AI Abundance, Part 5: Meaning Beyond Work 

Posted on July 17, 2026 by Ellen Brown

Image by ScheerPost.com.

Discussions of artificial intelligence typically begin with the question, What happens when the machines take our jobs? For thousands of years, work has been the means by which we fed our families, earned our place in society, and gave structure to our lives. We have come to equate paid employment with identity.

That presumption may soon be obsolete.

When Elon Musk proposed replacing Universal Basic Income with what he calls a Universal High Income—a level of income sufficient for everyone to live comfortably while intelligent machines produce much of the goods and services society requires—critics warned that people would become lazy. They would stop pursuing college degrees, stop starting businesses, stop inventing, stop contributing. Without jobs, it was argued, life itself would lose meaning and purpose.

Interestingly, humanity’s oldest written history begins with the premise that the purpose of humans is to work. The earliest known writing was impressed into clay tablets in ancient Sumer more than five thousand years ago. The Sumerian Atrahasis tablets tell of sky-deities called Annunaki, cast in modern “ancient architect” scenarios as extraterrestrial engineers. The heavy labor required to maintain life on earth was delegated to junior gods called Igigi, who finally grew weary of the arduous work, laid down their tools and rebelled.

The remedy was to create a new being to carry their burden. This was done by genetic manipulation to upgrade the highest life form found here, creating the human species. Whether we read that as history, allegory, or mythology, its underlying message is that humanity was conceived as a labor force – and human civilization begins with a control system to manage the laborers. 

The first writing was not poetry or philosophy. It was accounting: grain tallies, labor quotas, rations, obligations. Most of the original cuneiform tablets were administrative records. What began as an exchange system evolved into a money system to control work and the workers performing it. For nearly six thousand years, human worth has been measured by our productivity. We deserve food and shelter because we worked for it. 

In many respects, life is still organized around compulsory labor. Writing was devised to organize it. Accounting on clay tablets predated the use of coins, managed by temple priests as intermediaries for the gods. The temple evolved into private banks, with bankers intermediating commerce.

In the 1930s, British economist and philosopher John Maynard Keynes predicted that by the end of the twentieth century, technological advancement would reduce the work-week to just fifteen hours. So why is the forty-hour work week still the norm? It has been argued that our current economic structure uses “busyness” as a form of social containment. By tethering survival to forty hours of corporate or administrative labor, the system ensures that the majority of human creative power is spent serving institutional interests rather than personal or community liberation.

That may be why modern life feels increasingly saturated with what anthropologist David Graeber termed Bullshit Jobs in a book of that name—pointless administrative tasks that serve little social purpose, but that keep people too exhausted to pursue their own interests. He argued that the rise of “fake” work is a political device to keep people from having the free time to organize or rebel. But if artificial intelligence takes over the majority of production, that changes the meaning of work.

From Scarcity to Abundance

For centuries, scarcity shaped human behavior. Scarcity taught people to guard, to compete, to fear loss. But abundance changes the emotional landscape. What happens if we are simply handed what we need to survive? Skeptics say people will stop working and learning, that society will collapse into idleness, that life will lose meaning without jobs. But pilot studies of Universal Basic Income (UBI) programs involving unconditional cash transfers to recipients show otherwise. 

UBI studies from around the world have shown positive results from UBI payments, including higher employment, lower crime, better mental health, higher graduation rates, and little evidence of a retreat from productive activity. Relieved of the constant anxiety of maintaining survival, participants typically pursue education, care for family members, search for better jobs, or start businesses they would not have dared to take on if failure meant destitution. It seems that necessity is not the only mother of invention.  

Granted, the payout in most U.S. studies was a marginal $500 or $600 per month, only enough to provide a safety net for basic food and shelter. Plenty of motivation was left to add income for the finer things in life. Studies of the effects of a Universal High Income of $50,000 or more per year have not been done. But many people who are no longer working for pay, either because they are retired or because they have an inheritance or investments to live on, volunteer their time for socially beneficial causes.

Parents devote extraordinary energy to raising children without receiving a paycheck. Volunteers spend countless hours building community organizations. Amateur musicians practice difficult instruments for years with little expectation of financial reward. Scientists have pursued questions that fascinated them long before the result was likely to be commercially valuable. Thousands of programmers worked without pay to develop Linux open source software, and editors work for free to produce Wikipedia, just for reputation, community and the satisfaction of solving hard problems. These activities are not work for wages, but they are work that is quite meaningful to the people engaged in them.

The Enlightenment: Largely the Legacy of the Leisure Class

The intellectual triumphs of the European Enlightenment—the era that birthed modern science, political liberty, and the social contract—were primarily the domain of a wealthy leisure class, or of talent that was financially backed by institutional support (church, courts, universities) or personal patronage.

Sociologist Thorstein Veblen laid out this thesis in The Theory of the Leisure Class (1899). He argued that scholarly pursuit functioned as a form of “conspicuous leisure”—a way to demonstrate financial strength by engaging in activities that were “unproductive” in the immediate economic sense. To spend decades debating the nature of sovereignty or the movement of the stars required a measure of “unearned increment” or rent extraction. Examples included:

Francis Bacon (1561–1626): As Lord Chancellor and a member of the high nobility, Bacon’s scientific methodology was fueled by the resources of the state and inherited status.

Robert Boyle (1627–1691): The father of modern chemistry was the son of the “Great Earl of Cork,” then the wealthiest man in the British Isles. His work was conducted as a “gentleman scientist” with no need for professional employment.

Antoine Lavoisier (1743–1794): Lavoisier funded the world’s most advanced chemical laboratory through his role as a “Tax Farmer” for the French crown—a position of pure financial extraction.

For those not born into the elite, intellectual survival usually required “aristocratic patronage.” John Locke’s influential work was made possible by his residency and support from the Earl of Shaftesbury, while Thomas Hobbes was a lifelong dependent of the Cavendish family. This system ensured that even “revolutionary” ideas were filtered through the lens of those who benefited most from the existing social hierarchy.

The irony is that the very thinkers who theorized about “universal human rights” and “liberty” did so from a position of security provided by the systems of land-rent and debt-extraction they were analyzing. To create truly universal “liberty” requires a secure income for all.

Non-compulsory Education

For over a century, schools have functioned as labor factories, designed to produce compliant workers for industrial economies. If labor is no longer the center of life, education must change as well. AI already performs memorization and standardized tasks better than humans, relieving us of the need to perfect those skills ourselves. But that does not mean there is nothing left to learn. Studies of “Self-Directed Education” or “Unschooling” suggest that children are biologically wired to learn, and that removing the coercion of traditional schooling leads not to ignorance but to highly motivated, specialized learners. Self-directed education produces young adults who retain their curiosity and creativity, develop emotional intelligence, and pursue mastery for its own sake. 

A 2013/2014 survey of 75 unschooled adults conducted by educational psychologists Peter Gray and Gina Riley found that 83% went on to some form of higher education. Despite not having a high school diploma, they reported little trouble getting into college, often using portfolios, interviews, or community college credits to bridge the gap. A high percentage of unschoolers pursued careers in the creative arts or became entrepreneurs. The researchers reported that unschooling helped them develop the self-reliance and out-of-the-box thinking required for these fields.

A South African study found that while “unschooled” students may have followed non-traditional paths, they often achieved high levels of professional success, particularly in creative and entrepreneurial fields. Intrinsic curiosity replaced extrinsic rewards (grades or job requirements) as the primary driver for learning. 

Research on children who learn to read through unschooling shows wide variance in when they start (anywhere from age 4 to 14), but once they decide they want to read, they often reach grade-level proficiency in a matter of months rather than years because they are personally invested. Proponents argue that traditional schooling actually stifles learning by making it a chore. 

The Sudbury Valley School model (founded in 1968) is a radical form of democratic education based on the belief that children are naturally curious and capable of managing their own learning. In a Sudbury school, there are no grades or required classes. Instead, students of all ages (5–18) mix freely and decide for themselves how to spend their time. Long-term studies of graduates show that they overwhelmingly transition successfully into higher education and careers, often citing the school’s emphasis on responsibility, self-direction, and democratic participation as the primary drivers of their adult success.

Self-directed learning doesn’t require an independent income, but the point is that the drive to learn and to apply that education to useful pursuits is an inherent human trait, in both children and adults. It’s something we want to do and will do, whether or not an employer requires it.

Self-actualization and Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

American psychologist Abraham Maslow conceptualized the needs or goals that motivate human behavior in a clinical review in 1943. He argued that once physiological and safety needs are met, humans naturally move toward “Self-actualization” – the realization of personal potential and pursuit of creative activities. In his later years, Maslow added a level above self-actualization called “Self-transcendence”, where people focus on goals outside themselves (altruism, community and caregiving).

That natural evolution can be applied not just to individuals but to civilizations. As AI and robotics free us from the self-centered needs of survival, we can awaken to our larger purposes of collective actualization and harmonious progress.   

Escaping the Welfare Trap

That’s the promise of AI – that it can free up our time so that we can escape the meaningless “busyness” of paid labor and pursue goals more meaningful to ourselves. But the same digital tools have a darker side. Catherine Austin Fitts and other critics warn that AI could become the ultimate “digital panopticon”—a weapon of entrapment by which programmable money and algorithmic surveillance create a modern “golden cage” in which the right to receive “welfare” is tied to political compliance. The UBI thus becomes a tool of coercion.

The same technology, however, offers tools to avoid that trap. Decentralized, neutral identity systems and zero-knowledge proofs allow people to establish that they are unique humans without revealing personal data. Zero-knowledge proofs are a cryptographic method by which one party can prove to another that a statement is true without revealing any additional information. A neutral protocol is one in which the rules are transparent, fixed, and cannot discriminate against specific users. By using “Smart Contracts” on a blockchain, the distribution of UHI becomes automated. The code only checks if the user has a valid, unique identity proof. It cannot check the user’s political party, criminal record or social behavior (unless explicitly part of the code). A government-issued digital currency could also be generated using the privacy-protected, peer-to-peer models of Project Hamilton and the ECASH bill, as detailed in Part 3 of this series.

Those are political decisions, dependent on a democratic system governed by and for the people. Mandating that these tools be incorporated into any government payments system can ensure that UHI remains a right of existence rather than a reward for obedience. 

If AI can handle production, it removes the original justification for compulsory labor. The choice is whether we use AI to automate our enslavement or to finally automate our exit from the Sumerian story, transforming ourselves from a managed labor force into a self-directed, creative civilization.

Rewriting the Human Story 

For six thousand years, humanity has lived inside the Sumerian story: we were created to work for external masters. But AI has brought us to the point where labor no longer must be our master. AI abundance is not the end of work but the beginning of choice, and choice is the beginning of meaning.

Our first choice must be to insist on a democratic government run in the public interest, and a financial system that supports independent endeavor. Freeing humanity from compulsory labor can then provide the freedom for us to develop more fully as human beings.

Some people will create art. Some will teach. Some will explore science, history, biology, or engineering. Some will build communities. Families may simply become more present with each other. For the first time in history, large numbers of people may have the time and stability to ask the deeper questions about the meaning of life and the unique purpose of their own lives.

In the new story that emerges, we can see ourselves not as laborers but as musicians. We can make beautiful music together, but we need the other instruments. An orchestra is beautiful because each instrument contributes its unique voice to a larger harmony. The promise of AI is to free us from compulsory labor so that we can explore our own unique gifts and discover the music only we can play. 

____________________________

This article was first posted as an original to ScheerPost.com. Ellen Brown is an attorney, founder of the Public Banking Institute, and author of thirteen books including Web of Debt, The Public Bank Solution, and Banking on the People: Democratizing Money in the Digital Age. Her 600+ blog articles are posted at EllenBrown.com.

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    — 2026

    1201. Jan. 11, Sabby Sabs youtube podcast hosted by Sabrina Salvati, “The Truth About Banking,” with Earl Staelin

    — 2025

    1200. Aug. 24, interview with Randy Voller, “On the Porch” (radio)

    1199. Aug. 10, interview with Elisa Barwick, Australian Citizens Party, “Return the power of banking to the people.”  

    1198. July 31, 11 am est, speaker, Capital Institute Monthly Discovery Dialogues

    1197. May 29, 5 pm pst, speaker, National Infrastructure Bank Coalition webinar.

    1. Apr. 23, 1 pm EDT, Panel with Prof. Robert Hockett, “From Speculation to Sustainability: Reclaiming Finance for People and Planet.”
    1. Mar. 27, 5 pm pst: National Infrastructure Bank Will Stop a Recession Dead in Its Tracks! NIB Zoom, March 27, 2025 – YouTube
    1. Mar. 19, 7-8 pm pst, Washingtonians for Public Banking Virtual Town Hall.1193.
    1. Feb. 26, 5 pm pst, National Infrastructure Bank: Addressing the Federal Budget Crisis!
    1. Jan. 23, 5 pm pst: No to Austerity! Yes to the National Infrastructure Bank! NIB Zoom Town Hall, January 23, 2025

    — 2024 —

    1191. Dec. 10, 9 am EST, interview with Dave Krieger (former host of the Power Hour)

    1190. Nov. 21, 5 pm pst, 11-21 National Infrastructure Bank Coalition webinar.

    1189. Oct. 30, 1:30 pm EST, Bretton Woods 90th Anniversary Commemoration, “The Public Banking Mandate,” power point by zoom.

    1188. Aug. 15, 5 pm pst, National Infrastructure Bank Coalition webinar.

    1187. June 18, 5 pm pst, National Infrastructure Bank Coalition webinar presentation.

    1186. May 22, 6 pm pst, powerpoint for Washingtonians for Public Banking, “The Past, Present and Future of Public Banking”

    1185. Apr. 25, 5 pm pst, National Infrastructure Bank Coalition webinar presentation.

    1184. Mar. 21, 5 pm pst, National Infrastructure Bank Coalition webinar presentation.

    1183. Mar. 10, 4 pm PST, speaker, Voices for New Democracy online forum.

    1182. Feb. 29, National Infrastructure Bank Coalition webinar.

    1181. Feb.2-5, speaker, Restore Freedom Rally 2024, Freedom Law School, Orlando, FL. 10% discount code, EB10.

    1180. Jan 18, 5 pm pst, power point presentation, National Infrastructure Bank Coalition webinar.

    1179. Jan. 13, 5 pm EST, video interview with Firebreathin’ Bob.

    — 2023 —

    1178. 12-21-23, 1 pm, GlobalResearch News Hour, tribute to Stephen Lendman.

    1177. 12-14-23, 5 pm PST, webinar presentation, National Infrastructure Bank Coalition.

