The Human Project

The Human Project app is an intellectual adventure into the future of our species and an invitation to reach for the stars. Literally.

Think of the ongoing human project as an inter-generational relay. How is our generation—all of us living at the beginning of the 21st century—doing in our leg of the journey? Today we can’t give a good answer. We are just making it up as we go.

It’s time to get organized. Let's start with a big picture. Let’s look as far into the future as our knowledge allows. Lay out the known challenges to our existence and opportunities to evolve. Then step back and think together: Where do we want to take the human project and why? What are the most important contributions our generation can make? How might we get going?

To assemble this big picture, we spent four years researching fields from cosmology to biology, Big History to science fiction. We studied scores of global challenge lists put together by inter-governmental organizations, global fora, billionaire philanthropists, and former presidents. We immersed ourselves in public debates on issues that are now well understood and sought out lone voices speaking about issues that have yet to register in the public’s awareness.

If you are a concerned member of the human race wondering where to place your life’s energy or just your cognitive or financial surplus, the HUMAN project app is a good place to start.

1. Watch, read & think.
Watch short-form videos that take on big existential questions: Who are we? What should be our purpose as a species going forward? What can one human life mean?

Read concise articles that unpack the challenges that could impact our collective survival and ascent—from pandemics and changing climate to cosmic radiation and the heat death of our universe. What’s the challenge really about? What’s at stake for us as a species? What ultimate goals should we aim for? What should we accomplish by 2050? What would it take to turn the metaphor of the ongoing human project into an actual project?

2. Connect with like-minded people.
Reach out and connect with the authors, composer, graphic designers, and coders. How else will we get organized in the 21st century?

About the team
The idea behind The Human Project started as a spark between the two authors, Anna Stillwell and Erika Ilves. It then quickly evolved into a collaboration around the globe. 150 of us came together to run a crowd funding campaign. We attracted 261 backers and raised twice our funding goal, allowing us to turn what was going to be a free digital book into a multimedia adventure with video, original music scores and graphic design produced by a growing team of volunteers working across four continents. Filmworks Dubai produced the videos as a CSR initiative. Reiner Erlings composed the music. Ly Nguyen and Leo Chida created the design. Charlotte Simpson captured the photographs. Tall Chair coded the app.