The Sensemaking Course
A deeper successor to the Explorer course — two intensive online weekends for those who want to go beyond orientation into genuine intellectual depth.
The Sensemaking Course
You see the crisis clearly. Now go deeper.
The Explorer course gave you a framework: symptoms, diagnosis, prognosis, a reason for hope. It was an orientation.
The Sensemaking Course is the next step for those who want more than orientation — who want to actually understand, at depth, what is happening and why.
That means going beyond the framework into its foundations: the real intellectual history of Modernity, the philosophy beneath the crisis, the thinkers who've mapped this territory most honestly, and what genuine paradigm shift has looked like in history — from the inside.
The format matches the ambition: two immersive weekends online, a gap between for personal inquiry, and a cohort small enough that real thinking — and real community — can happen.
Key info
| Format | 2 × 2-day online intensives + personal inquiry between |
| Cohort | ~12–15 people (small and selective) |
| Prerequisite | Explorer course or equivalent background |
| Led by | Rufus Pollock & Sylvie Barbier · Life Itself |
| Dates | TBD — driven by demand |
| Price | TBD |
How it works
Intensive 1 (Friday evening + Saturday)
Go deep on foundations. The intellectual history of Modernity and its crisis. The philosophy of paradigm change. How do we actually know what we think we know about what's emerging? Form the cohort.
Between (4–6 weeks)
Personal inquiry. Each participant takes one thread — a question, a thinker, a domain — and goes deep. One or two group calls to share what's emerging.
Intensive 2 (Friday evening + Saturday)
Bring back the inquiries. Collective sensemaking. Where does this leave each of us — intellectually, personally, in terms of contribution?
What you'll come away with
- Depth — the foundations beneath the framework: the real intellectual history, the philosophy, the honest account of where paradigm change comes from
- Inquiry — a personal inquiry you've actually pursued, not just thought about
- Rigour — the ability to engage with the ideas seriously, and to spot where the sensemaking is weak
- Community — a small cohort of people doing the same work — the beginning of something ongoing
Is this for you?
→ You did the Explorer course (or equivalent) and want to go further
→ You're drawn to intellectual depth, not just orientation
→ You're willing to do real work between the intensives — reading, writing, thinking
→ You want a small cohort, not a large course
Register interest
We'll run this course when there's a cohort ready for it. If you're interested — even tentatively — register below. We'll be in touch when we have dates and details.
Also from Life Itself: the Explorer course — Introduction to the Metacrisis and a Second Renaissance. A 4-week online course to understand the roots of converging crises and what's emerging in response.