A fairer world

Two decades into a new millennia, why we are still missing opportunities to becoming a fairer world, despite an evolution in public consciousness.

We live in an era of heightened, opinionated activism. Popular movements and apparently strong consensus about the creation of a better world are a significant part of the newscycle of every passing week. From headlines create by major media outlets to the social posts of ordinary individuals, it seems as if a large proportion of the population is dissatisfied with the flaws of the global economic and political systems. For their part, governments are also constantly talking about ushering in change and major world forums are issuing numerous announcements about what needs to be done to create a fairer, more sustainable and just world. Yet, not much is really changing apart from the superficial. It’s hard not to come to the conclusion that we are living in a world where policy, public opinion and activism have all become about “all sound and fury, signifying nothing”.

Every generation assumes that change is inevitable

Looking back, at the social energy that has gathered around causes over the last century or so, paints a picture that is a little confusing. On the one hand, it’s encouraging that citizens of countries all around the world, regardless of politics and culture, have consistently pushed for change. In fact, strong political opinions have become the norm in the general population. Also, as I noted before, center of power and administrative institutions too have become much more receptive to calls for change, at least in the public face they present. Despite all this, we have somehow come to the year 2020 CE, with little to no effect on global poverty and the provision of basic needs among populations that have suffered from deprivation in recent centuries. In fact, in terms of the gap between the richest and poorest, the world has become astonishingly divided and unbalanced.

Having once been a young man, and part of a generation that expected change to come within their lifetime, this is a particular concern to me. My curiosity led me to considering generations before me, as well as the ones that I have seen come into their own since I have grown older, and the conclusions I have come to are a little worrying. As far as I can tell, we have been spinning our wheels in bringing real and quantifiable change into our world for decades now, despite a lot of seemingly energetic activity. Is there something fundamental about the way our civilization is organized, which provides gathering opinion a ‘safe’ escape and co-opts it, while established power is not challenged and nothing significant evolves in the right direction? Cynical as this conclusion might seem, a cold hard look at our recent history does seem to support this conclusion.

Reimagining our global frameworks and institutions

I am a generally optimistic person, so I look for solutions, even when I come to conclusions that are somewhat less than positive. I believe one of the things that makes our current era unique is that technology has finally matured to an extent that is making truly decentralized community organization a possibility. Whether it is the means to generate localized sustainable energy and high density food production or digital technologies such as blockchain and 3D printing, it is increasingly becoming possible for a small community to become truly prosperous and able to self-organize, without compromising on their quality of life. This is a very significant step in human evolution that can be harnessed to drive real evolution. Let me explain.

Institutions, even if they consist of several individuals who might mostly have good intentions, tend to become obsessed with prioritizing their own survival, rather than the outcomes they were created to deliver. In the 19^th century, intellectuals believed that replacing monarchs and individuals as centers of power with institutions would form the basis of a fairer world. However, history has taught us that this was an underestimation and misunderstanding of the nature of power. As we have seen in more than a century since, simply replacing individuals with organizations does not necessarily ensure equitable outcomes for the marginalized and weak. This is why I see the real possibility of a decentralized world as a significant opportunity.

Balancing local prerogatives with global perspectives

Let me clarify that I don’t envision a breaking down of administrative structures into smaller units as a solution. On the contrary, I feel that larger geographical unions do indeed reflect political consensus and reduce constant minor skirmishes that plagued much of human history. In fact, as I have already noted, the problem is not with centralized power having the right intentions. The issue is with the execution of these policies, which often comes undone because the institution itself becomes the central project, rather than the goals it was set up to achieve.

The solution that, in my opinion, may be worthwhile to consider, is granting local and community level institutions greater autonomy, within a larger political federation. ‘Think global and act local’, was a slogan that was first propagated within the context of creating a more sustainable world that did not depend on huge supply chains to address the basic needs of communities. In my opinion, taking a similar approach to public administration can unlock the huge goodwill and consensus for the empowerment of all, which already exists. Centralized power has the tremendous advantage of being able to take a macro view of issues, as well as the ability to allocate resources and resolve disputes between smaller units. Unfortunately, when it comes to creating a fairer and more just distribution of the fruits of our commercial activities, this centralized system has been a failure. Emerging technology is presenting us with the opportunity to unlock the true potential for a world in which prosperity for all becomes a reality. I believe an administrative structure that employs these tools to designate outcome appropriate responsibilities to the micro and macro levels of institutions and administrative bodies is a model that will better harness the world’s appetite for change and social justice.