The Noosphere

 

 

The noosphere is a sphere of human thought enveloping the Earth. In other words, our global community is connected through our languages: our ideas, thoughts, and actions, developing a global mind – the noosphere. 

The idea of the noosphere was first introduced in 1923 by the French Jesuit priest, scientist, and philosopher, Pierre Teilhard de Chardin. He noticed that humans were converging biologically, and developing ways of seeing ourselves as a collectivity.  This essential scientific discovery has transformed the way we view not just our relationship with ourselves, but with the universe. The noosphere is part of Tielhard’s view of cosmic evolution, which is reflected in his concept of an omega point and his ideas of increasing consciousness.

We are hyperconnected, often stressed, and overwhelmed by a sea of information. The future often seems uncertain and unpredictable at best, scary and hopeless at worst. The noosphere vision provides a sense of direction for us, and hope for the future, hope to tackle global challenges, whether they are social, economical, ecological, technological, or environmental. Most importantly, the noosphere is a holistic idea that invites us to think of these global challenges together, as tightly interconnected.