Introduction

Progress is inextricably linked to man’s need to create a better world, that is, progress is born of an ideal, of a utopia. The concepts of progress and development combined form the essence of the significance of humanity’s evolution. While progress is often associated with the notion of straight-line evolution, there are alternative conceptions, such as the cyclical theory of the eternal return formulated by Friedrich Nietzsche; the dialectic theories, according to the design of Georg Hegel; the theory that envisions a progress in the shape of a spiral, among others. The evolutionary-progressive view, established in the nineteenth century, inspired by Charles Darwin’s theory of the evolution of species, was another striking moment in the history of humanity’s progress. The idea of progress is, therefore, a major matrix for development, its theoretical and practical foundations have become the working tools of scientists, philosophers, and artists, who seek strategies and policies to accelerate the development process in different contexts.