At its core, the Orbital Perspecitive is a deep synthesis that naturally leads to profound collaboration.

It is a synthesis of:

• The short-term with the long-term
• Individual and organizational goals with the needs of civilization
• Myriad diverse perspectives to produce a deep multi-dimensional view

Imagine that you are floating weightless above our incredibly beautiful Earth. What do you see?

On the one hand, you are deeply moved by our planet’s breathtaking beauty.

But from the vantage point of space, you realize the unfortunate realities of life on our beautiful planet. The environmental decline and assault on the natural world, the sharp divides between rich and poor, the violence, immense suffering, and conflict experienced by many throughout the world stand out as scars on the otherwise beautiful landscape.

This is the sobering contradiction that many astronauts experience when they look down on Earth from space, the mixing of awe and wonder with sadness and a sense of injustice, a realization that it doesn’t have to be this way. A conviction that we can build a path toward a positive and restorative future for all.

From the unique vantage point of 178 days in space aboard the International Space Station, I had a profound realization: If we can come together to build the most technologically advanced systems and machines in space surely, we can come together to solve some of the most pressing problems facing our world.

Seeing the Earth from space, I realized our planet is one interdependent system. From the vantage point of space the mindsets preventing us from solving our most challenging problems became undeniably clear.

• We’re stuck in the same old ways of thinking that have been used for centuries. We’re locked into the false confidence that what worked before will continue to work tomorrow.
• We are obsessed with short-term profit and growth at all costs, instead of considering courses of action that would be more beneficial and sustainable over a longer period.
• We don’t account for the larger impact of our actions.

But when we zoom out and see the world as a whole system, we begin to see the true impact of our actions—not just on ourselves but also on the entire world.

How can we use the Orbital Perspective to enact a course correction towards a more positive and restorative future?

By realizing that:

• The same old approaches will never solve our ever-increasing problems.
• The problem-solving process needs to transcend stove pipes, boundaries, and borders and encourage profound collaboration and understanding on a planetary scale.
• Business and political leaders need to move away from a focus that only considers the next shareholder report or election cycle to one that also integrates a multi-generational perspective to investment and progress.
• Each of us is incredibly powerful to affect real change. Every thought, word, and action ripples out, every moment of every day, and affects not only the trajectory of our own lives but also enacts course corrections to the trajectory of our entire society.
• By taking proper perspective, challenges can transform into opportunities and people, resources, and ideas can be connected in new and powerful ways.
• Self-centered egoic consciousness needs to be replaced needs by a “planetary consciousness” which embraces, in the words of the late Dr. Martin Luther king Jr., “the basic fact of the interrelated structure of all reality.”
• We can leverage technology to create solutions that transcend boundaries and drive collective progress. By using data, analytics, and predictive models, we can understand trends, identify emerging opportunities, and develop innovative strategies for change.
• We need to move from thinking economy-society-planet to planet-society-economy. We need to re-prioritize these systems not out of any ideology or eco-philosophy but rather because this is the true reality of our world

Incorporating an Orbital Perspective leads us to think holistically and allows us to see the bigger picture. We can create a more restorative, sustainable and equitable world for generations to come.

Former NASA Astronaut Ron Garan shares his Orbital Perspective message with forward-thinking organizations through keynotes and consulting to empower them to think, act and lead differently.

Ron emphasizes that while our differences often divide us, they can also bring us together if we recognize our common humanity and interdependence.

Connect with Ron to find out more.