Logic – The Global System

The LOGIC is framed by a now obvious and powerful “reality,” namely that all humans are embedded in three distinct but interconnected systems—“spaces” or domains—that jointly shape an overarching global system: (a) the social system, with all forms of human interactions, geopolitics, order and disorder; (b) the natural system, with life and life-supporting properties and various forms of life; and (c) the constructed system, cyberspace, with the Internet at its core.

The global system is “set,” so to speak, by the parameters of these “spaces”, their rates of change, as well as their convergences and the divergences. We cannot extract ourselves from any one of these “spaces”—we cannot choose to “opt out”—nor can we always rely on simplifying assumptions to minimize attention to their interconnections or mutual impacts.

Figure 1.1 below depicts these constituent “spaces” of the global system, albeit in a highly stylized mode. It is designed to highlight the spaces of interactions, the fundamentals, and the anchors for MIT Global CyberPolitics.

Note that Figure above is put forth in generic terms. The arrows indicate potentials for relative intensity of activity within and across “spaces”. What follows is a brief statement on each “space”.

Spaces of Interaction

Framed in an abstract and stylistic mode, the Figure above obscures the fact that the different spaces do not necessarily trend in the same direction and may interact with one another in expected ways. Further, this Figure obscures feedback dynamics within and across spaces Such caveats aside, this three-dimensional view is likely to be more robust in the context of the twenty-first century than in earlier decades. Each space is distinctive; jointly they signal key features of the overarching global system:

Social System

The social system is the conventional order of human interaction. Recall that the social sciences were developed by carefully separating humans from their natural environment, and then segmenting areas of human activities into different modalities.

This practice of segmentation enabled the systematic development of knowledge under conditions that today would be considered somewhat constraining. The increasing attention to the natural environment and the cyber domain signals a growing awareness of the potential limits of segmentation.

Natural System

The natural environment assumes an importance of its own as an all-encompassing context — all after decades of conflict and contention in the scholarly, policy, and business communities over impacts of human activities on life-supporting properties. With improved measurement of carbon emissions, the impact of human agency in the growth of CO₂ is generally recognized, as is Climate Change as an overarching condition.

Deforestation, contamination of fresh water, depletion of marine life, and other such processes are among the most visible damages to the natural environment. To say that there has been a major delay in our appreciation of the relevance of nature’s life supporting properties is an understatement of major proportions. There is no such delay for our appreciation of cyberspace.

Cyberspace

The added challenge for theory at this point in time – as it is for all actors and entities – is to take account the virtual arena and recognized that, so far, it is dominated by private, not sovereign, authority. The cyber system is also distinctive its generativity and enabling possibilities.

Linkages & Connectivity

The Figure above introduced the “spaces” – domains or sub-systems – of the global system. The Figure below illustrates linkages across spaces by situating select issues or events along the trajectories. The basic logic at all other levels of analysis.

As framed, the Figure below signals that the more robust is each trajectory, the stronger is the overall security. More specifically, a state is secure and sustainable only to the extent that all conditions across the three “spaces” or systems – the social system, the natural environment, and the cyber domain – tend toward the “high” end of the trajectory.

Overall, this proposition is expected to hold at different levels of analysis, that is, for individuals, groups and organizations as well as for international and global entities. We thus anticipate greater complexity of politics and policy as we begin to explore the full ramifications of each of the constituent “spaces” and their interactions.

The LOGIC segment of the first Global Imperative is foundational, as it highlights the global system and sub-systems. By contrast, the THEORY segment focuses on structure and process as well as sources and consequences of transformation and change.