What's Next?

"Is anybody okay with the way the world is today? Nobody should be okay with the state of the world."

This was one of the remarks made by a speaker at the "What's Next?" conference that I went to today at Humber College. The conference was great. I enjoy the topics of social justice and sustainable development. Ian Smillie, author and main plenary speaker, spoke well (but straight from his notes) about current opinions on foreign aid and the situation of the majority world. By majority world, I mean what most refer to as the "developing" world or some still say "third" world. I dislike those terms...even though they still slip out from time to time.

Some of the ideas that stuck from Smillie were his perspective on "kiosk economies", his emphasis on new productive enterprises, and his point to keep development efforts simple and local. "Kiosk economies" are common to the majority world. Local women sitting under blue tarps selling tomatoes and lettuce in town that they bought from the farmer down the road, men riding bicycles that have been adapted to boast a cooler full of cold cokes, or even children walking around with boxes full of tasteless gum, all represent a "kiosk economy". Although these small businesses may lend themselves to slightly improved living conditions, the real advances come when new, original enterprises crop up in communities i.e. the grafting of fruit trees. These innovations must remain simple and local in order to attain longevity and impact. Anything foreign must be a service that those with less deem useful and therefore will pay for i.e. cell phones. Smillie also mentioned the importance of teaching women new skills and giving girls an education, a theme I keep hearing in different places and from various people.

On the heels of Smillie, Karen Craggs gave her spiel on gender equality and how one person can make a difference. She was the one who voiced my initial question, is anybody okay with the state of the world? The things written on Karen's heart were very similar to the scribbles on my own. Her passion to do something and live out one's principles resonated with my own determination to not waste this life, but that sense of kindred spirit was dampened by her claim that "the universe" was her guide and one only needed to trust "the universe" and they would not go wrong.

Finally, I went to a session led by two Majors and a Colonel from the Canadian Armed Forces. Being a pacifist in principle, I thought it would be interesting and enlightening to hear the perspective of our nation's army. Although their objective is security, not sustainable development, these men and women create the space for recovery of countries in a post-conflict state. It was intriguing to listen to their on-the-ground accounts of time spent in Bosnia, Sierra Leone, Ethiopia, and Afghanistan. One Major commenting on his time spent on the Ethiopia/Eritea/Sudan border said that as part of a team of six, there only line of defense was, "Stop. If you don't stop, I'll say 'stop' again." Their mention of "the law of unintended consequences" is one that will stay with me as well. Our good intentions, especially ones born of guilt, can snowball into unwanted scenarios. One uniformed peace officer handing out toys from a marked vehicle creates an association that future envoys probably won't welcome. The last insight shared by the soldiers was that much of the conflict in Afghanistan gets blamed on the Taliban when in reality it is the work of those trying to control the opium industry. Interestingly enough, the Taliban is happy to receive credit for these incidents.

Except for the last panel session (where the three panelists seemed most interested in promoting their organizations and crying about lack of funds), the "What's Next?" conference was well done, but it addressed more of "what was" and "what is" instead of "what's next". It was good to share and critique about how to make the world a fairer, better place for all people. It was very good. It is what I want to do and how I want to spend my life. Still, for all our systems and strategies, there will always be failure and frustration. We will always have the poor with us. That's what someone I love tells me, but he also tells me not to despair because he has overcome the world. I am not okay with the state of the world, but I think the key to making it okay means changing the state of hearts, not economies.