Long Live the Future

This is the last of more than a thousand columns published in the Express, which began when Denis Jambart and Christophe Barbier, asked me to be one of the featured columnists. 20 years, marked by a weekly challenge: to choose the most relevant topic, the weak yet accurate signal, the most necessary outcry, and the most effective reform.

These 20 years have been extraordinary in a thousand ways. And they were not only, as some would have us believe, tragic and negative.

The past 20 years have been formidable for media outlets, and in particular for a newspaper like the Express, because these years were marked by the greatest upheavals in several centuries: there has been a notable shift—from an all-powerful press, with the time and means to send journalists to spend several weeks in a distant country for a demanding report, to a volatile, fragile, uncertain press, which survives, for the most part, only through its relationships with other media or other industries; but also, for the best of these newspapers (i.e., for those who respect the intelligence of their readers), with magnificent successes and promising projects.

These 20 years were also great for the world, which did not look much like what it has become today: we were optimistic, amazed by everything that was coming our way; we expected everything from the internet; and democracy in Eastern Europe and Latin America. We marveled at the prospect of new artists and new social models. Since then, there have been 2001 and 2008. Terrorism and the financial crisis; from which we have not yet emerged.

But there were not only bad news; and there are still tremendous reasons to be optimistic: the world has finally become aware of two major problems that were neglected back then: injustices against women and the massacre of nature.

This double awareness has led to an even greater change: the world is increasingly thinking about long-term challenges. Generations of today have understood that they are nothing without generations of tomorrow. And that we cannot rely on science alone, however essential it may be, to provide all the answers. We will also have to act, not just be optimistic or pessimistic, but become a committed player in the world. A positive actor. Wherever we may be.

This paradigm shift, if confirmed, is good news.

In 20 years' time, the world can be much more peaceful, much happier, much more just, and much more sustainable than it is today. Science, if well-funded, could provide the answers to problems that seem scary today: global warming, water shortages, and certain incurable diseases.

For everyone to benefit from these discoveries, the wisdom of men should encourage them to set up something similar to a global governance model, responsible for addressing the common challenges of humanity, which would encourage everyone to behave in a way that is meaningful and useful for future generations, and to find the best way to become themselves.

New challenges will then arise, which will soon occupy the entire media and political space, all over the world. And first of all, one that is very essential, but that has been neglected for so long: the fate of children. How can we avoid all forms of abuse, however insignificant they may seem, to them? How can we give them all a real childhood? How can we teach them the values of altruism, fraternity and self-discovery? How can we give them all a decent education? What place should they have in society? In what world will we make them live?    

If we take this new challenge very seriously, the world will be a beautiful place. And it does not mean that we have an irenic vision of the future if we think about these matters. It depends on us.

The press will play a major role in this. It can begin by attributing more importance to exemplary behavior, rather than doing so for the romantic affairs of ephemeral celebrities and the derisory competitions between people of power, which is often quickly forgotten.

I cannot wait for tomorrow!