Seven challenges our kids must be prepared for
When the time came to imagine the potential of Meta Humans, it made sense to start by identifying the real challenges that our kids will face in the next 20 years. Everything we do at Meta Humans must have a purpose, one that improves the lives of others, one that isn’t focused on the company’s bottom line but on creating a collaborative system that benefits all stakeholders — young people and their future, most of all.
Big picture questions
Everything we do or decide begins with this goal in mind. How do we best prepare our kids for the challenges of the 21st century? What challenges will we, individually and collectively, face in the next 20 to 30 years? How do we best supplement the existing education system to fully prepare our children?
Answering these questions highlights the knowledge and skills that our children will need to successfully perform real-world tasks as adults in their personal and professional lives.
Big picture challenges
There are many challenges facing the world today, including the obvious three: technological disruption, ecological collapse and nuclear threat (see https://www.sapienship.co/). Of course, because we all have some level of egocentric tendencies, most of our society’s perceived challenges have been identified from a human-centered frame of reference instead of a more integral approach, one that takes into account our own biology, our relationship with nature and our place in the universe. Thankfully, as we sharpen our focus and hone in on our purpose at Meta Humans, I am often reminded to start with more accessible concepts, with concerns we can begin confronting most immediately. With that in mind, here is my list of seven clear and pressing challenges that I believe should be addressed if we are to raise whole, healthy, and capable kids. I’ve numbered them for the sake of living up to our title here, but they are not ordered by priority. Each one impacts our children’s future.
21st century problems require 21st century solutions.
1. Population transformation
“For the first time in modern history, the world’s population is expected to virtually stop growing by the end of this century.”¹
World demographics, especially when considering birth rate, poverty and education, are directly connected to our daily lives. By having an awareness of how those changes affect policies, culture, economy and markets, we can better manage risk, identify opportunities and make fairer, more informed long-term decisions.
This topic is also much broader than it appears, because it addresses our biased perception of the world and directly challenges our flawed intuitions. It also touches on the difficulties of accessing the right information in the first place and how our sources of facts may be biased or outdated.
2. Space exploration
Multi-planetary human exploration is at our doorstep. Already, governments and private companies are recruiting a new generation of astronauts, candidates who not only have technical skills, but more importantly individuals who possess personality traits and social skills that will help them cope with the emotional and psychological challenges of space travel.
In addition to the rapid technological boom that space programs create, real cultural and philosophical questions emerge about governance, purpose, security, ethics and resource management.
3. Human 2.0, biotechnology & human development
What a fascinating (and potentially overwhelming) time to be alive. Technology is advancing at a faster rate than it ever has in human history. I had an analog childhood and a digital young adulthood, which earns me the fancy Xennial label. I don’t know how this affected my perception of technological advancement, but I suspect it at least gave me a sense of how quickly things are moving and why we shouldn’t take our current technologies, or our understanding of the limits of current technologies, for granted.
“…ordinary experience has to be made extraordinary in order to become accessible to reflection.”
― Shoshana Zuboff, In the age of the smart machine
Our generation and our children’s generation will likely witness an accelerated form of evolution that drastically redefines what it means to be human, potentially giving a small portion of the population access to unfair technological and biological advantages.
4. Social engineering at scale, group influencing, big data and privacy²
I have been struggling with big data, privacy and data ownership for the past 15 years. It was already clear back then that our biology and institutions weren’t equipped to adapt to the level of influence that is being leveraged upon individuals and groups.
Social engineering, or human hacking, is often defined as the art of influencing behaviors. Simply put, it is easier to get what you want and predict the future if you can influence the outcome. That influence can be exerted in two ways: by another human being or by a machine. I’ll let you guess which one is cheaper to operate, easier to scale, and more efficient.
At its core, social engineering isn’t anything new. With empathy, self awareness and communication skills, anyone is able to gracefully interact with a person and leverage that person’s cognitive and emotional biases. The same communication skills are common in sales, HR, management and in any human relationship. Those skills are neither good nor bad; it is the intent of the influencer and the self awareness of the influenced that makes the interaction beneficial or not.
“In the end, it’s a simple empirical matter: if the algorithms indeed understand what’s happening within you better than you understand it, authority will shift to them.”
― Yuval Noah Harari, 21 Lessons for the 21st Century
When used at scale by powerful systems (social media, online advertising platforms, governments, etc.), human hacking has the power to nudge millions of people to act against their own interests. Our society is only recently shifting attention toward finding viable solutions to data ownership, data governance and privacy.
5. AI, robotics, automation
This challenge is closely related to the one we just discussed. Narrow AI, software automation and robotics are rapidly changing and influencing the way we interact, do business and create value. In addition, entire industries are being disrupted, productivity is increasing and many people must adapt to new careers and move away from those that will soon become obsolete.
6. Climate change & sustainable living
Taking care of our planet should be a no-brainer, and yet it is too easy to get sucked into our daily routine and lose sight of the larger picture. If we take the time, we have the ability to adapt and organize, to assess situations and see opportunities. First, we need to be aware of the situation and understand that we are not helpless. We need a sense of urgency and agency. We need hope and inspiration. Climate scientist Katharine Hayhoe delivers all of the above in her TED Talk below.
7. Slow institutions and governance
Humans are innately social beings, but is not built into our nature to function in ever larger and larger societies — and certainly not on a global scale. I believe our institutions, when thoughtfully shaped, can act as a framework that augments and transcends our own nature to provide stability and safety. They can help us, collectively, temper our emotions, biases and irrationalities.
Here’s the problem: Institutions have slowly evolved over time with the needs of society, but precisely because they were established to provide stability, they are not agile. I would argue that institutions are slow to adapt by design. As the rate of change in our technology and advancements continues to compound, we are seeing a growing mismatch between our institutions’ ability to adapt and the speed of our technological advancements.
At this rate, governance and institutions cannot keep up unless we step up. Is it possible to achieve a truly collaborative and integrative approach to politics? Will we leverage technology for decision-making while honoring the way people want to be governed? How can we update our institutions in harmony with all stakeholders, not just those with the most resources, advantages, and power? What I know for sure is that I want the next generation to have a voice in the answers to those difficult questions.
What about you?
What challenges do you think children will face in the next 20 to 30 years? What should be done about it?
Join us on this journey for change
Are you passionate about helping the next generation? Here are some ways you can get involved with Meta Humans:
- Register your interest and receive monthly updates
- Schedule a quick 15-min meeting with me or email hi@metahumans.com
- Follow us on LinkedIn
And, of course, come back for our next post where we discuss seven tips for practical financial education at home.
[1] World’s population is projected to nearly stop growing by the end of the century, Pew Research Center, Washington, D.C. (June 17, 2019)
Growing at a slower pace, world population is expected to reach 9.7 billion in 2050 and could peak at nearly 11 billion around 2100, United Nations (June 17, 2019)
[2] I know, very long title, I’m a rebel.
