Today's post is inspired by a conference I attended this week (mostly from my sofa, partly from the office..): Ocean Recovery Conference 2021. On the first day there was a session entirely dedicated to young speakers . What a refreshing thing! It's definitely something I'd like to see in more conferences such as this one - where the FUTURE is being discussed, or better what can be done NOW to protect the future. But the truth is, that - well the system is a bit flawed. Why I say this? Because- 'we' make decisions now that they will endure tomorrow
And I am somewhere in between (I like to think of myself as young) but for sure have plenty of life ahead and will find myself dealing with at least some of the mess. But I feel that even my generation is part of the problem. And I cannot even imagine how much the younger will have to endure in times to come. Thinking about it, if we think of this pandemic as something that has been exacerbated by our societies complete disregard for the environment and their 'economy only' approach, then it is already impacting THEM more than us. They are not going to school, and it is not just their educations to suffer, but all that's around going to school. The social aspect. Yes, even the not so 'scholastic' parts that we have all done. Well. They are missing out. And instead are stuck home with stressed out parents who either lost their jobs and are trying to make ends meet or are overworked from 'working from home' situations. And they definitely didn't take part in any voting or any activity that got us here.. And there will be plenty more things like this coming our way if we are not prepared Let's not forget about the huge wildfires in recent years, massive storms, earthquakes. They will have to pay, with their future taxes. They will have to find solutions. So - why are the older generations still making the decisions? Why are most politicians averaging at 50-70 years old (or even more, i am bad at guessing ages) Why are stakeholder boards all made up of senior members? They still remember a life that no longer can exist A life made of corporate work and overconsumption A way of living that should just be cancelled from the books to give rise to a new way And who has more imagination than a child ? Maybe only a younger child Younger people should be put on advisory boards (and i believe they will be more well behaved than politicians, after watching a 'live' from the Italian parliament earlier this week), they should be treated as stakeholders, they should be consulted. The students always had a big voice with their protests, but maybe now is the time to listen to their voices instead of letting their protests go to waste. And maybe also us 'in the middle' can take a lesson from them We can get our act together and do something too We can try to be proactively involved Step away from our phones from a second And if we can't do that, then let's use these traps for societal benefits Do political activism online, there are so many ways Just sharing the right things, start 'mindful' scrolling. There is hope for the future, I want to have some, but we need to get our future back into our own hands..
4 Comments
Angela Ju
1/25/2021 09:02:29 pm
Very relevant! I often ponder these issues when teaching my Gen Z students.
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1/27/2021 06:31:03 pm
This title says it all! I couldn't agree more with this statement. The upcoming generation has given me a much more hope than the boomers.
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