THE SLOGAN OF the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation: "All Lives Have Equal Value" . . . In their latest act of global grace, the Gates said today at the World Economic Forum in Davos that they would donate $10 billion over 10 years to research and deliver vaccines to ailing children in poor countries . . . Nearly 9 million kids won't die of diarrhea, pneumonia, tuberculosis, and malaria if they get vaccinated this decade . . . “Vaccines are a miracle," Melinda Gates said. "With just a few doses, they can prevent deadly diseases for a lifetime." . . . Generous U.S corporations gave $300 billion-plus in 2008 to worthy causes, says the Giving USA Foundation and Indiana University's Center on Philanthropy("U.S. charitable giving estimated to be $307.65 billion in 2008"), and the Gates keep raising the bar for the United States and the world . . . In Act Two of his life, Bill Gates has evolved from a filthy rich brainiac and conquerer of the tech world to a righteous global role model, and it has been truly extraordinary to see . . . Can this man and his spouse be cloned? . . . Their crusade is worth emulating.
FOR BUDDHA'S SAKE, enough of the iPad, no matter how cute or cool it may be . . . Unless CEO Steve Jobs and Apple donate 10% of all units to those in need (emerging countries, poor entrepreneurs, struggling non-profits, low-income neighborhoods and schools), why should we care about the latest tech toy? . . . Will Apple's iProducts -- and other pricy consumer gadgets -- really change the world? . . . Or is it sugar water for the middle-class masses and Third World elites? . . . The brilliant Jobs should follow the soulful examples set by Warren Buffett, Bill and Melinda Gates,George Soros,John Bogle,Sir John Templeton,Charles and Helen Schwab, and other altruists who define grace through their contributions.
HOW MANY MEDIA stories, how much tech and business talent, have been devoted to yet another consumer gizmo, when more urgent matters loom large? . . . Imagine all that world-class brainpower devoted to the greater good, not the next fiscal quarter or stock-option grant . . . Among other pressing socioeconomic issues, there's a global gender gap, which the World Economic Forum and a cadre of multinationals and NGOs are working on . . . The magical, transformative revolution will take place there . . . Save the sea bass and argula salad for later, and read all about it:
WomenENews, "Gender Issues Must Move to the Heart of Davos Agenda" by Roxanne Maxin Cason.
FOR THOSE RAISED in poverty or other humble origins, there was someone -- a parent or relative, a mentor or teacher, a colleague or boss -- who guided us right, giving us hope and opportunities. We might not have noticed, but they were there. So thank them, and keep on striving. We've come too far to stop.
HIGH PRAISE TO Google for taking a strong stand on human rights and freedom of expression in China. (San Jose Mercury News,"Citing cyber attacks, Google threatens to pull out of China.") China, a good bet to become the world's No. 1 economic superpower by mid-century, is a mighty nation with a proud people and a revered cultural history. It's also the hottest story in the business realm. But the country, of course, has a long history of censorship, and Chinese citizens who disagree loudly and publicly with its policies tend to disappear. This human-rights flashpoint likely will worsen over the years, as the West and East jockey for business and political power.
HOPEFULLY, GOOGLE -- a tech and stock-market powerhouse long criticized for kow-towing to China on the freedom-of-Internet browsing issue -- can forge a pragmatic compromise with Chinese leaders. A generation ago, Western universities, large investors, the U.S. government and companies such as General Motors persuaded South Africa to abandon apartheid. The battle cry then was divestment, the threat to pull assets and investments out of South Africa under a code of corporate conduct called the Sullivan Principles,by the late Rev. Leon Sullivan. Unlike much smaller South Africa, though, superpower China won't heed Western threats of divestment. But perhaps the most influential Western companies can find a middle ground with the Middle Kingdom, allowing more free expression in China in precisely-defined arenas. China legal officials and experts say privately that there are reform-minded jurists on China's high courts who want to gradually liberalize China's legal regime. Let's hope so.
LET'S ALSO HOPE that more Western corporations follow Google's lead and go public with the human-rights issue. Corporations dodge the explosive topic, claiming they're business creatures, not forces for ethical good. That's weak -- as weak as free-market advocates on Wall Street and in Detroit taking government handouts. Several admirable business groups such as BSR (Business for Social Responsibility) have worked for years on CSR-related issues, making human rights a key part of their platforms, and more companies should aggressively do the same. Michael Posner, former executive director of the non-profit Human Rights First, has called CSR "the new rules of the road for the global economy." I call it a corporate morality play for the new century. Economic growth is grand, but not at the cost of our souls. It's time for more companies and executives to make like Google and BSR, and do the right thing. Stand up, Corporate America.
While the big dogs of the G-20 roll into Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to woof and sniff each other, the grunts and gearheads in the trenches are doing the hard work of creating technology and products for the masses. Political and biz leaders get the glory and talk-show guest shots. But let's not forget the visionaries in think tanks, research labs and NGOs (non-governmental organizations) who sweat in anonymity, and who bear the true risk of the growth economy. They build the world, so our leaders can trot in later to commoditize their ideas and claim credit. All hail the innovators, the unsung heroes of the global economy.
To wit, check out an ongoing forum on tech, global markets and culture by Canada's International Development Research Centre and Harvard's Berkman Center for Internet and Society.Here's a post on the conferenceby Ethan Zuckerman (below left),co-founder of the Global Voices international blogging site and a Harvard research fellow at the Berkman Center. He and writer/photographer Jennifer Brea are live-blogging the event and highlighting overseas trends. This one addresses the digital divide and the democratization of the Net: the 90,000 "LAN houses," or cybercafes, that are revolutionizing social and political debate and education in Brazil. In a paper on LAN houses (below), Ronaldo Lemos, director of the Center for Technology and Societyat the Fundação Getúlio Vargas (FGV) School of Law in Rio de Janeiro, and Paula Martini write that there's a huge demand for the cybercafes, especially in poor areas. One large favela, or slum, in Brazil has 130 LAN houses filled with people using the Web and play online games for 40 cents to $1.50 an hour. Readings below, including the White House's recent report on innovation, which echos several recent reports from the private sector and academia:
