Wishing all our GCGI family and friends, readers and visitors, a very merry, happy and healthy Christmas and New Year
May your days be joyful and may you all enjoy the simple pleasures of life today and all year round.
Our Christmas Greetings and Message of Hope
GCGI Blogs: An Oasis of Hope, Love, Beauty, Wisdom
and Healing for a Kinder and more Loving World
Yes, indeed, these beautiful and truly human values – old-fashioned terms, they appear. They, it seems, are from a bygone era, long before a crudely standardised, values-free and for profit global mass media and lifestyle industry, projecting fake and meaningless goodness. But no. These values belong to all of us, giving meaning and reason to our lives and they must become, once again, the torch shedding light on our journey we call life.
Recently I was at a gathering with some family and friends and the topic of blogging came up. I was asked why I am drawn to, and interested in writing and posting these thought-provoking blogs. It was, I must admit, an interesting question and discussion which I would love to share the gist of it with you too.
For me, blogging is a way of feeling, touching, loving, hoping, and dreaming. It enables and empowers me to capture and crystalise what I have noted or read and stored in my mind, to remember forever, long after I have forgotten everything.
I do my blogs, only for the love of it. My postings are not on social media, the likes of Facebook, Tik Tok, Instagram, Telegram, LinkedIn,.... I do not make money from them. I do not charge anybody to read them. I am not after instant fame! I just want to be happy and content, and more so, if I can, make someone else happy too. That’s the only thing I am after. This is the only thing I want to do.
In the beautiful and timeless words of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice:
…’And as for fortune, and as for fame
I never invited them in
Though it seemed to the world they were all I desired
They are illusions, they're not the solutions they promised to be
The answer was here all the time
I love you, and hope you love me…’
One of my greatest pleasures about my blogging, for a retired academic activist that I now am, who keeps dreaming to change the world for the better, is that I can write about topics that are topical, or aren’t, or if I think I can help them to become one!
I am now unshackled from the days I was in prison of the ‘publish or pership’ culture of the rat-race of my university days! I now publish about beauty, wisdom, hope, love, kindness, generosity, giving, sharing, friendship, family,..., the essentials of a purposeful life, life of meaning and values. If this is not heaven on earth for somebody like me, then, what else can it be, writing and enjoying myself in the elegance and beauty of travelling in The Slow Lane!
All said and done, in the words of Simon Reynolds writing in the Guardian, ‘I’ll never stop blogging: it’s an itch I have to scratch – and I don’t care if it’s an outdated format’! ‘Even if nobody reads them, I’ll always be drawn to the freedom blogs offer. I can ramble about any subject I choose.’
Below, I love to share some of my 2023 blogs with you.
The year that was 2023: Looking back and looking forward-A pick from our archive
Since its foundation in 2002, we, at the GCGI, have engaged with each other with big questions of life, amongst them: Who are we? Where have we come from ? Where are we going? What is the purpose of this journey we call life? What does it mean to be human?
Through our deep engagement over the many years, we have been enabled to reaffirm our values and commitment to share a common belief in the potential of each one of us to become self-directed, empowered, and active in defining this time in the world as an opportunity for positive change and healing and for the true formation of a culture of peace by giving thanks, spreading joy, sharing love, seeing miracles, discovering goodness, embracing kindness, practising patience, teaching tolerance, encouraging laughter, celebrating diversity, showing compassion, turning from hatred, practising forgiveness, peacefully resolving conflicts, communicating non-violently, choosing happiness and enjoying life.
‘2023 was a year of halfway points, turning points, and stalled progress as the world grappled with a series of cascading challenges that pushed millions of people into poverty, hunger, and harm’s way. Ongoing and new outbreaks of conflict destroyed lives and homes, displaced millions, and further divided an already polarised planet.’- The UN Foundation
Meanwhile, hope and humanity are keeping our soul and our hearts nourished and nurtured. We must not give up, we must not despair but walk on, as at the end, good ideas will drive out the bad, when we take action in the interest of the common good. Carpe diem!
Photo credit:Linkedin
As we look back, contemplate and reflect, we will empower ourselves also to envision the future that we are all yearning for. A future and a vision that has been devalued and debased by decades of an inhumane and corrupting ideology, which is neoliberalism.
As we look back and forward our thought is like a pine cone, which contains the seeds for future trees - so we look ahead through all the pain and confusion to a future of hope for all humanity.
The world is facing a myriad of existential challenges. Some of the most pressing ones are, amongst others, inequality, poverty, ill-health- both physical and emotional- the rise in a marketised/values-free education, climate destruction and environmental degradation, racism, violent conflict, xenophobia, hatred and intolerance. It seems, everybody now thinks they are exceptional, the so-called chosen ones!!
In a deeply confused, wounded and pained world, in need of healing and healers, the GCGI has been a source of hope, the light at the end of the tunnel, charting and suggesting a vision for a better world, a world of peace, harmony and care for ourselves and our mother nature.
In short, at Globalisation for the Common Good Initiative we are grateful to be contributing to that vision of a better world, given the goals and objectives that we have been championing since 2002. For that we are most grateful to all our friends and supporters that have made this possible.
Looking Back at 2023: A Pick from Our Archive
Photo credit: Nextmv
In 2023 we posted 46 Blogs covering and addressing many current and pressing topics and issues. You can see the entire list HERE
Below I have chosen a sample of 12 for our looking back journey:
What is the Secret to Living the Good Life?
Ten Love Letters to the Earth: “Walk as if you are kissing the earth with your feet”
The Moment of Truth: Can Cop28 become a Cop for the Common Good?
Debunking the Greatest Heist and Con Artistry of All Times
Who wants to destroy Mother Nature? I will, says Rishi. No, you won’t, says, William Morris
Remembering and Commemorating the 200th Anniversary of Demerara Rebellion
Small is Beautiful: Celebrating 50 years of beauty, wisdom, inspiration and hope
Thank you and Happy 75th Birthday NHS: You are the Celebration of the Common Good
Hope is truly what the world is yearning for this Easter empowering us to imagine a better world
Education for Transformation: Where Nature and Humans Thrive in Harmony
‘A Christmas Carol’: A timeless tale of redemption, compassion, hope, and transformation
And now Looking Forward to 2024 with Inspiration and Hope
Life Lessons I've Learned in a World of Conflicting Ideas and Aspirations.
The future is indeed fraught with environmental, socio-economic, political, and security risks that could derail the progress towards the building of “The Future We Want”. However, although these serious challenges are confronting us, we can, if we are serious and sincere enough, overcome them by taking risks in the interest of the common good.
One thing is clear: the main problem we face today is not the absence of technical or economic solutions, but rather the presence of moral and spiritual crises. This requires us to build broad global consensus on a vision that places values such as love, generosity and caring for the common good into socio-political and economic practice, suggesting possibilities for healing and transforming our world. Let us seize it. Carpe Diem!
Journey to Healing: Let Me Know What is Essential
GCGI is our journey of hope and the sweet fruit of a labour of love. It is free to access, and it is ad-free too. We spend hundreds of hours, volunteering our labour and time, spreading the word about what is good and what matters most. If you think that's a worthy mission, as we do—one with powerful leverage to make the world a better place—then, please consider offering your moral and spiritual support by joining our circle of friends, spreading the word about the GCGI and forwarding the website to all those who may be interested.
Photo: SHUTTERSTOCK / MIKE VER SPRILL