Healing the World
Challenges of the 21st Century for the Human Race
Time may be running out for the human race. Consumption levels of resources is a key concern as the ever growing population of humans continues to play the game of the Survival of the Fittest. The following is a philosophical account of the challenges of the 21st century.
Worldly Pleasures and Altruism
It is not possible for mortals to give up on worldly pleasures. Mortals compete with each other in the process of enriching their own lives. Both rich and the poor strive to gain monetary powers either for their family and kith and kin or for self satisfaction or for social status or prestige and recognition or mere survival. However mortals can live more fruitful lives by keeping in reserve at least a small part of their thoughts for altruism. This is because unselfish concern for the welfare of others gives inner joy and self recognition which is far greater than social recognition although it may not appear to be so. The power of this partial reserve altruism in a collective sense is immense. A donation of just one dollar for example from all mortals who can afford to do so generates about seven billion dollars which can be utilized for research on environmental issues.
The Need for Ethical Business
The current global financial crisis is arguably the result of human greed more than the economics of demand and supply. In a constant effort to gain competitive advantages, ethical business practices are compromised even by distinguished leaders and heads of large organizations. The current economic scenario is a cyclical lesson that mortals are repeatedly reminded by history, yet economic depressions continue to plague the world.
The Need for Sustainability
World food crisis, global warming, dwindling bio diversity, rising human population, and energy crisis are some of the global issues crucial for the sustainability of planet earth. Corporations must run sustainable businesses and ensure awareness of these issues among employees which will enable sustainable practices to drill down at a much more granular level. Governments across the world must reserve a portion of their policies to ensure sustenance as in the current scenario most of the policies are arguably used for political gamesmanship.
The Need for Tolerance
Wars are being waged against racism, terrorism and communal violence. These wars are not only wars between good and evil but are also an acknowledgement of the power of the human mind. On one hand, the human mind can strive to formulate the theory of relativity while on the other it can be used to hack wireless networks to send anonymous terror emails to claim responsibility after bomb explosions. The need of the hour is to use the human mind positively with tolerance to live and let live.
The Need for Equality
The rich/poor gap is widening as we enter the 21st century. The Pareto’s 80-20 rule continues to hold true as 80% of the wealth remains with 20% of the people and vice versa. This gives rise to conflict where the wealthy exploit the poor to keep what they have while the poor fight to obtain resources. Responsive governance is a critical component to ensuring equal opportunity for a society.
This article is not to paint a gloomy picture of our world and the current age, neither does it claim to provide solutions to these major challenges. But it is aimed at triggering the powerful human mind of the reader to be cognizant of the larger picture. The article hopes that mortals will, in their own small ways, be responsible global citizens and work to make our world a better place for the existence of the most intelligent species on planet earth: Homo Sapiens.
Sustainable Business
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