S Y M P O S I U M
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Towards Planetary Consciousness?
Vuokko Jarva
University of Helsinki
Finland
The idea of global crisis as a temporal telescoping of unfavorable events has come into favor at
least since the 1973 oil crisis. Fritjof Capra (1982) diagnosed the multidimensional character of the
crisis as a Turning point. In Halal's and Marien's analysis the crisis also is multidimensional, caused
by influences from the human sphere, as well as both living nature and non-living nature spheres.
Both also consider the crisis as a threat to civilization as a whole. The basic difference is, that Capra
emphasizes its character as a crisis of the human mind and will, which Halal and Marien refer to
only indirectly. This is problematic, as will be discussed below through an alternative point of view.
Mythical Versus Real Agents
Halal and Marien analyze trends. The danger in doing so is that they can be treated as Real
Agents or determinants of development. A trend is only a time-series indicating human action,
results of it, or natural phenomena – and can take unexpected turns. Extrapolated trends are too
often believed to have strong truth-value. Trends are not mythical agents determining future devel-
opments.
Technologies are no more Real Agents than trends, especially when considering information
technology and artificial intelligence. Technologies are developed by humans for defined purposes,
which far too often stem from the wealthy and powerful. The Real Agents are those who decide
which kind of technology is created and who will have access. There cannot be much optimism if
technology is predominantly utilized for "gambling with the planet", as Nobelist Joseph Stiglitz
(2011) has phrased it.
However, there are movements of human action, which are not paid sufficient attention. They
are not only trends, but also deep-rooted processes and movements; undercurrents of human action.
The undercurrents of human action that deserve more attention are:
1. Localization. This undercurrent has its most visible expression in the formation of new
states, which begun in the twentieth century and still continues today. Inside the societies, it
makes its appearance both as democratic and revolutionary movements, like the Arab Spring
phenomenon of 2011. The economic democracy case can be seen in the microfinance pio-
neer Grameen Bank in Bangladesh, as well as the cooperative movements all around the
world. The third dimension of local democracy is expressed through the activities of the citi-
zens, local as well as international efforts.
Journal of Futures Studies, December 2011, 16(2): 115 - 120
Journal of Futures Studies
2. Planetization. Since Limits to Growth of 1972, the idea of planetary con-
sciousness has developed mainly into ecological consciousness. Lately, this has
culminated in a focus on the warming of the atmosphere. Though the dominant
politicians have not yet been ready to accept radical actions to save the living
planet, planetization has advanced on several other fronts. Gains in recycling,
utilization of renewable energy, green industry, protection of nature and green-
ing of lifestyles have accumulated quickly. To further help matters Erwin
Laszlo and Dalai Lama also drafted "The Manifesto on Planetary
Consciousness" in 2001.
3. Glocalization. This movement is the realizations of the Club of Rome principle
"think globally, act locally", and is thus a combination of the former two.
Movements like green consumption, permaculture, slow life, slow cities and
downshifting are spreading. One good example is the Green Belt movement in
Africa, headed by Nobelist Wangari Maathai. On the intellectual and scientific
level these good practices mesh with the recognition of the necessity to sustain
our living planet. They also draw attention to the necessity of unified human
action for the benefit of future generations of all living beings.
The changes in values, attitudes, policies, and lifestyle towards caring for our
planet, locally and globally, are spreading like rivulets of water through myriad human
communities. The only question is, when will they reach the critical mass of decisive-
ly influencing world affairs?
What drives all human activity is identification, belief and motivation.
Identification concerns the feeling of belongingness into a group or larger community,
inclusion over exclusion. Beliefs define a human beings perspective, values and atti-
tudes. Motivation is the futures-oriented tension between the present state and the
goals of a human agent or a collective. An analysis of the drivers and goals of each
four currents of human action are listed below.
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Towards Planetary Consciousness?
Table 1. Four present currents of human action, their drivers and goals
The probabilities of the four scenarios in case of each current becoming dominant
is studied in the table 2 below.
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Table 2. Probability of alternatives in relation to the existing currents, time interval
20-30 years
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Towards Planetary Consciousness?
Rise to Maturity or Shift of Power?
Halal and Marien use the expression "rise to maturity" in support of the human
evolution theory. This is in many ways dubious. The positive solutions are, following
my argument, in the existing undercurrents of human action, in strengthening and
empowering those, most notably in the glocalization current.
Radical changes in the power- and economical structures are a must. Gambling
with the planet has to be stopped, but is not possible through traditional means. In this
sense the situation really is a crisis: it cannot be solved without inventing new solu-
tions and empowering the planetary mindset of the masses into spontaneous action.
Information technology can be a valuable asset, if utilized to encourage and spread
this mindset.
There is one special blind spot in the analyses of our present problems, which
needs to be addressed: the catastrophic waste of human resources. In the sphere of
labor, incredible amounts of human work is wasted in production of vanities and misu-
tilities. The accumulating unemployment means a remarkable percentage of labor
force to be wasted. Poverty, war and malnutrition keep vast amounts of people unable
to develop and utilize their resources. All of this, combined with the inner loss of pur-
pose in life, is a huge resource, which is purposely being squandered.
Correspondence
Vuokko Jarva
Adjunct Professor, University of Helsinki, Finland
Carrer Ramon y Cajal 12 1/2
17230 Palames
Spain
Email: jarva@[Link]
References
Capra, Fritjof. (1982). The Turning Point: Science, Society, and the Rising Culture. New
York: Simon & Schuster. Retrieved August 12, 2011 from [Link]
Capra/[Link]
Korten, David. (1999). The Post-corporate World. Life After Capitalism. San Fansisco –
West Hartwood: Berret & Koehler Publishers, Inc and Kumarian Press, Inc.
Stiglitz, Joseph. (2011). Gambling with the Planet? Retrieved August 4, 2011 from
[Link]
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