There's hope in the global village

The cyclone in Myanmar. Then the earthquake in China. Chaos, again, in our world.

But appearances can be deceiving. In fact, it is time for hope in the global village.

There are some persistent problems. Peace in the Middle East continues to be a few months off. Radical fundamentalism has destabilized the global arena. The global genie of climate change challenges traditional frameworks of nation, religion or culture.

Then there are the "silent disasters" which rarely make the nightly news. The horrifying conditions in Eastern Congo/Northern Uganda continue to claim 30,000 lives a month, as has been the case for the past 10 years.

So is there reason to hope? I believe so. Here are some of the reasons why.

First, there has been progress in the struggle against global poverty. The January 24, 2008, Economist documents the following recent victories:

• 135 million people have escaped dire poverty between 1999 and 2004;

• In South Asia, the number of those without clean water has been nearly halved since 1990; and

• In 2007, UNICEF said that for the first time in modern history, fewer than 10 million children were dying each year before the age of five.

Also, a consensus is emerging that corporations must consider the larger world as a fundamental stakeholder in business. To be productive and thrive in the years ahead, corporations must analyze and respond to underemployment, instability, labor and climate change.

In a May 8, 2008, speech, Bill Gates stated: "The ultimate goal is to support the development of local economies that have the infrastructure and skilled work force needed to create sustainable growth. ... This, more than anything, will be the key to creating a world where everyone can expect to lead long, healthy, productive and fulfilling lives."

In addition, the phenomenal new paradigm of Web 2.0 and social networking is creating connections and transparency for which there is no turning back. You can go to Google Maps and see villages in Darfur; the Janjaweed militia knows that if they attack, the world will be watching.

Centralized, authoritative power cannot stop the radically democratic new realities of Facebook, YouTube, and countless other new sites on the Web. You mess up, and the world will know, instantaneously.

Finally, there is youth. In the May 11, 2008, New York Times, columnist Nicholas D. Kristof wrote:

"Rachel is a high-school junior in Harrison, N.Y., who came down with a painful intestinal ailment that forced her to miss the entire 2006-7 school year. So she resolved that if she couldn't go to school herself, she could at least help other kids who wanted to.

"From her sickbed, Rachel soldT-shirts and solicited contributions to build a 316-student elementary school in rural Cambodia. Borrowing an idea from university fundraising, she offered naming opportunities: For $25, donors could buy chairs to be named for them. All told, she raised $57,000, which was channeled through an aid group, American Assistance for Cambodia.

"Now Rachel is mostly healthy again and back in school, but over the December vacation she traveled to Cambodia to cut the ribbon at the R.S. Rosenfeld School."

A year ago, I met a young man named Dunga in the regional capital of Awassa in Ethiopia's far south. Dunga is from the Lower Omo Valley, one of the most pre-modern places on Earth. In the short time I was with him, he peppered me with questions:

What does the United States think of Ethiopia? Can I help him bring basic public-health clinics to the Lower Omo Valley? Do I like the music of the Rolling Stones?

I was astounded with how much he knew about the larger world and how deep was his appetite to learn. I was also convinced that, should he decide to, he can make a difference in his world. (Dunga, 23, works as night watchman for Mercy Corps as he attends college in Awassa.)

There are tens or hundreds of thousands of Rachels and Dungas out there. It is a simple question of unlocking potential. This, more than anything else, is the reason for hope in the global village.

We can be overwhelmed by the problems, or cultivate hope. Sigh at the latest disaster or atrocity, or be the change we wish to see in the world.

I suggest we embrace hope.