The ‘fifth wave’ is our chosen euphemism for what needs to emerge in response to the crisis we now face. We have argued that this is a crisis of modernity itself. We have also argued that the fifth wave will not reject what is good about modernity. Rather it will seek to transcend and include the four previous waves. Of equal importance is the idea of emergence. The fifth wave will emerge out of new ways of thinking, being and doing.
We do not wish to be too specific about aiming for a desirable goal: rather, we would prefer to stress the open nature of the future. We are prepared for the decline of certain aspects of the culture in which we are immersed and acknowledge that this may well involve loss in the short term. Our readings encourage us to have confidence that much which is beneficial could emerge from coming changes, including a different set of values and assumptions about what makes for a good life. This is what is meant by an enigmatic saying we recently encountered – climbing the mountain that isn’t there!
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