Books

This is the book in which the vision of a World People’s Representation is developed. Expect it to be a demanding book – it can hardly be otherwise since it deals with the complex matter of human cooperation. This book is about our ability to cooperate and to build civilizations and our potential to achieve almost anything (that is not against the laws of nature). And it is also about our ability to commit folly – sometimes even knowingly – and in doing so frequently to fail to reap the fruits of cooperation. The history of human cooperation is briefly outlined in this book, from the newest scientific insights about the ways of our oldest ancestors up to an analysis of our current basic assumptions about the world and society, the “software” behind cooperation. It deals with tricky questions like that of how to utilize the frequently invoked “human nature” or why we are seemingly condemned to fight each other. The central question, however, is the one about when and under what conditions does cooperation work and bears rich fruit and when (and why) does it sometimes fail with all the misery this entails (folly is not always to blame). 

However, this is not simply an analysis of the history of human cooperation. In this book answers are sought to the question of how to proceed from now, from a time at which we have already achieved so much, where we have reached such high levels of cooperation, where we are already connected globally by a multitude of ties, but also a time where we are seemingly unable to solve the pressing problems which are endangering our future, where cooperation is increasingly failing, and where optimism is fading. In times like these, analysis is not enough, action will be needed as soon as possible. It is the aim of this book to contribute to a better understanding of our present situation and also to provide a proposal for how we could take our destiny in our hands and provide ourselves with the best possible conditions for future cooperation and prosperity