Bruce AldermanA need for Metatheory - Creating the Third Attractor

Conversation

One of sixty-seven. Same opening question, a different world behind the answer.

← All conversations

This conversation № 11 · 622 views

Bruce Alderman

A need for Metatheory

The Deep Divers

Is the Third Attractor something we steward rather than fix in place? We explore grief work, a possible strangeness attractor from AI and synthetic biology, generative enclosures, integral versus metamodernism, and schools built on living and learning.

00:56 Meaning of third attractor 03:00 Co-created or emergent 04:00 What must happen 09:03 Inner development and spirit 20:26 Stories, myth and art 20:48 Biggest obstacles 22:31 Role of AI 32:49 Systems and governance 39:30 Shared values and worldviews 57:43 Communities, prototypes, scaling 67:31 Education and next generations 71:36 Hope and optimism 77:06 Closing reflections

Cover of the conversation with Bruce Alderman

Bruce Alderman is an integral psychologist, writer, and spiritual explorer known for his work in metatheory, integral theory, and transpersonal psychology. He is Associate Director of the Blue Sky Leaders program at CIIS and teaches consciousness, psychology, and transformation at National University. Alderman also produces The Integral Stage Podcast, exploring integrative responses to social, ecological, and spiritual challenges.
With experience teaching in Asia and studying in monastic communities and ashrams, he holds a master’s degree in Integral Psychology from John F. Kennedy University. His work bridges spiritual, psychological, philosophical, ecological, and scientific domains, and he has published in the Journal of Integral Theory and Practice while fostering collaborative forums for integral and metamodern dialogue.

https://www.ciis.edu/blueskyleaders
https://www.ciis.edu

Every conversation with this guest

Keep listening

67 conversations in all

All conversations

Alexander Laszlo

The Deep Divers

Probability Spaces

What does it mean to consciously participate in the evolutionary movement of life? In this conversation, Alexander Laszlo and I explore Syntony, the dynamic harmony of life, and how love, consciousness, surrender and agency can help us become living expressions of the Third Attractor.

84 min · 14 Oct 2026 · 140 views

Tiokasin Ghosthorse

The Earth Keepers

Indigenous Wisdom

In this conversation, Tiokasin Ghosthorse brings a Lakota perspective on intuition, consciousness, our relationship with Earth and the possibility of rediscovering a way of living that modern civilization has largely lost.

69 min · 10 Oct 2026 · 298 views

Rob Hopkins

The Earth Keepers The Pioneers

Falling in Love with the Future

What can twenty years of the Transition movement teach us about creating a different future from the ground up? Rob Hopkins and I explore community-led change, local economies and why rebuilding our collective imagination may be one of the most important steps towards a Third Attractor.

68 min · 28 Sep 2026 · 143 views

Jennifer Garvey Berger

The System Builders

Leadership and Complexity

How do we stay open and creative when complexity makes us want to contract into certainty and simple answers? We explore leadership, human development, relationships, AI and why creating a different future requires us to grow our capacity to meet the unknown.

80 min · 22 Sep 2026 · 87 views