What will the world look like 75 years from now? Salzburg Global Fellows discuss the possibilities during the 75th Anniversary weekend celebrations
Salzburg Global Seminar's mission has always focused on bringing people together to learn, grow and co-create solutions. As Salzburg Global reflects and celebrates its 75th anniversary, it convened three panels that looked toward the future of education, leadership, and democracy. So what do Salzburg Global Fellows think the next 75 years have in store for the organization?
The Future of Democracy
The first panel on Friday, June 17, explored a simple question: what are the future threats to global democracy and peace? Chaired by Salzburg Global Program Director Charles Ehrlich, the three-person panel included Shalini Randeria, Zoe Weinberg, and Martin Weiss. For Weinberg, a venture capital fund manager, losing trust in institutions and societies is a significant factor. She describes the impact of this mistrust as a "deterioration of democracy from within," a phenomenon fueled by the rise of digital authoritarianism and echo chambers. Randeria took a slightly different approach. As an anthropologist and rector of the Central European University, she believes that "soft authoritarianism" presents the biggest challenge to democracy. "These leaders (soft authoritarians) who have come into power legitimately and have systematically broken down democratic systems. It's a backlash against the rule of law using the law itself," she argues. Soft authoritarianism is a global threat, one that Weiss sees as compounding the already existing economic issues. As the former Austrian ambassador to the USA and incoming Salzburg Global President puts it, "how does a democracy defend itself? What are the economic ramifications of defending democracy, and how can we be resilient enough to deal with them?" As the cost of living across the globe continues to rise and the war in Ukraine continues, Weiss speculates that the era of American global hegemony may come to an end, replaced with the creation of a multi-polar world.
The Future of Education
Coupled with the need to secure peace and democracy for future generations is a growing need to transform the world's education system. A conversation moderated by Program Director Dominic Regester explored how best to create resilient, holistic education systems. Salzburg Global board member and president of mPedigree Bright Simons began the discussion by challenging the concepts and definitions that underpin the education sector. "We must contend with the longstanding conversation on the meaning of knowledge itself," he argues. For students and educators in the Global South, colonial structures and perceptions still influence curricula, teaching in indigenous languages, and skills acquisition. Andreas Schleicher, Director of the OECD's Directorate of Education and Skills, agrees on the need to focus on skills and unconventional thinking when reimagining future education. As he explains, "the world will be a lot less forgiving of people who don't have skills. We have an education system not built on imagination. It's built on compliance." Schleicher wants to see schools as more social spaces for interactive learning and stronger relationships between teachers and students. These two factors are instrumental in bridging disconnects between educators, students, and parents.
Purity Ngina, a researcher and Assessment Manager at the Zizi Afrique Foundation, picked up on collaboration as a critical driver of transformation. Establishing that every aspect of society can benefit from a good education system is essential in encouraging different stakeholders to participate in the system. "Communities need to play an important role in the future of children and education," she argues. Various stakeholders' roles are especially crucial for Andrea Fahed, a consultant for Lebanese Alternative Learning. Her experiences during the COVID-19 lockdown reinforced her belief that collaboration between governments, communities, educators, and the private sector will address inequalities such as the digital divide. However, such collaboration should not reinforce a "savior narrative" or stereotypes about marginalized people. "I would challenge the idea of 'helping' these populations," says Fahed. "I would focus more on supporting them."
The Future of Leadership
Democracy, peace, and education all rely on a healthy culture of leadership and governance. So what do experts and analysts working in this area think the future has in store for global leadership? The hour-long discussion highlighted the issues at hand in the final panel, chaired by Hanna S. Tetteh, the Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General for the Horn of Africa. As best put by Noeleen Heyzer: "this is an era defined by great uncertainty and anxiety. We will be defined by how we answer to this call of destiny." Heyzer is the Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General of Myanmar. She notes that a combination of four C's - COVID-19, climate change, conflict, and cyberspace - have created a unique set of problems for leaders and governments. However, these problems also present an opportunity for significant change in global political and economic structures. Paul Martinez is the Chief Leadership and Human Capital Strategist at the W.K Kellogg Foundation. He wants future leadership to focus on building a sense of community and communal responsibility. "Can you manage the world by yourself?" he asks, challenging global leaders to move away from an individualistic mindset and embrace what he calls "authentic community."
Shanaaz Majiet has long been involved in South African politics. Currently serving as the Divisional Head of Learning and Development for the City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality, Majiet has a professional and personal interest in addressing leadership crisis: "We need leaders that are deeply self-aware and systemic awareness. How have we lost our way? How has greed taken root?" A civil servant herself, she believes that enhancing the capability and consciousness of the civil service is an important but often overlooked aspect of changing the culture of leadership. For Abdul-Rehman Malik, changing the culture of leadership requires cultural change. Shifting the culture of leadership towards community-owned leadership, where everyone is actively participating and contributing towards a common goal, is the way forward. He ended the panel by asking everyone present a question: "how do we build leaderful movements?"
Seventy-five years ago, three young people believed that bringing people together and finding common ground would shape a better world. As Salzburg Global Seminar celebrates 75 years of challenging current and future leaders, the organization reflects on its past to better look to the future.
