A problem becomes a crisis when it challenges our ability to cope and thus threatens our identity. In the polycrisis the shocks are disparate, but they interact so that the whole is even more overwhelming than the sum of the parts. At times one feels as if one is losing one’s sense of reality. Is the mighty Mississippi really running dry and threatening to cut off the farms of the Midwest from the world economy? Did the January 6 riots really threaten the US Capitol? Are we really on the point of uncoupling the economies of the west from China? Things that would once have seemed fanciful are now facts.
Jonathan Katz
More articles
Feb
28
2023
The Long View Vol 22
Since the Long View started as a newsletter almost 2 years ago, our aim has been to curate the highest quality polycrisis news, research, and analysis to support this...
Feb
28
2023
The Displacements
As 'The Displacements' slows down and sinks into the frustrations of life in a massive relief camp, the story recalls the Houston Astrodome after Katrina — except that...
Feb
21
2023
Whose polycrisis?
Unless the Polycrisis seriously questions the drivers of power and finds ways of challenging them, it risks becoming yet another neoliberal policy buzzword.
Feb
20
2023
Reflecting on the Polycrisis: From under the table whispers to public conversations
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d6NAtDt3xGo The Resilience Funders Network brings you a special conversation with Nate. Nathan J. (Nate) Hagens is a leading public...
Feb
16
2023
Is “Polycrisis” the right word for our times?
I’ve noticed a marked increase in the use of the term “polycrisis” over the last year, at least in US/Western media
Feb
15
2023
The Year of the Polycrisis
The term polycrisis is not and won’t be uncontested. Nor will its companion term, “resilience,” which we also use. Over time, both terms will be adopted as forms of...
Feb
08
2023
So we’re in a polycrisis. Is that even a thing?
A lot of the folks trying to sound profound in the hallways at the World Economic Forum in Davos this week had just the word: “Polycrisis.” That’s what we’re in,...
Jan
26
2023
Sleepwalking on megathreat mountain
A host of interconnected “megathreats” is imperiling our future.
Jan
16
2023
THE COLLINS WORD OF THE YEAR 2022 IS…
Permacrisis: noun, an extended period of instability and insecurity
Jan
16
2023
‘Polycrisis’ may be a buzzword, but it could help us tackle the world’s woes
Polycrisis is a more accurate term to describe the world’s ongoing crises and how they’re interacting with one another.