Our Blog
Building Fellows
Creating the talent
to power a flourishing progress movement
Introducing the inaugural 2023 cohort of Roots of Progress blogging fellows! Selected from nearly 500 applicants, these intellectuals are eager to write themselves into the progress movement.
These are experienced writers: many of them have published in mainstream media outlets, work for relevant think tanks, or have newsletters with over 10k subscribers. They bring expertise from varied backgrounds—from students to academics, from neuroscience to economics, from construction to bio-tech to finance. They’re covering topics from housing reform to nuclear power to the meaning of utopia. Most importantly, they are all excited to use the blog-building intensive to become better at being intellectual entrepreneurs for progress. They’ll sharpen their ideas by discussing them with each other, learn new writing skills and processes, grow by receiving feedback from professional editors and peers alike, and increase their impact by growing their audiences.
We’re thrilled to have such a great community come together. The tide of history isn’t always carried by the side with the best ideas. It is carried by the side with the intellectuals who are best at presenting and arguing for its ideas. Here’s to 20 intellectuals being empowered to establish the intellectual base of the progress movement!
Alex Telford
Investigating life science innovation
Alex is interested in using writing as a tool to explore important questions in biology, the business of biotech, and sustainable biomedical innovation. Alex studied biochemistry at university, and subsequently worked for nearly 7 years as a consultant to life science companies. In September 2023, he left his consulting job to found Convoke, a software start-up serving the biopharma industry.
While working with biotech and pharmaceutical clients, Alex experienced first-hand the challenges that these firms face in trying to bring new drugs to market. Born out of a desire to better understand his industry, Alex started his blog, where biomedical innovation and progress is a core topic area. Alex plans to continue to contribute to these topics and others in biology during this program, as he believes an understanding of how to sustainably research and innovate in the life sciences is critical to our continued health, longevity, and understanding of our place in the universe.
Reads textbooks for fun
Alex lives in Switzerland, where he enjoys spending time in nature: skiing, hiking, or swimming in lake Zurich. When he’s staying indoors (and not working), Alex is often reading, programming, scrolling Twitter, or playing board/video games with friends. Alex has had a lifelong interest in science, and makes an effort to keep up to date with new discoveries (with a special interest in consciousness). Alex’s newest hobby is bouldering, which he got into this year – his goal is to climb a V6 by the end of 2024.
Brian Balkus
Advocate for radical construction methods
My professional background has primarily revolved around corporate strategy and market intelligence in the engineering/construction sector working for firms who specialize in designing and building large energy and power infrastructure projects. I have become fascinated about why we seemingly can’t build these projects well in the U.S. and have written about this and other topics as a correspondent for Palladium Magazine.
Obsessive Midwestern researcher living in a surf town
I have two young children who take up most of my time outside of work. Living in Southern California, their lives revolve around frequent trips to Disneyland, the pool, and the beach which is very different from my own childhood in the Midwest.
Connor O’Brien
Researching how and why “place” matters
I’m a researcher at a U.S. think tank that is primarily concerned with place-based policy and all the ingredients that go into successful localized clusters of talent, investment, and creation. Given how rare and how important they are, I’m interested in exploring the kinds of policies that make such clusters more likely to grow and thrive.
Masochist runner
A majority of my free time is spent reading, running, or watching New York Mets baseball. The latter two have never been kind to me. I’m always working through some kind of running injury big or small and the Mets are, to put it mildly, continually disappointing. But the small moments of joy in the midst of it all keep me coming back to each.
Elle Griffin
Utopian thinker
Elle Griffin writes The Elysian, a weekly newsletter thinking through a better future (Mondays) and utopian fiction bringing it to life (Fridays). She is currently studying 2000+ years of utopian thought and is exploring how we can better capitalism, democracy, and the systems that support humanity.
Author and artist
Elle Griffin is inspired by art in all forms! She spends her spare time reading and writing fantasy novels. She loves wandering museums, attending the theater, and being moved to tears by a Broadway musical. She adores singing and dancing ballet and is currently getting into drawing and ceramics.
Fin Moorhouse
Figuring out our potentially wild future
I have an effective altruism background, and I’ve researched and written about existential risks, space governance, and pandemics — mostly while at Oxford University’s Future of Humanity Institute. I also co-host a podcast where I speak to experts on AI, law, biosecurity, and more. I’m excited to learn and write about new ideas that matter for making (sustainable) progress.
Two-wheeled dilettante
These days I can often be found reading, cycling the countryside around Oxford, and doing Brazilian jiu jitsu (or wrestling). I also enjoy finding new music and new houseplants, playing chess badly, and acquiring useless fun facts.
