Journeys Towards Global Citizenship

This piece includes an excerpt of Marshall's speech, which is organised into various personal and metaphorical "journeys" that are meant to convey the complexity of both global citizenship and the approach of those who work to address problems like poverty. In telling these stories, Marshall's goal is to encourage movement toward a dialogue that reflects "the value and need to take different paths and respects the very different views and convictions of most of our fellow man."

A local citizen whom she quotes in one of her ten stories asks, "how can we have such a different vision when we share so many common values and beliefs?" Marshall's overall vision is that there can be very different ways of perceiving reality and the imperatives that flow from it, even where there is much commonality between people and their ethical systems. For example, she says, "the World Bank has articulated its mission in two ways: 'our dream is a world free of poverty' and 'to fight poverty with passion and professionalism'. Every major world religion has as a central anchor in of compassion for those who suffer, a deep obligation of the fortunate to help those in need, and a fire for social justice. Beyond these two starting points for both worlds, though, lie worlds of complications - in how the World Bank and other institutions view and fight poverty, and in how religions also explain it and exhort us to respond. But the core is there: this is a central problem for us all..."

To her, these different lenses or ways of interpreting problems like poverty are inevitable - though the problems themselves may not be. Key to using the available resources and knowledge to make real changes in the lives of those experiencing poverty are the beliefs that "people do not live or think in sectoral silos, that all problems and issues are linked, that life and change are about much more than money, and that the 'whys' and 'hows' of action are at least as important as the 'what' and 'how much'." In other words, she says that strategic approaches to preventing and addressing poverty must go forward - with an eye to encouraging participation on the part of local, regional, and global communities - even in light of complications or differences ("boulders") thrown in the path of those who pursue them. To this end, she encourages, "keeping the sights always on poor communities and listening to their voices, working with their traditions for change." She points out that development-related challenges are intertwined (without education, there is no job; without a job, there is no food...). She claims that part of the solution involves drawing on the tremendous power of technology. However, she says, connecting on the basis of technology is not enough. "[I]t also important that we work towards a stronger global dialogue, a compassionate, open, and demanding quest, with more appreciation of the complexities and dilemmas that face us and more respect and humility in the face of differences and difficulties."

Some of the specific questions that her stories draw out include:

• What is possible in the development world?
• What role can outsiders play?
• Do we follow what a country and its government wants?
• How do we address sensitive issues of culture?
• When do we intervene, when do we let the moment pass?

In conclusion, Marshall notes that there is "a strong common body of ethical values that bind most civilizations and most people". To her, this means that "we must go beyond the confines of a country, a discipline, an argument if we are to find solutions. We do not have all the answers and we all have much to learn. There is not one 'globalization' solution, and what appears simple one moment (like making sure that poor children pay nothing to go to school or to see a doctor) may raise the most complex problems in reality, on the ground."

Marshall ends by encouraging "listening, learning, dialogue, and an openness to new ideas, even as we maintain a powerful commitment to the 'betterment of the world' for all its citizens...Each individual", she says, "needs to find ways to be part of our global future."

Click here for the full article on the World Bank site.