The challenge of humanity in New Year

Hossam Badrawi
Tuesday 31 Dec 2024

I watch the news, scroll through social media, and ask myself what I wish for in the New Year. I want to witness a genuine transformation in Egypt's lifestyle and development, which would protect our nation from the turmoil surrounding us.

 

I hope to see the leaders of tomorrow, who are now in our homes and schools, seize the opportunities available to them.

Instead of succumbing to discontent, negativity, and defeat, they must rise to embrace and utilize these opportunities.

A hopeful young man asked me: “What opportunity do you mean?”

I replied: “The enormous spread of information and communication technology and the advent of artificial intelligence and its potential — an unstoppable force that touches every field of modern life."

"From the moment hundreds of millions of children in Egypt and around the world open their eyes, they are immersed in an endless flow of knowledge, communication, and a way of life unfamiliar to their parents or teachers. This new world evolves daily, offering an opportunity that was never available to us."

Humanity’s present is changing, and today’s youth live through an unprecedented human revolution. This revolution has proven that every dream and imagination can become a reality.

At the same time, children and young people today face the worst of humanity’s evils, represented in Zionism and Western leaders who support it. They provide weapons, money, and unconditional backing to erase peoples from existence and divide the Middle East as they see fit.

The young man said: “So, are you saying that schools, culture, and knowledge are key?”

I responded: “Let’s step away from conventional thinking for a moment. Innovators and scholars like Al-Razi, Al-Farabi, and Leonardo da Vinci did not attend school, as there was no such thing in their time."

"The school is a human invention from the early 19th century, created to standardize education initially for the military and religion and later for employment and industry," I added.

"Strangely, since its inception, everything has advanced except for schools. The image remains the same: a teacher standing before students delivering lessons. Education, which should lead to progress, has been left behind," I explained.

In reality, progress has outpaced education, and now education is struggling to keep up with advancements in industry and technology.

This prompts a critical question: Should we defend traditional education and chase after others' achievements, or should we pioneer initiatives that go beyond the constraints of tradition, which have failed to develop our society?

Within this context, illiteracy in our country has grown to 16 million citizens, and poverty has risen to 32 million citizens, according to official statistics from years ago.

Despite this, as children grow, their digital capabilities grow alongside them, shaping their experiences and offering limitless learning opportunities.

A young woman interjected: “What is preventing them from seizing this opportunity to elevate Egypt and humanity to a better level?”

I said: “The obstacle to their creativity and progress is us — the older generations who manage their lives, impose our norms, and pass on our shortcomings and evils. This only deepens their poverty, illiteracy, and extremism.”

The conversation continued with discussions about the challenges of the digital age, the need for positive content in digital media, and the importance of filling the void in children’s lives with creativity, arts, and sports.

I emphasized that resisting new technology is futile; we must harness it to instil positive values and guide the future.

Our responsibility lies in creating a generation that is not a replica of us or our ancestors but one that surpasses us.

This requires policies that empower children and actively involve them in shaping the future. We must believe in their capabilities and stop wasting their potential with outdated traditions.

I wish to see these aspirations turned into actionable policies, fostering a collaborative effort to shape the future without monopolizing the truth. Let us engage our children — they are more capable than we imagine.

We do not want our children to be like us or our forebears; we want them to be better than us.

Short link: