In this paper, we lay the foundations of the personal learning environment or PLE, its conception, cognitive and theoretical underpinnings, and implications for the design of pedagogical processes and learning ecosystems. We characterize the PLE as a technosocial reality that embodies the sociomaterial entanglement with which people learn as well as an approach that enacts contemporary ideas about how people learn. We argue that the learning ecology of the PLE and its disruptive educational character, position it as a framework that addresses the challenges of being in a continuous learning mode and empowers learners to direct their own learning and develop agency in lifelong learning. We envision the PLE as the core of a learning activity ecosystem that is diverse, personalized, social, adaptive, integrated, and transparent, enabling the creation of a network of learning that supports students as peers, creators and entrepreneurs, and agents of their own learning. We conclude with implications and challenges for future research and educational practice.