We may believe that violent patriarchy is an inevitable reality, that our current world culture simply is a result of our immutable human nature. A human nature that is in a constant and brutal competition for limited resources, in which only the most ruthless of us survive and thrive.

But there is much evidence - in our history, in our bodies and brains, in our nature - that tells a very different story. A story of peace, cooperation and sophisticated organization. A story in which mothers play a central role.

In this episode Elle talks to sociologist Andrea Fleckinger, who studies and lectures on modern matriarchal societies. While we can find matriarchal cultures in our history, there are in existence today - societies all around the globe that have preserved and now maintain their traditions of egalitarian matriarchy - and Andrea breaks down exactly what it means to be a matriarchy - the social structures, values and practices that sets them apart from patriarchal cultures, and what we can learn from them.

Matriforum