HOMO SAPIENS SAPIENS:

1
HOMO SAPIENS SAPIENS

• OUR SPECIES IN TIME, SPACE, and MIND

2
Evolution

• 2,600,000 years of human history
• the biology - culture dialectic feedback
  mechanisms in systems terminology
• evidence for connected body/mind structural
  changes upright posture/hands free, birth
  canal/brain etc
• culture as an adaptive strategy
• continuing role of mutation (introduces change)
  and natural selection (selects for fitness) in
  all species, including humans

3
Economy

• fisher/hunter/gatherers (exclusively for
  2,590,000 years)
• horticulture (perhaps 15,000 years)
• pastoralism (perhaps 15,000 years)
• agriculture (10,000 years)
• the production-distribution-consumption cycle
  organizes society
• the economy adjusts to group size, environment,
  etc
• the new economies (e.g., telecommunicationssell
  ing information) and the old base (getting food
  and other resources from the environment)

4
Society, Community

• central importance from deep in human history to
  the present
• synergy among social elements
• individual identity (personality
  development)
• collective identity (through shared values)
  and
• collective organization (community,
  cooperation)
• competitive distinction among groups (class,
  gender, ethnicity, race)
• egalitarian and pyramidal political organization
• participation in decision making heterarchy
• competition for prestigehierarchy
• another deep time trait values that open
  (inclusiveness), values that close (exclusiveness)

5
Belief

• the varieties and the power of belief
• the roots of belief in values
• the roots of values in knowledge and experience
• the search for the right way to be in the world

6
Communication

• the many ways humans communicate information
• language, body language, objects, style, space
  and perception, etc
• draws on emotions, feelings, all the senses
• the link between emotion and memory
• communicating knowledge
• traditional forms of communication (stories,
  apprenticeships, etc)
• contemporary communication increasing speed of
  transit to instantaneous, less face-to- face
  interaction
• commodification of information and knowledge

7
The Effects of Rapid ChangeStress

• on mind and body
• on individuals
• on families and communities
• on organizations and systems
• on societies
• on the planet

8
ANTHROPOLOGYStudying Change, Identifying Patterns
9
Global Issues

• 20th Century focus on the nation-state
• democracy vs. authoritarianism (WWII a clear
  example)
• capitalism (success!) vs. communism (failure!)
• but all the 20th century experimentscapitalism,
  communism, socialism-produced
• stress on the individual
• diminution of quality of life (erosion of family
  and community)
• exploitation
• corruption
• colonialism
• environmental degradation (biodiversity loss,
  pollution, global warming)

10
Global Issues

• 21st Century focus on the planet
• governance
• the double challenge of multinationals and
  Jihad to the nation-state and to democracy
• how to protect populations, nation-states, the
  planet
• keeping security in perspective (the warnings of
  1984)
• authoritarianism vs. democracy (again!) and the
  role of religion
• the planning challenge (short-term vs. long-term
  the next election vs. the next century)
• Environmental issues
• Ozone depletion, radioactive waste, air
  pollution

11
Global Issues

• Biodiversity
• studied at three important scales genetic,
  species, and ecosystem
• Value pharmaceuticals, food, ecosystem
  stability
• Loss is accelerating, caused by
• Habitat change and loss (e.g., Everglades),
• Over-harvesting (cod fishing),
• Introduction of exotic species (zebra mollusc)
  New diseases (pfisteria),
• Pollution (agri fertilizer and pesticide
  runoff /N.C. fisheries),
• Climatic change (lobster to blue crab)

12
Global Issues

• Genetic modification
• Benefits insect- drought- and
  disease-resistant crops, herbicide tolerant,
  prolonged shelf life
• Risks pesticidal toxin produced throughout the
  plant, allergic reactions, movement of
  transgenes into plant relatives, contamination
  of non-GMO and organic crops through
  cross-pollination, long-term health and
  developmental effects are unknown, pests keep
  mutating
• Human health (disease, bioterrorism, compromised
  immunity)
• Food quality (Chicago Abyss)
• Food security (environmental degradation and
  political instability)

13
Democracy

• ...the modern response to terror cannot be
  exclusively military or tactical, but rather must
  entail a commitment to democracy and justice even
  when they are in tension with the commitment to
  cultural expansionism and global markets. The
  war against terrorism also will have to be a war
  for justice if it is to succeed...
• Barber, Jihad vs. McWorld, p. xii

14
What is Democracy?

• Just who were the Founding Persons of Democracy?
  We have to go back a long way.
• What does democracy look like in mass societies
  such as nation-states?
• What is a citizen? A member of a political
  society who owes allegiance to the government and
  is entitled to its protection.
• What is the role of the justice system and the
  courts in a democracy?
• How is democracy threatened by Jihad?
• How is democracy threatened by McWorld?
• The future of the nation-state
• Was Marx right for the wrong reasons in saying
  the state would wither away?
• Just what can states do for their citizens?
• There are many things government cannot do very
  well, but there are many others that only
  government can do, such as regulate and
  protect...subsidize and redistributenot because
  it does them particularly well, but because they
  are public things for which only we, the public,
  can be held accountable. These res publicae
  include education, culture, incarceration,
  transportation, defense, health care, social
  justice...and the fair and equitable
  international order that offers every person and
  every group equal access and equal opportunity.
• Barber, p. xxxi

15
Addressing Rapid Global Change

• multiple scales of analysis (of time and space)
• multiple dimensions of analysis (many
  data-gathering methods, many perspectives)
• understanding the context of conflict (history,
  culture, values)
• An array of pattern recognition tools
• Investigating information, measurement, and
  interpretation
• Reconciling science and belief what we can
  learn from tradition and spirituality
• engaging in mediation/ mitigation/ remediation

16
Head in the Sand or Eyes to the Sky?
Endeavor to think and act beyond your place and
time in the world. As Native Americans teach, act
on behalf of Unto seven generations your
childrens childrens childrens childrens
childrens children and their world of AD 2206.