There are around seven billion people on this planet. Seven billion people, like you and me, who share a common humanity. Each one of us has a different perspective on the world, a different story to tell and a different experience of what it means to be human. The way that I see the world is different to a housewife from New Jersey, different to a Nomad living in a tent in the Sahara Desert, and different still to a seven-year-old girl living in a brothel in Thailand. And yet we are all connected, we all breathe the same oxygen and live on the same planet. As Satish Kumar says, “before we are Americans or Russians, Israelis or Palestinians, Hindus or Muslims, Shias or Sunnis, Catholics or Protestants, black-skinned or white, we are members of one human family. Whatever our nationality or religion. Under our skin we all have the same red blood. At quantum level we are all protons and photons. At spiritual level we are all pure consciousness.” We are seven billion stories, looking at the world through fourteen billion eyes and yet we are one human family.
However, not everyone can live a comfortable life. I live in the UK and there are a lot of things I take for granted such as access to clean water, food and adequate sanitation. I was able to get an education, I can go to the doctors if I’m ill, and I live in a democracy where I’m able to vote for who I want to lead my country. The sad reality is that for a significant proportion of the world’s population, this is not possible. A staggering seven hundred million people in the world do not have access to clean drinking water, around eight hundred million do not have access to enough food, and two billion don’t have access to adequate sanitation. That is not OK.
It is not OK that in a world with iPhones, virtual reality and self-driving cars, 10% of the population do not have access to something as basic as food and water. The more I think about this, the more convicted I am to try to do something about the inequality in the world; to seek to make a difference to the lives of the people with whom I share 99.9% of my DNA.
But what can I do?
I mean, it’s hard to know where to start. The vast majority of these people live thousands of miles away from me, and right now I’m not in a position to jump on a plane and go and help. I can’t ignore the problem, pretend it’s not happening and that it’ll all be OK eventually. I can’t be passive about this because it could just as easily be me in their shoes.
In reality, the best way that I can help is with my words and my wallet. Using my voice to inform the people around me about the injustices of the world, join campaigns and sign petitions to get governments to change laws to make the world a fairer place for everyone. Studies show that corporate tax avoidance costs developing countries more than £100 billion per year. If I can join my voice with others fighting to crack down on multinational corporations avoiding paying taxes, the difference could be amazing. As well as using my voice and campaigning for change, I can donate money to charities who are working on the front line providing aid and development to the people who need it the most. Whether that is giving monthly donations, one-off gifts or buying from charity shops, to use Tesco’s slogan – “Every little helps”.
Unfortunately, the world is not a fair place – greed, misplaced power and war have robbed so many of the opportunity for a chance in life. But I believe that we can reverse this, I believe that it is possible to end extreme poverty and give everybody a fair chance at life, whatever their background. I can’t do it on my own. But I can play my part, and so can you.
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