One Question Answers. Is Now the Opportunity for Change?

Is now the opportunity for change?

May 2020

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Is now the opportunity for change?

Change. It is personal and professional, it is societal, economic, cultural and political.

It is forced upon us or it is a choice, but it is always human.

On the 7 th May 2020, One Question hosted our first online event asking, is now the opportunity for change?

This one-hour conversation invited four different perspectives from the worlds of music, communications, environmentalism and community, to answer one question in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic - a catastrophic change that has seen 100s of thousands of deaths, business cease trading globally, travel halted indefinitely, and currently, twelve weeks of global isolation.

Sarah Parsonage One Question

Synonymous with One Question, it is only right that we take ourselves out of our bubbles (that have shrunk somewhat) and out of our industry echo chambers to examine what comes next? As the global economy is on a ‘great pause’, the government is coming under fire hourly and the UK media are completely inconsistent in their reporting, it seems that the impact of the health crisis could be the crescendo the world has been careering towards for some time. Three months ago, the world was fighting a number of crises: a crisis of technology, a climate crisis, the impact of globalisation and with it the increasing risk of polarisation. If to reference a former speaker of One Question, Dominic Kniveton, we only act when our worlds are affected, what impact will this health threat have on us, on our communities and business that could generate real societal change?

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Is now the opportunity for change?

52% of the UK voted to leave the European Union. Donald Trump became leader of the free world. The cavernous divide of the sexes was brought to the fore by by the gender pay gap and the #metoo campaign. The Black Lives Matter movement demanded equality across the world. All a resurgence of polarisation. With all this came a call to arms for change, to protect our healthcare system, our planet and the next generation from a world that appeared to be going back in time. Then COVID-19 took flight and caused catastrophic change on a global level, fundamentally shifting every aspect of our life with little control over what happens next.

To say that we are in flux is an understatement. With this turbulence comes a genuine, emphatic call for change. To protect our planet. To eliminate inequalities. To not return to “normal� but to define something new.

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“I hope that what happens, is the bit of our society that celebrates the false prophet of being alpha and busy, just fucks off and dies.�

Fred Bolza

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A definition of change Change is often either a choice or something that happens to us. There are events we want to change, in our careers, our relationships, our lives. And there is change that happens to us, change which we have little or no control over – and in extremis, catastrophic change leaving us powerless.

As humans when we feel most comfortable, we are the least productive in our desire to facilitate change.

Something that we feel more frequently as we get older. As one accumulates capital and the bricolage of what one has aimed for in life, we generally become less accepting of change. It becomes a threat; we don‘t want any kind of ‘change’ to challenge what we have built. Yet it is through significant change we develop resilience. Change that is forced upon us can also be

“Change is something we fear, progress is something we want. We see them as two separate entities when in fact they are the same coin.”

defined as progress. And from progress comes hope.

Months after stepping on a landmine in Afghanistan, Photographer, Giles Duley saw himself for the first time without limbs. An overwhelming desire to return to the life he had, brought with it a lack of control. From this moment on, Giles promised himself that he would no longer focus on the things that he cannot do, but what he can do. The impact of catastrophic change leaves humans with the desire to return to what we know, events which we feel powerless to approach or even counter, but change can come from the smallest, most

Fred Bolza

personal action.

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“The worst state of mind that we could ever be in, is when things are just OK.�

Giles Duley Photographer

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“I will never think about the things I can’t do. I will focus on what I can, and I will excel at them. For me that is how we cope with change.”

Giles Duley Photographer

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The impact of community Strong communities grow out of tragedy.

In the pandemic, communities across the UK have come together, out of darkness has come light: a re-appraisal of the NHS. Key workers are offered free products and services in gratitude for their dedication.

Local businesses supporting each other and their customers through new services.

Not going back requires effort. It demands energy and commitment. Changing our world starts with changing ourselves. If society continues to accept the status quo then our lives and the world in which we live may not end up as we would like, we would not have seized the opportunity.

