Looking at the state of the world at present it appears that the lessons from the not too distant past have not been learnt: right wing movements are on the rise; the European Union, born of the lessons of WWII, has been put into question by the nostalgia fuelled Brexit; in-group insularity and hatred inform strategies for gaining power; manipulation of projective dynamics through folk devils and moral panics abounds. None of these developments are new, but we ask why, from a psychosocial perspective, are they gaining traction? How are they amplified ? and Why now?

We know from experience that healing is not about shutting out the past or avoiding problems, but learning to live with them and avoid repetition. How can psycho-social approaches help us keep in mind lessons from the past to inform present and future, learning from experience with a longer time-span in view?

This plenary panel will consider the wider current context of these polarising social dynamics, trans-generational trauma and collapse of any long-term unifying vision. It will touch on the escalating destructiveness of conflicts and societal shifts such as loss of trust in one another, the environment, and the public sphere. It will also highlight changing conceptions of the relationship between humans, machines and the natural world

The aim, however, is not only of ‘social diagnosis’ where psychosocial approaches have already made a significant contribution, but in the more difficult task of finding grounds for hope, healing and imagining a better future.