Lacking urgency

I’ve been privileged to have been invited to the Fortune Brainstorm event this summer. One of the questions participants were asked to answer pertained to the world’s biggest problem and what we fear most. I was intrigued by this and asked the Acumen Fund team to discuss it as part of our weekly meeting.

All of us agreed that the biggest problem - and certainly what we most fear - is the lack of urgency, the numbness in too many leaders and individuals when it comes to recognizing - and doing something - about forces in the world that could lead to significant global instability. The world faces a rising and increasingly treacherous gap between rich and poor, terrorism, and a climate crisis that could literally be the endgame. In our lifetimes, it is not unlikely that we will see more regional wars, global terrorism, natural disasters and large-scale discontent among the have-nots who, even if their absolute situations change favorably, see themselves as left out of the opportunities of a global economy. The question is how to provoke, challenge, wake-up individuals without simply overwhelming? We are learning at Acumen Fund that you can break down massive problems into component parts and tackle parts of problems effectively.

Are we experimenting enough in smart ways - and capturing lessons honestly enough? Most important, are we listening hard enough, not just to words being said, but to how words are said, in what context, by which people? This is a critical moment in history - and we have so many of the resources, skills and connections across the globe to solve tough problems. I’m not talking about just a few elites but citizens across the world who can wake up in the morning and tackle big issues, tough issues. We can communicate with millions, organize people to take action, partner in ways like never before. We cannot afford to be numb and to distance ourselves from otherness; instead, we have no choice but to recognize our interconnectedness and act appropriately - the operative word being act.