The Raise Of Emergentism

	CA Ideology

Emergentism is a political ideology that has been making fast inroads into our culture by way of Joi Ito efforts on the Emergent Democracy front.

Mitch Ratcliffe is finalizing a book entitled Emergent Politics and writing on hos weblog about the key principles he is embedding inside it. Of much relevance to the mission and role of Communication Agents, Emergentism formalizes across a few, granitic statements the great transfroming foundations for a new emergent political and social paradigm of human interaction and self-governance.

Here a few key points from Mitch's own reflections about this

"Most importantly, with no monolithic state to guarantee their rights and enforce responsibilities, the individual will experience a profound change, one with all the risks and rewards of Pandora's Box.

Everything will be possible and permission will come through collaboration with others.

With the state fading, but national and local identity still an important component of human identity, a vacuum will open into which someone will step. My bet, the one I hope fervently will succeed, is that no one institution will emerge, but that an emergent community of communities will take pieces of the power of the state, and these communities will begin to interact together with the remaining institutions of the state, international non-governmental organizations, religions, private business and what will surely become a freelance, stateless security "industry" formerly known as the military. Handled deftly, this could turn out very well. If it is bungled, history will turn out very badly indeed.

"Having seen first-hand, many times, the power of networked groups, I hold out not hope, but a task, to organize and act, no matter who you are and no matter what it takes.

Because the lower cost of communications and the logistical infrastructures available around the world allows groups to address their own needs or the needs of others in more efficient and targeted ways, it is no longer necessary for majority rule to dominate all social, economic and political decisions. Instead, we are at the beginning of a collaboration of many minorities.

Power can be used for good or evil, regardless of the system that wields it, so emergentism strives to bring all perspectives and parties to every issue to the table in a world where the cost and complexity of making connections has fallen by orders of magnitude since the founding of the United Nations and, even, World Trade Organization. Every decision must be representative of the concerns of people impacted by the results."

Emergentism recognizes that modern institutions will continue to exist and shall not be violently overthrown but eroded by obsolescence as more efficient and fair alternatives emerge;

Emergentism seeks to create social decision-making environment where ad hoc and trans-national organizations can interact and coexist with existing institutions, with which it may share many values while simultaneously being in sharp conflict with those institutions.

Emergentism is politics for the people by the people that transcends national boundaries, cultural and ethnic differences, religious dogma and personal prejudice by identifying shared interests and facilitating collaboration using modern communications and transportation.

It is virtual community embedded in a physical world with its eyes wide open to the realities of emerging global and local identities that have less to do with people[base ']s locations and more to do with what they care about than the past.

Read more about Emergentism on Mitch Ratcliffe weblog.
via Ross Mayfield