    1176. 10-22-23, 10:45 am, speaker, The Weston A. Price Foundation’s 23rd Annual Conference, Kansas City, Missouri.

    1175. 10-19-23, The Final Banking Solution, with Simon Thorpe and Colin Maxwell on The Vinny Eastwood Show, YouTube, Australia.

    1174. 8-22-23, 10 am, Claremont, CA, Cobb Institute Center for Process, power point presentation: “Restoring Prosperity with a Financial Transaction Tax and Publicly Owned Banks.“ Zoom link is here.

    1173. 6-15-23, NIB Zoom town hall, National Infrastructure Bank Coalition.

    1172. 5-22-23: Radio interview, 9:30 am est, The Power Hour.

    1171. 5-17-23: TV interview, CGTN America, Global Business: “Banking industry in hot seat during Congressional hearings.”

    1170. Apr 27, National Infrastructure Bank Coalition webinar, “How to Build the Nation: National Banking vs. Privatization”

    1169. Apr 23, interview on World Stage with Bruce De Torres, TNT Radio

    1168. 4-17-23, 9 am pst, interview with Prof. Richard Wolff, “Economic Update.”

    1167. 4-8 & 4-9, 9 am est, radio interview with Dr. Elaina George, “Medicine on Call.”

    1166. 4-8-23, noon pst, radio interview, Tom Quinn Show, ksco.com.

    1165. 4-6-23, radio interview with Phillip Farruggio, “It’s the Empire, Stupid.”

    1164. 4-4-23, 2 pm edt, NIB Zoom Roundtable, “National Banking in Times of Crisis.”

    1163. Mar. 24 & 25, United for Free Speech Webinar, Think Local, Ireland.

    1162. 3-23-23, 9 am EST, radio interview, The Power Hour.

    1161. 3-19-23, Interview with James Corbett, “Alternative Solutions to the Banking Crisis.”

    1160. 3-16-23, 5 pm pst, National Infrastructure Bank Coalition Town Hall, “Restructuring the American Workforce in a Time of Financial and Economic Turbulence.”

    1159. 3-14-23, 5 pm EST, Living In The Solution with Dr. Elaina George

    1158. 3-9-23, 8 am PST, Sarah Westall, podcast

    1157. 3-2-23, 11 am EST, The Gary Null Show, PRN.live.

    1156. 2-25-23, 15:00-17:00 GMT (Ireland), Think Local Conference 2023, Panel 3 – Money & Economics – New Paradigms

    1155. 2-16-23, 5 pm pst, National Infrastructure Bank Coalition, “Washington, Hamilton, Lincoln: National Banking and the Economic Demands of Today’s Crisis,” NIB Zoom Town Hall

    1154. 1-19-23, 5 pm pst, National Infrastructure Bank Coalition, “National Banking Will Drive a U.S. Economic Boom!” NIB Zoom Town Hall

    — 2022 —

    1153. 12-15-22: 5 pm pst, National Infrastructure Bank Town Hall presentation.

    1152. 11-17-22: NIB Zoom Town Hall, “The Next Steps: The American System and the National Infrastructure Bank.”

    1151. 10-19-22: NIB Zoom Town Hall, “Rebuild the Nation with a New Reconstruction Finance Corporation.”

    1150. 10-8-22: 18th Annual AMI Monetary Reform Conference, 2022 “The Monetary Scene: The Last Three Years,” power point presentation.

    1149. 9-8-22, 5 pm pst: NIB Zoom Town Hall, “US at the Crossroads: American Industrial Recovery or Fed Chair Powell’s Recession.”

    1148. 8-11-22, 5 pm, National Infrastructure Bank Coalition webinar.

    1147. 8-2-22, noon pst, interview by Rep. Pamela Powers Hannley, “Powers for the People” podcast (joining Prof. Bob Hockett).

    1146. 8-1-22, 5:50 to 6:10 pm pst, interview with Scott Harris, WPKN Radio in Bridgeport, CT, “Between the Lines.”

    1145. 7-22-22, 5 pm pst, National Infrastructure Bank Coalition webinar.

    1144. 7-8-22, 5 pm pst, Interview with Kevin Barrett, Truth Jihad Radio.

    1143. 6-30-22, 5 pm pst, National Infrastructure Bank Coalition webinar with Prof. Robert Hockett, Sen. Bob Hasegawa, et al.

    1142. 6-16-22: National Infrastructure Bank Coalition webinar on stagflation with Nomi Prins, Robert Hockett, et al.

    1141. 6-10-22: TNT radio interview with Sen. Malcolm Roberts, Australia.

    1140. 5-19-22: 5 pm pst, National Infrastructure Bank town hall presentation. https://www.nibcoalition.com/all-videos

    1139. 5-17-22: 11 am pst, interview, Kerry Lutz’s Financial Survival Network.

