Beyond Integration: Territorial Ecosystems of the Commons, Complexity, and Epistemological Transformation in the Hypercomplex Civilization

This paper offers a critical and theoretically grounded reinterpretation of the research project Territorial Ecosystems of the Commons, situating it within the broader international debate on complexity, the crisis of scientific paradigms, and the need to rethink governance processes in hypercomplex civilizations. The underlying hypothesis is that the growing interdependence among social, cultural, economic, technological, and ecological systems now renders any approach based on disciplinary separation, causal linearity, and administrative fragmentation insufficient. The territorial ecosystem of the commons is interpreted not merely as a model for managing cultural and environmental heritage, but as an epistemological category through which to observe the profound transformations affecting contemporary societies. From this perspective, the commons are not simply resources to be administered, but complex relational configurations that render visible the dynamics of interdependence, co-evolution, and vulnerability that characterize the entire social system. The analysis argues that the main critical issues of contemporary territorial policies stem from a persistent inability to recognize the systemic nature of the observed phenomena. This inability is fueled by widespread forms of cognitive conformism, by the persistence of organizational models based on the separation of knowledge, and by the tendency to interpret complexity as a problem to be reduced rather than as a structural condition to be inhabited. The paper also highlights how the ecological transition, digital transformation, and the enhancement of cultural heritage require a profound revision of interpretive categories and institutional practices, grounded in a new ecology of knowledge, the construction of shared knowledge, and the promotion of widespread epistemological responsibility. Keywords: complexity, commons, governance, shared knowledge