The State of the World - Designing the Third Attractor
A Vision for the Future
We are living in what many are calling the Great Unraveling — a period where the threads of our old systems are fraying and coming apart.
This future, marked by the escalating impacts of climate change and broader ecological crises, threatens to increasingly destabilize societies worldwide.
I’m sure that if you don’t feel it in your mind, you’re feeling it in your heart.
Nate Hagens refers to this upcoming epoch as the Great Simplification, a necessary return to more sustainable ways of living.
This Third Attractor is a visionary concept — a designed new system intended to steer us away from collapse or dystopia, and toward a regenerative, thriving future.
I’m convinced, much like Jem Bendell, and the other thinkers mentioned, that we are undoubtedly hurtling towards a some sort of collapse-adaptation dynamic.
This will manifest as fragmented collapses across various sectors, governments, and corporations, highlighting the systemic fragility and interconnectedness of our world.
But this collapse will be inherently disaggregated, with parts of the system falling apart sporadically, yet simultaneously reflecting the fragmented but crucial formation of the Third Attractor.
Each localized failure underscores the urgent need for a cohesive, systemic approach to building resilient, regenerative systems that can navigate and mitigate these cascading disruptions.
Without its implementation, we are on a trajectory toward self-termination.
It’s not that it’s not emerging; we can see the Third Attractor taking shape through many disaggregated efforts. However, these efforts are currently too invisible to manifest as a coherent whole.
Designing a Path Forward
The purpose of this paper is to outline a potential pathway and understand the development of the capacities and capabilities necessary to design the Third Attractor.
Capacity involves understanding our current predicament — this superorganism we’ve created through the relentless and destructive forces of neocapitalism. It means developing the skills, resources, and environmental conditions to foster growth and enable the transition from potential to actionable strategies.
Capability, on the other hand, is the power to evolve from that understanding. It represents the ability to not only envision but also implement regenerative systems, creating a continuous flow of emergence and innovation.
To put it simply, capacity is about developing regenerative design strategies and frameworks, while capability is about turning this design into practical, regenerative development.
By focusing on both, we can turn strategic-driven inquiry into tangible outcomes that support a regenerative future.
Regenerative design builds capacity through living system processes, embracing patterns and principles of living systems.
The Third Attractor vision is a call to action, an invitation to envision a future where our collective ingenuity and creativity lead us toward a more beautiful, equitable, and sustainable world.
It’s a journey of transformation, requiring us to develop both the capacity to understand complex systems and the capability to implement solutions that nurture and sustain life.
Building Capacity
Our Systemic Entanglement
In our interconnected world, every action reverberates through a complex web of interdependencies, much like the phenomenon of quantum entanglement where particles remain linked across vast distances.
This concept, which physicists describe as particles influencing each other instantaneously regardless of separation, mirrors the intricate relationships within our global systems.
Just as quantum entanglement defies classical mechanics, our societal entanglement challenges traditional, reductionist views of problem-solving.
To navigate this complex landscape, we must adopt a systemic perspective, recognizing the interconnectedness of our actions and their ripple effects. By embracing regenerative design, we ensure this holistic approach avoids unintended consequences and fosters sustainable solutions. Understanding our systemic entanglement is not just a scientific insight; it’s a roadmap for resilient and informed global stewardship.
Our Crisis of Perception
In our current scientific paradigm, we operate with a cause-effect linear approach and a reductionist vision.
This mindset often leads us to fail in accounting for systemic impacts and second-order effects, resulting in greater issues than those we set out to solve.
This oversight is not just a minor flaw; it represents our greatest crisis of perception and understanding.
By embracing regenerative design, we can move beyond this limited framework, recognizing the intricate web of interconnectedness that defines our world. Only through this holistic lens can we truly navigate the complexities of our time, fostering sustainable and resilient solutions that honor the interdependence of all life.
One stark example of the failure to account for systemic impacts is China’s One-Child Policy, aimed at controlling population growth.