    1138. Apr. 22, 5 pm cst, interview, The Hrvoje Morić Show, TNT Radio

    1137. Apr. 22, 11 am est, Gary Null Show, PRN Live

    1136. Apr. 20, 7 pm cst, webinar, “Public Banking: Investing in Colorado!,” Colorado Public Banking Coalition

    1135. 4-19, 9 am pst, interview with Simone Mariam for the Italian blog MittDolcino

    1134. Apr. 19, 12:30 pm pst, interview with Jay Taylor, “A PetroRuble Now Competes with the PetroDollar”, Jay Taylor Media

    1133. Apr. 15, Interview with Kristina Borjesson, The Whistleblower Newsroom, bitchute, “History Informs a Reset That Could Serve the People”

    1132. Apr. 8, Interview with Kevin Barrett, Truth Jihad Radio, 5 pm pst

    1131. Apr. 6, Podcast with Bob Scheer, ScheerPost.com

    1130. Mar. 31, Power Point presentation on youtube, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Invita: Debates Ensayos de Economia Coordina: Guillermo Maya — Profesor adscrito al Departamento de Economia

    1129. Mar. 10, Webinar presentation, “Stop Inflation in Its Tracks! Role of the National Infrastructure Bank”

    1128. Feb. 17, Webinar presentation for National Infrastructure Bank Coalition, Abraham Lincoln and the American System of Economics

    — 2021 —

    1127. Dec. 18, Daniel Estulin and Ellen Brown on Global Economic Implosion, Kevin Barrett Truth Jihad

    1126. Dec. 7, Interview with Daniel Estulin

    1125. Nov. 27, “The Greening of Finance and the Global PPP Land Grab” with Matt Ehret on youtube

    1124. Sep. 29, interview with Jan Roberts of Systems Change Advocate,  jroberts@ciaction.org> linkedin.com/in/jan-roberts-0001688  Systems Change Advocate 

    1123. Aug. 30, Center for Global Justice webinar with Walt McRee, “Public Banking: Democratizing Finance”

    1122. July 28, 5 pm pst, webinar, “Public Banks: A Path to Economic Transformation in California,” EcoCiv Dialogues for Global Systems Change series

    1121. July 22, 5 pm pst, webinar, “The Truth about America’s Monetary System,” American Ethical Union National Conference

    1120. Mar. 29, 2 pm est, panel hosted by Rickey Gard Diamond, “Zoom of Our Own, Creating Currency and Blowing Big Bubbles.”

    1119. Mar. 25, 11 am pst, BoldRethink webinar, TBA

    1118. Mar. 21, 10 am pst, Public Banking panel, TBA

    1117. March 5, Sean Stone interview, Unrig

    1116. March 2, PBI Live Town Hall, Ohio

    1115. Feb. 23, 7 pm est, Eco Justice Collaborative Webinar, “Why the Crises We Face Make Financial Reform Essential,” Religious Society of Friends, Philadelphia

    1114. Feb. 17, 11 am, Steff Overbeck, Pod of Gold radio interview

    1113. Feb. 18, radio interview, Phil Mikan, wlis1420

    1112. Feb. 16, National Infrastructure Bank Coalition Presidents’ Day Webinar 2021 – “National Infrastructure Bank: Standing on the Shoulders of Giants”

    1111. Feb. 6, radio interview, Sylvia Richardson, Latin Waves

    1110. Jan. 28, 6 pm est, PBI NY Town Hall

    1109. Jan. 27, “Ellen Brown and Matt Ehret Discuss: A Brief History of Economic Warfare and the American System”, youtube

    1108. Jan. 16, 11 am cst, Warner Lewis, Lewis at Large (Kansas City), KLWN, 101.7 FM

    1107. Jan. 15, 3-5 pm, Revolution Radio, The Fetzer Report

    1106. Jan. 8, 4 pm PST, zoom power point presentation, Praxis Peace Institute

    — 2020 —

    1105. Dec. 30, 3 pm EST, Eleanor LeCain radio show on PRN

    1104. Dec. 28, 9 pm EST, interview on WPKN Radio with Scott Harris, Between The Lines Radio 

    1103. Dec. 13, Ramola D. Reports, US/UK news panel #11, with Prof. Tim Canova, et al.

    1102. Dec. 12, podcast/radio interview,  Ralph Nader Radio Hour

    1101. Dec. 6, Ramola D. Reports, US/UK news panel #10, with Dr. Christiane Northrup et al.

    1100. Nov. 29, Ramola D. Reports, News Panel 9, with Justin Walker, Andy Kaufmann, John Reizer, Sandi Adams

    1099. Nov. 3, Turning Point Talks, Australia, Zoom power point presentation, 7 pm Australia time

    1098. Nov. 1, 4 pm pst, panel, 2020 Building the New World Conference

    1097. Oct. 26, Phil Mikan Show, WLIS/WMRD Radio, Conn., pre-recorded for Friday at 10 est or Saturday at 9-11 est

    1096. Oct. 22, 1:15 pm EST, power point presentation, “Public Banking, Modern Monetary Theory (MMT) and the National Debt,” Carolina Hills Community, Chapel Hill, NC

