Can a new narrative rescue the West from civilisational self-doubt?
In short: The West is facing a crisis of cohesive identity, with many feeling that traditional social institutions have depleted. In response, a new international consortium is attempting to move beyond reactive politics to build a positive agenda based on traditional Western values and a renewed sense of purpose.
Founded in June 2023, the Alliance for Responsible Citizenship (ARC) serves as an international consortium uniting anglophone religious and conservative voices. It was established as a response to what former Australian Deputy Prime Minister John Anderson calls a 'civilisational' moment. According to Anderson, the Western world is currently plagued by self-doubt and a breakdown of cohesive social norms, leaving it with a geostrategic vulnerability due to the lack of a binding narrative.
The organization seeks to provide a corrective to contemporary conservatism, which some critics argue has become defined more by what it opposes than what it believes. ARC aims to replace division and drift with cohesion. This mission is supported by a significant funding structure, including £1 million from hedge fund manager Paul Marshall in 2023, a further £2 million from his Sequoia Trust in 2024, and $500,000 from pharmaceuticals CEO Derick Cooper in 2025.
The group's influence is visible in its large-scale events and research. Its first conference in London in 2023 hosted between 1,000 and 1,500 delegates from 71 nations. By its second conference in February 2025, attendance grew to about 4,000 people. To support its goals, the organization operates a subsidiary called ARC Research, which commissions long-form papers from scholars and commentators who hold anti-woke, populist, or conservative-traditionalist political views.
While the group is associated with psychologist Jordan Peterson, it also features high-profile figures like former US House Speaker Kevin McCarthy and various religious and social critics. The movement is described by some as a high-brow effort to regroup the global centre-right, while others have criticized its focus as a 'grab-bag' of talking points that may overlook specific contemporary risks like climate change.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: Alliance for Responsible Citizenship
- Also: find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk — ALLIANCE FOR RESPONSIBLE CITIZENSHIP LIMITED overview - Find and update company information - GOV.UK
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