpt from Urban Awakenings‘ Resilience (3 December 2020).

Samuel Alexander and Brendan Gleeson, 2020. ‘A disturbed book: bubbles under the throne.‘ The Fifth Estate (30 November, 2020).

Samuel Alexander and Alex Baumann, 2020. ‘Coronavirus shows housing costs leave many insecure. Tackling that can solve an even bigger crisis.’ The Conversation (11 May, 2020).

Samuel Alexander, 2020. ‘Is the economic shut down what degrowth advocates have been calling for?’ Resilience (24 March 2020).

Samuel Alexander, 2020. ‘I’ve seriously tried to believe that capitalism and the planet can co-exist, but I’ve lost faith.’ The Conversation (21 February, 2020).

Samuel Alexander and Heather Shearer, 2020. ‘So you want to live tiny? Here’s what to consider when choosing a house, van, or caravan.‘ The Conversation (16 January 2020).

Samuel Alexander and Alex Baumann, 2020 ‘Access to land and a participation income could change the world’ Resilience / Ecologist / Fifth Estate.

Samuel Alexander and Alex Bauman, ‘Access to land is a barrier to simpler, sustainable living‘ (22 August 2019) The Conversation.

Samuel Alexander and Brendan Gleeson, ‘Post-capitalism: Life within environmental limits‘ (21 February 2019) The Pursuit.

Samuel Alexander and Josh Floyd, The energy descent future (21 December 2018) The Ecologist.

Samuel Alexander and Brendan Gleeson, ‘The suburbs are the spiritual home of overconsumption. But they also hold the key to a better future‘ (13 December 2018) The Conversation.

Samuel Alexander and Brendan Gleeson, ‘Degrowth in the suburbs‘ (31 October 2018) The Ecologist.

Samuel Alexander, ‘Home biogas: Turning food waste into renewable energy‘ (12 January, 2018) The Conversation.

Samuel Alexander, ‘Imagining a better world: The art of degrowth‘ (26 October, 2017) The Conversation.

Samuel Alexander, ‘A revolution disguised as organic gardening: in memory of Bill Mollison‘ (28 September, 2016).

Samuel Alexander, 2016, ‘Limits to growth: policies to steer the economy away from disaster‘ (21 April, 2016).

Samuel Alexander, ‘Sustained economic growth: United Nations mistake the poison for the cure’ The Conversation (23 September 2015).

Samuel Alexander, ‘The “green-tech” future is a flawed vision of sustainability’ The Conversation (27 August 2015).

Samuel Alexander, ‘If we all lived in “ecovillages”, the Earth would still be in trouble’ The Conversation (26 June 2015).

Samuel Alexander, ‘Sick to death of consumerism? Find freedom in a tiny house’ The Conversation (2 January 2015).

Samuel Alexander, ‘Life in a “degrowth” economy, and why you might actually enjoy it’ The Conversation (2 October 2014).

Samuel Alexander, ‘We need economic “degrowth” to stop a carbon budget blowout’ The Conversation (19 September 2014).

Samuel Alexander, ‘Peak oil is alive and well, and costing the earth’ The Conversation (9 September 2013).

Samuel Alexander and Simon Ussher, (eds) Stories of simplicity: Reimagining the good life beyond consumer culture (2012) Simplicity Institute: Melbourne (e-book).

Samuel Alexander, ‘What is a Transition Town?’ Permaculture Research Institute (21 July 2012).

Samuel Alexander, ‘Beyond capitalism with a human face: A radically simple way’ Transition Voice (20 July, 2012).

Samuel Alexander, ‘Life after the peak,’ Issues (2012) 99: 40-43.

Samuel Alexander, ‘Can renewable energy sustain consumer societies?’ Energy Bulletin (26 April, 2012).

Samuel Alexander, ‘The simple life has benefits for all of us’ The Age (16 March 2012).

Samuel Alexander, Ted Trainer, and Simon Ussher, ‘The Simpler Way: A practical action plan for living more with less,’ Simplicity Institute Report 12a (2012) 1-43.

Samuel Alexander, ‘Questioning the growth imperative,’ Green (2012) 35: 9-11.

Samuel Alexander, ‘Peak oil can fuel a change for the better.’ The Age (11 January 2012).

Samuel Alexander, ‘Occupy Melbourne’ Arena Magazine #115 (2011) 16.

Samuel Alexander, ‘God’s away on business: The spiritual significance of voluntary simplicity’ 2(2) Earthsong (2011) 7-9.

Samuel Alexander, ‘Thoreau’ 18(3) Adbusters: Journal of the Mental Environment (2010) Part IV.

Samuel Alexander, ‘Christmas: The assumption of consumption’ 6(1) University of Melbourne Voice (2010).

Samuel Alexander, ‘Pare down your life to make it happier’ Green (2009) 28: 12.