    1095. October 3, 1:30, “Energizing a Just Transition Conference.”

    1094. Sept. 30, webinar,2020 Building the New World Conference, 4 pm pst/7 pm est

    1093. Sept. 12, San Diego public banking group webinar with Sen. Ben Hueso, 5 pm

    1092. Sept. 9, interview with Meria Heller, 10 am pst

    1091. Aug. 30, interview with Jack Etkin, Citizens Forum,  Community Television, Victoria, BC, 2 pm pst

    1090. Aug. 17, The Power Hour, 10 am PDT.

    1089. July 30, 4 pm PST, John Truman Wolfe Financial Hour

    1088. July 15, 6 pm EST, Connecticut Public Banking Town Hall, livestream here

    1087. July 13, Webinar, Center for Global Justice, “Why Public Banking Needs to Be Run as a Public Utility,” San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, 11am-1pm PDT

    1086. Interview with Susan Johnson on public banking for Connecticut, WILI’s Let’s Talk About It Show, 5 pm EST

    1085. Interview on Russia Today, “In Question,”  “BlackRock the Behemoth,” July 2, 2020

    1084. July 1, Bonnie Faulkner interview with Peter Koenig on Guns and Butter

    1083, July 1, 8 am PST, interview with Phillip Farruggio, “It’s the Empire, Stupid,” Greanvillepost.com

    1082. June 29, 9-9:30 pm EST, interview with Scott Harris, “Between the Lines,” WPKN Radio, Conn.

    1081. June 24, 6-6:30 pm EST, interview with Paul DeRienzo, WBAI News, New York City

    1080. June 23, 6:30-8pm MST, Webinar on Forming a New Mexico State Public Bank, Alliance for Local Economic Prosperity

    1o79. June 10, podcast with Kim Iverson, “The Fed and the Big Bank Wealth Heist. Why We Need Public Banking.”

    1078. Interview with Sylvia Richardson, Latin Waves, 10 am PST

    1077. June 5, 6 pm pst, Center for American Studies Town Meeting, Concord, NH, live-streamed

    1076. June 5, 12:30 pm, Public Banking Town Hall for Colorado Leaders, Zoom conference

    1075. May 28, WECAN webinar, “Structuring an Economy for People and Planet in the Time of Climate Crisis and COVID-19,” 11:00 am PST/ 2:00pm EST

    1074. May 22, Interview with Kevin Barrett, Truth Jihad Radio, 5 pm PST

    1073. May 21, Interview with Aaron Wissner, Local Future, Youtube livestream

    1072. May 20, radio interview, “Law and Disorder,” New York City

    1071. May 13, interview with Paul Jay, “Does Public Banking Work?”, The Analysis

    1070. May 10, 12:00-1:00 PM EST, Dr. Elaina George radio show

    1069. May 7, 11 am EST, interview with Phillip Farruggio, “It’s the Empire, Stupid,” Greanvillepost.com

    1068. May 6, Conversations with Rob, community radio, 9 am PST

    1067. Apr 4, interview with Walt McRee and Mark Anielski, The Economics of Wellbeing podcast (pre-recorded, TBA)

    1066. May 2, podcast with Matt Stannard, Cowboys on the Commons

    1065. May 1, Interview with Robert Scheer, Scheer Intelligence, KCRW Los Angeles

    1064. April 30, 12 noon MDT, Public Banking Virtual Town Hall sponsored by Colorado Public Banking Coalition

    1063. April 30, 6-6:30 pm, interview with Paul DeRienzo, WBAI News, New York City

    1062. Apr 29, 1 pm PST, radio interview with Reinette Senum, KVRM, Nevada City, CA (pre-recorded)

    1061. Apr 26, Schiller Institute Online Conference, 3 pm EST

    1060. Apr 26, 6:30 am PST, Morano in the Morning radio talk show

    1059. Apr 21, Interview with Jason Hartman, Creating Wealth Show

    1058. April 13, “Flashpoints,” KPFA, 5:40 pm PST.

    1057. April 9, radio interview with Claudia Cragg, “It’s the Economy,” KGNU Boulder CO, 6 pm MST.

    1056. April 7, “Treasury Takeover?”, podcast interview with Sarah Westall and Harley Schlanger

    1055. March 26, interview with Phillip Farruggio, “It’s the Empire, Stupid,” Greanvillepost.com

    1054. Mar. 17, 7 pm EST, interview with Gary Null, Progressive Commentary Hour

    1053. Feb. 19, radio interview on George Noory’s “Coast to Coast,” 10-12 pm pst.

    1052. Feb. 8, interview with Sylvia Richardson, “Latin Waves” radio podcast.

    1051. Jan. 8, interview with Marcus Ruiz Evans, 1 pm PST

    1050. Jan. 2, interview with Kevin Barrett,  truthjihadradio, 5 pm PST

    — 2019 —

    1049. Dec. 2, Interview with Jeff J. Brown, China Rising Radio

    1048. Nov. 24, 7 pm, presentation sponsored by Agenda for a Prophetic Faith, Claremont Presbyterian Church, Claremont, CA, “Why We Need Public Banks”

