"Perhaps the biggest challenge facing humanity in the communications era is to evolve the art and practice of conscious democracy." -- Duane Elgin
from Chapter Five of Awakening Earth:
Exploring the Evolution of Human Culture and Consciousness
by Duane Elgin.
A conscious democracy pays attention. Recognizing that "the
price of freedom is eternal
vigilance," a conscious democracy is vigilant, watchful and
wide awake. A semiconscious
democracy was characteristic of the... industrial era: Leaders
and citizens
wandered through the social landscape half asleep, inattentive
to critical trends and events,
and only momentarily awakened by the shock of some catastrophe.
A great tragedy, triumph,
or scandal was required to break through the complacency and distractedness
of the masses.
Once the public was aroused into momentary wakefulness, it was
not long before a new issue,
emergency, or scandal would dominate social consciousness, pushing
aside or obscuring
previous concerns. Because the body politic was not in charge
of its own consciousness,
industrial era civilizations often stumbled into the future-forgetful
of the past, fearful of and
reacting to enemies often more imagined than real, and aggressively
pursuing short-run
interests even when they conflicted with long-run well-being.
A semiconscious democracy is no
match for the new global challenges. We must cultivate the double-wisdom
at the heart of our
species-potential if we are to take charge of our evolution and
negotiate the narrow
passageway of the near future.
Just as the evolution of consciousness is highly adaptive for
an individual, so, too, is an
evolving consciousness highly enabling for entire civilizations.
The following are some of the
important enabling qualities of a reflective society and conscious
democracy:
o Self-Determining - One of the most basic expressions of a maturing
consciousness is an enhanced capacity for self-determination - the social expression
of which is democracy. A conscious society is able to stand back and look at its
choices as well as observe itself in the choosing process. A reflective democracy is
able to observe itself "from the outside," much as one nation can stand back and
view another from a distance. A conscious society knows its own mind and does
not blindly trust in a particular ideology, leader, or political party; instead it
regularly reorients itself by looking beyond superficial slogans and vague goals to
choose anew its preferred pathway into the future.o Informed - A conscious society is well informed. Instead of moving through life
half-asleep and ignorant of the challenges it faces, a conscious citizenry is
disciplined in learning about important trends and issues.o Confident - Because a conscious society knows its own mind, it can move ahead
with greater confidence and assurance. Because social policies are developed with
public input, a conscious bond is formed among citizens who support those
policies, and this promotes the social strength necessary to implement them.o Error-Embracing - A conscious society recognizes that social learning inevitably
involves making mistakes. Therefore errors are not automatically rejected or
denied as being "bad"; rather they are accepted as useful feedback and
recognized as grist for the mill in the process of social learning.o Detached - A conscious democracy is objective, impartial, and reacts calmly to the
stressful pushes and pulls of trends and events. A society with a witnessing
consciousness has an evenness, detachment, levelheadedness, and confidence
that is not pulled off center by the passions of the moment.o Inclusive - A conscious society continually searches for the synergy of the highest
common denominator. Differing ethnic and racial groups, geographic regions, and
ideological perspectives are actively invited into dialogue as vital ingredients for a
society that seeks a vigorous common ground.o Anticipatory - In viewing the world more objectively and from a larger
perspective, alternative pathways into the future are considered consciously.o Creative - Because a conscious democracy is able to stand back and look at its
choices, it is not locked into habitual patterns of thinking and behaving. A
conscious democracy does not respond with preprogrammed solutions, but
explores options and priorities with a fresh and flexible frame of mind.o Responsive - A conscious society does not wait passively until some crisis forces
action; instead it is already energized and actively engaged. A self-reflective
society does not have to be shocked into remedial action by some catastrophe;
instead more subtle warning signals of danger (and opportunity) are sufficient to
lead towards self-corrective action.
These straightforward attributes of a conscious democracy are
of immense functional value, as
they support an empowered, active, and capable process of self-governance.
We need all our
strength as a species if we are to build a future of mutually
assured development. Most of all
we need conscious democracies if we are to take charge of our
evolution, negotiate our way
through the crises of the future, and remain on a path of ever-surpassing
development
....
