Tag: New Great Transformation

It’s Not Just About Climate: The New Great Transformation is a Total Existential Threat and Opportunity

February 10, 2021

All the policy talk around the “climate emergency” is either technical with reference to the effects of carbon pollution, emissions-reduction goals, or political with reference to cost, employment, or other policy matters. But the predicament we face in confronting the climate emergency is far greater and more complex than usually imagined. Public climate-change policy leaders … More It’s Not Just About Climate: The New Great Transformation is a Total Existential Threat and Opportunity

Our Political Predicament and the New Great Transformation

January 25, 2021

Humanity, indeed the entire Earth System, now experiences not merely an evolutionary transition, but a full-blown New Great Transformation, unlike anything before. Already traumatized by a history of change, we find no simple answer to the need for both individual healing and societal transformation. The current rise of hate groups, neo-fascists, and bizarre conspiracy theories … More Our Political Predicament and the New Great Transformation

We Live in Interesting Times: Seeking Opportunities in Crises

March 30, 2020

We—the world’s population, that is—seem to have fallen victim to what is claimed to be an old Chinese curse, “May you live in interesting times.” The curse, of course, implies that “interesting times” involve deep troubles, crises and dangers shall beset its victims. On the other hand, we may want to turn to the ancient … More We Live in Interesting Times: Seeking Opportunities in Crises

Resilience Redux: Revisiting Mitigation and Adaptation as Climate Chaos, Ecosystem Collapse, and Extinctions Accelerate

May 28, 2019

The term “resilience” has become a two-edged sword. On the one hand, it projects the idea of humanity being able to do what we must to survive long term by changing human behavior. On the other hand, too many perceive the term to mean only our ability to adapt to conditions of life as they … More Resilience Redux: Revisiting Mitigation and Adaptation as Climate Chaos, Ecosystem Collapse, and Extinctions Accelerate

Seventy-Five and One

January 29, 2018

Oh my! Seventy-five! Seems like it happened just yesterday. Actually, it was two and a half years ago. Copper is no longer a puppy. Yet, full-grown now, she still has quite a lot of that puppy playfulness. I have not changed much. When I turned seventy-five years of AGE, three quarters of a century seemed … More Seventy-Five and One

Dangerous Transitions in the New Great Transformation

May 3, 2017

Humanity is entering a New Great Transformation like no other. This transformation is not the first, but it may be the last. That will depend on human action and whether we act quickly, both globally and locally. Perhaps the first great transformation was the discovery and control of fire, according to renowned biological anthropologist, Richard … More Dangerous Transitions in the New Great Transformation