Mohamed Sahnoun, President of Initiatives of Change-International, in his closing speech at the conference 'Trust and Integrity in the Global economy', in Caux Switzerland, today called for efforts to tackle the root causes of conflict.

‘So many conflicts in the world – the conflicts that we talk about here in Caux – have their roots in the lack of human security,’ Sahnoun said. He went on, ‘That is why this conference is so important: we are discussing here the root causes, and seeking solutions,’ that will include into the global economy those parts of the world which are currently isolated and deprived.

Genevieve LeBaron from the York University in Toronto, in her opening address to the conference, said that she had wondered since childhood ‘why and how most people where I live have so much more, materially, than they need to survive while others die from starvation, from overwork and from war’. ‘I really love the theme of this conference,’ she went on, ‘because it seems to imply that the global economy and global political systems are interrelated. Building a global economy which has integrity and in which we can trust ‘is an absolutely crucial and fundamental part of promoting sustainable security around the world’.

Genevieve LeBaron giving the keynote address at opening of the conference

She quoted the words of founder Frank Buchman: ‘Never forget: You can plan a new world on paper but you have got to build it out of people.’ ‘Here in this conference,’ LeBaron concluded, ‘we have a unique opportunity to build a more trustworthy economy out of people, and to strengthen pathways for a secure world. Changing ourselves is changing the system, the system is changed when we change ourselves.’

LeBaron was speaking to the 'Trust and Integrity in the Global Economy', attended by 241 participants from 52 countries, which focuses on the challenges of an increasingly globalized economy – and the needs of humanity. The themes ranged from 'The workplace of the 21st century', to 'Beyond the bottom line' and 'Environmental initiatives of change'.

Speaking earlier in the week, William Morris the Secretary General of the 'Next Century Foundation', which is active in conflict resolution and reconciliation in the Middle East spoke in a seminar on 'Pathways to a secure world'. 'We must talk and we must listen', Morris said, referring to the prospects of resolving the conflict in the Middle East. ‘The world of Islam has become the enemy of the hegemonic West; we and our children have grown to relish our new enemy,’ Morris stressed. He suggested, based of his many and recent visits in the area, that ‘for the first time in history, the entire Arab world is truly holding out the hand of friendship to the Children of Israel’. The so-called Arab Plan was being given new life, and ‘they really do mean it’.

‘We should continue to work doggedly towards peace ten years down the line in 2018. But if there’s a chance of peace in 2008 – and there is – let’s go for it,’ Morris appealed. ‘Justice’ might not be possible, he concluded, ‘there are just too many wounds, too many wrongs’. But fair play was a possibility. But peace demanded talking and listening to all. ‘Hope is the greatest weapon in the armoury of the peace-maker,’ Morris concluded. That summed up the Next Century Foundation’s vision (www.ncfpeace.org).

The theme of 'Trust and Integrity in the Global Economy' will live through the coming year. According to the members of the planning team, a conference with the same title will be organized in the summer 2008 in Caux. It is planned to draw 100 professionals in the 25-40 age-bracket. Prior to that, there will be a series of public lectures and events, in the UK, France, Singapore, Malaysia and Australia, and perhaps elsewhere, to raise awareness on this theme.

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