On April 28, Peter Engelke, along with UNICEF’s Jasmina Byrne, co-authored an op-ed for The Hill discussing the “polycrisis”: multiple near-simultaneous shocks, with strong independencies among them, taking place in an ever-more integrated world. This includes the likes of the COVID-19 pandemic, ongoing war in Ukraine, climate change, economic upheavals, and more. As these factors compound, the authors argue, the ones most hurt will be the world’s youth and children.
To combat this array of crises, the authors advocate for increased investment in foresight capabilities within governing structures, empowering the voices of the youth, and rethinking the management of public goods.
These tasks will be difficult. Each requires a consensus within and across governments, multilateral institutions and non-state actors including corporations, philanthropies, and non-profit organizations… But above all, it will demand that older generations acknowledge that neglecting to overcome the polycrisis would be a profound moral failure, consigning the world’s children and youth to a bleak future.
