Jay Hanson, of Dieoff.org fame and his new successful [energyresources] list at eGroups, is launching yet another list which may be of some interest to folks around here.

Writes Jay, "I have started a new list to discuss the possibility of such "paradigm shifts". To subscribe, send a message to DarwinSociety-subscribe@egroups.com

The DarwinSociety list is to discuss the ideal society based upon contemporary scientific knowledge. Specifically, it attempts to identify the broad outlines of a sustainable society in light of energy and biological theories. In other words, we will begin with the physical setting and then ask if and how a sustainable society can be devised that places strict limits on human reproduction and consumption.

This new list is not about how to improve our current society. It's about a new imaginary society sometime in the distant future.

This new list and has the same strict posting rules as the energyresources list: numbers, references, and logic only. NO INFORMERCIALS! Uninformed opinions will not be posted.

This new list officially open for business May 8."

There seems to me to be a prolifferation of similar types of lists online lately. While it indicates that people are willing and wanting to talk about these issues, it also shows a lack of cohesion, amalgamation and organisation. TMI scattered around too many places. How is one to keep up?

Hallyx

"I have yet to see any problem, however complicated, which, when you looked at it in the right way, did not become still more complicated." ---Poul Anderson

-- Anonymous, May 01, 2000

Answers

Thanks, Hallyx.

I resubscribed to Jay's *energyresources* list recently but must have missed the posting regarding *DarwinSociety*.

-Jim

-- Anonymous, May 01, 2000

Hallyx,

"...How is one to keep up?..."

Know what you mean. I look to the principle of following synchronicities. (In the day-to-day as well as the internet). Call them the luminescent breadcrumbs of life's pathways. In a cruder vein, an old friend used to say... "If it's in your face, pay attention!"

Whatever works. ;-D

Recently can across another eGroups list of some impressive discussions. A sub-group of the Institute of Noetic Sciences...

http://www.noetic.org/

Is referred to as the Pathfinders Project...

The pathfinding project seeks to support a self organizing network of people around the world interested in engaging with each other to find a path to a better future.

http:// www.noetic.org/ions/community/pathfinding.asp

What Are We Up To?

People can make a difference. We are living in a time of complexity and ambiguity. Yet it isn't necessary to retreat into our own affairs. In fact, it is an excellent time to step forward. The future is more uncertain, yet much more is possible.

Making a difference, however, requires a special skill: It means linking efforts to change society with changes in our own lives. Much well-intentioned work focuses on changing the world, on the big picture, but these efforts often turn meaningless if not connected to what we believe and how we actually live.Ultimately, we are the change we seek in the world.

These assumptions are central to the Pathfinding Project, an initiative based on three activities: The first is seeking to understand the present state of the world and the areas of our personal lives we consider most important. The second is creating positive images of the future that, magnet-like, pull us in the direction we desire. The third is identifying specific paths by which we can develop a more just, compassionate, and environmentally sustainable society.

~ What are some of the underlying or fundamental or societal issues that we need to be aware of?
~ What are the most interesting ideas being considered today that could lead to a healthier environment?
~ How can work be redesigned to serve our children several decades from now?
~ What inner qualities can we nurture that will be most helpful in the next century, and how can we develop them?

Questions such as these are being discussed within the project, and can be taken up at any point in the process. As the aphorism goes: "We make the path by walking" Pathfinding is an opportunity to discover, envision, and create new paths.

Intrinsic to the process are inquiry (understanding the world and our place in it), vision (imagining positive futures), and action (identifying paths forward)--each an important aspect of the Institute's mission, allowing Pathfinding to support the goals of the larger organization in one integrated membership program.

Who participates in Pathfinding's activities? It is a diverse network made up of members, colleagues, partner organizations, and others around the world. But as important as who is involved is how they are involved.

The Pathfinding network is intended to be chaordic. This word was coined by Dee Hock, founder of VISA and most recently the Chaordic Alliance, to mean "any self-organizing, adaptive organization the behavior of which harmoniously combines both characteristics of chaos and order."

Five principles common to all chaordic networks:

1. They are equitably owned by all participants.
2. Power and function are distributed to the maximum degree.
3. Governance is distributed.
4. They are indefinitely malleable yet extremely durable.
5. They embrace diversity and change. < br>

VISA and the Internet are elegant examples of chaordic systems. Yet they were not specifically intended by those who designed them to generate shared meaning and question prevailing assumptions. Pathfinding is an experiment in creating such a network.

So, in a sentence: Pathfinding is a network of people, supported by the Institute, connected by a common process for creating a positive future and committed to transforming our own lives and the world around us. The project is an opportunity to envision a future that resonates with our mind and hearts so clearly it inspires us each day to make it a reality.

###

You can join the eGroups list... by subscribing to:

findingpaths- subscribe@onelist.com

Theyve been having discussion about creating internet sacred space so you know Im intrigued.

Diane

-- Anonymous, May 02, 2000