Civilizational collapse, as articulated by Daniel Schmachtenberger, refers to the systemic breakdown of a complex society's structures, values, and institutions, leading to a significant decline in sociopolitical, economic, and cultural functioning. This phenomenon is often characterized by a cascading series of failures in interdependent systems, such as governance, economy, ecological integrity, and social cohesion. These failures are typically precipitated by a combination of internal stressors—like resource depletion, technological overshoot, and institutional corruption—and external shocks, such as climate change, pandemics, and geopolitical conflicts. The collapse is not merely a dramatic event but a process that disrupts the underlying fabric of civilization, eroding its capacity to sustain the quality of life, governance, and cultural continuity for its population. In essence, civilizational collapse signifies a profound transformation from a state of complex, organized social functioning to disarray and often regressive simplicity.

See also: catastrophic risk, climate change, collective action, existential risk, mutually assured destruction