I believe I belong to a generation that has to step forward and lead the change of approach to politics, corporate strategy and finance. It is a new approach that has to come from the very roots of the society, from the very own constituents of the society, from society’s very own citizens, that must stand up and turn sustainable, that must stand up and denounce unethical behavior among politicians, among corporate leaders, among financiers and money managers. The pressure of those who vote, the pressure of those who buy and invest is a Trojan horse with the potential of boosting and accelerating a trend some have timidly started to adopt. I become multidisciplinary to better understand a complex world in which solutions to problems are no longer easy. I become multidisciplinary to consensuate approaches to the crisis we face, to hear experts from different disciplines and reach agreement with the leaders of society. I become multidisciplinary to convince and persuade, to propose and suggest, to communicate and expose the problems, our problems, to engineer solutions to social problems, to make of this world a place where our children and grandchildren will enjoy wherever they live or are born.
I am a hunter of impossible dreams, an explorer of the twenty-first century, a consultant of the twenty-second century, a representative of a forward-looking mentality that is not anchored in the ideas of the past, that says why not in lieu of why, that prefers alternative to continuous, that prefers to start from scratch instead of insisting in pursuing the wrong path one more time.
The academic and professional trajectory I have decided to pursue is as unusual as my ideas, but not for that reason less appropriate. The unusual and non-standard has the ability to innovate and make a difference. Innovation sets the new forward-looking trend to be followed by the standard approach, by those who argue the default logic should be and become an input assumption to understand the rationale that explains why we move in a certain direction. I look around and realize I have the obligation of becoming a social entrepreneur because those around me lack the ability or the energy to react. I have the obligation to continue deepening my knowledge, because my energy and enthusiasm are a gift that I have been awarded to awake in others the necessity of leaving the de-facto thinking process, to turn our focus to more important issues, to another dimension concentrating on the welfare of all and not only of a fraction. My desire to change is a reflection of all of us, many of whom do not dare to move because of fear. I am not afraid to lead. I am not afraid to suggest change. I dare therefore I am.
Changing today’s reality of finance for development requires creativity, the ability to propose unheard of mechanisms within the developed world and to implement them via public-policy. The public administrations of the developed economies have been so far incapable of taking the current level of development aid to the next level. It is no longer a matter of devoting the 0.7 percent of a country’s gross domestic product (GDP) to development aid, which most developed economies do not even fulfill to-date. It is however about setting mechanisms in place able to considerably raise the amount of funds available for development, and do it in a consistent and sustainable way, so as to make a significant impact in our ability to radically change the basic infrastructure in poor countries.
In this context, my aim is to offer an alternative to today’s economic architecture: an alternative with a different color and flavour, an alternative able to suggest, from a profound understanding of today’s complex economic and financial reality, public policies exclusively centered in coping with the increasing gap in income and inequality between rich and poor nations, a niche player in the fields of economic development and finance for development.
The political class in Europe is static and anchored in past issues that, although once important in essence and nature, will not take Europe a step further and make it the leading power of the first half of the twenty-first century. Europe needs a new generation of public administrators, truly European, understanding of Europe’s multi-cultural reality, but also of Europe’s set of values, rooted in the conception of universal rights of Healthcare and Education, a society centered around the idea of a welfare nation-state.
I belong to a generation that has not undergone war. I belong to a generation that has seen Europe grow larger, more stable, expand and integrate. I belong to a generation that has for the first time lived around Europe, made international friendships and learned not only the language, but also the culture. I am first of all European.
I believe a new set of revolutionary ideas will depart from young, enthusiastic individuals from my generation. I am ready to step forward and become part of that generation of leading contributors to a changing world, and I have a plan for change.
Jaime Pozuelo-Monfort, Aspiring Candidate to Chief Dreamer
