What if we dared to imagine a world without poverty, exhausting workweeks, or closed borders? In Utopia for Realists, Rutger Bregman makes the case that such visions are not idle fantasies but possibilities grounded in history and research.
His proposals – a universal basic income, a 15-hour working week, and open borders — may sound radical, but Bregman reminds us that ideas once dismissed as utopian, such as democracy or universal suffrage, are now everyday realities. His point is clear: if we cannot picture alternatives, we cannot create them.
Bregman’s work is not a detailed policy manual but a call to expand our imagination. He invites us to step back from the dominant paradigm of endless growth and busyness and instead consider what truly matters for collective well-being. By shifting the horizon of what seems possible, he argues, we create space for new conversations and cultural change.
For those of us exploring new ways of living, Utopia for Realists offers both hope and challenge. You may not agree with all of Bregman’s ideas, but engaging with them sharpens our sense of what’s at stake. In times of uncertainty, the ability to imagine alternatives may be one of our most vital resources.
