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CHOGM 2024: Ask “What Makes You Optimistic?”
By Victor Perton
"Heads reaffirmed their commitment to include, respect, understand, support, and strengthen the voice and agency of the youth—an integral part of the Commonwealth—and to restore hope and optimism in our common future."
That's Paragraph 5 in the Leaders' Statement at the 2024 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Apia, Samoa.
This "commitment" to nurturing optimism in the young reflects the insights of people and organisations as diverse as the OECD and the Dalai Lama. However, it's not only the young who must have their optimism stirred to the top in the face of doomerism and dystopia.
I travelled to Samoa to provoke optimism in a world caught up in a fog of pessimism and long-term opportunities misdescribed as crises.
I was invited to the "People's Forum" and the "Business Forum".
Why was I invited? I surmise it had something to do with my writing to the Commonwealth Secretary-General and King Charles III as Head of the Commonwealth, urging them to promote optimism, as that is a trait in reduced supply in much of the world, especially in the developed portion of the English-speaking world.
When the theme was established as "One Resilient Common Future: Transforming our Common Wealth," I wrote to argue that resilience is not just about overcoming challenges, but it also relies on the power of optimism.
What made them Optimistic? at "The People's Forum"
At the People's Forum, at the end of a bleak panel, I asked, "What makes you Optimistic?"
The question and the answers lifted the tone for the day, and I was thrilled when the moderator, Dr. Terri Karelle Reid, ended the day with "My takeaways? That yes, our frustrations and our challenges are many, but there is a place for optimism. That optimism drives a lot of the work that we continue to do in our entities, in our departments, in our NGOs, and our CSOs. And we must not lose sight of how important it is to remain optimistic.
Optimism at the Business Forum
My friend Andrew McKeller, head of the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, took up the optimism baton: "The approach we adopt should fundamentally be one of optimism" in reply to the President of Ghana in the session "Reducing Barriers to Trade" at the CHOGM Commonwealth Business Forum 2024.
So, too, the Premier of the Cayman Islands, Juliana Yvonne O'Connor-Connolly, who followed Andrew, spoke of "The Audacity of Optimism."
An Audacity of Optimism: Juliana O'Connor-Connolly, the Premier of the Cayman Islands
That Optimism Man Victor Perton
Play
I was particularly pleased to have people take up the conversation on optimism at the round tables at the Business Forum. It was good to get feedback from people during the conference and in the evenings who approached me and messaged me with support for the optimism case.
Approaching the last days, I said, "Optimism is the "secret sauce" needed for the Commonwealth's dream of a resilient common wealth. Will someone bring the optimism bottle to the Leaders' Meeting? Optimism doesn't just happen, you need to foster it and support infectiously optimistic leadership."
I was joyful to hear Secretary-General Patricia Scotland open the leader's meeting by thanking the King for "The Wisdom and Optimism of your Advice."
And then to read the declaration's explicit call for the restoration of hope and optimism in our common future.
Ask: What makes you Optimistic?
The week in Samoa reinforced my faith in asking, "What makes you Optimistic?"
Encourage people to reflect on their optimism by asking them questions rather than lecturing them about its importance. Optimism has undeniable benefits for health, promoting healthy longevity to leadership, strategy, innovation, and resilience. The goal is to inspire others to think optimistically, and asking thoughtful questions is one of the most effective ways to achieve this. Get people to reflect on their optimism—is it based on faith, mindset, or life experience?
Will you ask someone what makes you Optimistic?
Will you make optimism the theme of your next conference?
Did I succeed in my objective to provoke optimism?
The 2011, 2013, 2015, 2018 and 2022 Declarations did not mention optimism; the 2024 Declaration did so.
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