Change. That's the crunch issue at the heart of Rethink, a new suite of broadcasts aired across BBC Radio this week, asking what we'd all like to see in a post-pandemic world. I know, the dreaded 'p' word. But don't switch off as it's not as bleak as you might think.
Setting the scene for us is Amol Rajan, the BBC's Media Editor. In 'Rethink: The Edge of Change', an hour-long programme that kick-started the series on Radio 4, Rajan transports us back to January. A time before we found ourselves in the grip of a global pandemic and when, he suggests, we were living through a "hinge" moment in history. Climate change, the sweep of populism, and relocation of power from West to East formed the contours of a rapidly evolving world. Added to this heady mix was a digital revolution in which a handful of Californian tech giants were transforming the way we think, communicate, and process information. These large scale shifts and trends, however, masked deep divisions, asymmetries, and inequalities. Rifts in knowledge, wealth and power - between states, communities and individuals - that have risen closer to the surface during a global pandemic. This isn't to say they were previously hidden from view or not experienced and felt acutely. Rather these lived realities of separation and difference were subsumed by alluring grand narratives of hyper connectivity and interdependence that only partially mapped onto and explained a fast moving world. Then came along coronavirus - and as Rajan aptly puts it, "a virus which briefly united the world is now feeding off divisions within it".
A dizzying picture - and one that brings into sharp focus our messy and complicated world. So are we on the brink of a new dawn? An era in which life as we know it is a thing of the past? Quite possibly. Rajan therefore frames today's pandemic as a potential catalyst for immense societal change - "epochal" change, even. But where are we going? And what do we think the future ought to hold? These are the central questions posed in Rethink. An attempt to take a step back and reflect on how the next few months and years might - and should - look. Fortunately, the BBC has lured in some of the best minds in the business to do the initial leg work. That's right. Taking us beyond the broad brushstrokes are politicians, academics, sports stars, architects, policy-makers, authors, religious figures, poets, business leaders, and philosophers. All of whom have compiled their ideas, hopes, and aspirations into 3 minute audio essays. Succinct and easily digestible thought pieces to get the ball rolling and set our creative juices flowing.
These mini broadcasts have been scattered across BBC Radio schedules this week, from Radio 4 and 5 Live to the World Service. "Cripes!", you're thinking, "I've missed them". But fear not as every contribution has been neatly packaged for your audio perusal on BBC Sounds or podcast provider of choice. Type in 'Rethink' and up pops a whole raft of short broadcasts ready and waiting to fill your ears. True, each speaker gazes into their own specialist crystal ball. But this isn't exclusively the realm of fantasy or utopia. On the contrary, the essays reveal that the art of shaping the future is, in fact, to look back and cast a closer eye on the present.
Here are five editions that I've enjoyed in the hope they might act as your starter for ten.
First up is Amanda Levete, award-winning British architect, who reflects on the relationship between nature, technology, and architecture. She reminds us how lockdown has exposed unequal access to generous indoor and outdoor spaces, and suggests we urgently need to redress this imbalance; arguing persuasively that buildings which foster wellbeing are a need, not a luxury. Levete is a brilliant storyteller and this essay caught my attention for two reasons (excluding the fact I'm a Grand Designs fangirl). First, Levete traces historically how pandemics have been catalysts for infrastructural change: she cites the cholera pandemic in 19th Century London which sparked the creation of a sewage system, wider streets, and the embankment; while the plague in 17th Century Spain apparently led to houses being coated in lime because its antibacterial properties helped prevent the spread of contagion. Second, Levete hints at contemporary innovation on a similarly lofty scale, pointing to a new eco material - a kind of "transparent wood" - that could revolutionise our approach to buildings. Architecture with an environmental sensitivity driven by wellbeing, rather than efficiency alone. Amazing, right?
