Thomas Legrand is a wisdom’s seeker, a social scientist and sustainability practitioner.

He is the author of the internationally acclaimed book “Politics of Being. Wisdom and Science for a New Development Paradigm” (2022), an invitation to radically rethink our model of development, which received the Grand Prize of the Nautilus Book Award in 2024.

His spiritual journey began at the age of 23 with an encounter with native spirituality in Mexico, before embracing the wisdom of a wide range of traditions and practices, including meditation, energetic healing and Tai-chi-chuan. He lives with his wife and their two young daughters near Plum Village, the monastery of Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh in the South West of France, his country.

He is currently the Lead Technical Advisor for the UNDP-convened Conscious Food Systems Alliance.

Discussion of this interview in the BatGap Community Facebook Group

Summary and transcript of this interview.

Interview recorded November 9, 2024

YouTube Video Chapters:

00:00:00 Introduction to Thomas Legrand and His Work

00:03:27 Integrating Politics and Spirituality  

00:07:32 Radical Restructuring for Humanity’s Survival  

00:10:43 Prophecies of Transformation and Enlightenment  

00:15:14 Exploring Spiritual Solutions for Society

00:19:22 The Necessity of Consciously Attending to Ethics in Spiritual Practice

00:23:51 Spirituality and Science Collaboration  

00:27:12 The Influence of Sri Aurobindo’s Spiritual Work on Global Events  

00:31:11 Spiritual Practices and Deep Forces  

00:34:53 The Need for Spiritual Transformation  

00:39:07 Theory X and Theory Y: Workplace Dynamics  

00:43:34 Prisons as Factories of Stress and Recidivism  

00:48:32 The Importance of Relationships in Happiness  

00:52:40 The Impact of Collective Consciousness  

00:56:18 Emerging Sciences for Happiness and Peace  

01:00:30 Integrating Wisdom and Science for Unity  

01:04:21 Healing Patterns on a Societal Level  

01:09:00 Transformation Through Breakdown and Regrowth  

01:12:06 Introducing the Concept of a Politics of Being  

01:15:30 The Shift Back to Human Dimensions

01:20:37 Implementing Spiritual Solutions in Everyday Life  

01:25:51 Economic Inequality as the Root of Social Issues  

01:30:39 The Necessity of Change in Society  

01:36:22 The Baha’i Vision and Progressive Revelation  

01:39:03 Understanding the Soul of a Nation in a Globalized World

01:43:25 The Destiny of Unity and Diversity  

01:48:08 Conversations on Conflict and Harmony in Israel  

01:50:45 Healing Trauma as a Gateway

01:53:37 Presidential Apology and Indigenous Healing

01:56:00 Navigating Economic Growth and Conscious Transformation  

02:00:23 Exploring Our Website Offerings