Ecority Unplugged
Crafting a World of Peaceful Cooperation
We live in an age marked by division, conflict, and seemingly unrelenting rivalry. The idea of a world where compassion and cooperation prevail seems absurdly foolish, but it’s also vital. As we watch the proxy war in Ukraine come to its predictable close, Russia outfoxing NATO with its new hypersonic missile system; a temporary ceasefire in Lebanon raising false hopes that the slaughter in Gaza that has turned almost every nation on Earth against Israel, will stop; brutal civil wars continuing in Yemen, Syria and Ethiopia; and the military coup in Myanmar still resulting in significant violence and human rights abuses, it seems that an impulse for conflict is deeply welded into our DNA. How can we be so absurdly brutal to each other?
Since 1945, I have watched the world oscillate between periods of peace and conflict, shaped mainly by geopolitical dynamics and historical legacies. The post-war era initially fostered cooperation through the founding of the United Nations and various other collective security measures, yet the Cold War spawned petty proxy wars and ideological clashes. The euphoria and optimism following the Cold War's end was soon challenged by ethnic quarrels and terrorism, particularly after the 9/11 attacks. These then led to protracted military engagements across the Middle East by a US empire increasingly stung by the loss of moral authority.
Today’s conflicts are occurring alongside rising global tensions, highlighting that while moments of peace can emerge, underlying issues such as nationalism, territorial disputes, and socio-economic disparities persist, they are often the triggers that lead to war. Orthodox analysis by peace keepers suggest that the following eight factors remain the main sources of conflict:
Long-standing historical injustices and grievances, even when dormant for generations, can fuel resentment and conflict, as communities remember past injustices and seek redress.
Competition for scarce resources, such as water, arable land, and energy, can exacerbate tensions, particularly in regions facing environmental change or population pressures.
The rise of identity-based politics can deepen divisions within societies, as groups mobilize around ethnic, religious, or cultural identities, sometimes leading to exclusionary practices or violence.
Fragile or ineffective governments may be unable to address citizens' grievances, leading to unrest and conflict. Corruption and lack of accountability can further undermine trust in the most venerable of institutions.
Foreign interventions, whether military or economic, can exacerbate existing tensions or create new conflicts, particularly when driven by strategic interests rather than the needs of local populations.
The role of media in shaping perceptions can contribute to conflict, as sensationalist reporting and propaganda can inflame tensions and perpetuate stereotypes.
Within and between nations, significant economic disparities can lead to frustration and resentment, particularly when marginalized groups feel excluded from economic opportunities.
Lack of cross-cultural understanding and communication can lead to misinterpretations of intentions and actions, contributing to conflicts.
If that is really the case, then we’re doing something fundamentally wrong. For these are all excuses for incompetence; they can all be avoided by redesigning relationships and interactions differently.
At the same time its true that we’re far better equipped at escalating tensions, and provoking new ones, than we are at preventing anger and empathizing with the plight of others. For example:
Our inability to adequately frame dialogue around concord, with peace as the objective, is an issue when the vocabulary most often used is threatening: i.e. tariffs, sanctions, regime change, colonization, and war.
The theory of games and winning, including tactics such as bluff and counter bluff, is often brought into negotiations, resulting in zero-sum outcomes: we win, you lose.
Because we lack real understanding we automatically assume that others think like us and want the same things as us. We don’t often stand in other people’s shoes to try and empathize with motives that might be very different from ours.
Our negotiation and conflict resolution skills are imperfect as they come from an attitude of superiority and hubris.
Our worldview is essentially evangelistic - in essence the conqueror’s mindset. If we examine the colonies we have conquered and settled it’s evident that we start from a position of expecting others to accept that our culture, egalitarianism, and associated belief systems, are best for them, and we proceed on that basis.
Addressing these five root causes is essential for fostering sustainable harmony in a fractiously connected world. Previously, in order to nurture an environment where conflicts waned and wars became obsolete, we engaged in a variety of tactics ranging from polite requests to armed incursions and assassinations. To be frank, none of these have been permanently effective.
I suspect we grasp intellectually that a transition to peaceful co-existence at scale will require a collective commitment to redefining our global priorities – and above everything else a willingness to embrace radical solutions to promote peace and unity. But on that basis too, our good intentions have come to naught. We have failed. The most poignant symbol of that failure is reflected in the United Nations Security Council’s inability to prevent war or to bring war criminals to justice.
It is now abundantly clear to me that lasting peace cannot possibly be achieved without a fundamental shift in human consciousness. A shift from catering to the individual state and mindset to the needs of the human family as a whole. A shift from avarice to ecority. And a shift from indifference and apathy to active compassion.
In this context, compassion cannot merely be a convenient emotional response to changing conditions; it must be a conscious choice to accept the fact that we are one species. Beyond that, we are an integral part of all life on this planet – including the more-than-human sphere. So only by cultivating active compassion - appreciating the experiences and feelings of other humans – can we understand the choreography that can lead to missed steps in the dance of life.
Cultivating active compassion requires openness. On a global scale that means the establishment of frameworks to encourage honest dialogue and cross-cultural collaboration. When people from diverse backgrounds come together to work on common goals, they not only share their unique perspectives but build lasting relationships based on trust and mutual respect.
In addition to educational and cultural initiatives, we must also advocate for policies that prioritize social and economic equity. Inequality is a fertile breeding ground for resentment. By addressing deep-rooted injustices - whether through fair economic policies, universal access to healthcare, or social safety nets - we can create a more just society where all individuals feel valued and secure. When people see that their basic needs are being met and that they have a stake in their communities, they are less likely to resort to violence as a means of expressing their frustrations.
To create a world where wars are obsolete then, we must address the root causes of conflict along with any manufactured conditions that impede peace. Many wars are fueled by a competition for resources, ideological extremism, historical grievances, and a range of other selfish incentives. By designing inclusive governance structures that allow diverse voices to be heard, we can mitigate the sense of disenfranchisement that often leads to violence. Encouraging participatory democracy at local, national, and global levels can empower communities to address their grievances constructively and without resorting to violence.
Ultimately however, the cultivation of a community of peace requires ongoing love, healing, tolerance, and mutual respect. Acknowledging past injustices and creating spaces for reconciliation transform relations between warring parties. Restorative justice practices can be instrumental in mending societal rifts. We have seen both.
It should be clear enough by now that crafting a world of peaceful cooperation will demand not only a radical reinvention of current systems and practices, including altogether different attitudes to resolve diplomatic tensions, but also a profound metamorphosis in how we perceive and interact with one another in the first place.
Embracing compassion, fostering inclusive dialogue, and prioritizing coevolution are essential steps toward a more harmonious existence. By shifting our attention away from individualistic pursuits to a collective understanding of our shared humanity, we pave the way for lasting peace. This commitment to redefining our relationships, will ultimately bring us into a future where cooperation prevails over conflict and the bonds of our global community are free to flourish.
But none of that can transpire without a genuine shift of consciousness, along with opportunities to step into an alternative ontological state of being - one that places empathy before hostility, cooperation before competition, and a shared vision of humanity that transcends today’s absurdly inconvenient manufactured partitions.