This paper argues that today’s global crises are manifestations of a deeper civilizational transformation rather than isolated disruptions. Drawing on the insights of Jaspers, Kuhn, Wallerstein, Polanyi, and Schacker—alongside classical theorists such as Toynbee, Spengler, and Eisenstadt—the analysis highlights the exhaustion of existing epistemological, political, and economic frameworks. These scholars converge on the view that history advances through transformative ruptures, when prevailing paradigms of meaning and organization collapse and demand reconfiguration.
The reduction of crises to national frameworks and disciplinary silos has produced an epistemic provincialism that reinforces fragmentation, irresponsibility, and the erosion of democratic legitimacy. Within this dynamic, universities play a crucial role: while they often reproduce disciplinary divisions and nation-centered assumptions, they also represent one of the few institutions capable of advancing integrative knowledge, interdisciplinary dialogue, and planetary consciousness. Their transformation is indispensable if humanity is to navigate this civilizational threshold toward a sustainable and democratic future.

Keywords: Civilizational crisis; Paradigm shift; Global interdependence; Epistemic provincialism; Democracy; Universities; Planetary consciousness

II.2025/WP01

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