For this episode of the SPA supported Post-Growth Australia Podcast (PGAP), we pay tribute to Dr. John Coulter, who sadly passed away in September 2024. John Richard Coulter (3 December 1930 – 6 September 2024) was a trailblazer in the conservation movement. This interview was originally broadcast in 2021 as part of the episode World Population Day 2021. We are re-releasing that conversation, as John’s thoughts, perspectives, and reflections resonate even more powerfully in retrospect. Co-hosts Mark Allen and Michael Bayliss share their reflections on the interview and John’s legacy. Particularly, his pioneering work in the early 1970s for the broader post-growth movement.
John remained an executive member of Sustainable Population Australia (SPA) until the end of his life. Through SPA, he fearlessly challenged mainstream media for neglecting critical issues such as overpopulation and the limits to growth. One of John’s final articles, “The Guiding Criminal Lie in Economics“, was published in Pearls and Irritations in 2024. A moving tribute in the same publication, “Vale Dr. John Coulter“, was written by former SPA President Jenny Goldie. In April 2024, John was invited to become a Patron of SPA—a role that he very much cherished during the brief months before his passing.
In memory of Dr John Coulter