Kevin Rudd: Take a suitcase of humility

If I were forced to name the three pre-eminent giants of history, I would offer Galileo Galilei, Charles Darwin and Albert Einstein. Each made original contributions to human knowledge which have completely changed our understanding of the world. In presenting their ideas, they stood against the dogma of their times.

Galileo is considered the father of the scientific method. He pursued the rigorous testing of ideas to ensure conclusions are derived from evidence. Darwin, the father of evolutionary biology. His work, “On the Origin of Species” presented a scientific case that humans were simply a part of the natural world and subject to its laws and variations. Einstein, the father of modern physics. He described many of the complex physical laws governing nature and is author of the world’s most famous formula E=MC2.

What advice would these giants have for the world’s leaders as we approach the Copenhagen Climate Change Conference this December?

We have heard global warming described as a diabolical problem and an impossible challenge. Such descriptions are defeatist and widespread. They are entrenched in the modern dogma of “sustainable economic growth”. Much like creationist theory, it is time to abandon this belief. Climate change is only diabolical, and the popular vision of sustainable economic growth only plausible, so long as humans set themselves apart from nature.

In fact, we have no god-given rights to the future.

Will any of today’s global leaders be remembered in history on the same stage as Galileo, Darwin and Einstein?

Probably not.

In which case, I recommend that they all pack a large suitcase of humility to take with them to Copenhagen. It would give us a much better chance for a meaningful outcome.

Image here
Ben Quin