China’s One-Child Policy, aimed at controlling population growth, resulted in a severe gender imbalance due to cultural preferences and ultrasound technology. This led to social challenges like increased competition for spouses and strained family support structures. The policy’s unintended consequences highlight the necessity of systemic thinking in policy-making to anticipate and manage broader impacts.
In the mid-20th century, DDT was used extensively to combat malaria by eradicating mosquitoes. This is another example of how reductionist interventions can backfire. Initially seen as a miracle solution, this reductionist approach ignored broader ecological impacts. DDT’s spread through ecosystems harmed wildlife, notably thinning bird eggshells and causing population declines. This intervention created a cascade of severe ecological consequences, highlighting the dangers of not accounting for second-order effects.
Like China’s One-Child Policy, the DDT case underscores the urgent need for systemic thinking when addressing complex issues to prevent unintended consequences and ensure sustainable solutions.
The Need for a Systemic view
If there’s one perspective we desperately need in today’s world, it’s a systemic view.
But what exactly is a systemic view?
In simple terms, it’s the opportunity to truly understand a system — its components, interactions, and underlying patterns. It’s not just about the elements within a system, but what happens in the dynamic relationships between these elements.
Nora Bateson, a pioneering thinker, refers to this as “aphanipoiesis,” which describes the subtle, often invisible interactions and relationships within a system that collectively create emergent patterns and behaviors. This concept highlights the importance of understanding these underlying dynamics to foster systemic resilience and innovation.
Regenerative design as a solution
Regenerative design, a burgeoning field, excels in seeing thriving systems and deciphering the patterns that fuel their success. It grasps the importance of feedback loops and the roles they play, and more importantly, it acknowledges and prepares for disruptive interventions from sources like geopolitical shifts, climate change, or technological advancements. Rooted in living systems theory and complexity theory, regenerative design provides the framework to navigate and influence these intricate systems.
It comprehends cultural evolution and its profound impact on system behavior, understanding that every action has multiple ripple effects, and the key is to manage these effects for the overall health of the system.
An ilustrative example of balancing systemic interventions is the reintroduction of wolves into Yellowstone National Park setting off a cascade of ecological changes, known as a trophic cascade.
In 1995, Yellowstone witnessed a stunning transformation. Scientists reintroduced 41 wolves, and their presence altered elk behavior, sparking vegetation recovery. This led to a cascading effect: riverbanks stabilized, beavers returned, and biodiversity flourished. The ecosystem’s renewal demonstrated the profound impact of wolves, highlighting their essential role in nature’s balance.
Early systemic understanding
Probably the earlies system thinker was Dr. John Snow. In the mid-19th century, London faced a dire cholera outbreak that spread fear and uncertainty among its residents. Conventional wisdom held that cholera was an airborne disease, leading to calls for mass evacuations and desperate measures.
But one physician, Dr. John Snow, saw things differently.
Dr. Snow, an early systemic thinker, believed that understanding the disease required more than just treating symptoms; it required seeing the underlying patterns and connections. Before suggesting drastic measures like evacuations, Snow asked the police for a map of the city and requested that they mark where the deaths were occurring.
As he studied the map, a pattern emerged. The deaths were clustered around two specific water pumps, particularly one on Broad Street. Snow deduced that cholera was not airborne but waterborne, a revolutionary idea at the time. He proposed that contaminated water from these pumps was the source of the outbreak. His theory initially met with skepticism and resistance, but Snow persisted, using his map to illustrate the connection between the water sources and the spread of cholera.
Despite the upheaval his conclusion caused, Snow’s insight was eventually proven correct. The removal of the pump handle on Broad Street led to a dramatic decrease in cholera cases, validating his hypothesis. This act did not immediately stop the outbreak, but it marked a significant turning point in public health and epidemiology.
