There's nothing new under the sun.
It's true, but it misses the point.
Even if there's little new left in the world for us to discover, for us to imagine and for us to create, there's immense value in the re-discovery, re-imagining and re-creation of things that are old. Re-creation reinvigorates us.
Because when we rediscover the old, in the context of the new, it's a little different.
Let's not return to hunter-gatherer society, but lets see what we can learn from eating a similar diet.
Let's not return to tiny village-based existence, but lets see what we can learn about how to be community together from those stories.
Let's not return to stone houses, horse-drawn carts and open fireplaces, but lets see what we can learn about living with less from those who had to.
Because also, let's not imagine that these are in the past: There are people alive today who live in ways that have sustained communities and cultures for generations. We don't need to sit in our universities, think-tanks, focus-groups and retreats trying to imagine what the world would look like if we lived differently. We can go to people who live differently either by choice or by necessity, and learn from them.
It's not academic, it's life, and a lifestyle.