ABSTRACT
Displacement drives evolution. This has led to positive results, along with obvious negative ones. Human evolution and global civilization are outcomes of disaster and displacement. It is challenging to find optimism in disaster, but by drawing on perspectives from the field of big history, humanity can better develop ideas about adaptation in the face of crisis. Our existence depends on such a process, which will help us make more constructive choices about the future. The effort will be one of individuals making choices nuanced by planetary networking in a system of adaptive global identity. Thus, in the midst of catastrophe, we can find hope and regeneration. It will depend on individual optimism and group cooperation, and will require creative vision and engagement.