Florian Metzler
Radical reimagination of what is possible in science & technology
I’ve been interested in radical technological change throughout my life. This led me to become a research scientist at MIT, where I work on ways to decouple nuclear energy from radioactivity and also on ways in which policy can promote radical innovation. To better understand drivers that underlie radical innovation I have also dug into the history, philosophy, and sociology of science. Another interest of mine is the role that quantum principles play in living organisms and the human brain. I was born and raised in Germany but have lived most of my adult life in China and the US. Across my twelve years at MIT, I have worked for or obtained degrees from six departments: engineering systems, nuclear engineering, electrical engineering, materials science, data science, and political science. I am bilingual in German and English and fluent in Chinese.
Exploring consciousness between Boston and Berlin
I go back and forth between the US East Coast and Central Europe. I particularly enjoy the rich intellectual tapestry of Boston and the urban diversity of Berlin. I can be frequently found on the shores of Walden Pond or Wannsee, in a cafe at Harvard Square or Kreuzberg, or strolling along the Charles River or the Tempelhofer Feld. I am deeply interested in consciousness and the philosophical, psychological, and physical attempts to better understand it.
Grant Dever
Thinking about power laws
Grant grew up in a small town outside of Rochester, NY. There he developed a deep appreciation for nature, community and friendship, and the internet. Although Grant has been posting online since he was in his early teens, his formal writing career accelerated when he published his book, Lead The Future: Strategies and Systems for Emerging Leaders. His current research and writing interests are focused on energy abundance, local leadership, and the social implications of new technologies. Grant is a Resident Fellow at the Foundation for Research on Equal Opportunity.
Barbell Ambivert
Grant oscillates between being a part-time Austin socialite and a gamer recluse. He loves to host house parties or spend an evening sitting at a patio picnic table bantering with his friends and strangers. Grant has cumulatively spent over one year of his life traveling and living abroad in Europe, China, and Israel. He aspires to one day own a home with just enough room for a family, a guest room, and a squat rack.
Jacob Rintamaki
“Explaining Space, Biotech and AI”
I started as a battery chemist at Case Western, working at a battery informatics and a cement startup before I came to Stanford. Here, I fell in love with space and biotech, which led to me almost dropping out to become a research engineer at Retro Biosciences. My aim with this program is to better understand and communicate technical and cultural topics in space, AI, and biotech. These fields are not only incredibly exciting but are vital to a future of abundance and wonder if done right.
“Don’t Try This At Home”
Obnoxiously Midwestern. Archer. Climber. Runner (recovered). I almost blew up my garage after making a bioreactor. I have a golden retriever puppy named Potato. I’ve gigged in New Orleans and became semi-(in)famous after trying to build a rollercoaster next to my dorm. Lasagna lover.
Jenni Morales
Energy Abundance Advocate
Jennifer grew up surrounded by nature in northern Utah. She has always been fascinated by humans’ relationship with nature and with how we harness natural resources to improve and transform our lives. She has a degree in Economics which influences how she approaches research problems—always asking what the tradeoffs are and whether a given policy actually results in the intended outcome. During the workshop, she wants to write about a pro-human, pro-growth vision for the future and the role that energy plays in progress.
Seasonal produce stand patron
Many interests have come and gone, but two have always been a part of my life—reading and enjoying the outdoors. Sometimes I even do both at the same time. A recent personal accomplishment is that for maybe the first time ever, I’m beating my brother on having the best summer sandal tan line. Other things I enjoy are spending time with my husband, buying more jackets than I can realistically wear, and following women’s soccer.
Jeremy Côté
Illuminating invisible infrastructure
Hi everyone, I’m Jeremy! I studied physics to sharpen my mathematical toolbox and to understand how the world works. This same curiosity brought me to progress studies. During the program, I’ll explore two topics: how we improved at weather and climate forecasting, and the invisible infrastructure enabling our daily lives. These topics matter because we rely on them every day in both our lives and as a civilization, yet making progress on them required humans working purposefully at the forefront of science and technology. I want to tell those stories.
Can’t get enough sports
At my core, I’m an athlete. Outside of work, I love competing, playing so many different sports, and pushing myself to improve. Running is my main sport though, and I think there’s no better way to start my day than jumping out of bed and going for a run! (Okay, I may be in the minority here…) When I’m not playing sports, I give back to my community by coaching youth sports like basketball, soccer, and cross-country running. Working with athletes is so rewarding, and I love helping them grow in their sport and as people.
