It is culture that holds civilizations together. But it’s also culture that traps us in outdated thinking and isolates us into our protective bubbles. Culture can reinforce our habits, make us feel safe inside our prejudice and validate our behaviour.
And yet, it is our culture, our collective worldview, the promise that we make to each other, that creates the “political will” and offers us the opportunity to embrace and shape a future where all life on this planet can thrive.
For thousands of years our species lived in a world where we taught our children what we learned from our parents. Most individuals knew how to hunt or gather their own food, build their own shelter, find water, and transport themselves from place to place independently.
Now we live in a time when change has accelerated to the point where none of these things are true anymore. The consequences of pandemics, climate breakdown, instant global (mis)communication, and planetary crises have grown to a level of complexity that is leaving us all in the dust.