The Great Turning: From Empire to Earth Community

* Sweeping survey of world history offering a new understanding of the key challenge of our time
* Offers a positive message of hope for a sustainable and just future and a practical strategy for getting there

In The Great Turning, David Korten argues that "Empire," the organization of society through hierarchy and violence has always resulted in misery for the many and fortune for the few, but now it threatens the very future of humanity as Empire has become unsustainable and destructive.

Korten traces the roots of Empire and charts the evolution of its instruments of control, from absolute monarchies to the multinational institutions of the global economy. He describes efforts to develop democratic alternatives to Empire, such as the founding of the United States and shows how elitists with an imperial agenda have undermined the "American experiment."

Empire is not inevitable, and we can turn away from it. Korten draws on evidence from evolutionary theory, developmental psychology, and religious teachings to show that a life-centered, egalitarian, sustainable, democratic "Earth Community" is possible.

In his classic international bestseller, "When Corporations Rule the World," David Korten exposed the destructive and oppressive nature of the global corporate economy and helped spark a global resistance movement. Now, he shows that the problem runs deeper than corporate domination — with far greater consequences.
Korten argues that global corporate consolidation of power is but one manifestation of what he calls " Empire" — the organization of society by hierarchies of dominance that have held sway for the past 5,000 years. Empire has always resulted in misery for the many and fortune for the few. Now it threatens the very future of humanity. "The Great Turning" traces the ancient roots of Empire and charts its long evolution from monarchies to the transnational institutions of the global economy.
Empire is not inevitable, not the natural order of things. 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. He details a practical strategy for advancing a turning toward a future of as-yet-unrealized human potential.

David C. Korten is president and founder of the People-Centered Development Forum, a global alliance dedicated to the creation of just, inclusive and sustainable societies through voluntary citizen action. He holds MBA and PhD degrees from the Stanford Graduate School of Business and is a former faculty member of the Harvard Graduate School of Business. He was previously a Ford Foundation project specialist in Manila and an Asia Regional Advisor on Development Management for the U.S. Agency for International Development. David is the author of 'The Great Turning: From Empire to Earth Community', 'When Corporations Rule the World' and 'The Post-Corporate World: Life After Capitalism' and a frequently invited speaker at conferences around the world. He is also a Board member of the Business Alliance for Local Living Economies (BALLE) and a member of Social Venture Network and the Club of Rome.