Laura London
Drought is a Policy Choice
Laura has been interested in water abundance ever since moving to drought-stricken Los Angeles. After digging deeper, she came to an alarming realization: California has been unable to increase water capacity for 40+ years, despite a ~70% increase in population. Her professional background in writing started 7 years ago as a freelance editor. Now, she writes a blog focused on California’s water supply issues, what caused them, and what cultural and policy changes are required to restore progress in the west.
Saving my cats from Dehydration
As a native Texan, Laura grew up reveling in Austin’s lush greenbelts and wading through creeks shaded by towering trees. Since relocating to arid Los Angeles, she’s missed those verdant refuges. However, the downpour of exceptionally wet years offers opportunity. She relishes lacing up her sneakers and hitting the muddy paths, in order to be surrounded by babbling brooks and whole hillsides turned vivid with wildflowers. The earthy petrichor scent in the air evokes treasured childhood memories. These rare days let her rediscover the joy of playing in creeks, even amidst LA’s concrete sprawl.
Maarten Boudry
Fostering progress by understanding its enemies.
I’ve been fascinated by human progress ever since I first learned about the yawning gap between the way we think the world is, and the way it actually is (Hans Rosling’s ‘Ignorance Project’). When I first heard about the amazing achievements of humanity over the past 200 years, I was (pleasantly) shocked. Why didn’t anyone ever tell me this? Progress is something precious, recent and fragile, and it does not happen of its own accord. To facilitate further progress, we need to believe that progress is possible. My previous academic work deals with the pitfalls and foibles of human reason, and I think this will be useful for progress studies. Presenting people with beautiful facts and figures will not be sufficient. We need to understand where pessimism, cynicism and catastrophism are coming from.
Philosopher fond of felines (and pianos)
Two more things that give me joy in my life (apart from being grateful about progress): I have a feisty tuxedo cat named Winston Purrchill, and I play jazz piano (unfortunately, the two are not very compatible, as my cat hates my piano, since he is competing for attention with it).
Madeline Zimmerman
Defense Tech Solutionist
Madeline writes about the procurement, development, and fielding of defense technology as well as the specific organizations and people enabling or hindering progress. While weapons and war may appear to be the inverse of progress, there is a rich history of commercial technology originating with or being facilitated by the state. Even more important, deterrence remains the vital pillar upon which progress has the freedom and safety to occur. Madeline works at Palantir where she focuses on business development with the U.S. Air Force and Space Force. She previously worked at Synapse, an AI security startup acquired by Palantir.
Pole Artist
Madeline started pole dancing during Covid and immediately fell in love with this unique form of art and sport. Despite running Division I track in college, Madeline was never able to do a pull-up until she began pole (and can now do multiple!). Her family and friends have been nothing but supportive of this untraditional hobby, and her dad and brother helped install a pole in her one bedroom apartment. Madeline has performed multiple times at the acclaimed NYC show Schtick a Pole in It, which she convinced her entire extended family to attend.
Malcolm Cochran
We can have it all
Early in his education, Malcolm noticed a contradiction; we constantly hear about everything that’s wrong with the world, but most evidence shows things are getting better. After graduating from college, he began working for Human Progress, an organization dedicated to publicizing long-term improvements in human well-being. Malcolm is currently focused on countering the narrative that modern civilization is at odds with the rest of life on Earth, an idea he believes could jeopardize humanity’s future.
Sweating and simmering
Malcolm is happiest when hiking, swimming in rivers, and foraging in the woods. Living in downtown D.C. makes those activities rare, but he gets along by periodically expropriating a friend’s car and heading to the Shenandoah. Between trips, he enjoys domestic and urban pleasures like cooking stews and public bathing.
Max Tabarrok
Science of Science; Progress on Progress
I started writing online in college, but I grew up surrounded by economists and bloggers so debating and discussing ideas has always been a big part of my life. I got interested in progress through two observations. First is what Diedre McCluskey calls “The Great Fact:” The immense growth of humanity since the industrial revolution. Second is “The Great Stagnation:” Poor policy choices have slowed growth, but that means better ones can have a huge compounding impact. Progress is imperative but not inexorable.
I am currently researching meta-science at Dartmouth. Science is at the heart of progress, but our systems for producing and evaluating it are rudimentary. I am planning to write more about the past, present, and future of science.
Married, Minivan, Multi-instrumentalist, Minecraft
I got engaged this May to my high school sweetheart!
I took out all of the back seats from my mom’s old minivan and built a ~queen size bed platform back there that me and my fiancee have used for 3 road trips (so far).
I play the bass guitar, piano, and (very recently) the drums.
