[MUSIC]
There's a great anecdote about the very first photograph taken
of Earth from the vantage point of space.
The idea was that this photograph
occasioned a profound shift in our understanding of ourselves.
You see, for the first time in human history
we could look back at our planet in its entirety
This provided an ontological awakening.
It changed our story, our narrative.
It upgraded our self image. it expanded our consciousness.
New maps for new realities, as they say.
Astronauts in orbit call this experience the Overview Effect,
aa a boundary shattering sense of revelation and global
Where we shake off our petty differences
and emerge with a sense of global responsibility,
global consciousness, and global citizenship.
Carl Sagan's famous Pale Blue Dot film echoed the same idea.
From the vantage point of space there
are no lines dividing nations, no geographical subdivisions,
no flags, or racial divides, or disputed territory.
A single celestial body teeming with life.
Yet, the fact is our historically myopic point
of view, most certainly are limited perspective,
has resulted in much animosity.
We have, all too often, organized ourselves
into competing hostile tribes.
Subjugating each other for land and resources.
And misrepresenting the big picture
into a story of borders, subdivisions,
Too much hostility, not enough empathy and compassion.
Cultural differences, religion, tribes, nation, race, these
are creative expressions and variations that
should and could be celebrated.
Instead they become symbols that are all
too often used to create suffocating boundaries.
And they are increasingly ill conceived
to address the challenges of a hyper-connected global world.
As advancements in technology and information
enable greater mobility of ideas, goods, and people,
the role of the physical border is shifting
Conflicts remain, and too many people
are restricted access to the increasingly fluid means
of migration, transportation, and movement.
Migration has always been a defining factor
Migration has, and continues to touch, all nations, cultures,
and regions, all peoples on the planet.
Migration has been the seed at the heart
Accelerating the dissemination of knowledge and ideas.
Restricting migration is ultimately
like restricting the flow of ideas.
In much the same way that we don't tolerate censorship
or book burning, we might consider
the ways in which restricting the free movement of people
can be equally punishing to the idea of human flourishing.
The desire to become a global citizen is human.
We all have it, and we all share the same goals
for safety, comfort, and prosperity for our family.
Some are fortunate enough to be able to invest
in a second residence and citizenship.
While others are forced to seek asylum for their survival.
Being a global citizen is also about the strong
and the wealthy helping the weak and the poor.
As we saw with the Global Citizen Tax Initiative.
Boarder disputes, conflict zones, armed borders, these
are things that persist and need to be addressed.
We need a new story, a new lens with which to address
We need to scale up, to unleash a truly
global citizenry, exchanging ideas, beliefs, goods,
It has been said that empathy rarely extends
So, perhaps it is by extending our gaze,
using marvelous new storytelling tools like virtual reality,
that we can bridge divisions and bring worlds together.
Ushering in a form of radical empathy
to see the other as ourselves.
Where boundaries are dissolved and compassionate
Massive transformation of conscious.
A software up-grade for mankind.