Introduction
During the last four decades, a new conception of life has emerged at the forefront of science. It is a unified view that integrates life’s biological, cognitive, social and ecological dimensions. At the very core of this new understanding of life we find a profound change of metaphors: from seeing the world as a machine to understanding it as a network.
This new science of life is now being developed by outstanding researchers and their teams around the world. I have integrated their concepts and ideas into a single coherent framework — a unique synthesis, which I am teaching for the first time in this online course.
I call the new conception of life a “systems view” because it involves a new kind of thinking — thinking in terms of relationships, patterns, and context. In science, this way of thinking is known as “systems thinking,” or “systemic thinking,” because it is crucial to understanding living systems of any kind — living organisms, social systems, or ecosystems.
Systems thinking makes us aware of the fact that the major problems of our time — energy, economics, climate change, inequality —are all interconnected and interdependent. They are systemic problems that require corresponding systemic solutions.
This course will give you the conceptual tools to understand the nature of our systemic problems and to recognize the systemic solutions that are being developed by individuals and organizations around the world.
I hope you will consider taking the Capra Course, and I look forward to stimulating discussions.
Alumni Network
From the beginning of planning the Capra Course, one of Fritjof’s goals has been to, eventually, build up a global network of individuals and institutions who explore, practice, and teach the systems view of life.
All participants from each Capra Course will automatically be given access to the Capra Course alumni network which will allow you to carry on conversations not only with your current group of participants, but also with those people who have already participated in other versions.
In addition to an alumni forum where you can discuss topics related to the course and the systems view of life, the platform allows for:
- finding a participant by name and interest area (search function)
- creating or joining participant groups (You will be able to define these groups in terms of gatherings of members, posts, and any other content you create)
Alumni are also invited to four annual gatherings, held during the equinoxes and solstices. During these gatherings, Fritjof may prepare a topic or bring a guest, they are also an opportunity to meet and exchange with other alumni.
All participants of Capra Course receive automatic membership of the alumni network on completion of the course. To access the network please click on the button below.
Registrations for the Fall 2023 Capra Course are now open.
The Fall 2023 course will start on September 13
Course details
The course is offered twice a year: in February and September. It consists of twelve pre-recorded lectures, with one lecture being posted each week. Each lecture is about 40 minutes long. The course will include exclusive online discussion forums in which I participate regularly. All students will be able to fully interact and share materials via the course forums. The number of students will be strictly limited to 250, to allow high-quality interactions in our discussions.
We are also offering an opening and a closing circle with me for every course. These live sessions are offered at two times: 9 AM and 7 PM (PST) to accommodate participants from diverse time zones.
Each lecture will also contain a lecture overview, as well as supplementary reading and viewing materials. The Capra Course lecture videos will be available for five weeks after the last lecture is released. If desired, course participants can receive a course certificate of completion at the end of the course. You are welcome to view the Capra Course Terms of Use here.
At each course, a selected group of alumni also offers optional study groups in different languages, days and time zones. The study groups have proven to be a great way for participants to connect, explore the concepts further and interact. Fritjof meets with the groups after Lecture 6.
The twelve lectures of the course were filmed at Amana-Key in São Paulo, Brazil, with a small group of students. You can listen to what they had to say about their experience of the course in the trailer.
Lecture contents
- Systems Thinking
- The Web of Life
- Order and Complexity in the Living World
- The Systems View of Evolution
- Mind and Consciousness
- Science and Spirituality
- The Systems View of Health
- Life, Mind, and Society
- Life and Leadership in Organizations
- The Ecological Dimension of Life
- Systems Thinking and the State of the World
- Systemic Solutions
Attenzione: Sono ora disponibili i sottotitoli in italiano dei video delle lezioni e dei documenti complementari tradotti.
The Capra Course will also include:
Forum library: References for books, articles, and videos including best systemic practices embodying the systems view of life, posted by course participants (“course materials to share”).
Lecture summaries: 2-page summaries for each lecture, including references to the corresponding sections in the textbook.
Supplementary Materials: a list of special videos — discussions with scholars, short films, TED talks, and other inspiring videos — that are relevant to specific lectures of the course and will be posted in conjunction with those lectures.
The Capra Course video lectures can be watched on PCs, laptops, Apple OS mobile devices (iPad and iPhone) and Android. Some earlier versions of the Apple OS may not be supported.
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