International Big History Association

Energy: The Currency of the universe?
2022-12-05 22:00 - 23:30 (America/New_York) | Zoom, Russian Federation
Energy flows have been central to the epic of evolution and big history for many years. In this presentation, Maximillian Barnett examines them in light of new research. He is a PhD Student working under Professor David Christian in the Department of History and Archaeology at Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia.
Maximillian is a member of the International Big History Association and is part of a global research group which focuses on how understandings of the past can be used to inform approaches to present and future global challenges. He has recently presented papers entitled: “Breaking the Cycle: Alternative Complexity Outcomes for Human Societies” and “The Weights and Measures of World History.” He currently teaches and aids in curriculum development in the fields of law and world history. He graduated with a Masters of Research in History and writes on the fields of demography, geography, anthropology, world history, and futures studies. The current working title for his PhD is The Fork in the Road: Mapping Alternative Responses of Human Societies to the Threat of Collapse.
The presentation will be live on December 5 at 10 pm EST (New York), 2 pm AEDT (Sydney), and 6 am MSK (Moscow) at https://www.airmeet.com/e/27f07160-644a-11ed-a9d6-47ba9a728a8a. We will be using Airmeet for this presentation, which is what we used for our 2021 conference and will be using again for the 2023 IBHA conference. It is similar to Zoom in some aspects and a little different in others. When you click on the link, you will be asked for your name and email address. After you submit those, go to your email and click on the link that Airmeet automatically sends you. You will then be able to log in. Max will begin his presentation at 10 pm EST after which we can all join discussion tables.

Philippine - Asian Big History Conference
2022-12-06 08:00 - 2022-12-07 17:00 (Asia/Manila) | Zoom, Russian Federation
Please find attached the program flow for the upcoming International Big History Conference, the poster, and the registration link for dissemination
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdTCLzJqIF6g2JzMtZoOWH6Nwm9Fe984IbmDe2AHvpOgCljNg/viewform

Everybody's Story
2023-03-08 13:00 - 14:30 (America/New_York) | Zoom, Russian Federation
Ursula Goodenough will tell us Everybody’s Story, which is central to the just released second edition of her book:
The Sacred Depths of Nature
How Life Has Emerged and Evolved
Her presentation and book provide accurate, accessible, and poetic accounts of the emergence and evolution of life.
They lift up the synergies between a religious naturalist orientation and traditional and indigenous religions.
They suggest ways to explore these accounts for their religious potential along interpretive, spiritual, and moral/ethical axes.
They explore ecomorality and introduce a deeper emphasis on human evolution and the environment.
The event is free to all and available through Airmeet, which is a little different from Zoom. Please go to https://www.airmeet.com/e/292fd650-abb3-11ed-9563-c136b7b45add You will be asked for your email address. Please submit that and then go to your email to get the link to the event that will come from Airmeet.
“Ursula Goodenough argues passionately, wisely and even lyrically for a new, modern, scientifically-informed world view that can tell us both about the Universe we inhabit and the moral rules we need to inhabit it well. This is a wonderful account of the history of life by a great biologist. It invites us to find in modern science the profound sense of wonder and belonging, and the deep ethical sense present in all the world’s religious traditions.”
David Christian History, Macquarie University, author of Origin Story: A Big History of Everything

UTOK Consilience Conference 2023
2023-03-17 08:00 - 2023-03-18 17:00 (America/New_York)
Dr. Gregg Henriques is Professor of Graduate Psychology at James Madison University; he is the author of “The Tree of Knowledge System: A New Map for Big History,” Vol. 3 No. 4 (2019): Journal of Big History and founder of the Theory Of Knowledge Society. That society is sponsoring the UTOK Consilience Conference 2023 on March 17 and 18.

Chat Room, 3/29, 9 am est
2023-03-29 09:00 - 10:30 (America/New_York) | Zoom, Russian Federation
To help maintain contacts or meet others in the IBHA even before our July 2023 conference, please join us for informal discussions about anything regarding big history that you are thinking about. We cordially invite all who share our interest in big history to join us on Airmeet (similar to Zoom) on March 29. Since our members are in such a variety of time zones we are offering two times on that day – at 9 AM ET and at 9 PM ET. There will be an IBHA “host” to moderate a lively discussion among all that attend. So please grab a cup of coffee, a glass of wine or beer or whatever, and tell us your thoughts!

The links to attend the meetings are below.
Hope to see you there.
The IBHA Board
https://www.airmeet.com/e/abb80f90-afa3-11ed-8ced-2f1595423c83 , 9 am EST (Host: Daniel de Pinho Barreiros)
https://www.airmeet.com/e/ce0bbf00-afae-11ed-a696-b1b07624da35 9 pm est (Host: Dave LePoire)

If you are not sure what time that is for you, you can use tools like the Time Zone Calculator to find out.

