On today’s show, host Esty Dinur is joined by Norma Wong to talk about her new book, When No Thing Works. Wong says that it’s not true that nothing works, but it is true that there are many things that aren’t working. She wants people practice what she calls “collective acceleration” to counteract how everything is moving faster and faster toward devolution. This could look like envisioning better forms of governance (not governments), learning from the knowledge of Indigenous peoples, and creating circles of mutuality and support.

Wong reflects on Hawaii’s early response to the COVID pandemic, in which the people of the islands overwhelming supported mask mandates and social distancing because they understood that strict safety measures were good for their communities. She says that the strong sense of liberty–of people doing whatever they want whenever they want–in the American psyche runs contrary to the needs of people living with and supporting each other.

Wong also tells listeners about a 100 hours of science livestream that started after the Trump administration fired scientists from the NOAA and other agencies. She advises that people do small things to create a better world rather than fighting everything that you are ideologically opposed to.

Norma Wong, a life-long resident of Hawaiʻi, is a descendant of Native Hawaiians and Hakka Chinese immigrants. She has decades of experience in organizing, policy, strategy, and politics in Hawaiʻi, particularly in the area of Native Hawaiian issues, serving in the Hawaii State Legislature and as a policy lead and negotiator for Governor John Waiheʻe, Hawaiʻi’s first Native governor. Norma began her spiritual practice at the same time as her political life unfolded. These days, it is the intertwined application of Zen practice and an Indigenous worldview that Norma brings to provoke practical inquiry and redirect work. She is a thought partner, a strategist, and a teacher.

Featured image of the cover of Norma Wong’s book, When No Thing Works.

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