We are in the midst of the biggest and most disruptive civilisational transformation in human history.

All the major systems that define our societies, and our relationship with the planet, are in flux.

I’ve argued that we are in the midst of a great shift. I call it the ‘global phase-shift’. It’s a concept that I will be unpacking here in future posts.

The global phase-shift means that the prevailing industrial paradigm is dying. The collapse of the incumbent system is inevitable. But I’ve also argued that this very collapse is paving the way for the emergence of a new system. Death is the precursor to rebirth.

Over the last two decades, I’ve developed a holistic systems framework that has allowed me to accurately forecast some of the biggest events in recent history. From anticipating the 2001 war in Afghanistan, to predicted the 2008 banking collapse (even before Nouriel ‘Dr Doom’ Roubini did so famously at the IMF), my work has enabled me to see behind the headlines to what’s really driving change.

The risks ahead are unprecedented. Many of them are catastrophic, and some even argue that they are existential. Often, the overwhelming nature of these risks overshadows the fact that we are also uncovering unprecedented opportunities. The chaotic weakening of the old is creating new spaces for new ideas and new ways of living to emerge.

An evolutionary choice

The speed of change and the scale of crisis can feel terrifying. In recent years, it's felt like things have been accelerating. If you've really noticed this, you're not alone. What you're experiencing is not just a figment of our imaginations, or a construct of social media - although those definitely play a role.

This sense of acceleration is picking up on something real: that our global civilisation is moving through a period of fundamental transformation that could lead to either regressive collapse or revolutionary renewal (not to mention several scenarios in between).

Experts from completely disparate disciplines have noticed the signals of this acceleration and documented it in different ways. Earth system scientists have pointed to evidence of a ‘great acceleration’, in which human civilisation’s activities are escalating exponentially in relation to the planetary boundaries that define our relationship with the earth. Technology experts are looking at the exponential progress of technological change, and how this is creating new ways of living, while driving an increasing sense of dislocation in our societies.

The ground beneath our feet is shifting. But we are the first global civilisation that has developed the tools to recognise this. And so, unlike our ancestors, we can make far more informed choices about what comes next – although the stakes have never been higher.

We face an evolutionary choice. I’m launching the Age of Transformation newsletter to empower us to understand this extraordinary time, and to make better choices. It is dedicated to helping humanity to move into a new life-cycle, as the old patterns fall away: to empower you to recognise the levers of system change, disruptive innovation, and mindset shift that can accelerate pathways to abundance, while mitigating the risks of collapse.

We need to improve our understanding of both how industrial technologies have brought us to the precipice, and of how emerging technologies might help us leap to the next level of human evolution, or push us off the edge to our dooms. New tools might help us solve some of our deepest challenges, but they might also create even more complex problems. What are these technologies? How do they work, and what will there impacts be? What are the costs, risks and benefits?

Ultimately, it’s becoming clear that technology alone won’t save us. Because while we might hold ‘technical’ answers in our grasp, the sense of paralysis, the inexplicable inability to change course, suggests that the deeper problem is within the very operating system that defines our societies, our cultures, our worldviews, and ourselves. We need new ideas, rules and approaches; new structures, and new strategies; and new ways of seeing and engaging with the world. We need a new level of consciousness.

I created this newsletter to explore these themes and empower you to navigate this extraordinary era, in which the old incumbent system is dying as a new system comes into being.

So please do join me in this endeavour. Every month (and I'll aim for every other week) you will get original insights, reporting, analysis, tools and frameworks to help you and your friends, family, colleagues, community and organisations make better decisions in the context of the global phase-shift.