    1047. Nov. 24, 11 am, public banking presentation for “Growing Christians” class, Claremont United Methodist Church, Claremont, CA

    1046. Nov. 23, public banking presentation, Pilgrim Place, Claremont, CA

    1045. Nov 16-17, speaker, Soil & Nutrition Conference, Southbridge, MA.

    1044. Nov. 12, interview in New York with Max Keiser, Keiser Report, “Repo Markets and UBI”

    1043. Nov. 6, 5 pm EST, The CivicLab Show with Tom Tresser, live@www.facebook.com/tomtree

    1042. Oct. 23, 11:30 am-1:30 pm, luncheon presentation on public banking, League of Women Voters of San Diego, Tom Ham’s Lighthouse Restaurant, 2150 Harbor Island Dr., San Diego

    1041. Oct. 22, Presentation on public banking, DSA San Diego, Unite Here Union Hall, 2436 Market Street, San Diego, 6-7:30 pm.

    1040. Oct 16-18, keynote speaker, Economics of Happiness conference, Jeonju, South Korea

    1039. Oct. 6, 6 pm pst, interview, Jeff Rense Radio.

    1038. Sept 30, noon EST, radio interview with Pauline Salotti, WUSB, Stony Brook, NY, 90.1 FM, wusb.fm.

    1037. Sept. 26, 7 pm presentation, “Exploding the Myths of Money and Banking,” New Paradigm College, Lake County, CA

    1036. Sept. 20, podcast interview, Silver Doctors

    1035. Sept. 19, 8-9 pm pst, interview, Jeff Rense Radio.

    1034. Interview, Sept. 13 at 5 pm–6 pm on KPFZ, Lake County community Radio, 88.1 FM.

    1033. Sept. 6, Live with Ernest Hancock, 11 am EST (at 2 hour mark on video)

    1032. Aug. 26, interview with Jason Hartman, Creating Wealth Show, 12:00 pm PST.

    1031. Aug. 9, interview with Lauren Steiner, youtube

    1030. July 25, youtube podcast with Sarah Westall, “This is Why China Is Winning”

    1029. July 23, interview with Steve Bhaerman, Wiki Politiki Radio Show, 2 pm pst.

    1028. July 19, interview with Kevin Barrett,  truthjihadradio, 5 pm PST

    1027. July 12, 11 am pst, interview with Annie Esposito and Steve Scalmanini, “Corporations & Democracy,” Mendocino County, CA, www.KZYX.org

    1026. Interview with Crystal Arnold, Money-Wise Women, posted July 10

    1025. July 9, interview with Liz Lane, “It’s the Economy,” KGNU Boulder/Denver/Ft. Collins, 6 pm MDT/8 pm EDT.

    1024. June 23, interview with Mark Anielski, “The Economics of Well-being”

    1023. June 15, interview with Tom Allen, “This Week in Money,” HoweStreet.com

    1022. June 13, Interview with Sinclair Noe, “Financial Review,” MoneyRadio1510.com (pre-recorded)

    1021. June 12, 2 pm, interview on Princeton Community TV, Princeton NJ, “The Public Banking Solution” with Walt McRee

    1020. June 1, interview with Sylvia Richardson, “Latin Waves” radio podcast.

    1019.  Apr. 5, interview with Phillip Watt, healbyhypnosis.com, 3 pm, PT

    1018.  April 3, panel discussion on Green New Deal, BBC World Service, “The Balance”

    1017.  March 28, interview on Thom Hartmann show.

    1016. March 22, interview with Sinclair Noe, Money Radio 1510 

    1015.  March 11, interview with Phillip Farruggio, greanvillepost.com, 11 a.m. EST

    1014.

    1013.  Feb. 9, interview with Sylvia Richardson, Latin Waves, 8 a.m. PT

    1012.  Feb. 8, interview with Kevin Barrett,  truthjihadradio, 6 pm, PST

    1011. Jan. 31, interview with Lee Camp, LeeCampComedySpecial.com

    1010.  Jan. 3, interview with Robert Stark, The Stark Truth with Robert Stark, re The Green New Deal  https://www.starktruthradio.com/?p=8534

    — 2018 —

    1009.  Dec. 17, interview with Scott Harris, WPKN radio, Bridgeport, CT, Between the Lines Radio Newsmagazine, 9:30 ET

    1008. Nov. 2, Interview with Mike Prysner on Real News Network, https://therealnews.com/stories/will-public-banking-free-la-from-wall-street

    1007. Oct. 31, interview on Real News Network, Student Debt Dogs Millenials for a Lifetime and Drags Down the Economy, https://therealnews.com/stories/student-debt-dogs-millennials-for-a-lifetime-and-drags-down-the-economy

    1006. Oct. 22, speaker with Gar Alperovitz at Praxis Peace Institute, “Changing the System: California’s Strategic Role in National Strategic Change,” Sonoma, CA, 276 E. Napa St, Sonoma. 7:00 pm.

