Ethical by Design Evaluating Outcomes: Principles for Data and Development
The Cloven Giant: Reclaiming Intrinsic Dignity
An examination of the profound loss of trust in liberal democratic institutions and the rise of populism.
Until quite recently, the liberal democracies of the West seemed to have it all. Led by the United States, they had defeated the Soviet Union to win the Cold War.
They had created an unprecedented level of prosperity. They had projected their culture – with its underlying values and principles – into every corner of the world.
Yet, in almost no time at all, the threads have been unravelling. Major institutions have lost the trust of the people. Ideological divisions have deepened and potentially destructive forms of populism have been unleashed.
Today, the global, rules-based order is looking shaky and we seem doomed to return to a world where nations act alone and ‘might is right’. How did this happen? What went wrong?
This essay traces how Enlightenment ideals shaped the hopes and expectations of citizens – only to be betrayed by leaders who forgot the defining purposes of the institutions they lead.
"A political system based on the intrinsic dignity of citizens has been replaced with one defined by a series of transactions, in which the government has become a 'providore' hawking its goods to customers whose currency is a vote."
WHAT'S INSIDE?
History of the enlightenment
Current and future states
Recovering intrinsic dignity
