The United Nations: Reflecting the World, Reflecting Ourselves

January 30, 2017

Judith Hegedus addressed the World Goodwill Seminar, The Ethical Responsibility of the Sustainable Development Goals,  at UN Headquarters in Geneva, October 28, 2016. Judith Hegedus is Executive Director of the College Board International Office. College Board is a mission-driven not-for-profit organization that connects students around the world to college success and opportunity.

Any process to implement an idea is a complex one. How do we get from thought to action? There isn’t actually that much time left before 2030. How do we ensure effective implementation of the 2030 Agenda or the Sustainable Development Goals? It is commendable that these Goals have been formulated, and this is an example of the recognition of our global interconnectedness as one humanity. It is not an easy task to implement something like this, but we can do it by creating a vertical alignment between the thoughts, the words, and the actions of individuals as well as governments. We also need a horizontal and focused alignment between individual citizens’ efforts, national governments, and the United Nations. This is a task for every member of the human family, and for all responsible national governments. The United Nations is uniquely qualified as the organization leading the way for the SDG implementation and inspiring humanity. We have the thoughts and the words already in the form of the published 2030 Agenda – we just need to make sure that the proper actions follow, aligned with the thoughts and words. What roles do individual citizens, governments and the UN itself have in an effective implementation? 

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Crisis of Growth, Crisis of Consciousness

January 1, 2017

Patrice Brasseur addressed the World Goodwill Seminar, The Ethical Responsibility of the Sustainable Development Goals,  at UN Headquarters in Geneva, October 28, 2016. Patrice Brasseur is founder of Psychopsophie, a movement which is at the cross roads of philosophy, spirituality and psychology. This text is a translation of the original French.

The involution and evolution of consciousness can be traced in a 'U shaped' curve. The first, descending limb of the curve, represents involution. While gradually losing the consciousness of instinctive interdependency [mass-type of unitary consciousness], humanity builds itself successive bodies. Towards the bottom of the curve --the remotest point from the collective-- individualism is powerful. Thereafter on the ascending evolutionary limb global awareness is growing.

 Today an ever growing fraction of our society is coming into the state of awareness of inter-independence. Every day we behold the growing prevalence of this state of consciousness manifesting in the international, social, and ecological spheres. Every day we can observe in books or movies the first signs of a new world consciousness. 

On the other hand, an overdose of egoism, with its dogmas about consumption and promotion of a non-egalitarian culture, is also manifesting everywhere. This explains how for half a century a double development has been taking place. While more and more persons are reaching the bottom of the curve, and developing individual consciousness - with all the implied consequences about consumption -  another parallel portion of society is breaking out of such a state of consciousness and moving into a growing awareness of interdependence. 

 

 

 

 

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