There is an alternative consensus emerging with many philosophers, economists and social theorists all appear to be arriving at a very similar conclusion. Essentially that we need to embrace an entirely new narrative based on the overarching principle of compassionate togetherness and then reengineer our society from the ground up.
Here is just a small selection (in alphabetical order) of some of the many new narratives emerging:
The Commons Economy & P2P Culture - Michel Bauwens & The P2P Foundation
Communalism & Social Ecology - Murray Bookchin
The Emergence Of Regenerative Culture - Magenta Ceiba & The Bloom Network. As well as Daniel Christian Wahl
The Progressive International - Ada Colau, Bernie Sanders, Yanis Varakoulous & Cornel West.
The Mythology of Interbeing - Charles Eiesenstein & Thich Nhat Hanh
The Listening Society & Metamodernism - Hanzi Frienhacht
The Great Turning - Joanna Macy
The New Human Rights Movement & The Resource Based Economy - Peter Joseph & TZM
A Politics Of Belonging - George Monbiot
The Web Of Meaning - Jeremy Lent
Local Futures: An Economics Of Happiness - Helena Norberg-Hodge
Earth Democracy & Seeding A Common Future - Vandana Shiva
The Extinction Rebellion & Climate Activists such as Greta Thunberg
While each of these narratives proposes a slightly different approach to reforming our social, economic and political systems, they all share a similar set of underlying values, and they each point towards a a future that is:
Regenerative
Collaborative
Community Based
Networked
Planetary In Scope
Interdependent
Empathic
Pluralist
Integrative
Anti Rivalrous
Participatory
Peer to Peer
Open Source
I like to think of this emerging vision for the future of our society as being a kind of Compassionate Global Village. And in the name of a healthy, diverse and yet philosophically aligned collection of new narratives that might help realise such a world, I’d now like to introduce one more, A Collective Blooming.
