Zombies, dictatorships, environmental catastrophes: judging by films, TV series and books, the future seems like a terrible place. And just read the comments on social channels, including those of Futuro Prossimo. Choose any piece of news or technology, any one, and you will mostly read chilling and chilling comments. What if the future was also full of hope and innovative solutions to the problems that afflict us? After so much dystopia, leave some space for her optimistic sister: gentlemen, let's talk about Protopia.
Protopia, a definition
Think of a garden. No, not that of Eden, and not even a “perfect” garden. A normal garden: that is the model of prototypical society. It is never finished or perfect: it requires constant care, attention and work to grow and develop. Protopia implies a continuous commitment to improvement, recognizing that every day can bring progress, however small, towards a better society. This vision contrasts with the idea of a static and unattainable utopia, or a dystopia from which there is no escape, instead offering a realistic and incremental path towards improvement.
The concept of Protopia was coined by Kevin Kelly, theorist of digital futurism, to underline the importance of continuous and gradual progress, rather than the search for definitive utopian solutions or surrender in the face of dystopian scenarios. Protopia, as mentioned, is based on the idea that small, progressive changes can accumulate over time, leading to significant improvements in society.
From protecting rainforests to cleaning the oceans, from "ethical" artificial intelligence to sustainable cities, another future is possible. It is necessary.
A gentle rebellion against pessimism
More and more people look at the future and the present with pessimism, believing that the situation can only get worse. It's the fault of doomscrolling, and hyper-stimulation from bad news? Partly. And then there is everyday reality, which also doesn't make much effort to make itself likable.
It's sad, because so many smart people are working hard to solve problems, but you only have to look around to see dystopias. Things? A social experiment by predictive programming, or a way to exorcise fear? However, from the zombies of “The Last of Us” to the “Hunger Games” games, from the totalitarian nightmare of “The Handmaid's Tale” to the climatic apocalypses of “The Day After Tomorrow” and “Don't Look Up”, our imaginations of the future seem stuck on nightmare scenarios. The last time we dreamed of a better tomorrow was with Star Trek. 60 years have passed.
Yet there is a huge need to show another kind of future: not an unrealistic utopia, nor a hopeless dystopia. A protopia. A future in which humanity successfully faces the great challenges of the present, from the climate crisis to artificial intelligence, from inequality to democracy.
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There are who, how Valerie Courtois, a Canadian expert on indigenous forestry, works with the UN and its government to protect national parks. OR Boyan Slat, a young Dutch entrepreneur who with his organization The Ocean Cleanup is cleaning the oceans of plastic, intercepting it in the most polluted rivers before it reaches the sea. Or even those who work to tell Protopia, how Kathryn Murdoch, daughter of tycoon Rupert, who co-founded a production company (Futurific Studios) to introduce people and projects that are already building pieces of protopia.
How many? Many. Which? For example the cleanest power plant in the world, in Copenhagen, which transforms waste into energy. O'use of virtual reality to improve the approach to pain. The common thread? Innovation and hope.
If we look at history, everything we take for granted today was considered impossible in the past. If there's any advice we should really ignore, it's from those who say something can't be done.”
Boyan Slat, founder of The Ocean Cleanup
Let's try it too
Cultivating Protopia can be a panacea against prevailing pessimism, inspiring the public to imagine and actively build the future they desire. For this reason, exploring prototypical visions in various fields, from technology to society, is an exercise that we should all do. Like yoga, but for the soul. I did a bit of homework too, just for this post.
For example, imagining one “Vertical Farm City”, a city of the future where all the skyscrapers house high-tech vertical farms that grow food using hydroponics, saving soil and water.
Or a “Global Empathy Network”, in which artificial intelligence is used to enhance empathy and collaboration between people of all cultures, promoting mutual understanding.
Or again, a “Eco-Industrial Hub”, a former polluted industrial site transformed into a green hub, which combines environmental reclamation, renewable energy, circular manufacturing and sustainable innovation. Demonstrating that the environment, economy and community can thrive together.
These are just a few examples of the Protopia that we could bring into the collective imagination through compelling stories and evocative images. In the hope that, one day, they can also become widespread realities.
Looking for heroes of the future
The road to a better future is still long and bumpy. And protopia will always have to deal with the undeniable fascination that utopias and dystopias have on our psyche. There's something exciting about thinking of yourself as the lone survivor in the apocalypse. Maybe with a German shepherd as a faithful friend, as in "I am legend".
But a humanity of people who work together and build a better tomorrow is much more rock. Let us become the ancestors that the future deserves, the people who will be remembered forever. Let us plant the seeds of hope, the fruits of which will be reaped in the years to come
Ultimately, Wallach observes, it's about becoming the ancestors that our future desperately needs. Everyday heroes who, with their commitment and vision, sow seeds of hope in the soil of the present, to reap the fruits in the years to come.
As the visionary architect said Buckminster Fuller, you don't change the world by fighting the existing reality, but by building a new one that makes the previous one obsolete.
A reality that makes us proud to simply call ourselves human.
