# Editor’s Letter A beautifully made book is expensive to produce, and we cannot afford to publish two print editions a year. Yet every year we receive more submissions worthy of publication than a single print volume can hold — and some pieces, by their length or by the occasion that calls for them, deserve attention that a year's wait would not serve well. *Conspiratio Online* exists to fill that gap: a distinct, entirely digital publication, published between print editions, carrying long-form essays and time-sensitive work that should not be waiting in a queue. It is deliberately given a different look from the printed periodical, so that the two are never mistaken for one another — companions, not substitutes. This inaugural issue is dedicated to David Cartwright Cayley (1946–2026). David spent over three decades making documentaries for CBC Radio's *Ideas*. Within that long career, his work on Illich stands apart for us. *Ivan Illich in Conversation* (Anansi, 1992\) is still where I send anyone who wants an introduction to Illich. *The Rivers North of the Future* (Anansi, 2005\) changed how even Illich's closest readers understood what drove him. *Ivan Illich: An Intellectual Journey* (Penn State Press, 2021\) brought his whole life-in-thought back into view for readers new and old. David's writing on Illich was one friend bearing witness to another. I knew David for over thirty years. We grew closer after Ivan died. He published often in these pages, from the very first issue. Each fall for the last twenty-five years he drove down from Toronto to spend a long weekend with my partner and me. He and I would take a long walk through the fall foliage, across the golf course, and into the woods. His habit of stopping mid-conversation to peer at a leaf or watch a bird was a charming irritation. He loved creation and would pause to take it in. His commitment to our friendship was fierce — he came annually even when his gait grew unsteady. Our falls will forever be less vivid. David was also a crossing point. People drawn to Illich — by David’s books, radio programs, or blog — often found each other through him. This issue carries two of his manuscripts. The first is a long piece on Illich and Jung. The second is the draft of his introduction to a forthcoming reflection on the meaning of the Covid pandemic. Hernando Calla sent me a Spanish translation of his “Epilogue” to *Ivan Illich: An Intellectual Journey.* His daughter Kate graciously shared her remembrance of David. This issue commemorates a friend, a collaborator, and the foremost midwife to Ivan Illich's thought. Sajay Samuel September 4, 2026