2020: The new decade ahead
Cause for hope as we overcome a difficult start to the 2020s
I want to acknowledge that the recent summer holidays were not a restful and relaxing period of time for the many Victorian families and communities affected by the devastating bushfires. Our thoughts are with those communities and the wildlife that have been affected by the fires. In one way or another, all of us have been affected by what we have seen in the news.
On top of that, as we begin this new school year our attention has also turned to the ongoing updates about the coronavirus outbreak from the city of Wuhan in China. The World Health Organisation has declared the situation a 'public health emergency of international concern.' It has certainly not been an easy start to the 2020s.
It is natural to feel concerned and alarmed at these news reports. However, as we navigate our way through those challenges and begin looking ahead to the possibilities that can open up this decade, it is worth taking a few moments to reflect on some of the challenges faced and progress made over the past decade.
Looking back, we can see that the world has faced some significant challenges during the 2010s. Some but not all of those challenges have been addressed. This time 10 years ago, one of the worst ever natural disasters had just occurred with the devastating Haiti earthquake. Over 160,000 people perished in that disaster. During the same year, in Tunisia we saw the beginning of the Arab Spring with uprisings against a number of repressive government regimes. Due to the economic crisis in Europe, sweeping austerity measures were also being implemented in several countries. Since then, recovery from the EU debt-crisis has been slow but steady. Over the past decade we have seen the rise and fall of ISIS, the ongoing Syrian War and displacement of over two million people from Syria, the invasion of Ukraine, and the prolonged Brexit deliberations. There were even times when air travel was significantly disrupted for extended periods due to volcanic eruptions in Iceland, Indonesia and the Philippines. Back home, we have also had quite a bit of political upheaval with five Australian prime ministers in just ten years.
We had a number of public health emergencies in the 2010s as well with the Zika virus in South America, the Ebola virus outbreak in West Africa and even more recent measles outbreaks in the Pacific. So far, those outbreaks have been successfully contained but governments worldwide continue to work to ensure that precautions are taken and important research into vaccinations and cures are funded to prevent and respond to potential epidemics, such as the current coronavirus.
On the bright side, there has been progress towards greater equality and reduced suffering over the past ten years. According to the UN, rates of extreme poverty around the world continued to decline across the 2010s and have essentially been cut in half since 1990. There are still many millions of people who are living in extreme poverty or are undernourished around the world but there is reason to believe that extreme poverty will continue to be reduced and may eventually be eradicated (the UN goal is 2030).
There also seems to be a growing recognition of the inhumane ways that animals are often treated, including a general trend away from buying and selling caged eggs and an increased surveillance of abattoirs and live export shipments for mistreatment.
In terms of equality, we have seen the legalisation of same-sex marriage here in Australia and in numerous countries around the world over recent years. One of the highlights of the past decade has also been the launch of the AFL Women's competition (AFLW) and the expanding coverage of women's sport in the media. In terms of recognition, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people seem to be closer than ever to being formally recognised in the Australian constitution.
Of course, we have witnessed some incredible sporting achievements over the past ten years and we have seen the emergence of amazing new forms of visual and performing arts as well as new genres of music and new cuisines. We can certainly look forward to even more stunning sporting achievements and creative new forms of art, design and music in the decade ahead.
We have more access than ever to information about physical health, exercise and nutrition. We have seen greater attention given to the importance of mental health and wellbeing and there is a growing awareness of the impacts of anxiety and depression on individuals, even among sporting stars who now seem to feel more empowered to speak openly about their own personal struggles recovering from mental illness.
There are more opportunities than ever before for communication across countries and between individual people. Over the past ten years, the use of the internet has increased significantly across the world. The number of people who now regularly access and use the internet has doubled from 2 billion people to 4 billion in just ten years. In China alone, the number of people who use the internet reportedly doubled from about 450 million to nearly 900 million people.
We have also seen the emergence of a range of new technologies during the 2010s, including home VR equipment, smart devices such as Google Home and Apple HomeKit, virtual assistants such as Siri, wearable technologies such as Fitbit, blockchain technology, and the new cryptocurrencies. New forms of social media have emerged as well, with the expansion of Facebook and Twitter and the launch of Instagram, Snapchat, WeChat and more. At the same time, we had sobering news reports about the misuse of information in the Cambridge Analytica scandal relating to data harvesting from Facebook as well as the Snowden revelations about apparent NSA privacy breaches. Clearly, we have more forms of communication than ever before and at home, work and school we have to continue to navigate the challenges and opportunities of this new terrain.
In terms of economics, over the past ten years we have seen the emergence of the so-called ‘sharing’ economy and the rapid rise and expansion of companies such as Uber and Airbnb. We have also seen the rise of streaming services such as Netflix and the demise of DVD and CD rentals. China’s economy, which had just surpassed the GDP of Japan in 2010, has doubled in size since then. China has become ever more prominent in world affairs. In addition, private companies such as SpaceX have entered the spacecraft and rocket industry and are setting ambitious goals for space travel, potentially including space tourism in low-earth orbit at some point in the 2020s. We also see companies working to design and produce self-driving cars and over recent years the sales of electric vehicles have skyrocketed.
As we know, the 2010s were on average the hottest decade on record. In 2016, the UN Paris Climate Accord established critically important global agreements to deal with carbon emissions and mitigate climate change. In addition, over the past year there has been a powerful youth movement, led by Greta Thunberg, advocating for more urgent action to tackle climate change.
Despite the significant challenges we face, I believe there is cause for hope. When we look back, we can see some success in tackling complex issues and taking collective action. In the 1990s, for example, governments across the world finally agreed to stop using products that were damaging the Earth’s ozone layer by banning Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) in aerosols, refrigerators, air conditioners, food packaging, and fire extinguishers. As a result, according to NASA, the hole in the ozone layer has gradually reduced in size as the ozone layer continues to recover. Around the same time, Clean Air Acts were introduced in many parts of the world and leaded-petrol was banned. It seems that the level of pollution in some large cities has significantly decreased from 30 years ago and there has been a resulting reduction in some lung diseases in those cities. Governments have also successfully cut down on sulfur dioxide emissions and while there are still numerous lakes around the world recovering from acidification, there are now far fewer instances of acid rain. Last year, the Victorian Government implemented a statewide ban on lightweight plastic shopping bags and we can all agree that is a step in the right direction in reducing waste. There has also been a boom in the renewable energy industry over the past decade and it has become by far the most important energy sector. Clearly there is so much more to be done to seriously tackle climate change, drought, deforestation and waste but collective action and significant improvements are possible.
I think I speak on behalf of all CHS staff when I say that we believe that the current generation of young people will go on to become the most e