Talk by Futurist

I listened to a talk by a futurist yesterday.

One of the key takeaways was that recent man-made disasters have all being somewhat predicted/ envisaged. For example, the 9-11 method of ramming a commercial air-plane has been featured in a Tom Clancy novel, Maddof’s Ponzi scheme was whistle-blowed but ignored and of course the ongoing financial crisis where so many hands were involved that it is inconceivable that no one could foresee what was the ultimate consequence.

The trouble however is having a framework/ system to identify such potential occurrences and getting the right people to acknowledge the probable-ness and impact of their happening. Case in point: former FED chief Alan Greenspan dismissing, years ago, the likelihood of another economic crisis because we know the financial system too well for it to fail.

But fail us he and it did.

During the Q&A session, responding to a question on how organizations and specifically top leaders could influence the culture of their organizations to allow for open communication, the futurist said that what was more important was for as many officers as possible to learn new and relevant tools and skills, so they can identify and contribute to minimizing disasters. I agree with another participant with the same question that the answer was not satisfying when the speaker himself acknowledged in the Asian context the culture of deferring to higher authority and not speaking up.

Forget Bottled Water, says Professor Tommy Koh

Prof Tommy gives four reasons why we should not drink bottled water. Read his full article here.

First, you are wasting your money.

Second, tap water in Singapore is safe to drink.

Third, energy is used unnecessarily to produce bottled water.

Fourth, bottled water is bad for the environment.

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Prof Tommy has provided simple to understand but compelling reasons. But the truth of the matter is Singapore is very far from attaining this preferred state of affairs. Bottled water is still affordable to the masses despite it being many fold more expensive than the humble but equally good tap water. The convenience a bottle of water provides often outweighs other considerations. As for caring for mother earth, while it is a sad and true that most bottles are incinerated and not recycled, environmental sustainability is a thought that most bottled water fans will hardly entertain.

Tommy Koh's 10 rules

This was a speech Prof Tommy gave to a Freshman Inauguration Ceremony at NUS Law School in Aug 2008. The full text of the speech, which I encourage you to read, can be found here.

His 10 rules are:

1. Learn to work smart
2. Cultivate your thinking skills
3. Learn to write well
4. Learn the skills of presentation, negotiation and advocacy.
5. Develop your emotional intelligence.
6. Develop your cultural intelligence.
7. Develop good values.
8. Form enduring friendships.
9. Be passionate about justice.
10. Have a great time.

I can only lament that no one gave such words of wisdom in my freshman year. We didn't even have an inauguration ceremony!