The Future is Young

Preface

It is a privilege to be young. Our future has that privilege. Our times are challenging ones. Previous times were as well. Why is this century different, and why is it reasonable to think that it will usher in a new era in human history? It is different because the problems we face have reached a new degree of urgency. Whether we consider the dramatic consequences of climate change, the likely repetition of pandemics, the constant rise of inequality, or the resurgence of geo-political tensions, we feel the need to act. And this feeling comes from our hearts and guts as much as from our brains. This century is also different because information technologies and networks, our ability to travel to all parts of the world, have brought us the kind of planetary knowledge and experience that generations before us could only dream of.

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