    1005. Oct 19-21, Bioneers Conference, panelist on Oct 20, 2:45 pm, Marin Center, San Rafael, CA.997.

    1004. Oct. 18, 350Marin.org, speaking along with Susan Harman, 750 Lindaro Street, San Rafael CA, 6:30pm.

    1003. Oct. 17, video interview with Abby Martin, work in progress.

    1001.  Oct. 11, Interview with Harvey Wasserman, Greenpower and Wellness, prn.fm, KPFK Los Angeles, 2 pm

    1000.  Oct. 9, speaker, State Bank Forum, University of Washington, Kane Hall, 7-9pm http://sdc.wastateleg.org/hasegawa/state-bank/

    999. Oct. 7, panel, Americans for Democratic Action of Southern California Annual Garden Party, 2-5:30 pm, Santa Monica, CA

    998.  Oct. 4, 7:30 pm, Living Economy Salon, panelist, Public Bank LA: “Solutions for Social and Environmental Justice”, 3110 Main St., Annex Building C 2nd Floor, Santa Monica, CA 90405

    997. Oct. 3, interview on Unmediated, podcast of Reader Magazine, episode title: Making Money The Public’s Slave (The Public Banking Solution), 10 a.m.  PT

    996. Oct. 1, radio interview, “The Power Hour,” www.thepowerhour.com, 2 pm

    995. Sept. 28, interview with Sinclair Noe, Money Radio 1510, pre-recorded for a later date

    994.  Sept. 20-22, California Vision 2020 Conference, speaking at 11 am on Sept 20, Sheraton Grand Hotel , Sacramento.

    993.  Sept. 10, interview with Lila Garrett on KPFK, “Connect the Dots”, http://www.kpfk.org/on-air/connect-the-dots/  7. a.m. PT

    992. Sept. 4, interview with Steve Bhaerman, Wikipolitiki Radio, wikipolitiki.com, 2 pm PT

    991. Aug. 31, interview with Kevin Barrett, truthjihadradio. 6 pm PT

    990. Aug. 26, Left Coast Forum, 1:30 pm, Los Angeles Trade Tech

    989. Aug. 22, interview, the Gary Null Show, 9:40 PST

    988. Aug. 14, podcast interview with Sarah Westall, 9 am pst/11 am cst

    987. Aug. 8, interview with Tom Allen, “This Week in Money”, HoweStreet.com

    986.  Aug. 9, interview with Sinclair Noe, Money Radio 1510, pre-recorded for a later date

    985. Aug. 3, 9-10 pm pst, radio interview with True Ott

    984. Aug 2, New York Green Party video livestream,  5 pm PST

    983.  Aug. 1, interview with Elizabeth Dougherty, The Dougherty Report, Newsradio 102.5 WFLA, 3 pm PST

    982. July 21, guest on WakingupinAmerica.com, 6:45 a.m., PDT

    981.  June 28, interview on MONEY RADIO with Sinclair Noe, 11:00 a.m., PST

    980. May 16, “It’s Our Money,” PRN.FM, 3 pm est

    979. May 16, interview with Michael Welch, Global Research, 11 am pst

    978. May 4, First Unitarian Church, Portland, power point presentation, “How Public Banking Would Benefit Portland and Oregon”, 7-9 pm

    977.  April 17, Retirement Lifestyle Advocates radio program, 1 pm PT

    976.  April 13, interview, the Gary Null Show, 9:35 a.m., PT. Subject: The Bayer-Monsanto Merger Is Bad News for the Planet.

    975. April 12 “Mind Over Matters,” KEXP, Seattle, 9 am PT 

    974. April 5, interview with Deb Hobson, KOPN 89.5  Democracy Now! Chautauqua, 4 pm PT

    973. Mar. 10-12, PBI retreat, Loveland, CO

    972.  Mar. 22 interview with Sinclair Noe, The Financial Review, Money Radio 510, 1:30 pm PST

    971.  Mar. 19, Coast to Coast AM radio, 10pm-midnight, PST

    970.  Feb. 28, interview with Ian Trottier, Miami Radio, http://iantrottier.com/, 5:15 pm EST.  Listen here, bit.ly/EllenBrownCA

    969. Jan. 23. 18th National Conference and Global Forum: The Science Business, and Education of Sustainable Infrastructure, Washington DC, panel

    968.  Jan. 20, Interview with Primo Nutmeg https://soundcloud.com/primonutmeg

    967.  Jan. 17, It’s Our Money, 3 pm est–listen here.

    966.  Jan. 17, interview with Valerie Kirkgaard, http://www.wakingupinamerica.com, 2 pm PST

    965.  Jan. 2, Interview withJeff Rense, rense.com, 9 pm PST

    — 2017 and before, see —

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