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(Margaret Mead, Continuities in Cultural Evolution, 1964)

The aim of this knowledge federation proposal is to correct a fundamental error.

Which has long ago been academically uncovered and reported; and indeed in a variety of ways, and repeatedly. Various other problems and error—including the discontinuity of cultural evolution and the non-sustainability of global trends—need to be understood as its consequences.

I am proposing to institute a transdiscipline.

Which is an institution or system of a completely new kind; of which the knowledge federation transdiscipline is a complete real-life model or prototype.

The knowledge federation proposal does include a way to resolve "the huge problems now confronting us", which is called holotopia; not as part of the proposal, but as its proof-of-concept application. The gist of it all is that once an erroneous way to see the world has been corrected—a radically better evolutionary course will be seen and followed. Or to use this simple formula:

Holoscope leads to holotopia

When we see the world (not through the telescope or the microscope, but) through the holoscope (which is a nickname for knowledge federation), a radically better societal and cultural order of things, modeled as holotopia, will be the likely result.

This website is intended to complement my book called Liberation, which will soon appear in print; and present sufficient evidence, by telling entertaining short stories called vignettes. Here I want to share knowledge federation's academic essence. I will not spell out the details; I'll only point to the overall structure—and let you fill in the details; by browsing through the book; and by participating in the public dialog this book will ignite.

In the book I called myself an "academic fundamentalist", with tongue in cheek. The truth of this matter is that I've been trained as a theoretical scientist, which practically means as a mathematician. I am telling you this because (in contrast with my informal and sketchy way of speaking) it is only when you see that there is nothing hypothetical in what I'm saying, that it's all conceived like mathematical axioms and theorems—that you'll have understood me correctly. All of knowledge federation follows from this single and simple knowledge federation axiom:

Knowledge must be federated.

And even that is not assumed to be true—but conceived as a convention of language; and as my definition of knowledge; and as part of the definition of knowledge federation. What I mean by it is that we can only say that something is known, and call it knowledge, if it's supported by evidence; if it resulted from a concerted effort to find and consult all relevant evidence; and also and importantly—if it's reflected in everyday awareness and action.

Knowledge federation is the result of work of many excellent people.

The reason I'm speaking to you as I do, in first person, is to allow myself to be controversial; and to be personally accountable for it, prepared to answer questions; and also and importantly, because I want this to be an outcry.

Historical appeals to institute transdisciplinarity have remained futile.

With stupefying consistency—they have been ignored! And when we took the torch—or as the case may be this large boulder and began rolling it uphill—we too inherited that same absurd dynamic.

I invite you to join me in making the sort of difference that now must be made.

I'll now let knowledge federation introduce itself in its other manners of speaking; and in that way also illustrate some of its facets and techniques.

• In Federation through Ideograms I'll use three simple metaphorical images to share the point of it all
• In Federation through Keywords I'll help you comprehend things more precisely and deeper; by highlighting a handful of custom-defined words
• In Federation through Prototypes you'll see how exactly transdisciplinarity or knowledge federation can make a difference
• And in Federation through Action I'll explain the two steps I am inviting you to take together.

Dino Karabeg