Snow’s map, a testament to his pioneering work, still stands as a symbol of the power of systemic thinking and data visualization. It can be viewed today, serving as a reminder of the importance of seeing beyond conventional wisdom to uncover deeper truths.
Modern systems thinking
The roots of modern systems thinking can be traced back to Ludwig von Bertalanffy, a biologist who developed General Systems Theory in the mid-20th century. Bertalanffy sought to understand the complexities of life by examining the interactions and interdependencies within biological systems, providing a foundational framework for analyzing complex systems across various disciplines.
Building on this foundation, Donella Meadows emerged as a leading figure in the field of systems thinking. Meadows was an environmental scientist and a pioneering author who co-wrote “The Limits to Growth,” a seminal work that used computer simulations to model the consequences of exponential economic and population growth on a finite planet.
Her influential book, “Thinking in Systems: A Primer,” distilled her extensive research and experience into accessible insights and practical tools for understanding and intervening in complex systems. Meadows’ work emphasized the importance of seeing the interconnectedness of components within a system and recognizing leverage points for effective change.
Fritjof Capra, a prominent systems thinker and physicist, integrated holistic perspectives, interdisciplinary science, ecological awareness, and complexity concepts into systems thinking, popularizing the interconnectedness of natural and social systems for sustainable and comprehensive problem-solving.
In “The Systems View of Life.” Co-authored with Pier Luigi Luisi, he explores the interconnectedness of life and integrates biological sciences and philosophy to address environmental, social, and economic crises. It advocates for a shift from a mechanistic worldview to a holistic ecological vision, emphasizing sustainability. Capra’s interdisciplinary approach has inspired many to view life as a complex, self-organizing system, urging a paradigm shift towards interconnected and sustainable solutions.
How can we transform our current system to address its inherent flaws and meet future challenges?
How Can We Build the Third Attractor?
To build the Third Attractor, we need to develop both capacity and capability. Again, Capacity means understanding from a systemic view — grasping the intricate interconnections within our systems. Capability is about systemic agency: making specific interventions into feedback loops with a profound awareness of second and third-order effects and broader systemic impacts.
What brings hope is that our current system is awakening to the sobering realization of its own demise. This is a crucial tipping point.
Understanding our current predicament is 50% of the solution.
Can we transform our current system to address its inherent flaws and rise to future challenges?
Our system not only struggles to meet our civilizational challenges but is now confronting the sobering reality of its own inadequacies.
This awareness is the first step towards transformative change. By developing both capacity and capability, we can navigate the complexities of our time and build a resilient and informed global stewardship.
Our system has collectively realized that we are in a metacrisis and on a path to self-termination.
As I re-read this statement, its assertiveness strikes me, compelling me to break it down into three key elements: collective realization, meta-crisis, and self-termination.
Collective Realization
We are now at a crucial juncture of collective realization. By this, I mean that the collective consciousness has recognized our current predicament, hinting that we are on the road to self-termination.
However, this awakening is not yet sufficient to generate a tipping point into a paradigm shift. We find ourselves in a moment akin to when Galileo and Copernicus understood the heliocentric nature of our solar system, while the majority of governance and religion still adhered to the Ptolemaic perspective that placed Earth at the center. Galileo and Copernicus challenged the prevailing worldview, much like how our current emergent understanding challenges outdated paradigms.
Collective intelligence is the enhanced capability of humans to make decisions and solve problems together.
Collective intelligence builds upon collective understanding, which is deeply intertwined with our current stage of collective realization.
As we develop a deeper understanding of our interconnected world through AI-facilitated collective intelligence, we can challenge and evolve beyond outdated paradigms, striving for holistic and informed global stewardship.
Metacrisis
I find Jonathan Rowson has one of the best understandings of our Metacrisis. He defines the Metacrisis as a broader crisis of civilizational purpose that necessitates political and economic transformation.
Metacrisis is the crisis of perception and understanding that lies within the range of crises humanity faces.
