Per Capita

At a moment when the old global order is fraying and the future feels radically uncertain, how can we prepare for what comes next?

In this episode of Per Capita, Joe Waters speaks with Nils Gilman, Senior Advisor at the Berggruen Institute, about how to think systematically about the future in a moment of institutional rupture and geopolitical instability. Drawing on his intellectual journey—from Berkeley in the aftermath of the Cold War to Silicon Valley and his work in scenario planning—Nils explains the importance of interrogating assumptions, analyzing intersecting technological, demographic, political, and ecological trends, and challenging the “official future” narratives that shape collective expectations. He reflects on how historical change often emerges either from centers of power or from the periphery, and situates today’s disruptions within a broader pattern of punctuated equilibrium.

Nils discusses the concept of the “planetary,” developed in his book Children of a Modest Star: Planetary Thinking for an Age of Crises, and its ethical commitment to multispecies flourishing. He argues that existing institutions are ill-equipped to manage planetary-scale challenges. Rather than advocating world government Nils proposes “planetary subsidiarity”: narrowly tailored institutions that address specific transboundary problems while preserving local democratic agency. 

Addressing America’s current political trajectory, democratic fragility, and the retreat from international institutions, Nils urges us to learn from other countries' experiences with authoritarianism and to strengthen civil society, scientific capacity, and participatory governance as foundations for a more resilient and ecologically grounded future.

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Africa’s demographic future is arriving faster than most policymakers are prepared for. 

In this episode of Per Capita, Joe Waters speaks with Blessing Adesiyan, Founder and Chief Care Officer of Caring Africa, about how rapid population growth, urbanization, and changing family structures are creating an urgent care crisis in Nigeria. With nearly half of the country’s population under 15 and a growing elderly population, families and workers are increasingly overstretched by care responsibilities in systems that remain largely informal and unregulated.

Blessing argues that care must be treated as essential infrastructure, not a private family matter. She describes how the absence of professionalized, affordable care limits women’s participation in the workforce, reduces productivity, and increases inequality.

The lack of existing policy and regulation is a unique opportunity to design modern, inclusive care systems from the ground up. From public policy to private investment, building a robust care economy is not only a social imperative, but also a foundation for long-term economic growth across the African continent.

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Africa’s rapid urbanization is shaping the future of cities and families in the continent. 

In this episode of Per Capita, Joe Waters speaks with Joseph Asunka, CEO of Afrobarometer, about what Africans across more than 40 countries say their governments should prioritize—from the recent rise of health as a top concern to ongoing challenges around unemployment, security, and economic opportunity.

The conversation explores how current global transformations are influencing migration, religion, and the role Africa will play in the global workforce, as well as what it will take to build cities and systems that serve families and their communities. Joseph also discusses the opportunities and risks of artificial intelligence for the continent, and why African data, talent, and infrastructure must be part of shaping the technologies that will define the future.

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Artificial intelligence is advancing faster than our social, moral, and political frameworks, and families are feeling the consequences first.

In this episode of Per Capita, Joe Waters speaks with Ron Ivey, Founder & CEO of Noēsis Collaborative, about how artificial intelligence is reshaping family life, work, and education. They explore why many parents fear AI will undermine economic stability, how rapid technological change is outpacing governance, and why education must focus less on tool use and more on developing moral, relational, and human capacities. 

The conversation argues for a new framework for AI policy and design which is centered on human and family flourishing rather than economic growth.

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The United States and many other democracies are in the midst of a dramatic political realignment with shifting views on national security, economics, technology, and the role of government. 

In this new episode of Per Capita, Joe Waters is joined by Marshall Kosloff, Senior Fellow and Director of Special Projects at the Niskanen Center, and host of The Realignment, one of the most insightful podcasts on how economic and cultural shifts are remaking politics in the U.S. and beyond.

The conversation focuses on how today’s realignment is reshaping the right, what it means for the center-left, how families and their communities are feeling these pressures, and why structural economic change matters as much as cultural identity.

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Are families caught in a polycrisis within the polycrisis?

Housing, health care, caregiving, paid leave, economic uncertainty are just some of the relentless forces reshaping family life in the U.S. today. In the midst of these overlapping pressures, a deeper question emerges: who do we believe ourselves to be? Are we independent, self-reliant individuals? Or are we fundamentally dependent, interconnected, and relational beings?

How we answer that profoundly impacts how we view our responsibilities, our communities, and the role of public policy in shaping family life.

In this episode of Per Capita, Joe Waters, Capita’s Co-Founder and CEO, speaks with Jessica Grose, opinion writer at The New York Times, about the challenges families face and what government is doing—and could do—to support family flourishing. They also explore broader social trends, including declining workforce participation among women, the limits of policy in influencing birth rates, and the role of recreation and community spaces.

