The Planetary: Thoughts by Nicolas Berggruen

After World War II the world came together with unifying global institutions, the dominance of western liberalism and capitalism, and the democratic spread of the internet. Now the world has splintered along cultural lines, between and within nations.?

A few nodes of influence dominated; New York, London, Hong Kong, Silicon Valley - not any more. Talent and power is spreading all across the United States and nations such as Russia, India, Brazil, Turkey and, importantly, China, are each asserting themselves culturally and politically, domestically focused. Blockchain technology will give more control to individual users, creating digital walls. This is in context of a world which is facing planetary issues, with climate and pandemics, all while enabling breakthrough technologies, such as AI, gene editing, space exploration and quantum computing, all which could change the course of our species.?

In short, at a time when the globe is vibrant with cultures, human transforming technologies and also planetary challenges, we are unable to cooperate and worse, are being asked to take sides between the US and China, both pushing their ideologies and demanding respect.?

Religious wars between Catholics and Protestants, or the Crusades, pitting Muslims against Christians, didn’t produce winners, causing endless suffering. No one will win the global ideological war, yet we must cooperate. Let’s celebrate the strengths and flourishing of different cultures, while also agreeing to some international rules and norms. We must collaborate on health, climate, security, and technology, engaging a round table of key powers; the US, China, the EU, India, Russia, and a representative each for Africa, South America, South East Asia and the Middle East.

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