"With the cascading information available in a 24 hour news cycle, we need to marry it with wisdom and foresight in navigating the process of headlong transformation," Kamalesh Sharma said at Goodenough College in London, describing how the Commonwealth has always been ahead of its time in recommending positive and constructive ways forward.
Secretary-General meets with graduate students at Goodenough College
5 May 2010
"The Commonwealth is an excellent tool for you to address the problems of today and tomorrow"
Commonwealth Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma met with graduate students at Goodenough College in London on 4 May to engage in a dialogue on the problems facing humanity and the tools we can use to address them.
He described the Commonwealth as an organisation of the times, of values and of partnership, committed to democracy, development, and diversity, where women and youth are a major focus of our work.
"Addressing the problems of women and youth is addressing the challenges we all face - resolving their situations can only contribute crucially to global development and equity," said the Secretary General. Mr Sharma went on to discuss his view of globalism, and the wisdom the Commonwealth brings to international debate and efforts to address the major issues of our times.
"With the cascading information available in a 24 hour news cycle, we need to marry it with wisdom and foresight in navigating the process of headlong transformation," he said, describing how the Commonwealth has always been ahead of its time in recommending positive and constructive ways forward.
He emphasised the ethos of inclusiveness and advocacy for the small and vulnerable, animating Commonwealth work and describing the organisation's work in debt management and debt relief, in the movements of educators and health professionals from one country to another, and its innovative work on the environment. He underscored the importance of the recent Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting's decision to empower the Secretary-General to use ӧood officesԠto advance global environmental efforts.
"We have good offices for democracy, focusing on elections management and observation. We have good offices in development, assisting the smaller and more vulnerable member states participate effectively in negotiating trade agreements. And now we shall have environmental good offices, where Commonwealth experts can help the small and vulnerable navigate the myriad environmental agreements to access the technologies and funding they need to address climate change and its impact on the most vulnerable."
At the end of the session, one student noted that the current generation of leaders is leaving a legacy of problems for the next generation to face, but it is also leaving some tools. The Secretary-General agreed, noting that, "this is the first century when the problems we face cannot be left for resolution to the next century. We have to find resolutions for the collective benefit of the entire human community."
The meeting concluded with the observation that among the tools we are providing to a new generation of decision makers is the Commonwealth - an organisation that brings together all continents, faiths, and races with a unique culture of equal participation.
I am impressed by your speech particularly on the issue of ethos of inclusiveness and advocacy for the small and vulnerable. I am an alumus who is Gambian and has suffered excessive opression and marginalisation to the extent that since 2008 when my service was wronfully terminated and copies of it were sent to other tertiary institutions to block me from any chances of picking a job. I hope to alert your office about this matter.
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