New Perspectives: How a Dancefloor of Paradigms Can Save the World

This paper explores how the consciousness of Indigenous peoples can facilitate the development of new paradigms to address global issues like climate change and adaptation to global warming. It explores how Indigenous and Western notions of consciousness differ and cannot be reconciled in contemporary models of consciousness without colonising Indigenous ways of knowing. It differentiates maternal and patriarchal consciousnesses and contrasts the body/heart pathway found in many Indigenous cultures with the mental field activity of the Western psyche. Using the concept of a multi-paradigmatic dancefloor, I propose a new model for developing global thinking on complex problems, inviting academics and leaders to explore the radical possibilities that emerge at the intersection of consciousnesses where profound creativity arises. I contend that this bold step is imperative to release the genius needed to address our society’s local and global issues at this moment in time