Meet the Board: Kirk Stambler
Kirk Stambler
An interview with Planetary Sunshade Foundation Board Member, Kirk Stambler - lawyer, producer and storyteller. Kirk became a space enthusiast as a kid before applying his science mind to the world of entertainment. Kirk moved to Los Angeles in 1993 to work at Warner Brothers. Since then, he’s produced and developed content across the industry bringing his unique skill set to each project.
“Narrative is incredibly important to shaping outcomes in any endeavor”
What were the formative science fiction books or films in your youth that sparked your interest in space and planetary systems?
The Wonderful Flight to the Mushroom Planet is a beautiful children’s book about two boys and their spaceship that had a huge impact on me growing up as did Walter Cronkite's “The 21st Century.” In addition to being the country's most trusted newsman, Walter Cronkite anchored CBS's coverage of NASA's rocket launches and hosted a TV show in the 1960s that talked about what the future would be like in the 21st Century. TV shows about space were big when I was a kid. I Dream of Jeannie was a sitcom about a NASA astronaut who found a bottle containing a scantily clad female genie whom he ended up marrying. Star Trek is bound up with the idea of humans overcoming their destructive tendencies and building a better world. I loved all of those shows. As for movies, 2001, A Space Odyssey, fired up my imagination.
What books are on your nightstand right now?
Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari, Lion by Sonya Walger, The Daily Stoic by Ryan Holiday
How do you see the relationship between speculative fiction and real-world space policy development?
Speculative science fiction allows us to dream of possibilities and then look for ways to make them real.
What inspires you about the planetary Sunshade project?
“It’s a generational challenge that can give people meaning at a time when many feel powerless and hopeless.”
-Kirk Stambler
The planetary sunshade project is a bold and audacious attempt to save our world through science, technology and cooperation. Solving the climate crisis is a generational challenge that has the potential to give people meaning at a time when many feel powerless and hopeless.
How do you approach the challenge of translating a concept often found in science fiction into a scientifically and politically feasible initiative?
As people's feelings of hopelessness and helplessness have risen, it sometimes seems that we can no longer solve our problems... that nothing gets done and things only get worse.
However, there have been times in history -- the war against fascism, the race to the moon -- where entire countries mobilized behind an idea, but things like that do not happen in a vacuum. People made films. They wrote books. They went out and convinced others that it was a good idea to do these things, to make all the necessary sacrifice. Later, many of the people who lived through those times remember them as among the most important and meaningful parts of their lives.
Lately, it has been hard to find that kind of collective sense of purpose in our society. I think the planetary sunshade mission has the potential to overcome the cynicism and resignation that people feel today. Overcoming that cynicism, resignation and hopelessness must be a fundamental part of the project's success.
What values do you want to bring to the board of Sunshade foundation?
The Latin phrase “non sibi” means not for oneself. To me, this is one of the highest ideals imaginable. Whatever else we do for ourselves in this life, I believe we have an obligation to try to make the world a better place for others. To me, the planetary sunshade project is all about that. This is not a project that is primarily about individual glory but about trying to do something that has the potential to help a lot of people and hopefully save our planet.
A long time ago while I was still thinking about applying to medical school, I took a year long biology course with an amazing textbook called "Life on Earth" by the Nobel laureate E.O. Wilson. This textbook laid out all of the existential problems that we are still facing today. The last chapter was entitled “Defeat by Default." The main point was that although we have the technological ability to solve these problems, doing so would require a level of cooperation among human beings that has never been seen in human history.
To me, that is the core issue: How to overcome “defeat by default.” I believe the only way to convince people to do what needs to be done is through creating compelling narratives that reach people on an emotional level. That's why I think storytelling is so important. The Planetary Sunshade Foundation can and should be a curated repository of knowledge about climate change and the potential of geoengineering for the benefit of all mankind.
Lightning Round:
Mars or Moon? Moon - mostly because we need the Moon for the planetary sunshade.
Dune or Star wars? Star Wars but I love Dune too.
More likely: net zero or asteroid mining? Both are necessary
Favorite Space Movie(s)? Galaxy Quest… Starman, The Empire Strikes Back, and The Wrath of Khan.
What Space technology do want to mature immediately (not including the sunshade)
Warp drive, which permits travel at speeds faster than the speed of light and therefore exploration of the galaxy
Favorite space related show, podcast, or YouTube channel?
The Mandalorian… “This is the way.”
Interview by Tim Dougherty. Tim is an ambassador for the Planetary Sunshade Foundation. He is the author of Timelapse (Ten Speed Press, 2020) and is currently developing a new book exploring the next era of space infrastructure. He runs Lagrange Points, a media project focused on defining the geography of space and humanity’s future beyond Earth.