It encompasses socio-emotional, educational, epistemic, and spiritual crises, reflecting our inability to cope with complex global challenges.
The metacrisis highlights a lack of a meaningful global “we,” widespread learning deficiencies, self-subverting political logics, and disenchanted worldviews.
Self-termination
Self-termination of a system occurs when the mechanisms and processes within a system drive it towards collapse or irreversible damage. This can result from a variety of factors, including overexploitation of resources, systemic inefficiencies, societal collapse or its failure to adapt to changing conditions.
Essentially, it means that the system is on a path where it undermines its own foundations and viability, leading to an inevitable breakdown unless significant and transformative changes are made.
The awakening
We’re developing the capacity to understand our current predicament.
We’ve seen the horizon of this self-termination, and modern thinkers like Nate Hagens, Daniel Schmachtenberger, Indy Johar, and Jem Bendell, among others, are already sounding the alarm:
collapse is not just possible, it’s likely.
Identifying our converging metacrisis is crucial to navigating and mitigating these looming threats.
The ignition of a new consciousness has occurred, but it hasn’t yet taken the necessary route to effect the profound changes required.
Our Converging Metacrisis
We must grasp at least six unprecedented challenges of our metacrisis. We stand at the threshold of profound transformation, awakening to a convergence of unparalleled challenges that threaten global stability.
Climate Challenge:
The inexorable rise in global temperatures signifies more than just a warming planet; it is a stark reminder of the unsustainable trajectory we have been on. We are now grappling with the unavoidable reality of a two-degree increase in global temperatures, a threshold that will reshape our ecosystems and societies.
The End of Cheap Fossil Fuels:
The era of cheap fossil fuels is over, a phenomenon Nate Hagens aptly describes as the “carbon pulse.” This marks the end of an energy era that has driven industrial civilization, leaving us to navigate a complex and uncertain transition.
Uncertain Energy Transition:
Transitioning to renewable energy is not as straightforward as it seems. This shift is hindered by two critical factors: the decreasing availability and rising costs of fossil fuels needed to facilitate the transition, and the substantial energy and resources required to implement renewable infrastructure. The complexities outlined in the paper “The Energy Transition: Key Challenges for Incumbent and New Players in the Global Energy System” underscore the need for strategic planning and significant investment.
Our Machine Limitations:
Most modern machines cannot run on solar and wind alone. This limitation underscores the profound challenge we face in reconfiguring our energy infrastructure to support a sustainable future.
Singularity Moment:
We are also on the brink of a transformative “singularity moment” with AI, anticipated to arrive within the next decade. This revolution will likely begin with financial systems, but whether AI will be a friend or foe remains uncertain. The potential for AI to both solve and exacerbate our problems is immense, making it a critical aspect of our collective future.
Unprepared Governance system:
The COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare the inadequacies of our current political systems and governance structures. We have realized that these systems are woefully unprepared for the complexities and crises that lie ahead, from climate change to technological disruption.
Our collective realization is clear: the old paradigms of progress and control no longer suffice in a world in turmoil.
Our collective intelligence must evolve to meet the challenges of our time, guiding us towards a regenerative future.
It is a call to action for us to harness our collective wisdom and steer the course of our global civilization towards resilience, sustainability, and harmony with the natural world.
And then……Our Financial System
It is imperative we understand the extractive nature of our financial system. This system reduces everything to monetary value, driving social and ecological crises. Inherently extractive, it perpetuates a cycle of scarcity and competition, undermining sustainable growth and equity.
Money, as it currently operates, is based on debt and interest, necessitating constant economic growth to pay off accumulated debt. This relentless need for growth drives consumption and the extraction of resources, leading to environmental degradation and social inequality.
The financial crisis of 2008 exemplifies this dynamic, where banks and corporations deemed “too big to fail” received bailouts, while ordinary citizens faced economic instability. This disparity highlights the system’s prioritization of accumulation and profit over community well-being and ecological health.
