More than 80 years ago, Karl Polanyi warned of the profound social consequences of subordinating society to the principles of the self-regulating market.

In The Great Transformation, he challenged the notion that society could be organised primarily around competition, economic self-interest and market forces without undermining the human relationships and institutions on which civilisation depends.

His warning about the potential "demolition of society" remains profoundly relevant today.

His daughter, Professor Kari Polanyi-Levitt, extended this intellectual tradition through her work on globalisation, development and financialisation, including The Great Financialization, examining how the growing dominance of finance continues to reshape economies and societies.

Professor Fred Block has further developed this tradition through his work on The Habitation Economy, highlighting a fundamental contradiction: while modern economies have increasingly shifted towards meeting human and community needs, our political and economic institutions remain constrained by outdated industrial-era assumptions. He describes this as a "blocked transition" — we have developed a habitation economy but have yet to build a habitation society.

Together, these contributions raise a fundamental question about the direction of modern society.

Across the world, we are witnessing growing political polarisation, economic insecurity, declining social trust and increasing social fragmentation. At the individual level, loneliness, alienation, addiction, abuse and violence raise troubling questions about the direction of modern society.

While these problems have many causes, they point to a question that the Polanyi intellectual tradition helps illuminate:

Have we allowed market principles to displace the human values that enable us to live and cooperate together?

Reversing the Great Transformation

If this is part of the problem, restoring human values to the heart of civil society may be one of the defining challenges of our time.

But how can such a profound transformation be achieved?

Polanyi demonstrated how political and economic institutions reshaped society around the demands of the market. Over time, these changes also influenced individual behaviour, expectations and relationships.

Reversing this process therefore requires more than changes in government policy or economic institutions.

It requires individuals to reconsider the values guiding their own behaviour and the choices they make in everyday life.

Lasting social reform must involve the individual, not merely the institutions that govern society.

From The Great Transformation to The Great Signing

This is the central proposition of The Great Signing — a global initiative to restore human values to the heart of civil society through individual responsibility and voluntary cooperation.

It represents a proposed next chapter in the intellectual journey from Karl Polanyi's The Great Transformation, through Kari Polanyi-Levitt's The Great Financialization and Fred Block's The Habitation Economy, towards practical social action.

Its starting point is the Freedom Declaration for Peace — fifteen short statements expressing the fundamental values and principles that enable people to live and cooperate together peacefully.

The Declaration invites every individual to consider a simple but far-reaching question:

Am I part of the problem, or part of the solution?

The invitation is to take one simple action: sign the Declaration, making a voluntary commitment to uphold these values.

The accompanying Yes, We Signed! campaign seeks to transform this individual commitment into a global social movement, bringing together governments, businesses, community organisations and individuals around a common vision.

From Individual Commitment to Collective Influence

One signature changes very little. Millions making the same commitment can begin changing social norms, expectations and even voting patterns.

This is because the quality of civil society is ultimately reflected in the people it entrusts with power and influence.

The Declaration provides a common standard against which leadership can be judged — not simply by political allegiance, ideology or promises, but by conduct.

When enough people begin applying that standard to the choices they make — as citizens, voters, employees, consumers and business leaders — something fundamental begins to change.

Human values begin to influence political and economic power.

Instead of power shaping society exclusively from the top down, individuals can collectively begin influencing the institutions that shape their lives.

That is the opportunity modern technology now provides.

From Theory to Action

The immediate focus of The Great Signing is one of the world's most pressing social challenges: domestic, sexual and workplace violence.

Despite substantial efforts by governments and institutions around the world, violence and abuse remain deeply entrenched.

Legislation, policing and support services are essential. But they cannot, on their own, transform the attitudes and behaviours that contribute to these problems.

That requires the participation of society itself.

The Great Signing offers a practical starting point — mobilising individuals around shared values that encourage respect, compassion, personal responsibility and peaceful cooperation.

Australia is proposed as the starting point for demonstrating how this approach can work, with the ambition of extending the initiative internationally.

An Invitation to the Polanyi Community

We invite academics, scholars, thought leaders and all those inspired by the work of Karl Polanyi, Kari Polanyi-Levitt and Fred Block to help translate their enduring insights into practical social action.

By supporting The Great Signing, you can help demonstrate that restoring the primacy of human values over market principles is not merely an academic aspiration, but something we can begin to achieve individually and collectively.

We also welcome your critical insights, participation and support in developing this initiative into a global movement.

The Great Transformation identified the challenge. The Great Financialization deepened our understanding. The Habitation Economy points towards a new social order. The Great Signing proposes a way forward.

It begins with one simple action — signing the Freedom Declaration for Peace.

We invite you to learn more about the initiative and how you can participate.

Explore the Yes, We Signed! Campaign