Abundance - Ezra Klein & Derek Thompson [Economics Series] (TBC)

N.B: Date to be confirmed and RSVP opens 4 weeks in advance.

Join us for a discussion of Abundance by Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson.
The synopsis and some tentative discussion questions are below. If as you read, you encounter some thought-provoking lines and/or find yourself wrestling with some burning questions, please note them down and bring them to the discussion!
Whether you’ve read the whole book or just want to explore some of its central ideas, you’re welcome to join; and if you need help accessing the text, please feel free to reach out to me directly.

Synopsis:
In Abundance, Klein argues that many of the most pressing problems facing advanced democracies—housing shortages, climate transition delays, infrastructure stagnation, and rising costs—stem less from a lack of resources than from institutional bottlenecks and political veto points that make building difficult. He contends that well-intentioned regulatory regimes, procedural safeguards, and fragmented governance structures have constrained state capacity and slowed public investment, particularly in liberal cities and states. The book calls for a renewed focus on supply, institutional reform, and pro-building politics, framing “abundance” not as deregulation for its own sake but as a project of restoring democratic governments’ ability to deliver material progress at scale.

Discussion Questions (subject to revision):

1. Klein argues that scarcity in housing, energy, and infrastructure is often politically constructed rather than economically inevitable. How persuasive do you find this claim?
2. Does the emphasis on “building more” risk underestimating environmental, community, or equity concerns that motivated regulatory expansion in the first place?
3. To what extent are procedural safeguards (environmental review, zoning, public input) essential democratic protections versus obstacles to collective action?
4. Is the book’s focus on supply-side reform compatible with progressive redistribution, or does it implicitly sideline questions of inequality?
5. How does Klein’s argument compare to other critiques of state capacity or neoliberal governance?
6. Does the diagnosis apply equally to national governments, states/provinces, and cities, or is it primarily a local governance problem?
7. What political coalition would be required to implement the reforms Klein envisions?
8. After engaging with the book, do you see the path to prosperity primarily in redistributing existing wealth or in expanding overall capacity—and what trade-offs does that entail?

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