Our current economic system is destroying our future. A briefing from Futurist Chet W. Sisk

As a Futurist, I have to challenge conventional wisdom when it doesn't translate well in a new environment. The world is in the middle of a gigantic shift, but there are those who want to hold onto ideas that are not only regressive, but have been at the center of a host of socioeconomic crises that have plagued societies for eons. No matter what your political ideology, the evidence is mounting that current systems at work on our planet are unwilling or unable to translate in a world  that is simply begging for a different application of the efficiencies of the new technology, a world that requires us to leave racism and caste systems behind in order to create more abundance and sharing, a world that screams for a new kind of belief system other than the destructive "every man for himself" ideology and a world that needs us to become more visionary in how humans will live in a climate changed environment. Our collective failure of imagination is creating the current cognitive dissonance showing up in governments around the world. This article from Fast Company explains this challenge in more detail. https://www.fastcompany.com/40439316/are-you-ready-to-consider-that-capitalism-is-the-real-problem

So, what do we do? There is no shortage of new ideas being driven by the new technologies...https://medium.com/@ziadalzee/the-demise-of-capitalism-and-the-rise-of-the-collaborative-commons-910....but these new ideas need collective champions and town hall meetings so that people recognize we are in the middle of change that will affect their bread and butter priorities. This isn't an ideological conversation, but one that requires us to "make it plain". At this critical moment in time, there  seems to be a shortage of courage, vision and imagination. It's clear that a percentage of people in the world who ARE doing well by the current system are also the decision makers, the thought leaders and gate keepers. They are the ones that are maintaining the status quo at the expense of many others. But this is more than about maintaining caste systems. This is about asking "is the current system sustainable now and for future generations?"  With a near extinction level event with climate change, dramatic economic inequality and unhealthy food practices, it's clear that whatever we are doing doesn't and can't work in the long run.

Are there things you can do directly? Yes. Here are some suggestions:

1. Send this link.....https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UqESogRgrYw  from economist Robert Reich about Universal Basic Income to your Congress person, Assembly person or Senator with a note that says. "I want you to drill down on this possibility". That's it. Let them know this is one of your priorities.

2. Clean out your brain using this method. https://www.fastcompany.com/3059634/your-brain-has-a-delete-button-heres-how-to-use-it   This will give you the opportunity to start embracing new ideas that are imaginative and creative.

3. Start thinking independent neighborhoods. We are entering a decentralized world that connects individual communities. This is the Ubuntu idea of Interdependence. Here is an example of a new kind of community, based on this idea....https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HO_3OnOBGHo

4. And maybe it's time to drop that 1950s idea of a big, green and wasteful lawn and turn it into a mini-farm. This will allow us to regain control of our food supply. http://www.yesmagazine.org/comic-why-you-should-turn-your-yard-into-a-mini-farm-20170726

These are just a few suggestions that will become more common over the next few years as we shift from a wasteful and abusive form of living to one that is abundant, efficient, cost effective and egalitarian.

Yes!

Chet