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As writer and ecologist Geroge Monbiot states, “Without non-violent civil disobedience nothing changes, that is one of the lessons of history. But it is not enough, you’ve got to build a new stytem on the back of that. And that’s where the enormous effort of thinking, discussion and debate comes in.”
The Transformation Games will help to set the stage for the next stage. It’s TIME TO TALK and make our voices heard. We have the tools, we have the access, now let’s use it wisely and consciously guide evolution.
DEBATES
There are major issues in almost every field, outside of the ones that most of us know, feel and worry about – like plastic in the oceans, global warming and eradicating extreme poverty.
How should the world cope with regulating Big Data? How can we reverse the trajectory of a world drowning in debt? How can we protect ourselves from nuclear war, ecological cataclysms and technological disruption? What can we do about fake news or the threat of terrorism? What should we teach our children? How can we best update and transform the workings of democratic government?
Or harness technology to make our justice systems less complicated, arcane and unaffordable that many on the planet have no effective access to justice? How can we enjoy the benefits of AI and technology but not eradicate millions of jobs on which people depend for survival and a sense of self-worth? What type of world do we want to live in? What is our vision for 2050?
WE, THE PEOPLE, MUST START TO SHAPE THE AGENDAS
These are big questions which cry out to be aired, discussed and considered by citizens of every society so that such issues and the solutions to them make their way into mainstream consciousness, widespread discussion, and political programmes.
If people complain that their politicians are short-termist and focused on the symptoms of modern life rather than addressing the underlying causes, it is because voters, adults, parents and citizens generally are not getting these topics on to the agendas.
That is why the TRANSFORMATION DEBATES programme is going to shine a spotlight on these issues and structure debates around BIG ISSUES THAT MATTER. We won’t tolerate fake news, polarized preaching to followers. We will strive for real adult debate, encourage playing lightly with ideas and insist on respect for different viewpoints.
There will be red cards or a sin bin for shrill or accusatory extremism. Our debates will be recorded. Global voting and interaction will measure what audiences think before the issues are debated and how they feel after the debates.
Speaker Panels feature four to five subject specialists or industry professionals sharing different perspectives and opinions on a specific subject, making for a lively conversation. Every effort is made to achieve diversity in knowledge, age and experience. Panels might include academics, scientists, people who work at the front end out in the field, a representative of intended beneficiaries, a host country government official. These formats range from one hour to ninety minutes in in length.
With experts in so many fields expected to appear, within teams, as judges, speakers, panelists and moderators there will be hundreds of brilliant minds for journalists to interviews. Some will be writers appearing in the Book Corner talks and signings. Others will be entertainers, singers and comedians performing in the Festival Nights programme or persons being considered for a Transformation Award.
Our aim is to gather, share and show what people really think about big topics and why politicians and business leaders may need to reconsider some of their agendas and priorities, if they want to solve the challenges that really matter to their citizens and rebuild trust.
“It is not going to happen within in the mainstream media. It’s not going to happen by and large within institutional life. And it’s going to happen on the margins.
“Society is like an amoeba. It moves from the margins not from the centre. It’s in the margins where change happens. It’s at the margins where new ideas are fermented. It’s at the margins where what will one day become the mainstream is incubated and hatched.”
“In a world deluged by irrelevant information, clarity is power…Censorship works not by blocking the flow of information, but rather by flooding people with disinformation and distractions. So what is really happening right now? What are today’s greatest challenges and choices? What should we pay attention to?
“Billions of us can hardly afford the luxury of investigating these questions, because we have more pressing things to do: we have to go to work, take care of the kids, or look after elderly parents. Unfortunately, history gives no discounts. If the future of humanity is decided in your absence, because you are too busy feeding and clothing your kids – you and they will not be exempt from the consequences. This is very unfair; but who ever told you history was fair?”
“If world leaders want to protect the global order they need to start listening to people before it’s too late…
“People do not want change that comes from behind closed doors, from conversations that they are not well-off enough or well-known enough to be privy to. The attacks on the multilateral world order of the past few years have been borne out of a lack of transparency and democratic accountability that the process of globalisation has engendered.”
“Diplomacy and international forums are necessary and important in dealing with climate change, war and other global threats. A rules based international system facilitates public goods like trade and travel. But these forums must be transparent and accessible – and Davos is not.
“If world leaders want to to protect out institutions, the global order and ultimately their own positions, they must….start listening to people before it’s too late.”
FLORA HOLMES
RSIN: 860439100
Chamber of Commerce: 75913178
Stichting The Global Transformation Foundation
The Hague Humanity Hub, Fluwelen Burgwal 58, 2511 CJ The Hague, Netherlands
The Hague Humanity Hub Fluwelen Burgwal 58, 2511 CJ The Hague, Netherlands
