As you probably know, part of the pathway to the "great simplification" is to redirect much of our focus away from material consumption and toward intellectual, creative, and spiritual pursuits — a topic I plan to mention in the next Crisis and Transition post.
I am very happy to read your list of 5 pillars of post capitalism; they help sculpt my amorphous vision of a viable future.
To Jason’s excellent description of the galaxy of visions I would add “great simplification” (Nate Hagens). We are headed for a bottleneck, (population, economic, spiritual) and the leaner we are the more likely we are to get through.
Great piece Ronald. I resonate with the work of trying to develop a common vision. I am an ex-climate tech entrepreneur who writes about the Metacrisis and I am writing a piece called "Religion for the non-religious" that follows similar themes that you highlighted here. I am trying to see if sustainability and self-transcendence can serve as the twin pillars for a harmonious co-existence
In my next Crisis and Transition article I make mention self-transcendence and recognition of a transcendent entity as a pillar of what the spiritual teacher and philosophy P.R. Sarkar has termed "neo-ethics", and that he claims can eliminate the root cause of imperialism.
Thanks Ronald. I checked out the other piece. Neo-ethics seems like a powerful way forward. I will read more about it. The question I am concerned with in terms of figuring out a new economic model is- "How do you determine a fair allocation of resources?"
The planetary boundaries and minimum standard of living for everyone (say basic access to education, housing, healthcare and food) form the boundaries. But within this, how do you ensure people get a fair compensation for what they do and how do you avoid the problem of free loading?
The free market (in theory, since the market is anything but free) at least provides a way to address those questions through a negotiated exchange. Can you share any other mechanisms you might be aware of? Or is there some kind of a different orientation that we need altogether that eliminates the need of asking this question of fair allocation?
At this moment, I'm taking a break from writing my Substack article for next week, and which is my attempt at an answer to your very important question.
This is to say, I regard your question as too important to reply to in the comments section. It is of fundamental importance, and I have thoughts that require a little room to spread out on. So, please wait until next Tuesday for my reply.
Absolutely. You can tag me too here on Substack in the post- I have a background in climate tech and write a newsletter about the Metacrisis too :) Eager to read the potential solutions
Yes, thanks for asking. In an earlier C&T post, we made explicit what we regard as cardinal human values. I'll quote from that article:
"The [Crisis and Transition/PROUT] social objective rests on two “cardinal human values.” (The meaning space of “cardinal”, for those not familiar, incorporates elements of central, essential, of greatest importance, fundamental, vital, and so important as to be indispensable.)
"What are these cardinal human values? First, that there must be respect for all people — for all life, actually. (This doesn’t mean that we must respect all actions or beliefs or not protect ourselves from harm.) Second, there must be a universal outlook in which the welfare of living beings is given a higher priority than personal desires.
"If these two cardinal values are adopted within a society, then that society will naturally establish policies and programs — structural approaches — that reflect the depth and fullness of the human experience.
My source for these principles was the book, "Neohumanism: A Value Base for Society," which I edited and contributed to.
As you probably know, part of the pathway to the "great simplification" is to redirect much of our focus away from material consumption and toward intellectual, creative, and spiritual pursuits — a topic I plan to mention in the next Crisis and Transition post.
I am very happy to read your list of 5 pillars of post capitalism; they help sculpt my amorphous vision of a viable future.
To Jason’s excellent description of the galaxy of visions I would add “great simplification” (Nate Hagens). We are headed for a bottleneck, (population, economic, spiritual) and the leaner we are the more likely we are to get through.
Great piece Ronald. I resonate with the work of trying to develop a common vision. I am an ex-climate tech entrepreneur who writes about the Metacrisis and I am writing a piece called "Religion for the non-religious" that follows similar themes that you highlighted here. I am trying to see if sustainability and self-transcendence can serve as the twin pillars for a harmonious co-existence
In my next Crisis and Transition article I make mention self-transcendence and recognition of a transcendent entity as a pillar of what the spiritual teacher and philosophy P.R. Sarkar has termed "neo-ethics", and that he claims can eliminate the root cause of imperialism.
Thanks Ronald. I checked out the other piece. Neo-ethics seems like a powerful way forward. I will read more about it. The question I am concerned with in terms of figuring out a new economic model is- "How do you determine a fair allocation of resources?"
The planetary boundaries and minimum standard of living for everyone (say basic access to education, housing, healthcare and food) form the boundaries. But within this, how do you ensure people get a fair compensation for what they do and how do you avoid the problem of free loading?
The free market (in theory, since the market is anything but free) at least provides a way to address those questions through a negotiated exchange. Can you share any other mechanisms you might be aware of? Or is there some kind of a different orientation that we need altogether that eliminates the need of asking this question of fair allocation?
At this moment, I'm taking a break from writing my Substack article for next week, and which is my attempt at an answer to your very important question.
This is to say, I regard your question as too important to reply to in the comments section. It is of fundamental importance, and I have thoughts that require a little room to spread out on. So, please wait until next Tuesday for my reply.
Thanks Ronald. I await it eagerly!
Just sent the draft to my copy editor. I cite your comment. Would you be good with me also citing your name?
Absolutely. You can tag me too here on Substack in the post- I have a background in climate tech and write a newsletter about the Metacrisis too :) Eager to read the potential solutions
This is a brilliant piece that puts it all together, at least in my mind. However, could you please elucidate what you mean by cardinal human values?
Yes, thanks for asking. In an earlier C&T post, we made explicit what we regard as cardinal human values. I'll quote from that article:
"The [Crisis and Transition/PROUT] social objective rests on two “cardinal human values.” (The meaning space of “cardinal”, for those not familiar, incorporates elements of central, essential, of greatest importance, fundamental, vital, and so important as to be indispensable.)
"What are these cardinal human values? First, that there must be respect for all people — for all life, actually. (This doesn’t mean that we must respect all actions or beliefs or not protect ourselves from harm.) Second, there must be a universal outlook in which the welfare of living beings is given a higher priority than personal desires.
"If these two cardinal values are adopted within a society, then that society will naturally establish policies and programs — structural approaches — that reflect the depth and fullness of the human experience.
My source for these principles was the book, "Neohumanism: A Value Base for Society," which I edited and contributed to.
Absolutely! Resistance is not enough, nor is reform. As Ronald and those he draws from so insightfully state a new vision is required a new paradigm
Excellent article! I will share this with everyone I am connected to! Thank you!