The global economy is heavily reliant on debt. Existing financial structures have ballooned to a point where the total world debt, including stocks, bonds, and other securities, reaches approximately $400 trillion. This is significantly higher than the global GDP, which is about $100 trillion.
Imagine our global economy as an overinflated balloon. Instead of easing the air out to prevent a burst, we keep pumping more air in, expanding the balloon to dangerous limits. This is the essence of financial overshoot. Nations have continually expanded their credit and financial backing, creating a precarious situation where debt significantly exceeds GDP. This dangerous overextension is akin to writing checks our ecological and energetic bank can’t cash, setting the stage for a harsh economic reckoning.
Whoever invented compound interest was a genius — but also, perhaps, our executioner. This predicament is well illustrated in the parable of Usury By Bernard Lietaer known as the “11th round tale.”
Once upon a time, in a small village where barter was the norm, people exchanged goods like chickens, eggs, and bread with one another. Cooperation and mutual aid were the fabric of their community life, especially during harvests or when storms damaged property. This culture of reciprocity had been passed down through generations, fostering a deep sense of interdependence.
One day, a stranger with shiny black shoes and an elegant white hat observed this bustling market with a sardonic smile. He watched a farmer struggle to exchange six chickens for a ham and couldn’t help but laugh. “Poor people,” he muttered, “so primitive.” The farmer’s wife overheard and challenged him, “Do you think you can handle chickens better?” The stranger replied, “Chickens, no. But I can show you a better way to eliminate this hassle.” He pointed to a tree and said, “Bring me a large cowhide, and have every family visit me. I’ll explain the better way.”
And so it happened. The stranger cut perfect leather rounds from the cowhide, each stamped with an elegant design. He gave each family 10 rounds, explaining that each round represented the value of one chicken. The villagers were impressed. “Now you can trade these rounds instead of cumbersome chickens,” he said.
But there was a catch. “In a year,” he added, “each family must bring me back 11 rounds. The extra round is a token of appreciation for the improvement I’ve introduced.” A farmer asked, “But where will the 11th round come from?” The stranger smiled reassuringly, “You’ll see.”
Over the next year, the villagers found themselves in a bind. The 11th round was never created, meaning at least one family would have to lose all their rounds for the others to meet the stranger’s demand. This pressure fostered competition over cooperation. People became less willing to help each other, driven by the need to secure their own survival.
The tale illustrates how the introduction of interest created an undercurrent of competition and insecurity within the village, a microcosm of larger economic systems. It reflects how debt and interest necessitate perpetual growth, often at the expense of community and environmental sustainability.
Finance thrives and evolves on growth, accumulation, wealth, and profit. Compounded interest exponentially increases the need for returns over time, driving capital accumulation and economic expansion. This synergy impels finance into a dynamic, fast-moving state, constantly needing growth and returns.
We must shift towards an economy that values reciprocity, gift-giving, and cooperation over competition and accumulation. By embracing principles of regenerative design we can transform our relationship with money and foster an economy centered on the well-being of people and the planet. This transition involves recognizing the interconnectedness of all beings and resources, and prioritizing regenerative and holistic approaches to economic activity.
But yet, Our Approaches are Old Fashioned.
We’ve come to understand this, but we’re still approaching the problem from an old, reductionist paradigm.
The B Corps movement, though well-intentioned, is fundamentally flawed. It stems from the outdated growth-profit paradigm. akin to hosting a community workshop on the deck of the Titanic.
Seeing Danone as a B Corp must look as an oxymoron to the original founders. Mainstream corporations have co-opted the initiative, stripping it of its transformative potential.
I can attest to this firsthand: El Viaje de Odiseo a company I founded was twice awarded the Top Ten Changemaker award in 2017 and 2018. Yet, this made me realize a stark truth — if I was seen as the change, then true systemic change was not occurring.