IBHA Chat, 3/29, 9 pm est
2023-03-29 21:00 - 22:30 (America/New_York) | Zoom, Russian Federation

Complexity: Big History Studies from Russia
2023-04-16 03:00 - 05:00 (America/New_York) | Zoom, Russian Federation
Registration: To sign up, please send an email to the OBHM <bighistorymovement@gmail.com> with your name, affiliation, and email address by the end of Friday April 14 in your local time. For security, we share the link to join the webinar only with those who are registered on the day before it.

Complexity: Big History Studies from Russia
2023-04-16 03:00 - 05:00 (America/New_York) | Zoom, Russian Federation
Registration: To sign up, please send an email to the OBHM <bighistorymovement@gmail.com> with your name, affiliation, and email address by the end of Friday April 14 in your local time. For security, we share the link to join the webinar only with those who are registered on the day before it.

Registration: To sign up, please send an email to the OBHM <bighistorymovement@gmail.com> with your name, affiliation, and email address by the end of Friday April 14 in your local time. For security, we share the link to join the webinar only with those who are registered on the day before it.

2023 IBHA Conference
2023-07-07 - 2023-07-09
Link to Airmeet site, home of the conference.
Conference 2023 Information
The 2023 IBHA Conference Theme on
Humanity on a Finite Planet: A Big History Perspective
The discipline of big history throws light on the achievements and challenges in the present and possibilities for the future by analyzing the biological, social, political and economic history of the homo sapiens in the context of the geological, climatological, environmental, and evolutionary history of the planet earth and the cosmological history of the solar system and the universe.
At this point in time, the human civilization is at a crossroads. The choices we collectively and individually make in the next decade or so will lock humanity into either a destructive or a sustainable pathway for our species. In big history terminology, we may have just entered or are about to enter a new threshold. While in the past, humans have progressed largely by following their survival and adaptation instincts, now as a global civilization, collectively we have a better understanding of the complex web of reality around us and therefore are in a position to make informed choices towards a desirable destiny.
We now know that we are living on a complex planet with highly interconnected planetary systems but finite material resources. Through the combined processes of biological evolution (a natural planetary process) and technological revolution (a human-induced process) we have become the ‘top predator’ in the food as well as materials chain on the planet. The concept of planetary boundaries – which are key planet-level processes that govern the stability and resilience of the earth in a form required to sustain humanity – was introduced by Johan Rockstrom, Will Steffen and collaborators in 2009 and further refined over the years.1 As per the current data available at least four of the nine processes are no longer in the ‘safe operating region’. In other words, at least some of the critical ‘Holocene’ conditions under which humanity thrived and progressed, no longer exist on the planet. The most widely discussed examples are global warming and loss of biodiversity.
However, from another perspective, over the past few centuries, we have also seen great strides in improving the quality of human life in terms of health and life expectancy, as well as the ways and means available to manifest, express and share human creativity and innovation in various forms. There are also innumerable localized examples of human communities achieving respectable quality of life in harmony with the localized planetary processes.
Where do we go from here? How do we put to use the positive outcomes of human endeavours to combat the potential negative outcomes? What should be the new direction given to human knowledge systems to ensure an equitable and sustainable human civilization that is more mindful of the limits as well as potentials of the planet earth and the solar system? What does the new planetary normal mean for the philosophical and spiritual frameworks developed by humans so far? How do we deal with the psychological impacts of the transformative change (either destructive or constructive)? Will the upcoming technological developments like human-AI interface, genetic modification, space travel, nanomaterials, etc., harm or help humanity? The conference will focus on exploring these and similar questions through multidisciplinary lenses.

2024 IBHA Conference
2024-06-28 - 2024-06-30 | NCED Hotel & Conference Center, 2801 East State Highway 9, Norman, Oklahoma, 73071
We look forward to seeing you in person at our 2024 conference from June 28 to 30, where we can discuss all of our latest work on the cosmos, Earth, life, humanity – as well as exoplanets, astrobiology, the multitude of life forms, culture, and the potential of a multiverse – throughout all of the known past as well as in what we might reasonably expect in the future.
We have in the past met in an entirely on-line conference (2023), a hybrid on-line / in-person conference in India (2021), and in-person conferences in Pennsylvania (US, 2018), the Netherlands (2016), California (US, 2014), and Michigan (US 2012).
The center of North America is another great place to discuss big history. The geology of Oklahoma is formed by Carboniferous rocks in the east, Permian rocks in the center and towards the west, and a cover of Tertiary deposits in the panhandle to the west. The panhandle of Oklahoma is also noted for its Jurassic rocks as well. Cretaceous sediments are found in the south east. There are also some areas with older outcrops dating back to Cambrian, and even one area of Precambrian igneous rocks. The Great Salt Plains are the remains of an ancient inland sea. The Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History is a world class, state-of-the-art natural history museum with wings about flora and fauna, the evolution of life, and the peoples of Oklahoma from precolumbian times to the present. The First Americans Museum presents the many nations of Oklahoma. The Oklahoma City Science Museum, Museum of Art, Zoo, and the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum, add more opportunities. And have fun at the Hurricane Harbor Water Park!
The conference will take place at the beautiful and well equipped NCED Conference Center & Hotel, which is just 3 miles from the heart of the University of Oklahoma campus. It has a 60,000 square foot fitness center with unique amenities including 4,000 square foot weight and cardio room and heated pool. Rooms are reasonably priced at $114 per night, which includes breakfast. The conference fee will be $325, which includes a Friday welcome reception, as well as lunches on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.
Most importantly, we will all have the opportunity to present, discuss, and listen to each other’s work on the fascinating field of big history, reconnect with old friends and meet new ones!
A call for papers and registration information are forthcoming, but be sure now to put this on your calendar!