“We have to tell more meaningful stories that make people feel something.�

Jeremy Waite IBM. 16

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“This is a global crisis that is being dealt with on a local level. Strong communities grow out of tragedy. There is no global solution but there have been a lot of local solutions.�

Giles Duley Photographer

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When we think about how our lives might change right now, we might consider them emotively. Our futures make us feel something. Do we feel optimistic?

Hopeful? Perhaps the ways in which we tell stories to each other are the same as how we can share, and maybe persuade, others of a better future. If we take the climate crisis as an example, people often feel frightened by the immense threat to our planet, but at the same time have little if any knowledge of how to contribute towards mitigating it. When hope is pitted against a vision of fear, the story of hope has to be deeply personal, and highly compelling.

Is change something which we expect of other people - more so than ourselves? Do we fall into a received behaviour of expecting “the other“ - people, organisations, countries - to change, when it may also fall to us to do so? While we can externalise change, often the most effective way to instigate it is to start from within. It’s up to us, our communities, to find and develop the answers, not the leaders whom we have historically relied upon.

“Is change something we expect of other people?

When we ask questions, we expect other people to answer them.”

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“We have to ask; how do we build an emotional connection with someone enough to drive someone to do something?

To change something?�

Jeremy Waite IBM

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The impact for business Contemporary Western society has had something of a trilemma - crises of technology, globalisation, and of the environment.

COVID-19 has kicked this trilemma into a more urgent, collective desire for change. Without government policy or advice, businesses and communities changed overnight to support each other and society. This point is brought into even sharper focus when we consider who helps society to “change� on our behalf. Often, and certainly in many Western societies including the UK and US, change can be instigated by government policy and our legal system. Whilst our reliance on these institutions to enforce policies is fundamental, our reliance on the same institutions to lead is up for debate?

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“We have become accustomed to relying on our governments to implement change for us. We rely on our economy to work, our legal system to hold systems to account and our media to keep us informed of the truth. But when the things we rely on to evolve as a society are not up to the task, we have to ask: what can we do? Who do we need to become to create the change we want and the world we need?�

Jamie Beck- Alexander Project Drawdown

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Historically, change or transformation in industry has been seen as an insurmountable beast. A tanker in which we can only turn by adopting long term strategies and examining reams of data from third party organisations. Yet, in the midst of a catastrophic crisis, companies adapt overnight.

Prior to the government’s call to close industry and isolate at home, businesses across the globe, big and small made this decision independently, in many cases irrespective of the Government directive. Factories and warehouses normally used as perfumeries or breweries switched making PPE equipment or hand sanitizer for front-line staff. Airlines were grounded, ceasing travel to many destinations. Small businesses adopted new strategies to support, restaurants became takeaways and overnight supermarket employees and delivery drivers became superheroes.

“Communication is at the heart of everything.

Data doesn’t drive action alone.”

Society has proven in the midst of a global panic that change is possible. As we seek to recover from the impact of this health threat, can we begin to implement these changes to address the threats that have not and will not go away?

Nothing has emphasised the need for change and the ability of individuals to create change more than every state in America, and many cities around the world, protesting against years of systemic racism, following the tragic death of George Floyd at the hands of a governmental organisation. It is beholden on all of us to ensure that the positive aspects of post-pandemic change affect everyone.

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“Covid has unmasked the fragmentation that has systematically undermined the health of the whole. In the example of music, removing the live piece has exposed how this then affects all the other parts of the industry whether that is the livelihood of artists, the marketing and promotional efforts of labels or the ecosystem that binds agents, promoters and venues. The only way through this is through a holistic understanding of the interconnections and how to rewire those networks for the good of the whole rather than “operating” just on the part that is ailing and in so doing potentially killing the business or industry.”

Fred Bolza.

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What comes next Is there a “before” and “after” to the pandemic? Are things that binary for everyone?

