What it Means to Be Human Bildung traditions from around the globe past present and future

Around the globe, there are many traditions that deal with the human need for belonging and formation: To be part of a group and to evolve as an individual and become You.

In Europe, this goes by the name Bildung, in parts of Africa, it is called Ubuntu, and in Latin America Buen Vivir. In other parts of the world, it has different names.

It is a hallmark of humanity and our ability to build civilizations and keep social peace that we educate and form our minds and hearts so that we can live peacefully in mutual disagreement and even get to the point where we may appreciate differences and plurality.

This book is about these traditions from around the globe.

It is also about what happens to humanity when we are confronted with the challenges of the 21st century, such as social media, AI, and the risk of being bombarded with fake news. How can we educate for such a complete shift in the human condition?

To make sense of that, we need to explore what it means to be human.