The authors argue that the current body of research into societal crises—defined here as “periods of turmoil and destabilization in socio-cultural, political, economic, and other systems, often accompanied by varying amounts of violence and sometimes significant changes in social structure”—concentrates on a narrow selection of historical examples. Addressing this, the authors compile a database of […]
The authors translate polycrisis from a loose concept into a research agenda by providing the concept with a substantive definition, highlighting its value-added in comparison to related concepts, and developing a theoretical framework to explain the causal mechanisms currently entangling many of the world’s crises. In this framework, a global crisis arises when one or
Global Polycrisis: The Causal Mechanisms of Crisis Entanglement Read More »
This 19th edition of the World Economic Forum’s annual Global Risk Report is based on a risk perception survey conducted with nearly 1500 experts from academia, government, business, and civil society. Chapter 1 focuses on three risks that have grown of increasing concern over the next two years: false information, interstate violent conflict, and economic
Global Risks Report 2024 Read More »
Tim Sahay surveys the many crises covered in The Polycrisis newsletter over the last year and identifies four key shifts: northern countries are increasingly concerned with their own economic resilience but have not reformed the international financial system, so the global south remains increasingly vulnerable and disadvantaged; the past two years have witnessed more violent
Using expert solicitation, the authors identify 14 “evolutionary traps” (global, technological, and structural) that risk locking humanity into unfavorable (maladaptive) trajectories that seriously restrict its ability to adapt to the Anthropocene. These traps develop over four phases: initiation, scaling, masking (of harmful interactions), and trapping. The fourth phase involves one of five trapping mechanisms: constraints,
Evolution of the polycrisis: Anthropocene traps that challenge global sustainability Read More »
In this article, the authors argue that the polycrisis is the manifestation of challenges outlined by the earlier scholarship of the “global problematique,” a set of systemically related factors including political, social, and ecological challenges such as pollution, resource depletion, and population growth. The polycrisis is recognized as the outcome of profound governance crises that
This tenth edition of insurance company AXA’s Future Risks Report surveyed 3,500 experts in 50 countries and a representative sample of 20,000 members of the general population in 15 countries. It found that the top three perceived risks are: 1) climate change, which for the first time occupied the top spot for both experts and
AXA Future Risks Report 2023: A World in Polycrisis Read More »
Noting that the world is failing to meet the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), this report explores six key solution areas to bridge the gap, encompassing policy, public sector activity, technology, infrastructure, private industry, and financial services. It proposes the emergence of a new global system as past “certainties” come to an end, leading to a
Capital as Force for Good: Solutions to Close the SDG Gap Read More »
Kanishka Jayasuriya argues that polycrisis is a helpful descriptive term for the novel, intersecting crises of the 21st century, but it should be understood as a political crisis arising from the contradiction between capital accumulation and the social reproduction (the conditions of life) on which capitalism depends. Established political frameworks are unable to manage the
Polycrisis or Crises of Capitalist Social Reproduction Read More »
The authors translate polycrisis from a loose concept into a research agenda by providing the concept with a substantive definition, highlighting its value-added in comparison to related concepts, and developing a theoretical framework to explain the causal mechanisms currently entangling many of the world’s crises. In this framework, a global crisis arises when one or
Global Polycrisis: The Causal Mechanisms of Crisis Entanglement Read More »