I also play lots of video games. My all time favorites are Minecraft and Europa Universalis 4. I think that Minecraft is the best game of all time by many measures, but I predict that it will be the most popular game among any from the past 50 years in 50 years time.
Paige Lambermont
Advocating for reliable energy production
Paige’s main interests are in the way that energy and technology can come together to make people’s lives better, her work as a Policy Analyst at the Institute for Energy Research focuses on the essentiality of reliable power for industry and private life, with a focus on the role of nuclear power in solving power provision problems as well as the technological developments that decades of space exploration have unlocked.
She has a bachelor’s degree in Political Science from American University, a Master’s degree in Public Administration from the University of Idaho, and a very full bookshelf.
Reading anything and everything
Paige’s two favorite hobbies are reading and hiking. She is a huge fan of Agatha Christie mysteries (her cat’s name is Agatha) as well as science fiction and fantasy books, and reads enthusiastically across most genres. She believes that a love of reading and good writing go hand in hand, and can always make time for a good book.
She also loves hiking and other outdoor pursuits, and spends time hiking alone or with friends and family whenever possible. This combines well with her love of travel, as she finds opportunities to explore nearby trails wherever she goes.
Raiany Romanni
Shifting the ethics, policy, and philosophy of life extension
Raiany spends most of her time thinking about how converging technologies will transform governments and human nature in the coming decades.
She’s particularly interested in why secular humans narrate aging as a net-positive, teleological phenomenon—and in the negative effects of this narrative on economies and people. She has written for outlets including The Washington Post, The Boston Globe, and ABC, and is currently working on a book aimed at shifting the ethics, policy, and philosophy of life extension.
In short, Raiany likes to tell stories about the stories humans like to tell themselves on the value of aging and death, and on the nature of progress.
Conflicted lover of poems, U.S. innovation, and quaint towns
In her free time, Raiany can be found baking, geeking out about Newport, RI, or reciting spooky German poetry. Raiany comes from Brazil, but at heart, she’s less Latina than Eastern European (she did live in Poland for five years). Since moving to America, she has channeled her love for quaint European towns into semi-quaint New England. She’ll admit, on occasion, that New England towns are only ever half pretty — with the dubious exception of Newport, RI, which could maybe (she argues) win a quaintness contest against, say, Cinque Terre in Italy.
Raiany likes to daydream of living in a small town on the mountains of Switzerland, just like Nietzsche before her. But really, she could never trade the thrill of U.S. innovation for a perennially quiet writing desk. This is perhaps the central dilemma of her life.
Ryan Puzycki
Advocate for Livable Cities
Ryan has been in love with cities since childhood and has lived in several, including New York, Boston, San Francisco, London, Madrid, Tokyo, and now Austin. While he has written professionally as an equity research analyst and elsewhere on a range of political and cultural topics, his experience building and managing Montessori schools in New York and San Francisco galvanized his interest in urbanism and local politics. In Austin, he sits on the Austin Monitor’s Strategic Advisory Council and the board of AURA, Austin’s grassroots urbanist organization, and has been active in the local and state housing reform movement.
Gourmand for Life
Ryan loves to entertain and can regularly be found at home preparing gourmet meals and sharing wine with friends, often inspired by his travels abroad with his husband. When not at home, Ryan is usually eating at some great local restaurant, listening to live music at the Austin Symphony or Stubb’s, working out at the gym downtown, or taking his Boston Terrier for a walk around the neighborhood. He loves architecture and design, he’s written one (unpublished) novel, he reads avidly, and he’s been involved in only one horse stampede.
Tina Marsh Dalton
Turning confusion into clarity in healthcare
Tina is a professor of economics who has been researching how healthcare markets work (or don’t work!) for over 15 years. Her research focuses on improving healthcare by analyzing the efficiency of markets providing care, information’s impact on patient and provider choices, and how policy impacts health outcomes both regionally and nationally. While delving deeply into policy, regulation, and data, she felt a great need to make economic insights more accessible to those actually working in healthcare. Her goal is to be a positive, constructive, and maybe even humorous voice to educate healthcare decision-makers on economic fundamentals and improve outcomes by connecting policies to the bigger picture.
Finding joy in the ensemble
Tina loves collaboration both professionally and personally, especially in music. She plays the cello, piano, and can often be found Christmas caroling around the neighborhood with her ukulele. She takes her culture both high and low, performing Saint-Saëns concertos, Chopin waltzes, and once being part of an indie band with an album based around the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. She loves how music connects people across time and cultures, and enjoys bridging the two with travel and learning new languages.