In preparation of the G20 you might find inspiring the exceptional performance of Bette Davis and Joan Crawford in the 1962 cult movie What ever Happened to Baby Jane?
I was looking for a metaphor for this entry and it occured to me as the choice we face today: do we still want to be the high-minded and hearted Blanche stuck in a wheel-chair at the mercy of others or embrace the madness of society dancing together with Baby Jane to forget that something might have changed for ever?
It seems that we are not able to find an alternative between impotence and conformism: we bury our heads into manifestos to make another universal declaration or obediently we perform the assigned role of going to the streets and protesting?!?
Last week I was at the European Business Forum. 2500 delegates took part including business leaders of multinational corporations, 10 European commissioners and heads of states. For two days they forgot competition to look at the challenges they share and how to influence politicians. The main message was clear: “This is not just a crisis, this is the crisis of the system and will last for years. Be ready but hold on to the free market and don’t resume protectionism”. Simple, clear, effective.
I was with Benny and few others from the sector. The level of general consensus was impressive. European policy-makers were there to give support and receive the desiderata of business.
On the other hand, civil society hasn’t been able to find a common ground to make its arguments heard in this general crisis. Nobody has taken the leadership to gather the European third sector leaders and define a common agenda. Only Concord organised a meeting for International NGOs at the last minute.
On the contrary, we are experience a mushrooming of civil society manifestos for the European election. The European platform of national association – a quite mysterious new kid on the block – launched one in London and ECF will launch another one in two weeks. How could you miss the others: JEF, CONCORD and CEDAG. Even the grandpas of Europe have mobilized to draw another manifesto!
Perhaps we will find a common ground when things go worse or if we wait for the next crisis. Europe came out when we were on the verge of self-annihilation!
When I was in Brussels I met the head of the unit on social enterprise at the European Commission. She simply cast the problem: “How can I draft a European policy on social enterprise if the representatives of social enterprise don’t agree on what they want to achieve?”
I guess we can’t behead all the third sector of Europe and start from scratch so we need to do our best with the means at our disposal. I’m trying my best. Together with Benny and the other kids we are working on re-bridging Europe and US through partnerships with American big fish as NDI and HarvardUniversity. My Secretary General Sir Bubble will be at the White House to explore further collaborations. In the mean time our President Thierry will be at the G20 to promote the reform of European funding and our project on a European Bank for Social Investments.
If this doesn’t make you feel better watch this video and… stand by me. I won’t spend my week sitting on a chair. I will dance but not with Baby Jane!
