Great Transition is used by the Great Transition Initiative and its predecessor, the
Global Scenario Group (GSG), to describe a vision of a just and sustainable global future. The term was originally coined by
Kenneth E. Boulding
Kenneth Ewart Boulding (; January 18, 1910 – March 18, 1993) was an English-born American economist, educator, peace activist, and interdisciplinary philosopher.David LatzkoKenneth E. Boulding Comments at personal.psu.edu. Accessed 24 April 20 ...
in ''The Meaning of the 20th Century – The Great Transition'' (1964) and describes the shift from
pre-modern
In world history, post-classical history refers to the period from about 500 CE to 1500 CE, roughly corresponding to the European Middle Ages. The period is characterized by the expansion of civilizations geographically and the developm ...
to post-modern culture, and the four possible courses of action that these organizations believe will allow humanity to successfully manage the Great Transition.
Elements of the Great Transition vision include egalitarian social and ecological values, increased inter-human connectivity, improved
quality of life
Quality of life (QOL) is defined by the World Health Organization as "an individual's perception of their position in life in the context of the culture and value systems in which they live and in relation to their goals, expectations, standards ...
, and a healthy planet, as well as the absence of poverty, war, and environmental destruction. The Great Transition concept was cited by
Prime Minister of Bhutan Jigme Thinley, Josh Ryan-Collins of the
New Economics Foundation
The New Economics Foundation (NEF) is a Great Britain, British think-tank that promotes "social, economic and environmental justice".
NEF was founded in 1986 by the leaders of The Other Economic Summit (TOES) with the aim of working for a "new m ...
, and the Capital Institute. It was used as a theme for the 2011 SmartCSOs conference on strategies for Civil Society Organisations in London.
History
The Great Transition was first introduced by the
Global Scenario Group (GSG), an international body of scientists convened in 1995 by the
Tellus Institute and
Stockholm Environment Institute to examine the requirements for a transition to a sustainable global society. The GSG set out to describe and analyze scenarios for the future of the earth as it entered a
planetary phase of civilization.
[See http://www.gsg.org/gsgpub.html and Paul Raskin, Tariq Banuri, Gilberto Gallopín, Pablo Gutman, Al Hammond, Robert Kates, and Rob Swart]
''Great Transition: The Promise and Lure of the Times Ahead''
(Boston: Stockholm Environment Institute, 2002)
See also
*
Anthropocene
''Anthropocene'' is a term that has been used to refer to the period of time during which human impact on the environment, humanity has become a planetary force of change. It appears in scientific and social discourse, especially with respect to ...
*
Global Citizens Movement
The global citizens movement is a constellation of organized and overlapping citizens' groups seeking to foster global solidarity in policy and consciousness. The term is often used synonymously with the anti-globalization movement or the global j ...
*
Planetary boundaries
Planetary boundaries are a framework to describe limits to the impacts of human activities on the Earth system. Beyond these limits, the environment may not be able to continue to self-regulate. This would mean the Earth system would leave th ...
*
Transition town
The terms transition town, transition initiative and transition model refer to grassroots, grassroot community projects that aim to increase self-sufficiency to reduce the potential effects of peak oil, Global warming, climate destruction, and eco ...
*
Tellus Institute
References
Publications
* Parris, Thomas. "Bytes of Note: A Crystal Ball for Sustainability." ''Environment: Science and Policy for Sustainable Development''. 44, no. 7 (2002): 3-4. 10.1080/00139150209605799#.VZmxB0bLdyE http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00139150209605799#.VZmxB0bLdyE.
* Rajan, Chella
''Global Politics and Institutions'' Boston: Tellus Institute, 2006.
* Raskin, Paul
''GT Today: A Report from the Future'' Boston: Tellus Institute, 2006.
*Raskin, Paul
''Journey to Earthland: A Great Transition to Planetary Civilization'' Boston: Tellus Institute, 2016.
* Revkin, Andy
''International Herald Tribune''. September 4, 2002.
* Stutz, John
''The Role of Well-Being in a Great Transition'' Boston: Tellus Institute, 2006.
* White, Allen
''Transforming the Corporation'' Boston: Tellus Institute, 2006.
External links
Great Transition InitiativeGlobal Scenario GroupPopular Science - Four Futures- an article in Popular Science about the Great Transition and three other GSG scenarios, with infographics
Video - Visions of a Sustainable World- a YouTube video with highlights from an interview with Dr. Paul Raskin of GSG and the Tellus Institute (from a speaker series at Yale University)
{{sustainability
Economics of sustainability
Sustainable development
Social justice
Environmental movements