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Leading academics hold a philosophical discussion around the pressing issues confronting society

The world is at an “inflection point,” and there is a pressing urgency around the need for a “reset” in the way solutions to the complex issues being faced are formulated, noted three leading academics in a webinar held as part of the Designs on the Future program. 
 
What Will The Next “Enlightenment” Look Like? brought together Vishakha Desai, Yolanda Lopez-Maldonado and Wendell Wallach to discuss various subjects of influence around the need for a bold new approach to dealing with compounding problems that include the pandemic, climate crisis and structural injustice.

Key Takeaways:

• A whole generation of young people who can have this conversation and lead the way needs to be developed, not just a set of individual specialists who give specific viewpoints.
• A sense of collective action, based on individual responsibility, needs to be accepted in daring to make the necessary change and to have accountability.
• Recognizing what needs to be done may be clear, but the “how” requires a truly inclusive approach with all voices being brought to the table to devise a way forward.
• 
We need to know history and look to the past for new ways to approach the current situation, drawing inspiration from and seeing innovation in existing knowledge systems.
• There is a role for everyone in amplifying the message that we are at a critical moment of action.

Why Is a New Enlightenment Needed?

The impact of COVID-19 has “opened up the vision that we have some serious problems in the world”, noted Desai, and the current global focus on “hyper nationalism” has laid bare the clear limitations around being able to tackle the critical cross-boundary issues of today.

Time is now of the essence. “We cannot wait. We need to act now,” Lopez-Maldonado warned. “Our planet is perishing, we are losing important species, biodiversity. Everything is collapsing at this point,” she explained, as the conversation delved into the critical reasons behind the necessity for a reevaluation of modern thinking.

A Move Away From Individualistic Selfishness and Towards the Collective

An appreciation that “individualism is an ultimately immature take on what this world is,” as commented by Wallach, is part of a realization around the need to redress an imbalance that has led to many knowledge systems and ways of thinking being marginalized or eroded from public discourse through what Desai referred to as an “obsessive focus on individualism”.

The need to “work individually but not in an individualistic way” to help contribute toward this shift in thinking was highlighted by Lopez-Maldonado, as the focus of the discussion again highlighted the importance of humankind’s relationship with the planet.

The Combination of Ancient, Neglected Methods and Futuristic Approaches To Working Through Challenges

The idea of innovation often being thought of as something totally new was also challenged, and the proposition put forward that new insight can – and should – be drawn from a creative way of looking at what is already around us and what has gone before.

Much wisdom from Indigenous communities has not been integrated into modern thought processes, and the recovery and restoration of these knowledge systems can help in the provision of the solutions that are needed for the multi-layered problems being faced.

“There are many ways Indigenous knowledge systems can go hand in hand with other knowledge systems to bring this enlightenment,” commented Lopez-Maldonado, as the conversation also turned to the influence of artificial intelligence’s (AI) on any prospective new enlightenment.

“AI is a tool we can work with,” stated Wallach, “but I believe that intelligence is not the property of a human being, or a machine, but of humanity as whole and is largely reflected in our ability to work together.”

“What Will The Next 'Enlightenment' Look Like?” also addressed the idea of fostering collective intelligence in working together, the navigation of a future that has pressing near-term problems and futuristic possibilities, and the establishment of sustainable, inclusive goals as part of a new enlightenment.

Watch this webinar in full:  

Designs on the Future is an online initiative marking the 75th anniversary of Salzburg Global Seminar and highlighting bold visions and perspectives that can inspire change and help create a more creative, just, and sustainable future. To join our next Designs on the Future webinar, sign up to the Salzburg Global newsletter: www.SalzburgGlobal.org/go/subscribe