Brave Leadership in a World at Risk

Ian Bremmer, founder and president of political risk consultancy Eurasia Group and GZERO Media, joined B Team leaders in late January for a briefing on the current state of geopolitical risk. Even our community of stubborn optimists would acknowledge that the global outlook isn’t great.

Leaders around the world are navigating a complex and ever changing context in 2024, the largest election year in history with voters going to the polls in 50+ countries totaling half the planet’s population. Conflict and inequality are deepening in parts of the world, while climate breakdown and nature loss still (desperately) demand our attention and bold action.

The #1 risk for 2024, Ian believes, is the United States vs. itself. I’m inclined to agree. In his view, the country is “a democracy in crisis,” with the 2024 election set to intensify that crisis, regardless of the outcome. Eurasia Group’s annual report Top Risks — a useful, sobering read — foreshadows what’s to come: “The only certainty is continued damage to America’s social fabric, political institutions and international standing.”

Amid rising calls for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, Bremmer fears that fighting in Gaza is “still very far from an end.” The risk of a de facto partition of Ukraine also looms large in 2024. Gaps in AI governance, which passively enable “an AI Wild West resembling the largely ungoverned social media landscape, but with greater potential for harm,” round out Eurasia Group’s top four geopolitical risks.

Just this morning, our friends at The Elders — a global collective of senior statespeople, peace activists and human rights advocates currently chaired by B Team leader Mary Robinson — sounded their own alarm about the risks and existential threats facing humanity. In an open letter, The Elders and a growing list of signatories, including myself and several B Team colleagues, implore world leaders to demonstrate the courage and long-view leadership needed to address our shared threats:

Long-view leadership means showing the determination to resolve intractable problems, not just manage them; the wisdom to make decisions based on scientific evidence and reason; and the humility to listen to all those affected. Long-view leaders must have the moral strength to address both current concerns and long-term risks, often at the expense of vested interests.

We also need long-view leadership from business leaders. CEOs can certainly yearn for an operating environment free of geopolitical risks and political pitfalls. The reality, we know, is that rising risks are endangering business operations, supply chains and worker well-being everywhere. Businesses that ignore risks are destined to be out of business in short order!

The good news: Brave leaders are out there! I believe deeply that there is leadership in each and every one of us. We must be braver together, collaborating and catalyzing a shift in leadership norms so we can build a sustainable, equitable and accountable world. This moment calls for new leadership that is inclusive, transparent and deeply human. The urgency of our challenges and the seriousness of the stakes demand it. As B Team leader Andrew Liveris said recently: “Be an innovator and take courageous decisions to lead your community to a better place, a better policy, a better program. Build a cohort of people who are willing to do that.”

And as I’ve written before in TIME, gender equality and more women in leadership are essential tools for securing a livable world. Courageous men: we need your allyship!

Speaking of courageous men, we are thrilled to welcome Patagonia CEO Ryan Gellert to The B Team. His unwavering commitment to the well-being of people and nature sets the gold standard for sustainable business practices. Patagonia is redefining what’s possible and raising the bar for business leaders everywhere. In the months and years to come, we look forward to partnering with Ryan to catalyze a world where we can all love where we live and work.

Beyond sustainability and responsible stewardship of wealth, Ryan and the Patagonia team are deepening civic engagement and increasing voter participation in US elections. Co-founded in 2018 by Patagonia, PayPal and Levi Strauss & Co., Time to Vote is a nonpartisan movement of more than 2,000 member companies committed to giving employees time off to vote. “No one should have to choose between earning a paycheck and casting a ballot,” Ryan believes, “particularly at a time when our planet is in crisis and our democracy is increasingly under attack.”

With risks multiplying, I’m finding hope in one of Ian Bremmer’s closing sentiments in Top Risks: “Tough times bring out the best of us.”

They sure do, because tough times demand the best from us.

So brace yourself for 2024… and embrace the courageous leadership the world needs from each of us right now.