Similarly, the whole ESG approach — Environmental, Social, and Governance metrics — tries to tackle systemic problems from a reductionist, boxed-in perspective, which seems equally futile.
ESG frameworks fail due to their reductionist approach, focusing on box-ticking rather than systemic change. They often lead to superficial compliance, greenwashing, and fail to address deeper, interconnected socio-economic and environmental issues. ESG metrics can be manipulated, lacking the rigor and holistic perspective needed for true sustainability.
Understanding Our Dependence on Biodiversity
In today’s interconnected world, it’s crucial to understand our deep dependence on biodiversity.
As already mentioned and Highlighted by the The World Economic Forum’s New Nature Economy Report, over half of the world’s GDP is moderately or highly reliant on nature and its services. This includes essential ecosystem services like pollination, water purification, and disease control.
The numbers are striking. $44 trillion of economic value generation — over half of the world’s total GDP — is at risk due to nature loss. Key industries such as construction ($4 trillion), agriculture ($2.5 trillion), and food and beverages ($1.4 trillion) heavily depend on these ecosystem services. To put this into perspective, the combined value of these industries is roughly twice the size of the German economy.
Ecosystem services provide the foundational elements for these sectors. Healthy soils, clean water, pollination, and a stable climate are not just environmental luxuries but economic necessities. As nature loses its capacity to provide these services, the potential disruption to these industries could be catastrophic.
Industries that are highly dependent on nature generate 15% of global GDP ($13 trillion), while those moderately dependent generate 37% ($31 trillion). However, the real risk lies in the hidden dependencies within supply chains. For instance, industries like chemicals and materials, aviation, travel and tourism, real estate, mining and metals, supply chain and transport, and retail have less than 15% of their direct gross value added (GVA) highly dependent on nature, but over 50% of their supply chains’ GVA is highly or moderately nature-dependent.
Understanding these dependencies is not just about environmental stewardship; it’s about economic resilience and sustainability.
The intricate web of our global economy is deeply tied to the health of our natural ecosystems. Ignoring this reality not only jeopardizes the environment but also threatens the stability and growth of our global economic system.
We must recognize that our economic activities are not separate from nature but deeply intertwined with it. The health of our economies reflects the health of our ecosystems, and vice versa. Embracing this holistic understanding is essential for building a sustainable and resilient future.
Empowering the Global Awakening: Creating Strategic Intervention Points
At this critical juncture, we are reminded of the story told by an old Cherokee elder to his grandson. He spoke of two wolves fighting within each of us. One wolf embodies greed, destruction, and shortsightedness, while the other represents compassion, sustainability, and wisdom. When the grandson asked, “Which wolf wins?” the elder replied, “The one you feed.”
This ancient wisdom resonates powerfully today. The data and values we choose to prioritize in our financial systems will determine the path we take. Will we feed the wolf of greed and destruction, continuing down a path of ecological collapse and social fragmentation? Or will we nourish the wolf of compassion and wisdom, steering our global society towards sustainability and regenerative growth? The choice is ours, and the stakes have never been higher.
Similarly, we can choose to feed the positive forces driving our global transformation.
A systemic disruption occurred earlier this year when UBS published a report entitled “Bloom or Bust” from its Institute of Sustainability and Impact. The title itself sets a grave scenario: act or face collapse.
Why is this a systemic disruption? It signals an awakening by one of the financial giants, acknowledging several key findings: the convergence of policy and finance by signaling the importance of the 30 by 30 agreement, the necessity to value and measure nature, and the financial institutions’ growing “appetite” for data and investment opportunities in restoring biodiversity.
This acknowledgement marks a significant shift after decades of biodiversity neglect.
The report highlights that the global community has finally signed a landmark agreement called the Paris Agreement for Nature, presenting a comprehensive Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF). The GBF “aims to reverse global biodiversity loss by 2030 and achieve a nature-positive world by 2050”. This ambitious vision means doubling the amount of nature on land and quadrupling marine biodiversity within the next 25 years.
