The World in 2011

This week I had the utmost pleasure of volunteering for The Economist's Annual Conference: The World in 2011 in New York City. In attendance were great thinkers and architects from disciplines across the board, and viewpoints voiced from around the world. Between speakers the two screens on either side of the stage played videos from citizens in Moscow, Shanghai, Jerusalem and Antarctica giving their predictions for the world in 2036.

Although some of the talks were dismal in news, a few speakers really caught my attention. Here I will only name two.

The first was a panel of remarkable women,

Mu Sochua, Member of Parliament, Cambodia,
Zainab Salbi, Founder and CEO, Women for Women International
and Kah Walla, Director, Strategies S.A.

This talk made up the 'Women's Economy,' the most untapped, and fastest growing sector. The resounding message was clear; Women are taking the helm. Marcia Reynolds recently blogged a similar mantra in the Huffington Post titled, The Decade of the Woman is Upon us. She writes;

"In addition to the powerful worldwide consumer force that women represent today, factors such as urban migration, increased access to education, mobile technologies, micro-credit and low-market entry costs will create a global "she-conomy" where over one billion women will enter the workforce or start businesses by 2020."

Mu Sochua started her predictions naming women, the "she-economy" as the way forward in 2011. " As she as in economy, and she as in business," she said. Zainab reiterated, marking the need for inclusion for women not only in the micro- but also the macro- levels. Women need markets that are provided by the private sector. For example, Kate Spade, who has started outsourcing to a community of Afghan women, creating jobs while also responding to the consumer's demand to information and fair production. This is the way forward.

Girls in Kigoma, Tanzania, 2010.

Click here for more about the Women for Women and Kate Spade Partnership in Afghanistan.

Another deeply interesting speaker was Nick Shore, Senior Vice President of Strategic Consumer Insights and Research at MTV. His research of late has consisted of deep inquiry into the Millenial generation. The Y-gens are the single largest generational cohort in the history of the US, he started. They're rather narcissistic, he described, and yet they are the most powerful influencing factor propelling change. And research suggests that change is already here.

Take the nuclear family for example. In the past the configuration was the children radiating from the parents at the nucleus. Now he said, the children are designated the nucleus of the family. The children have become the main focus, and the family now operated more like a democracy, or 'peer-ocracy' than traditional family structures of the past.

Kids are living in an era of 'peer-ticipation' and 'peer-iarchy,' where everything is broadcast to friends and family. Youth have a voice more than ever, Shore said.

As social interface holds no boundaries this also means that increasingly youth do not find the time or space to reflect or spend time alone. I believe this new social paradigm will require changes in schools, to provide students with opportunities to quieten their brains from all of the information and chatter. Learning meditation or some other mind-body conditioning seems a healthy way for students to have the opportunity to check in with themselves, not to mention their bodies.

Another fantastic conference from The Economist community.

Y-generation

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If the seemingly prehistoric sounds of dial-up Internet were a part of your childhood experience – then you are probably part of the Y Generation.

Unlike the X generation, which begins after the baby boomer era and ends in the eighties, 1961-1981, the dates of the Y generation are still debatable. The Y-geners appear to be those born between 1976 and 1996. But, more generally we can say that the Y generations are the first of those to come of age under the flowering of the Internet. That is why they are sometimes referred to as iGen, net generation, Internet generation as well as echo boomers and millenials. What we can be sure of is that this generation has been under the constant influence of technology.

Some have been honing their technological literacy since learning to read. They have literally had the world [wide web] at their fingertips. The world has been in a period of steady, dramatic and accelerated change in the past thirty years; so it wouldn’t be surprising to confirm that this generation is now refashioning what it means to be a ‘twenty-something.’ And they’re in no rush to grow up. The New York Times recently published an article called, ‘What is it about Twenty Somethings?’ which introduced the possibility of a new developmental phase called ‘emerging adulthood,’ a term coined by Psychologist Jeffrey Jensen Arnett, and brought about by the social and economic changes of our time. The article is a well-written exploration on what is means to be an ‘emerging adult’ today, and whether it’s helpful or just a setback to use the twenties as a time of self-discovery and continued dependency. The article was written by a regular New York Times contributor in her 50's.

