Humanity at a Crossroads

Since the founding of Rock Creek Institute the dangers we face have multiplied. Meaning and the quest for a good life in community with others have largely been replaced by stuff. Ennui and lack of agency prevail. The results are wars, escalating conflicts, potentially catastrophic soil and biodiversity loss, unprecedented wealth and poverty, an intensifying climate emergency, food and water insecurity, poor governance, the testing of democracies, worry over AI, and new hurdles around separating misinformation and delusion from reality—a polycrisis that many see as existential.

Some believe that the health of the Earth’s natural systems and human health and wellbeing are inseparable, while others hold firm to the gospel of unlimited growth and predestined progress. We are at a unique time in human history—an inflection point—where two Grand Narratives for organizing society are in a tug-of-war for our collective future.

The Dominant Grand Narrative is exploitative, blinkered, and unimaginably resilient to reform. Efforts to transform it from inside tend to re-produce the status quo. The Grand Narrative of Wise Ancestors celebrates life and prioritizes acting with deep insight, hindsight, foresight, humility, compassion, and vision to advance wellbeing for all. It is tailor-made to unchain humanity’s better angels.

Let’s pull together to become Wise Ancestors. The legacy of our species rests on which Grand Narrative triumphs.