In this episode we delve into an inspiring and fascinating thesis put forward by political historian Eli Merritt in his book “Disunion Among Ourselves” that the primary impetus in crafting and fighting for the American Declaration of Independence was to forge a lasting unity between the thirteen colonies. Although they were riven by deep division, distrust, prejudice and polarization, the delegates at the Continental Congress consciously and repeatedly chose to compromise and even sacrifice their own colony’s interest for the sake of the larger common good. We owe them a huge debt of gratitude not only for building an American nation on a strong foundation of unity but also for showing us the paths we can take to extricate ourselves from the current quagmires of national, regional and international polarization that pervade our world.

In today's episode, we're going to explore the topic of humanity's recurring test. What is the lesson that keeps eluding us, and why is this test continuing to recur?

In this episode  we offer a fresh perspective on the nature of conflict, and also seek to understand the typical stages through which any conflict goes through, with a view to identifying the points where it makes sense to intervene  and determine what kind of in intervention is the most useful at that given point.

In times of perilous transition we often tell ourselves change is not possible or events are out of control and there is nothing we can do. In such times it helps to look to history for inspiration and as an aid to help us navigate the chaos. The story of two ordinary individuals—Raphael Lemkin and Hersch Lauterpacht—shows how two men, deeply concerned with the needs of their time, separately made a conscious choice to bring about positive change and persevered until they succeeded against all the odds. Their deep commitment to justice, courage, creativity and dogged perseverance led to the creation of two international crimes: genocide and crimes against humanity. And it was their work, respectively, that laid the foundation for the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (Lauterpacht) and the crafting of the Genocide Treaty (Lemkin)

As Peter Drucker so aptly stated in his book "Managing in Turbulent Times," the greatest danger in times of turbulence is not the turbulence itself but acting with yesterday's logic. In this episode of "Reimagining Our World," I will highlight and explore 10 new ways of thinking proposed by Stephen Heintz in his report "A Logic for the Future," that should be included as foundational assumptions upon which to build a better world.

Our world is unraveling at an accelerating pace. War and conflict are spreading like contagion, ravaging the face of the earth. Our efforts to stop the contagion have hitherto been ineffectual as we reach for the same outworn playbooks over and over again. And yet, we can and must act quickly to stop the contagion and the heartrending suffering it brings. It is time to understand and shed the habits that have held us back and take bold new steps and try new paths we have never considered before. Join me as we explore once such path together.

In this episode we’ll shed light  a set of corrosive habits that breed polarization and propose some antidotes to them.

If you're disheartened by the deepening polarization in our world, wonder whether we can ever overcome it and where we might even begin, then this conversation is for you! Join me to explore a few practical things we can each do daily to build our individual and collective muscles for what seems like an impossibly heavy lift.

In this episode we examine the fact and ways in which the current global system for tackling climate change is broken,  how our false optimism that it will somehow magically succeed has stopped us from considering viable, effective alternatives, and what those alternatives might be, particularly one that I'd like to propose, for a World Parliament.

In this episode, we're going to consider one significant respect in which we've been able to successfully reimagine and reform our electoral system in the United States. in the years since this country was born, demonstrating that further reforms are possible if we can muster the conviction that they are achievable and work tirelessly to achieve them.

In this episode we highlight some ideas from the works of Arnold Toynbee, the famous 20th century world historian, about the stark choice that humanity would face in the atomic age of either achieving political unification or committing mass suicide and his prediction that in in the face of an existential threat brought about by circumstances of our own making, humanity would turn on a dime and voluntarily adopt a limited world-state even though it would likely do so kicking and screaming.

In this episode we explore the need to replace the outworn belief that the ends justify the means with a new, more constructive belief that the means must be as worthy as the ends.

In this episode we discuss the challenge before us of reconceptualizing and reframing our concepts of power, authority, and leadership so that we can equip ourselves to elect leaders fit to address the pressing needs and challenges of our turbulent times.

In this episode we ask why peace seems so elusive and explore the suggestion that it could simply be that we are misdiagnosing the causes of conflict and also applying ineffectual remedies.

In this episode we explore the idea that globalization can essentially be understood as the tangible expression of humanity’s journey towards unity.

In this episode we explore some secrets to actualizing our potential, achieving success, and living a fulfilling and happy life.

In this episode we identify the deep flaws in our international nuclear non-proliferation regime and propose ways of fixing them thereby strengthening a key pillar of global peace and security.

In this episode we propose a series of steps the international community ought to take in order to eliminate boundary and territorial disputes as they often serve as triggers for violent conflict and lead to breaches of international peace.

In this episode we take some time to reflect on the insights to be gleaned from the near-death experiences of others as a means of reminding ourselves of what life is really all about and refocusing our energies on what truly matters.

In this episode we examine the need to take a principled approach to solving global challenges by identifying, agreeing upon, and methodically applying a set of shared global ethics or first principles. These principles should also be used as an indispensable underpinning for the institutions and processes we adopt as we build a peaceful and just world.

In this episode we explore the idea of pooling critical energy resources in the hands of a supranational high authority for energy as a way of solving a trifecta of global challenges namely: equitable energy distribution, climate change, and nuclear proliferation.

In this episode we delve into some less explored and often overlooked practical requirements for operationalizing the principle of justice in our lives.

In this episode I aim to raise awareness about ways in which a nation can avoid slipping into civil war by highlighting some important insights gleaned from the book “How Civil Wars Start” by Barbara Walter and offering reflections on them.

In this episode we look to the war in Ukraine as evidence of the operation of two distinct yet simultaneous processes of disintegration and integration and explore how both processes seem to be driving humanity to the same goal of recognizing its essential oneness.