The articles negotiations between pros and cons illustrate just how little we understand this generation of youth. Come to think of it, do Generation Y-ers understand themselves? It seems they are caught between the conventions and pressures of their parents, and the limitless opportunities of the world today. They are supposed to discover themselves in ways that their parents were never able, but at the same time expected to get the degree, the job, and the family before expiration (a date that is protracting more than ever). The Y generation and the world have changed, but the architecture of our schools and institutions are lagging behind. So, what can we learn from this generation in order to better bridge schooling with the work force, and world? Because, come on, these twenty somethings don’t have the time to mess around – they want to reinvent jobs to work for them.

As a bonafide member of the Y generation and a scholar of ‘21^st century education’ I have a few ideas about who we are and what kind of support we need in order to thrive:

1. More learning outside of the classroom; schools are still operating from an Industrial Revolution style model of learning. What students need is more access to real world relationships, work experiences and relevant pedagogy.

2. Support Youth to take a Gap, or Bridge Year ; Princeton is at the forefront of this movement in America, encouraging prospective students to apply and then take a year ‘on’ of public service. This gives youth the support they need to engage in self-discovery, volunteer, as well as ensuring continuation in school.

3. Beyond-the-office training; How much work is really performed during office hours? How much money and management is needed in order to monitor how many times people check their facebook accounts on the job? This generation doesn’t want to be confined to offices, professional attire or the 9-5 nightmare. So how can we reinvent the wheel? We need more a innovative approach to work… How to guides on thriving as a freelancer, entrepreneur and actor in the 21^st century workforce.

4. Capitalize on Capitalism; the NGO trend is a swing in the right direction, however, people working for them are often burnt out and underpaid. Social entrepreneurship is the way forward, and the Y generation is at the helm. People are much more likely to give money when there is a cause attached (see cause and cone marketing). Enterprise redesigned.

5. More cross-cultural/inter-generational interface; One of the major issues of our era is the growing gaps between rich and poor, cultures, and generations. As the world is changing at ever accelerating rates more efforts must be made to foster dialogue between civilizations (see dialogue among civilizations). Using technology in schools to promote discourse between students around the world is one way of cultivating global competence (see Global Nomads Group).

6. Environmental and Social Responsibility; The eighties and nineties commenced a period of exposure to global crisis unlike ever before. New media started to uncover war, famine, genocide, and environmental degradation, in ways that make it impossible to turn a blind eye. This generation has a unprecedented responsibility, and if they haven't realized it, or are too overwhelmed with information - some real focus and guidance is needed.

7. The willingness to change; If we want to continue to be competitive in the global economy we must take action to change the architecture of old systems. The future of our success may not greatly resemble structures of the past. The Y-generation is not willing to go along with outmoded ways of working and living - and that should be OK.

We are constantly learning how to adapt and integrate news ways of doing in the 21^st century. The Y generation is still emerging on the scene with their gadgets and an epoch-making sense of autonomy. Rather than trying to hold on to convention, and ideas of what it means to ‘grow up,’ let’s nurture the sense of immeasurable options that youth feel today. Take the advice of Ken Robinson, the author of ‘The Element’ who writes,

“My contention is that creativity now is as important in education as literacy, and we should treat it with the same status.”

So, with the last wave of the Y-generation entering college it would be a good time to put trust in evolving the new technology they are already so intimate with. As well as creating opportunities to bring innovation into the academic methodology – such as cultivating the skills that employers are looking for; innovation, self-starter attitudes and experience – all of which comes from direct work and experience in the world. The Y-generation may be seemingly gradual in reaching adulthood, but personal evolution in the twenties may be a step toward unlocking human potential in our era. So let’s be kind to the Y-generation, in a world of constant growth and flux, they’re still getting to know themselves.

Sometimes, the Y generation is even known as Generation, 'Why'? for the ways they are shaking up notions of workforce. Often met with an attitude of skepticism by older generations, this era of youth and their inclination to query and taking their time should be treated with heed - the importance of questioning obsolete conventions may be a step forward in building ones that work.

-Rebecca Thom