What is the noosphere? Planetary superorganism, major evolutionary transition and emergence

The noosphere is an idea that offers hope for positive global integration but remains poorly understood. Its definition is unclear in both Teilhard de Chardin's Western and Vernadsky's Eastern traditions. Using Living Systems Theory, two fundamental meanings are clarified: the noosphere as a planetary superorganism and as a sphere of mind that stores, processes, and spreads information. Two key aspects help grasp the concept: the noosphere as a major evolutionary transition on a planetary scale, and as the emergence of something radically new, possibly including a planetary consciousness or a planet seeking to find or contact other noospheres.

Study at a glance

Abstract

The noosphere remains an underappreciated and understudied idea despite that it provides unique hope towards a positive and meaningful global integration. A core reason for this lack of attention is that its very definition is often unclear both in the West with Teilhard de Chardin and in the East with Vernadsky. I show how Living Systems Theory can clarify two fundamental meanings: the noosphere as a planetary superorganism and the noosphere as a sphere of mind, storing, processing and spreading information. I also present two key aspects to better grasp the concept: the noosphere as a planetary major evolutionary transition and the noosphere as the emergence of something radically new, which might include a planetary consciousness, or a planet seeking to find or contact other noospheres.