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In this episode, Jay Chaudhary, a Visiting Fellow at Capita and Senior Fellow at the Sagamore Institute, interviews Capita Co-Founder + CEO Joe Waters, Daniel Williams, CEO of the Steelcase Foundation, and Jesús Gerena, CEO of UpTogether, during the Aspen VisionXChange in Aspen, Colorado. They explore recent coverage of the Baby’s First Years evaluation, the role of two-parent households in addressing poverty, a more thoughtful definition of abundance, the influence of elite preferences on social policymaking, and the importance of centering the voices and aspirations of parents and families in shaping policy.

We are grateful to the Aspen Institute for allowing us to use the podcast studio on the Aspen Meadows campus to record this conversation on July 29, 2025.

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In this episode, Capita’s Chief Strategy Officer Caroline Cassidy sits down with Katie King, Senior Director of Strategic Engagement at KnowledgeWorks to revisit the first-ever ten-year forecast focused on the flourishing of young children and their families co-developed by Capita and KnowledgeWorks in 2019. A lot has changed in just five years. From the pandemic’s lasting impact to the rise of homeschooling and the growing urgency of climate change, they reflect on how a host of forces are reshaping childhood and family life in the U.S. They also dive into unexpected shifts, like the rapid evolution of AI and the complexities of children’s autonomy and equity in an increasingly digital world. The episode wraps up with a discussion on the power of strategic foresight—how leaders can use these tools to navigate uncertain futures and create better systems for families and their communities.

Katie King is the Senior Director of Strategic Engagement for KnowledgeWorks. Katie manages externally facing strategic foresight projects and partnerships, co-designs and delivers workshops and contributes to KnowledgeWorks publications about the future of learning. Katie leads foresight strategy in state supports for personalized, competency-based learning, supports the management of foresight operations and strategic execution, and manages strategic foresight projects focused on sensemaking and strategy development.

Katie has previously served as a consulting futurist for various nonprofit organizations and taught middle school English in Texas and California. She holds a bachelor’s in journalism from the University of Southern California and a master’s in foresight from the University of Houston. She is a member of the Association of Professional Futurists and co-author of The Futures Thinking Playbook.

Caroline Cassidy directs overall strategy for Capita, which includes public engagement, communications, and organizational development.

For two decades, Caroline has been a leader in the think tank, global development and not-for-profit sectors where she has orchestrated initiatives aimed at shaping a more just and humane world. She is a strong advocate for embedding a deeper approach to communications throughout an organization or project- from language, relationships, and framing to deep listening, behaviour change, and values. 

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In this episode, Capita CEO Joe Waters talks with Isabelle Hau, the author of "Love to Learn." They discuss the importance of relationships and connections in early education. Hau argues that there is a relational crisis in society and that we need a relational revolution to support children's learning and overall development. She emphasizes the role of love and relationships in brain development and highlights examples of communities and organizations that prioritize relationships in education. The episode also touches on the potential impact of artificial intelligence on relationships and the need for ethical considerations in its development.

Isabelle Hau is executive director of the Stanford Accelerator for Learning, an initiative of Stanford's Long-Range Vision that seeks to accelerate solutions to the most pressing challenges facing learners. She was a founding partner at Imaginable Futures, the philanthropic investment firm of eBay founder where she led the U.S. education initiative. She has worked with a broad and deep network of educators, edu-preneurs, innovators, funders, researchers, community and system leaders – and partnered with Sesame Street, Harvard Center on the Developing Child, LEGO, Head Start, Khan Academy, Ascend at the Aspen Institute, edtech and philanthropic funders, the federal and local governments, and other esteemed organizations to scale innovations in education that have reached millions of learners.

Joe Waters is the co-founder and CEO of Capita. Since starting Capita in 2018, Joe has developed an array of initiatives to explore the major transformations of our time—social, demographic, cultural, technological, environmental, and economic—and anticipate their potential impacts on families and their communities worldwide.

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In this episode, Joe Waters and US Representative Becca Balint speak about the crisis of loneliness and disconnection in America. They discuss the lack of social support for parents of young children, the impact of economic inequality on social cohesion, and the role of social media in exacerbating loneliness. They also explore potential solutions, such as investing in physical infrastructure to create spaces for social interaction and enacting policies that support families and communities. Representative Balint emphasizes the importance of diagnosing the problem and working together across the political spectrum to find solutions.

Rep. Becca Balint is a mom, teacher, and progressive leader who comes to Washington ready to fight for working families. Becca is the first woman and openly LGBTQ person to represent her home state of Vermont. As the daughter of a working-class mother and immigrant father, Becca is deeply committed to defending American democracy and protecting vulnerable communities. This Congress, Becca serves as Congressional Progressive Caucus Vice Chair for New Members and as a Co-Chair of the Congressional Equality Caucus. She is a member of the House Judiciary Committee, and the Budget Committee. 

Joe Waters is the co-founder and CEO of Capita. Since starting Capita in 2018, Joe has developed an array of initiatives to explore the major transformations of our time—social, demographic, cultural, technological, environmental, and economic—and anticipate their potential impacts on families and their communities worldwide.

www.capita.org