Television is at the very heart of our capacity for self-reflective consciousness at a civilizational scale. Television is our social witness - our vehicle for "knowing that we know" as nations and as a human family.... Television has become the "social brain" or "central nervous system" of the human family. Given the power and pervasiveness of television, we already possess the tools of local-to-global communication that can transform our semiconscious drift toward catastrophe into conscious actions to build a sustainable future. A direct measure of our social intelligence as a species is the intelligence with which we use our social brain-the rapidly evolving telecommunications system....Television (or the fast-emerging, interactive, multimedia, telecomputer system) will play a pivotal role in creating a more conscious democracy. Three ingredients are critical to a conscious democracy - an informed citizenry, a dialoguing citizenry, and a citizenry that gives regular feedback to its leaders.
o An Informed Citizenry - A first requirement for creating a
more conscious democracy is a quantum leap in the quantity
and diversity of televised communication concerning issues
vital to our common future. Currently the vast majority of
commercial television time is devoted to entertainment
(typically 95 percent or more of prime time on network TV in
the United States.). We are entertainment rich and
knowledge poor. By programming television for commercial
success, the television industry is programming our
civilizational consciousness for ecological failure. Our situation
seems similar to that of a long-distance runner who
prepares for a marathon by eating junk food. We are trying
to run modern democracies almost exclusively on a diet of
TV entertainment at the very time that we confront
challenges of marathon proportions.We desperately need a hearty and robust diet of socially
relevant television programming that informs us about the
critical trends and choices facing communities, nations, and
the planetary society. We need far more documentaries and
investigative reports that give citizens an in-depth
understanding of the challenges we face. We need
scenarios of the future that vividly portray what life will be
like within a generation if nothing is done to alter current
trends. We need positive visions of what life could be like if
we begin designing ourselves into a sustainable future. We
need to balance the onslaught of aggressively
proconsumerist commercials with a regular diet of "Earth
commercials" that awaken an ecological consciousness and
encourage us to live more compassionately.Commercial television makes money by delivering a mass
audience to corporate advertisers. Understandably, then,
this industry is reluctant to devote air time to programs or
commercials that question the appropriateness of
high-consumption lifestyles. Because an ethic of
sustainability runs counter to the aggressively
proconsumerist mentality of commercial television, a major
increase in government funding for public television seems
essential in order to generate the level and quality of
communication needed to support a conscious democracy in
its process of choosing a sustainable future.o A Dialoguing Citizenry - Beyond an adequate diet of
information, a conscious democracy must also know its own
mind. If democracy is the "art of the possible," then we
don't know what's possible until we have an accurate sense
of what the overall community of citizens thinks and feels
about different issues and priorities. Without an accurate
understanding of what other citizens think about key issues,
we drift aimlessly in a sea of ambiguity and are powerless to
mobilize ourselves into collective action.Power in a democracy is the power to communicate and
build a working consensus. Only when the public knows
what it thinks as a whole can it confidently communicate a
working consensus back to its elected representatives. An
informed public can be trusted. After reviewing half a
century of polling public opinion in the United States, George
Gallup, Jr., found "the collective judgment of the people to
be extraordinarily sound." Often, he said, "people are
actually ahead of their elected leaders in accepting
innovations and radical changes."To know its own views and values, a citizenry must go
beyond the information revolution (with its one-way flow
that enables us "to know" as individuals), to the
communications revolution (with a two-way flow that
enables us to "know that we know" as entire communities).
As computers, satellites, fiber optics, telephones and
high-definition television technology merge into globally
interconnected multi-media systems, the potential for
interactive citizen communication will grow exponentially.
With weekly or monthly electronic town meetings held
locally, nationally, and globally, an entirely new level of
accountability can be established between the public and
decision makers.o A Feedback Democracy - Once a citizenry knows its own
mind and has confidence in its views and values, then it can
use electronic forums to give feedback to elected leaders.
Assuming citizen feedback is advisory or nonbinding, it
respects the responsibility of representatives to make
decisions and the responsibility of the citizen to make inputs
to those that govern. In a conscious democracy a working
consensus among citizens would presumably guide (but not
compel) elected representatives. The practical role of
electronic town meetings is not to provide a vehicle for
citizens to micro-manage government; rather, it is to provide
a forum for citizens to build a working consensus on the
major issues of the day. For example: Do citizens want an
alternative energy future (relying primarily on solar power,
wind generation, and increased efficiency as well as
conservation?) or do they want an energy future that relies
heavily on nuclear power? Do citizens want to commit
themselves to a dramatic reduction in greenhouse gases?
Do citizens want to make major cutbacks in military
expenditures in favor of social and infrastructure
expenditures, or do they want to maintain a strong military?
As citizens refine their views on these kinds of issues
through regular, electronic dialogues, elected
representatives can then move decisively to do their part in
building a sustainable future.A conscious democracy requires the active consent of the
governed, not simply their passive acquiescence. Involving
citizens does not guarantee that the "right" choices will
always be made; however, it does assure that citizens will
feel involved and invested in those choices. Rather than
feeling cynical or powerless, citizens will feel engaged and
responsible for society and its future. A conscious democracy
that is empowered by the creative use of its tools of mass
communication can respond wholeheartedly to the
momentous challenges facing our planet. Perhaps the
biggest challenge facing humanity in the communications era
is to evolve the art and practice of conscious democracy.