Today i have some thoughts about the ongoing and ever faster change in our society. Are we as humans? Are we as a society ready for this speed? Are we ready to digest all these new and stunning technologies? Obviously there are a lot of people who are not. However this change won’t stop. It won’t slow down. On the opposite it will get faster and faster.
I also feel that it is – today more then ever before necessary to change faster and faster as the time for us as human race is running out. We have to change. To change to a more sustainable way of living. To change to a more social way of living. Within the next decade the digital transition will lead to a loss of a big percentage of low income or low skilled jobs. We have to recreate a meaning for our society. We have to recreate ideals towards which we can strive as individuals.
Consumption and more money won’t be able to be these ideals any more.
We have to start reimagining our system. In the near future only a couple of international digital corporations will have the ability to produce, offer and operate all the products and service we and everybody else on this planet needs. The only one and big question being left then will be: How do we distribute and share all of this.
My idea of the future is to have a highly automised society for everybody who wants to have it. This will offer time for every one in our society. Time for family and friends. Time for education, training and fun. Time for sports. Time to take care of our loved ones. Time to think and create ideas. In an ever changing society we wont be able to have only a few individuals thinking about our future and the fate of our planet. Everybody should be able to participate.
Recently I downloaded the copy test for planners from one of the big advertising networks – just for fun and just to see what is out there. One of the questions was:
„Ich habe keine besondere Begabung, sondern bin nur leidenschaftlich neugierig.“ Die Worte stammen zwar von Einstein, eigentlich hätten sie aber auch aus jedem Plannermund kommen können. Denn Planner sind von Natur aus neugierige Wesen und ständig auf der Suche: Worüber bist du in letzter Zeit gestolpert? Gibt es einen Trend, eine Skurrilität, eine „Cultural Tension“, irgendetwas, das du nach den neuesten Trends, nach gesellschaftlichen Entwicklungen, nach allem, was uns Menschen umtreibt. spannend findest und von dem du uns unbedingt erzählen möchtest?
„I don’t have any special abilities, but I am passionate about curiosity.“ and even though these words are supposed to come from Einstein, any planner could have said them. Planners are naturally curious people always looking for new things. Which things did you discover recently? Are there any trends, drolleries or cultural tenstions you would like to tell us about?
My answer would have been:
There are actually numerous trends I would like to talk about. However I think it is necessary to first create a common ground for us. Basically it’s also not primarily the answers that interest me but the questions. Because the questions are the things that make us think. Even though some of them might never be answerable the pure act of thinking will let us evolve. The questions I think, are most essential at the moment, are:
· What is artificial intelligence? Is it dangerous? How do we interact with AI? Will the be basic AI rights?
· What is the connected human? Will there be a moment for us to store our conscious mind in cloud? How will this change our personality? How will this change our behavior? How will it change our way to decide if we could always access every available information within seconds?
· Why is our society getting more liberal and more conservative at the same moment? Why are we as a society not listening to science any more but to populist emotions instead?
· Is inequality killing the progress we made regarding humanism?
· Is there a new mass exodus?
· Is it right to demand libaralism, freedom and democracy for everyone or are we merely arrogating a moral absolutism?
· Can we continue to exploit our planet? Will we be able to use the resources of our solar system? What are we going to do with our trash? Where will clean air, water, food and energy come from? Can there be anything like fairness?
· Are progress, equality and sustainability not contradictions?
Only thoughts and ideas will be able to answer these questions and to solve these problems.
As so often, Steve Jobs had the right words to finish this blog post:
If you prefer the short version an old apple ad fits it even better.