Levoluzione

Levoluzione is a term used in Italian-language discourse to denote a holistic or interdisciplinary approach to evolution that foregrounds the interaction of biological, cultural, technological, and ecological processes. The word is a neologism built from evoluzione (evolution) with a stylistic prefix, and it is not a formal designation in mainstream biology. It appears in scholarly essays, popular science writings, and cultural discussions as a conceptual lens rather than a single, defined theory.

The concept emphasizes multi-level processes: genetic change, behavioral and cultural transmission, epigenetic and developmental mechanisms, and the shaping of environments by organisms themselves (niche construction). It also highlights coevolution with technologies and social structures, suggesting that human evolution cannot be separated from cultural and technological trajectories.

Applications of levoluzione appear in education and science communication as a framework to discuss long-term change, adaptation, and resilience. It is sometimes used in debates about evolution in the Anthropocene and in analyses of how technology drives feedback loops that influence biological and cultural evolution.

Reception is varied; proponents argue that levoluzione helps integrate disciplines and perspectives, while critics caution that it overlaps with established concepts such as gene–culture coevolution, evo-devo, and niche construction, potentially risking vagueness.

See also: Evolution; Evo-devo; Gene–culture coevolution; Cultural evolution.