2018 will be huge!

Welcome to 2018! This is an important year. Many people are sensing that big changes are coming—myself included. I foresee this year as a turning point. Humanity will take important steps in 2018 towards the establishment of an exciting new era. Before the end of this century, the Earth will enter an age of peace, sustainability and balance. Many of the world’s great wisdom traditions have anticipated such an age. One way or another, it’s coming.

In keeping with the spirit of this shift, I offer my intentions for the New Year. These may seem like a pipe dream to you, but they are much closer to being attained than you might imagine. If each of us holds these intentions in our hearts, we can bring them to fruition. “A dream you dream alone is only a dream,” said John Lennon. “A dream you dream together is reality.”

​So, here is my list of global intentions for 2018:

1. Nations unite. The United Nations will move its headquarters to a sovereign locale and be given more power by its member nations.
2. Visionary leadership becomes a priority. The UN will establish educational programs that nurture a new generation of leaders committed to selfless service, cooperation, and basic human values like compassion, respect, and fairness. Member nations will agree to elect or appoint leaders with the proper training and qualifications to guide the world in a positive direction.
3. Privatization ends. The people of the world will take back ownership of natural resources, including land, water, air (including broadcast airwaves), and the genome. Any entity that intends to use these resources will be required to compensate the public fairly and will lose its privileges as a result of misuse or contamination.
4. Producers become disposers. Manufacturers of consumer goods and packaging will be held entirely responsible for their disposal. Local communities will no longer maintain landfills. Instead, they will provide transfer stations where manufacturers can reclaim their materials for reuse. Biodegradable materials will be composted for use in farms and gardens. All other materials will be returned to manufacturers, who will have huge financial incentives to redesign materials so that they can be disassembled and recycled.
5. Local economies emerge. At a time when artificial intelligence is replacing human labor globally, communities will develop strategies to promote and reward businesses that provide quality employment to their residents. This may include the taxation of goods that are produced elsewhere and of businesses that do not reinvest the majority of their profits at the local level. New business models will emerge that produce consumer goods within their local community employing only a local labor force and generating revenues that benefit the community in direct ways, such as the establishment of free health clinics.
6. Basic rights are expanded. Besides ensuring basic free speech, freedom from discrimination, and free elections, the nations of the world will enforce the right to food, clothing, shelter, and health care. The rights of all beings, including animals and plants, to fair and respectful treatment will become the highest priority for every nation, religious institution, and business enterprise.
7. Wealth gets capped. The nations of the world will set limits on the assets controlled by private individuals. Any wealth accrued beyond these limits will be returned to national and local governments so that they can provide for the basic needs of their citizens.

You may be wondering how such a bold vision will come to be realized in 2018. That is the subject of next week’s blog. Please tune in on January 9 for my answer to the question: How do we get there from here? In the meantime, I wish you a very Happy New Year!