David Korten's The Great Turning

Alright, I'll admit that this book probably won't mention Peak Oil, but it will be of interest to people who are following it. David Korten is the author of When Corporations Rule the World. His new book, The Great Turning will be out in late April 2006.

I found this detailed description of it:

Description

David Korten's classic bestseller, When Corporations Rule the World was one of the first books to articulate the destructive and oppressive nature of the global corporate economy. Now, ten years later, Korten shows that the problem runs deeper than corporate domination--with far greater consequences.

Synopsis

In The Great Turning, David Korten argues that corporate consolidation of power is merely one manifestation of what he calls "Empire": the organization of society through hierarchy and violence that has largely held sway for the past 5,000 years. Empire has always resulted in misery for the many and fortune for the few, but now it threatens the very future of humanity. Korten points to global terrorism, climate change, and rising poverty as just a few of the signs that Empire has become unsustainable and destructive.

The Great Turning traces the roots of Empire to ancient times and charts the long evolution of its favored instruments of control, from monarchies and bureaucracies to the multinational institutions of the global economy. Korten also tells the parallel story of the attempt to develop a democratic alternative to Empire, beginning in Athens and continuing with the founding of the United States of America. But this remains an unfinished project--Korten documents how elitists with an imperial agenda have consistently sought to undermine the bold and inspiring "American experiment," beginning in the earliest days of the republic and continuing to the present day.

Empire is not inevitable, not the natural order of things--we can turn away from it. Korten draws on evidence from sources as varied as evolutionary theory, developmental psychology, and religious teachings to make the case that "Earth Community"--a life-centered, egalitarian, sustainable way of ordering human society based on democratic principles of partnership--is indeed possible. And he outlines a grassroots strategy for beginning the momentous turning toward a future of as-yet-unrealized human potential.

The Great Turning offers a new framework with which to understand our offers a new framework with which to understand our current predicament, grasp the potential of this historic moment, and take action for the future of our planet, our communities, and ourselves.

Endorsements

The Great Turning is a work of amazing scope and depth. This is a wise and is a work of amazing scope and depth. This is a wise and much needed book that shows we can create cultures where our enormous human capacities for joy, caring, and cooperation are realized."
--Riane Eisler, author of The Chalice and the Blade

"Not only are we the ones we have been waiting for, THIS is the book we have been waiting for! It provides the context and stories that have been missing, leaving us with piecemeal analyses and solutions. The framework of the 5,000 year history of the Empire is very powerful and a big eye-opener about the deliberateness of the enslavement and oppression that has resulted from it. Off and on, I heard in my head the words, "the emperor has no clothes."
--Jan Roberts, Director, Earth Charter USA Communities Initiatives

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Table of Contents

Prologue: In Search of the Possible

Part I: Choosing Our Future
1. The Choice
2. The Possibility
3. The Imperative
4. The Opportunity

Part II: Sorrows of Empire
5. When God Was a Woman
6. Ancient Empire
7. Modern Empire
8. Athenian Experiment

Part III: America, The Unfinished Project
9. Inauspicious Beginning
10. People Power Rebellion
11. Empire's Victory
12. Struggle for Justice
13. Wake Up Call
14. Prisons of the Mind

Part IV: The Great Turning
15. Beyond Strict Father Vs Aging Clock
16. Creation's Epic Journey
17. Joys of Earth Community
18. Stories for a New Era

Part V: Birthing Earth Community
19. Leading from Below
20. Building Consensus
21. Liberating Creative Potential
22. Waking Up, Changing Course

It looks great.

Comments

[Susan Gleason]

Hi,

Thanks for posting a mention of David Korten's new book, The Great Turning: From Empire to Earth Community.

It's very fitting for the themes you're exploring here, and I think you'll be happy to find that it does mention peak oil quite strongly -- as part of the impending perfect storm of peak oil, global climate change, and collapse of the U.S. dollar.

For additional early praise of the book:
http://davidkorten.com/Books/greatturning_comments.htm

David Korten's book tour calendar (starting this month):
http://davidkorten.com/cal.htm

And more info about the author:
http://davidkorten.com/bio.htm

YES! Magazine (www.yesmagazine.org) has partnered with David's organization, the People Centered Development Forum, to feature this work on our website and to co-sponsor some of the Earth Community Dialogue Events happening around the country this year:
www.yesmagazine.org/greatturning