Hope in the Face of Crisis: A Call to Global Cooperation
As world leaders gather in New York for the United Nations General Assembly and the Summit of the Future, a staggering 2.3 billion people are unsure where their next meal will come from. Millions face the terror of brutal conflicts, and the internet has become a battleground of hateful echo chambers. The wealthiest 1% controls nearly half of all financial assets, and a handful of corporations are valued higher than the combined economies of Africa and Latin America. It’s little wonder that hope is hard to come by.
We’ve seen this before. For over a decade, millions died in silence as the AIDS pandemic ravaged communities. But then, driven by public pressure, leaders came together, invested, and broke the silence. The result? Three-quarters of people living with HIV are on lifesaving medicine, and the end of AIDS is within reach.
The contrast between the progress made in the fight against AIDS and the paralysis in addressing global challenges today is stark. It shows that effective leadership depends on inclusive partnership. Short-term, go-it-alone approaches only lead to failure. We win by working together.
The African principle of Ubuntu – "I am because you are" – reminds us that solidarity is smart self-interest. As the COVID-19 pandemic showed, the suffering of a distant stranger can become our own. Inequality and exclusion can lead to conflict, which spills across borders. Global cooperation is essential for global security.
Governments can steer the world back on track by rediscovering the political will that fueled global progress against AIDS. They must embody the best of international cooperation, protect public goods, and overhaul global finance to free up funds for healthcare, education, and development.
The stakes are too high for failure. The path to success is known, and the moment of decision is now. If leaders act boldly, the Sustainable Development Goals will still be achieved. If they don’t, the SDGs will fail, and even the hard-won progress against AIDS will be undermined.
The world has a chance to rise to the summit together. We cannot pull ourselves out of crisis if we are pulled apart. World leaders’ legacy can be a safer, fairer world for all.