Inequality & Environmental Destruction: How Economic Hitmen Keep Countries Poor | John Perkins

Global poverty isn't just a result of history - it's an active system designed to extract resources from developing countries while keeping them in debt. Former economic hitman John Perkins reveals how corporations and wealthy nations impoverish the places with the most resources, and why this threatens humanity's survival. We explore the connections between inequality, environmental destruction, and our global economic system, plus what each of us can do to transform the "death economy" into a "life economy." John Perkins spent decades as chief economist at a major consulting firm, advising the World Bank, International Monetary Fund, and Fortune 500 corporations on projects around the world. But he was actually functioning as an "economic hitman" - engineering massive debt that allows corporations to control developing countries' resources. Before that life, he lived in the Amazon rainforest studying with shamans, and he's continued that work alongside his career as an author, speaker and activist. His bestselling book "Confessions of an Economic Hitman" exposed how the global economy really works. His other books include “Shapeshifting”, "Touching the Jaguar", and most recently, the novel "Message from Pleiades." And he's a founder of the Pachamama Alliance, working with indigenous people to protect the Amazon rainforest and all of Earth’s ecosystems. TAKE ACTION: -- Share this episode with someone who needs to hear it -- Sign up for our email newsletter: https://www.thehumansurvivalproject.org/connect You can also watch this show on YouTube here: https://youtu.be/I5YEqBTb0wU ABOUT THE HUMAN SURVIVAL PROJECT: The Human Survival Project combines two essential truths: humanity faces existential threats to our civilization, and these global threats require global management through a redesigned and much stronger United Nations. We're building what's never existed before—a global grassroots movement that creates the citizen pressure needed to transform global governance. While others develop policy solutions, we mobilize the public support to implement them. Connect with us: Website: https://www.thehumansurvivalproject.org Newsletter: https://www.thehumansurvivalproject.org/connect Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thehumansurvivalproject Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thehumansurvivalproject TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@thehumansurvivalproject LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-human-survival-project This work is urgent. This moment in history demands action. Thank you for being part of this movement to protect humanity's future. RESOURCES: John Perkins’ website https://johnperkins.org John’s latest book, "Message From Pleiades" https://johnperkins.org/message-from-pleiades Pachamama Alliance https://pachamama.org/ Dream Change https://www.dreamchange.org/ The Divide, by Jason Hickel https://www.jasonhickel.org/the-divide TIMESTAMPS: 0:01 - Introduction 1:02 - The Human Survival Project - latest news 7:01 - John Perkins introduction and background 7:52 - What is an economic hitman? 10:15 - Shelby's perspective shift on global poverty 12:30 - How the corporate empire system works 16:53 - Who's really doing the corrupting? 21:18 - Why infrastructure money never reaches local communities 22:45 - Historical context - 200,000 years of human cooperation 24:00 - Global forces overwhelming indigenous communities 25:00 - Texaco in Ecuador - the propaganda and the reality 27:40 - Amazon destruction and environmental tipping points 28:49 - Amazon soil and climate cycles 30:32 - Economics destroying millions of years of evolution 31:00 - Mayan civilization - a cautionary tale 33:39 - Solutions: What should we do? 34:10 - Death economy vs. life economy 36:51 - Corporate responsibility and policy challenges 39:00 - The five questions for personal transformation 44:20 - We're all collaborators in the system 45:35 - American Revolution analogy - critical mass for change 47:06 - Arthur Ashe quote: "Start where you are" 47:53 - How can the world help developing countries? 49:53 - China's economic success vs. US mistakes 52:00 - Fair deals instead of exploitation 53:02 - Final thoughts and what we've missed 56:05 - John leading tours to the Amazon 57:01 - We're evolving as a species