In reality, we make small, incremental tweaks to our behaviour, in the same way that we feel that the climate is making small, incremental tweaks to the planet. Revolution is often desirable, but we don’t always have the mental bandwidth to cope with it,particularly if we are benign to the idea. Evolution allows us to manage our sense of self-protection more acutely. Deep, lasting change often comes from a perspective of health and self-survival. The infinite morphing of our bodies, inside and outside, makes our selves become change agents.

The significant reduction in carbon emissions brought about by the lockdown is reassuring, but if we accept the status quo in six months or twelve months’ time we have to ask ourselves, industry and our government how will we eliminate the remaining 92% We crave the explosion of creative effort involved in change, but we don’t really have the time or energy to handle its effects. We often prefer the more relaxed approach of the slow burn. COVID-19, like the socio-political changes mentioned at the outset, is giving us both: A Big Bang and some very long aftereffects.

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“We are quite literally all in this together as a global community. If we could view Earth from afar, we would see the entire human family going through this experience together: vulnerable, destabilized, reminded of what it is that we value and how fragile this all is.

This is the power of the Overview Effect. How can we bring this awareness with us to reimagine a sustainable, equitable world for eons to come?�

Jamie Beck-Alexander Project Drawdown

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“Polarisation is simply silos. Through the impact of Covid-19 we have been forced into profound acts of individualism now collectively generating impact. The last ten weeks has shown that each of us sticking to one thing and understanding the value of that, and the value of our neighbour. Whether they are a Brexit supporter a trump voter or anti-climate change, in the end proves that change is greater than the polarisation we find ourselves in.�

Fred Bolza

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Conclusion We are perhaps witnessing some of the deepest and most wide-ranging changes to Western civilisation since World War II. However, the extent of that change is really only limited to our imaginations. Change requires a call to action. Hope requires committed belief. Progress is change framed within our subjective view of hope.

One person’s view of progress is another’s disaster. We have the opportunity, now, to really think through how we progress, how we evolve, as a society. The enforced isolation has been something of a staging for what a different approach to work and life might be like.

Some of us will want to go back to how things were. Others will be frustrated that the opportunities coming out of the isolation aren’t being realised enough.

Out of this are some shafts of light which cut across our differing views and beliefs. Our re-appraisal of community.

Our re-awakening of the importance of public service. And, perhaps, our re-evaluation that life simply isn’t just about devoting ourselves to our own echo chambers, the bubbles we have created that are just ‘fine’

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“Business structure defines who is senior and who is junior within a company. During this time this has disappeared.

The hierarchy in business has been flattened. So all of the things that make us weird and unusual and special. All of us misfits and square pegs in round holes, this time has allowed us to shine.�

Jeremy Waite IBM

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One Question asked as to whether now offers an opportunity for change.

Each answer brought about with it another question, has global isolation offered us all the opportunity to examine our health and environment and the impact on that world. Our reliance on a broken government system and the interdependencies of businesses old and new. As the country begins to recover, we will take with us the vulnerable, honest versions of ourselves we have shown society in the last three months?

The time we are living in now asks so many questions - some of which we can explore individually, some as society as a whole. We are only just beginning to find the answers, but progress starts with small changes.

“Hope is not a strategy, but I am starting to wonder whether hope is the only strategy we have right now.�

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“Change is where all personal growth comes from, it is where community growth comes from. It is where societal change comes from, but we are very reluctant to create change ourselves.�

Giles Duley Photographer

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What can we do?

Join Become a Climate Reality Leader (Virtually) https://climaterealityproject.org/training Bandcamp’s mission is to create the best possible service for artists and labels to share and earn money from their music, and for fans to discover and enjoy it. https://bandcamp.com Abraham Wilson Foundation’s mission is to support young people to become the greatest version of themselves through music. https://abramwilson.com/

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Read Project Drawdown https://drawdown.org/programs Me and White Supremacy https://www.meandwhitesupremacybook.com/ 10 Steps to Non-Optical Allyship https://www.instagram.com/p/CA04VKDAyjb/

Support Legacy of War Foundation https://www.legacyofwarfoundation.com/ Black Lives Matter https://blacklivesmatter.com/ The Liberty Fund https://www.libertyfund.nyc/

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