Bad Idea #18 "we’re addicted to fossil fuels" with Maarten Boudry

Saving the World From Bad Ideas · Jul 17, 2025 · 1h 6m · transcript

🔍 Episode Summary

Are we addicted to fossil fuels and can we just go cold turkey? Philosopher of science Maarten Boudry joins Mark Lynas to tackle Bad Idea #18:: “we’re addicted to fossil fuels”.

Drawing from his new book The Betrayal of the Enlightenment, Boudry offers a bold and clear-eyed critique of the dominant climate narrative. He argues that moralising fossil fuels as an "addiction" obscures both the complexity of the climate challenge and the role fossil fuels played in liberating billions from poverty, hunger, and hard labour.

Fossil fuels have undeniably caused environmental harm…