Otto Scharmer
Returning to the Future
Otto Scharmer is a Senior Lecturer in the MIT Management Sloan School and co-founder of the Presencing Institute. He chairs the MIT IDEAS program for cross-sector innovation and introduced the concept of "presencing"—learning from the emerging future—in his bestselling books "Theory U" and "Presence" (the latter co-authored with P. Senge et al). He is co-author of "Leading from the Emerging Future", which outlines eight acupuncture points for transforming capitalism. His most recent book, "The Essentials of Theory U", summarizes the core principles and applications of awareness-based systems change.
In his work, Otto has dealt with the cultural, social and organizational preconditions for a successful system restructuring. With "Theory U", he has developed a new management approach for change processes which unconventionally combines teachings of mindfulness with change management and action research.
Otto has received numerous awards and merits and takes on further tasks, among others he is a member of the World Future Council. The United Nations Deputy Secretary-General appointed him to the UN Learning Advisory Council for the 2030 Agenda.
In the Video Conversation with REGENERATE's Andrew Keen, Otto Scharmer identifies three blind Spots as a Source for Transformation. One of his central statements calls for moving towards climate justice, for a "Shift from Ego to Eco" - ego consciousness, from which the crisis symptoms of our time arise, to an ecological system consciousness. Further on, he outlines an approach to turn farms into a new type of university, bringing a new civilization more in harmony and by this transforming the "three big divides of our time" – the ecological, the social, and the spiritual divide.
