Alexander Beiner is a filmmaker and writer whose documentary "Leviathan" Daniela reads as a portrait of why a fundamental transition is needed. The conversation opens with his central argument: that Western civilization has inverted its hierarchy of reality. What is most real, embodied presence, authentic relationship, the private interior life, has been pushed aside by abstraction. The financial system is one example he reaches for, where most money is created from nothing by private banks, but the point is broader: again and again, fantasy has become more primary than lived experience.From there the conversation moves into the practical question of how people learn to inhabit relational spaces more fully, given that human connection is genuinely difficult. Beiner draws on Seth Godin's definition of culture as "people like us do things like this" to frame how shared values make that easier, and he references the work of facilitator Trish Blaine on what he calls the other person problem. He is drawn to psychedelics as one among several technologies of transformation, not as a shortcut but as a way of temporarily dissolving the abstractions that keep people from experiencing what is actually most real. The conversation holds a productive tension around the question at the series' heart: whether a better future is something to be actively co-created or something that has to be allowed to emerge, and Beiner is honest that he does not have a clean answer.Alexander Beiner is a writer, journalist, and facilitator focused on culture, systems change, and sensemaking in a complex world. He is best known as a co-founder of Rebel Wisdom, an alternative media platform (2017–2022) that explored topics such as polarization, consciousness, and the evolving cultural landscape through long-form conversations and events.He is the author of The Bigger Picture: How Psychedelics Can Help Us Make Sense of the World and currently leads Kainos, a storytelling and media studio focused on helping people navigate societal transformation. Beiner is also an executive director of Breaking Convention, Europe’s longest-running conference on psychedelic science and culture, and has facilitated workshops and experiences for thousands of participants worldwide.His work sits at the intersection of psychology, spirituality, and cultural evolution, often exploring how new ways of thinking and inner development can help address today’s global challenges. here is the beginning of the AI-series Alxander mentioned: https://open.substack.com/pub/beiner/p/artificial-oracles-ai-and-the-future?utm_campaign=post-expanded-share&utm_medium=weband here the documentary "Leviathan": https://beiner.substack.com/p/leviathan-full-documentaryDaniela Bomatter is a Swiss-born former software engineer and business leader who rose through various leadership positions to become CEO of SwissEnergy at the Federal Office of Energy in Switzerland. After a successful career in technology and public service, her life took a transformative turn through the encounter with spiritual teacher Andrew Cohen and his teaching of Evolutionary Enlightenment.As a co-founder of Manifest Nirvana, Daniela has been a senior practitioner of Evolutionary Enlightenment, living, studying, and working closely with Andrew Cohen from 2008 until his passing in March 2025. Her work continues to carry forward the essence of his vision—an awakening that is not separate from evolution itself.She now lives in Tiruvannamalai, India, where she founded and runs the Manifest Nirvana Ashram, a vibrant hub for spiritual practice, dialogue, and conscious community within a small sustainable village. In 2025, Daniela published her first book, The Viratya Myth Begins—a mythic-visionary narrative exploring the next step of human evolution through a fusion of story, philosophy, and consciousness inquiry.