In this episode we examine how the war in Ukraine might have been averted if we had firstly had a global system of collective security in place capable of deterring nations from entering into conflicts and restoring peace when it is breached. And secondly if we had additionally had other global institutions like a properly functioning World Court, an International Legislature, and an International Intelligence and Inspections Agency, comprising a viable system of global governance fit for purpose for the 21st century and beyond.

In this episode we explore the importance of engaging in a two-step process of crafting and agreeing to a new principle of the responsibility to protect our global commons followed by the creation of a supranational institution capable of acting as a trustee of those resources for the collective benefit of humanity.

In this episode we discuss the imperative need for the global community of nations to identify and agree upon a set of global ethics that can then be used to underpin new institutions of global governance and be woven into their very infrastructure.

In this episode entitled “The Emperor Has No Clothes” we offer an honest assessment of the flaws in the COP system for managing climate change and propose the fixes necessary if we are to have a prayer of acting quickly enough to keep global temperatures from rising above levels causing catastrophic consequences for humanity and planet earth.

In this episode entitled “Mind the Gap” we expose two prevalent mind traps that hinder our progress in actualizing our potential. We also examine prevalent destructive notions of success and reframe them to be more uplifting and constructive.

In this episode we attempt to raise our consciousness about one of the deepest and most challenging problems facing the United States, namely, anti-Black prejudice. We do this by sharing illuminating highlights from, and offering reflections on, the book entitled “Caste” by Isabel Wilkerson.

In this episode we discuss the urgent need for creating a global system of collective security backed by an international standing force as an indispensable foundation for building a lasting peace and a powerful bulwark against war, including nuclear war and world war.

In this episode I engage in conversation with Vasu Mohan co-author of a report issued by the International Foundation of Electoral Systems (IFES) on ways to safeguard the electoral rights of environmentally displaced persons.

In this episode we examine why it is time to create an International Intelligence and Inspections Agency that can provide accurate, shared, and reliable information to an International Executive allowing the latter to take swift, decisive, and unified action to preserve peace before it’s too late or to restore it once it’s broken, both of which are crucial in  a time where the risks of nuclear war are at an all time high.

In this episode we conceive of an entirely new way of electing our leaders that liberates us from the destructive effects of a divisive and corrosive system that no longer serves our best interests and deserves to be discarded.

In this episode we explore a particular form of consultation as an effective application of the principle of justice and a revolutionary tool of decision-making and problem-solving in the best interests of any given group. 

In this episode we consider what lessons we have gleaned from our experimentation with two distinct models of behavior during the coronavirus pandemic: the Collaborative and Cooperative Model; and  the Competitive Model.

This episode is a sequel of preceding episode 16. Here we explore we consider several tools at our disposal to help us hone the skill of the independent and unbiased investigation of truth. 

In this episode we explore the principle of the independent and unbiased investigation of truth as an expression of the principle of justice and an effective way to immunize ourselves against unwitting manipulation, self-sabotage, and polarization.

In this episode we discuss the urgency of revamping our deeply flawed World Court so it can effectively serve the purpose for which it was created namely as the first port of call for nations embroiled in disputes so they can settle their differences peacefully without resort to violence and war. 

In this episode we consider what insights we can glean from reported near-death experiences to help us avoid feeling overwhelmed, anxious, worried, helpless, hopeless and ultimately paralyzed in the face of the cascading problems besetting human society.

In this episode we explore another lesson modeled by the European Coal and Steel Community that is worth emulating and that is the importance of weaving a set of first principles or shared system of global ethics into the very structure and processes of new institutions of global governance necessary to create a peaceful and just world.

In this episode we explore the many lessons we can glean from the way the European Coal and Steel Community—the foundation of what we know as the European Union—was created, including its structure and processes in order to build both a new system of global governance fit to meet the needs of our time and a lasting peace. 

This episode is a sequel to preceding Episodes 9 and 10. Here we consider the ways in which nations can be persuaded to cede a modicum of sovereignty to a democratically-elected World Parliament.

This episode is a sequel to the previous Episode 9. Here we consider the importance of ensuring that a World Parliament that has proper democratic legitimacy.

In this episode we consider how our cascading global challenges demand global solutions and the consequent imperative to create a World Parliament equipped with the necessary authority to meet the collective needs and challenges of the 21st Century and beyond.

In this episode we consider the power of the Opportunity Advantage as a tool for leveraging our failures in order to achieve collective growth and create the world we want and deserve.

In this episode we examine the power of the Maturation Analysis as a way to break out of the narrative of limiting beliefs about who we are and our false assumption that we are doomed to repeat our past, both of which are holding us back from building a better world.

In this episode we reconceptualize our understanding of the role those in power and authority and in that light, examine our responsibility to elect fit and worthy leaders, capable of meeting the needs and challenges of our time.

In this episode we examine why it is imperative that we forge unity of thought followed by unity of action at every level of society: local, national, and international; and how we might set about achieving this goal.

In today’s episode we consider our long-standing habit of responding to crises by reaching for expedient solutions and the consequences of this knee-jerk behavior. We also consider the possibility of replacing it with a new, more constructive habit of principled action.

In this episode we explore the idea that we are each born with a predetermined capacity or potential and that what matters isn’t the amount of potential we have but how much of it we actualize by actively exercising our free will.

In this episode we examine the reality that there are two simultaneous processes at work in the world today: the process of disintegration and the process of integration. While both are accelerating and moving to a climax, we’ll explore how it is that they are actually working for us rather than against us.

Our world is in trouble and massively interconnected. Join us we explore shifts in mindset and habits to address them with creative and principled solutions.

For a deeper dive, check out Sovaida Ma'ani's "The Alchemy of Peace" at Amazon and the website of the Center for Peace and Global Governance (www.cpgg.org).