This shift in the mindset of finance towards the restoration of biodiversity is both an opportunity and a responsibility to empower with systemic intervention.
This is our chance to trigger a tipping point towards a regenerative future.
What if we could trim-tab the financial system?
What if we applied regenerative design, living systems theory, and our understanding of complexity to redesign it? Is it possible to trim-tab the financial system?
A trim-tab is a small rudder attached to the larger rudder of a ship. Its purpose is not to move the entire ship but to move the rudder, making it easier to steer the vessel. By targeting small, strategic changes, we can create significant shifts in the broader system. Applying this concept, we could aim to make small, impactful adjustments in the financial system, steering it toward a more sustainable and equitable future.
Imagine if we could trim-tab the financial system, subtly altering its course. Finance thrives on growth, accumulation, wealth, and profit. By redesigning incentives for long-term sustainability, we could harness these needs for positive change. Aligning wealth creation with ecological and social well-being would create a dynamic, fast-moving system, driven by growth and profit, yet nurturing a deeper purpose and balancing economic and planetary needs.
Nature Finance could be the solution a lever to deviate the ruder of the system to a more conscious, restorative, and equitable future,
But first, let’s examine why we need Nature Finance.
The Essential Nature of Nature: Why Our Economy Depends on It
As previously mentioned, our economy is fundamentally dependent on nature. Without it, $44 trillion is at risk. But it’s not just about the money. The planetary resiliency required to sustain humanity is also in jeopardy. We emphasize the extraction of energy to keep our systems running, yet we remain largely blind — Nature Blind — to the life that sustains us.
We must awaken to this reality and recognize that protecting and valuing nature is not merely an environmental concern; it’s an economic imperative.
One of our greatest blind spots is our inability to accept, process, and understand the reality of our situation. Our predicament is a crisis of perception and understanding.
We are either ignorant or in denial about the planet’s dwindling capacity to sustain human life.
This is our Metacrisis
The concept of planetary boundaries, six of which we have already crossed, illustrates that we are moving out of the safe operating space for humanity. The conditions necessary to support a population of 8 to 10 billion people are degrading. We are polluting and destroying our home, much like locking ourselves in a garage with the car engine running while attempting to do carpentry. This is our current predicament.
One of the most critical of these planetary boundaries is the loss of biodiversity.
In the last 50 years, we have lost 69% of all wildlife planet life, and 50% of all marine life.
This is irreversible. This is extinction.
These were parts of the living planet that sustained us. We have also lost vast amounts of forests. Over the past 50 years, deforestation has been rampant. We are losing 10 million acres per year — an area the size of Switzerland. Imagine the scale of deforestation over the past 50 years: we have cleared an area equivalent to the combined size of France, Germany, Spain, and Sweden.
This stark reality makes it clear: we are far beyond the safe operating space for humanity.
This situation is akin to driving a deficient pickup truck on a bumpy road without seatbelts, all our children on board, and knowing we risk losing a front wheel or having the motor burst into flames — yet we keep pressing the accelerator.
Additionally, we need to reduce CO2 emissions by a significant percentage by 2050. The system requires a complete overhaul.
Enter Nature Finance
If we are able to redesign finance into what I call Nature Finance — a virtuous system for restoring and regenerating nature — we could see profound changes. Nature Finance would function as a virtuous cycle, continuously supporting the health of our planet.
Consider the White Paper on Nature Finance by following this link.
If we can create living capital — defined as a co-evolving, thriving process between humans and nature, recognizing that humans are part of biodiversity — we could revolutionize our financial systems.
Imagine a financial system based on the design principles of regenerative design and development, where the intrinsic value of nature and humans as biodiversity is fully integrated.
This is our trim tab — a small, strategic change that can steer the larger system. By rethinking finance through the lens of Nature Finance, we can initiate a shift that moves us toward a more sustainable and equitable future.
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