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A journalist and author focused on transforming the world’s view of time says hope and meaning can be found in adopting the long view when making decisions, be they personal, political, or commercial.
Richard Fisher, a science and technology writer for the BBC, penned his book ‘The Long View’ because of his lifelong interest in the “deep past” of geology and the realisation shortly after his daughter was born that she would comfortably live to see the year 2100.
In his profession that year is “rarely rosy” in the media given the catastrophic predications of climate change and other major global issues which demand a long-term view when making decisions, he told a Guernsey Literary Festival audience.
He called on everyone from businesses and governments to shrug short termism in favour of “cathedral thinking” and “seven generation decisions”, while accepting that psychological biases and habits we have evolved over millions of years do encourage us to focus on immediate pursuits.
If humanity survives another million years then trillions of people will be alive, far more than have ever existed before collectively, which emphasises the responsibility of present generations to prepare appropriate, Mr Fisher said.
Lower value is placed on long term decisions if they cause harm to those living now, but he said cultural norms can be reshaped to redesign society over the long term.
Quarterly company reporting and politicians vying for the next election are obvious obstacles, but Mr Fisher noted rare examples of companies offering 300-year visions to attract long term investors, ditching updates every three years.
Research also shows that the longer a company has existed, the more likely it is to last for a long time which is disproportionately seen in Japan.
The news media can also be a blocker to thinking long term, he added, saying many stories on the BBC’s front page in 2014 “had no consequence in the long term” with other key moments from the period missed in the moment.
“Supplementing with long term sources is key,” Mr Fisher argued, calling on people to augment their daily media and social media diet with data and trends and appreciate societal improvements, as well as having an awareness on whether information presents the short, medium or long term.
Pictured: Richard Fisher at Les Cotils.
Mr Fisher did highlight that moves have been made to integrate long-term thinking into the present, with Wales’ government appointing a commissioner to hold politicians to account over their decisions’ effects on future, unborn, residents.
He also said faith, ritual, and tradition helps to form bonds between generations – with the concrete block pyramid in Germany, slowly built up one decade at a time, is a good example of cathedral thinking.
Scientific discoveries, particularly in physics, also helps to extend our world view of the “long arc of time” which is more digestible than visions of futuristic technology.
Politics would also benefit from politicians who have a mindset of “more geology, less authoritarianism”, Mr Fisher added.
Mr Fisher said such a view “can be restorative” and offer “some solace and hope” from the perspective that things can improve.
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