What Comes After the Polycrisis?

In this article, Erik Assadourian explores how interventions during the polycrisis can be designed to be most effective in fostering a better post-polycrisis future, while also strengthening society’s ability to respond in the present. He argues that while collapse may be increasingly likely, societies still have opportunities to shape what comes after. Assadourian emphasizes the need for long-term thinking and analyzes a range of strategies that could benefit both the polycrisis and post-polycrisis periods. These include dismantling nuclear arsenals, promoting economic and population degrowth, advancing regenerative agriculture, investing in appropriate technologies, and accelerating cultural shifts toward a deeper connection with Earth’s systems.