Abstract
Climate change, biodiversity loss, and other major social and environmental problems pose severe risks. Progress has been inadequate and scientists, global policy experts, and the general public increasingly conclude that transformational change is needed across all sectors of society in order to improve and maintain social and ecological wellbeing. At least two paths to transformation are conceivable: (1) reform of and innovation within existing societal systems (e.g., economic, legal, and governance systems); and (2) the de novo development of and migration to new and improved societal systems. This paper is the final in a three-part series of concept papers that together outline a novel science-driven research and development program aimed at the second path. It summarizes literature to build a narrative on the topic of de novo design of societal systems. The purpose is to raise issues, suggest design possibilities, and highlight directions and questions that could be explored in the context of this or any R&D program aimed at new system design. This paper does not present original research, but rather provides a synthesis of selected ideas from the literature. Following other papers in the series, a society is viewed as a superorganism and its societal systems as a cognitive architecture. Accordingly, a central goal of design is to improve the collective cognitive capacity of a society, rendering it more capable of achieving and sustainably maintaining vitality. Topics of attention, communication, self-identity, power, and influence are discussed in relation to societal cognition and system design. A prototypical societal system is described, and some design considerations are highlighted.
Highlights
Societies worldwide face a host of serious social and environmental problems, including poverty, climate change, and biodiversity loss
The LEDDA framework has seven integrated components, and more could be added over time: Token Monetary System (TMS): This is the system by which a LEDDA creates and destroys tokens as required to regulate volume and value
It occurs for members because by design most receive the income target. This is especially true for members employed by Principled Businesses, which pay wages that are no lower than the current-year income target and no higher than the final income target. It occurs for non-members because members, who may represent a large percentage of the local population at club maturity, understand that it is in their best interest to support, through patronage and Crowd-Based Financial System (CBFS) funding, Principled Businesses and member nonprofits and for-profits that act similar to Principled Businesses
Summary
Societies worldwide face a host of serious social and environmental problems, including poverty, climate change, and biodiversity loss. This paper discusses high-level design aspects of new societal systems In this series, a societal system refers to a meta-level form of societal self-organization that involves societal cognition (e.g., collective learning, decision making, and adaptation). In the context of the proposed R&D program, the goal of transformation is to develop and implement systems that can best facilitate societal cognition. Desirable conditions, such as clean air, low rates of disease, equality, economic security, and a high degree of social welfare, are seen as the product of functional societal cognition, extended over time. If multiple R&D programs are proposed or constituted, the ideas here could allow for comparisons
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