Next in line is Lady Hale, former President of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom who is now forever synonymous with *that* spider brooch. Hale turns our attention to the courts and asks what it means to get a fair hearing in 2020. She outlines how lockdown has impacted our judges and juries with urgent trials having to relocate online - something I hadn't thought about at all! She points to the challenges of reading body language on screen, the difficulties of forming a community between juries remotely, and the loss of an "atmosphere" in the courtroom when everyone is working from home. But Hale doesn't consider these to be insurmountable hurdles and instead sees them as potential triggers for positive reform. Tune in to hear one of the country's most respected legal minds make the case for physically-, rather than virtually-, convened courts, and hint at areas for possible judicial change, both subtle and radical.
Taking to the stage next is Andy Murray, chosen not least for the exciting opportunity to be in dialogue with a Wimbledon champion. Murray is always refreshing in his honesty and makes the case emphatically for equality in sport in a post-coronavirus world. He questions why women and men are not paid the same for playing an identical game. After all, equal pay for equal work is a legal requirement. Not a choice. So why the imbalance, hesitation, and delay? He says it's not a radical change. It's a question of fairness. Murray also takes aim at the old adage that "these things take time". "Why?" he asks. Surely it could happen immediately if those in power wanted to make the change? This resonated with me ever more strongly this month after Justin Rose, major champion golfer, put his own money into a new series of golf tournaments for female professionals at a time when the Ladies' European Tour is struggling financially. As he stated in a Telegraph article publicising the initiative, "the dreams for female golfers are the same but it is the opportunity that is skewed". Here, here.
Reed Hastings, Founder and CEO of Netflix, is another highlight to feast your ears on. Let's face it, we've all been glued to the streaming giant during lockdown. Hastings muses on the idea of togetherness at a time of crisis that threatens to lead to greater fragmentation, division, and isolationism. While we might all be in the same storm, we're certainly in different boats, with some suffering far greater effects and consequences than others. Storytelling, he suggests - and I agree - has a really important role to play in understanding and relating to others. For what we seen on screen (and I might add, hear on the radio) has the power to shape how we know and interact with the world. That's why he says we must double down on our commitment to diverse storytellers in order to gain more authentic narratives that "build empathy, inspire action, and ultimately unite us". Which is encouraging coming from a player such as Netflix. Rajan points out that Hastings is addressing a commonly cited criticism of the platform that "its power creates a homogenised culture", but reaffirms that its investment in local writers, producers, and editors counters such concerns. There's an economic logic behind this too: for successful stories are surely the ones that connect, engage, and resonate with the most people. Food for thought.
Last but by no means least is Professor Margaret MacMillan, Professor of History at the University of Toronto and host of the BBC's Reith lectures in 2018. I saw Professor MacMillan give a talk at university and it remains one of the best lectures I've been to. In this bite-sized audio nugget, she examines the mind-boggling paradox that while we have never be so connected, the institutions and organisations that manage our interdependent world have never been under greater strain. The World Heath Organisation, for example, grew out of a post-war era and is responsible for coordinating a global health response to a virus that doesn't respect borders and instead exploits social and economic differences. For all their faults and flaws, surely we should be supporting institutions that encourage collective responsibility, rather than pulling out of them? Especially during a pandemic that has revealed we are just as vulnerable as we are interconnected. Undoubtedly a compelling argument. If you want to hold up a historical lens to our contemporary moment, Professor MacMillan is your expert guide.
To end, Rethink, as you'll have gathered, is a project enormous in scope and ambition. One that a geographer like me is bound to relish, highlighting the importance of spatial, temporal, and scalar thinking. So yes, what you're about to embark on is a geographer's dream. But it's also an attempt to cast a hopeful light on what has and continues to be a very dark time. It runs the risk of being 'preaching' in tone and obscuring urgent, practical demands on the ground. But from what I've heard, it skillfully avoids this pitfall by engaging a wide variety of guests and speakers, each of whom come to the table with their own ideas, angles, and approaches. It's like having an audio encyclopedia in your back pocket - and surely now is an ideal time to take stock and at least consider the change we want to see that could shape lives for the better?
Start listening here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p08gt1ry/episodes/player
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