Multiple global crises are worsening one another to produce what many policymakers, scholars, and commentators call a “polycrisis.” This website is a hub that helps this emerging community better understand and address the intersecting crises affecting humanity.
LATEST RESOURCES
The Social Pathology of Polycrisis
Stephen J. Purdey explores how the polycrisis has emerged as a growing threat despite humanity’s shared desire for safety and prosperity. He argues that its material dimensions are rooted in and legitimized by an underlying ...
Revolution in an Age of Polycrisis
The authors explore the intersection of revolutionary theory and emerging polycrisis discourses, examining how various international and national factors become intertwined, creating polycrisis events that can lead to revolutionary moments. These revolutionary moments can, in ...
Liberal Environmentalism and Climate Change in the Polycrisis
David Krogmann explores the persistence of liberal environmentalism in international climate policy, despite the growing climate crisis and the broader polycrisis in international relations. He argues that the deep institutionalization of norms linking economic growth ...
Cascading socio-economic and financial impacts of the Russia-Ukraine war differ across sectors and regions
The authors examine how financial markets amplify the cascading socio-economic impacts of global food and energy trade disruptions. Applying their methodology to the Russia-Ukraine war, they reveal regionally diverse effects, including rising energy prices, market ...
What is this era of calamity we’re in? Some say ‘polycrisis’ captures it
This article examines the concept of polycrisis, explaining how interconnected crises heighten global instability. It highlights the Cascade Institute’s efforts to identify high-leverage intervention points — strategic areas where targeted actions can drive meaningful change. ...
Fossil Fuels as the Cause of the Global Polycrisis
This article argues how fossil fuels are both the main driver of the polycrisis and a significant barrier to effective climate action. It highlights how the global economy's dependence on oil, gas, and coal not ...
Global Interconnectedness of Risks: A Worldwide Analysis
The author explores the interconnected global risk landscape, where various risks amplify one another, potentially causing cascading effects across regions and sectors. She examines the global relationship between different types of risks and analyzes the ...
Planetary Boundaries, Polycrisis and Politics in the Anthropocene: Climate Pathways, Tipping Cascades and Transition to Sustainable Peace in Integrative Geography
This chapter explores the impacts of the "great acceleration" in human development and its impact on planetary boundaries and the polycrisis in the Anthropocene. Using an Integrative Geography perspective, it links human-nature relationships, growth limits, ...
Systemic Risk and the Polycrisis
The author explores the concepts of systemic risk, polycrisis, and catastrophic risk, explaining how interconnected failures can cascade across diverse systems, threatening global stability. He emphasizes how systemic risk and polycrisis expose both the vulnerabilities ...
NEW TO POLYCRISIS.ORG
Capitalism, Complexity, and Polycrisis: Toward Neo-Gramscian Polycrisis Analysis
Michael J. Albert explores the debate on "polycrisis," with proponents viewing crises as interconnected shocks, while Marxist critics argue that this obscures the capitalist roots by treating them as separate and loosely connected. He develops ...
A Dangerous Confluence: The Intertwined Crises of Disinformation and Democracies
The authors explore the significant impact of disinformation on elections, emphasizing its potential to undermine democratic processes. Through case studies from Hungary, the United States, and the United Kingdom, they analyze how disinformation spreads, the ...
Introduction: Escaping the Politics Trap? EU Integration Pathways Beyond the Polycrisis
The authors argue that since 2016, the European Union (EU) has been in a state of 'polycrisis,' where interconnected challenges threaten its cohesion and legitimacy. They develop an analytical framework elaborating the concepts of polycrises, ...
Try our guided tour of essential themes in the polycrisis discussion and key texts in the Polycrisis Resource Library.
This map charts the emerging community of scholars and practitioners working on polycrisis and closely related topics.