Free Webinar: August 21, 2024. Big History Systems Evolution
2024-08-21 14:00 - 15:00 (America/New_York)
Abstract: Evolutionary mechanisms enabled humans to irreversibly transform Earth systems, culminating in the present-day, globally connected, system of Anthropocene systems. Because Anthropocene systems are highly interdependent and dynamically evolving, often with accelerating rates of cultural and technological evolution, the ensuing family of societal challenges (e.g., climate change and impacts, renewable energy, adaptive infrastructure, disasters, pandemics, food insecurity, biodiversity loss, sustainability, resilience and equity) must be framed and addressed in an integrated manner. To catalyze the required societal transformations, an evolutionary, system-of-systems (evoSoS) convergence paradigm is needed to coordinate strategic interventions across multiple systems and scales. The new paradigm requires a major transformation in our approach to science and engineering and includes an evoSoS computational framework, evoSoS decision-support system and evoSoS pedagogy. A new generation of Anthropocene systems integrators is needed to create a meta-discipline that spans all the disciplines associated with societal challenges of the Anthropocene.
Bio: John Little received a BS in Chemical Engineering from the University of Cape Town and an MS and PhD in Environmental Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley. He is currently the Charles E. Via, Jr. Professor in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia. His earlier research focused on process dynamics in environmental systems but has now broadened to Anthropocene systems. John has been a visiting professor at University of Sydney, Australia, Swiss Federal Institute for Aquatic Science and Technology (Eawag), Switzerland, Tsinghua University, China, National Cheng Kung University, Taiwan, University of Granada, Spain, Centre Scientifique et Technique du Bâtiment, France, and University of La Rochelle, France.

Webinar: Jan 20, noon ET: Exploring Energy Rate Density
2026-01-18 08:00 - 17:00 (America/New_York)
Please join us!
Webinar: Tuesday, Jan 20, Noon ET
Exploring Energy Rate Density as a
Quantitative Complexity Metric
Martin van Duin
Zoom Link: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/89923901081?pwd=[REDACTED]

Teaching a Big History of Iron: Building and Running a Cross Disciplinary Course
2026-02-01 15:00 - 17:00 (America/New_York) | Zoom, Russian Federation
Iron is at the heart of so much big history. Massive stars fuse hydrogen and helium into heavier elements, until they begin to form iron, at which point a supernova explodes. Along with all the other elements, iron is burst out into space, where, in our case, it was added to the accretions that formed Earth. Much of it sunk deep into the Earth, providing a magnetic shield that protects us from solar winds. Some of it rusted into beautiful bands of rock that can be enjoyed in many geological sites like the US Painted Desert. It is crucial in how our blood transmits oxygen throughout the body. It has been central to the building of skyscrapers, bridges, and much more.This webinar will discuss our experience designing and teaching a Big History of Iron course listed across four disciplines: History, Biology, Anthropology, and Geology, and taught in four coordinated sections at Jacksonville State University, in Alabama, USA. We will begin by outlining the administrative and institutional groundwork required to create and approve a genuinely cross disciplinary course, including coordination across departments and course listing within the university. We will then turn to the practical execution of the course itself, discussing course structure, shared themes, coordination among instructors, relevant local sites we visited as a class, and what worked, as well as what we learned, in teaching Big History collaboratively across the natural sciences, social sciences, and humanities.Presented by:Dr. Helen Kaibara-HistoryDr. Jimmy Triplett-BiologyDr. Kathryn Catlin-AnthropologyDr. Ross Martin-GeologyZoom link forthcomingThe image is of a Toluca iron meteorite (coarse octahedrite, class IA). Toluca is a group of iron meteorites found in Jiquipilco, Mexico near Toluca. The meteorites probably crashed into Earth more than 10,000 years ago. For centuries, Mexican people living near the meteorites used them as a source of metal for various tools. They were first described by conquistadores in about 1776. The total known mass is about 3 tons. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toluca_(meteorite)
