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The Ditchley Summer Project workshops designed to encourage members of the Ditchley community to 'think community to Ditchley ofthe members encourage to workshops designed The Ditchley Summer Project was three weeks of diverse discussions,talks and ofdiverse weeks wasthree Summer Project Ditchley The need to remake, and connected hundreds of outstanding individualswhohave ofoutstanding hundreds andconnected remake, to need new things and make new connections' in order to have impact onaworld we have impact in order to connections' things andmakenew new participated in Ditchley events over the last two decades. last over the events inDitchley participated 4 –23July2020 THE DITCHLEY SUMMER PROJECT DITCH LEY Here is what I heard: or building knowledge through education. Where there has been sustained investment A continued crisis of self confidence in the and seriousness of purpose over time, then West. The US was seen as repeatedly asking systems and people have stood up to the itself ‘who are we’ and acting like ‘a defensive strain – an example was the resilience of the fortress,’ worried about what others might Internet and Cloud services which have coped do to it with cyberattacks; fretting about the well. Where that investment was lacking Chinese authoritarian model, its efficiency and benign conditions have been taken as and its ability to ‘deliver’; beset by a retreat permanent, there has been no resilience and into identity politics, twisted around a series responses have stuttered. Another essential of internal crises. When the US, still the trait of competence is that it marries long necessary power for the World, steps away term ambition with short term incremental from international leadership, then there is progress. There was close to consensus that no one to take its place and that sets the tone we need large scale transformation, especially for the rest of us. This is despite the objective in education and adult education, but this will strength and the continuing global appeal be achieved through an aggregation of ‘small and economic success of the democratic actions undertaken consistently over time’. world as a collective. There was agreement Perceived competence – a value judgement that regaining confidence is crucial to the on performance – is also impossible without Introduction renewal of democratic health, vitality and frankness and honesty over the scale of effectiveness but also that the reverse holds challenges. Leaders need to be straight about true – confidence flows from effectiveness. what they know and what they don’t; what they At a time of transition from lockdown in the many distinguished and thoughtful people can do and what they can’t; what has been UK, the Ditchley Summer Project aimed to from eighteen to eighty and up. They shared The importance of a sense of mission and achieved and what hasn’t. help members of the influential Ditchley their thoughts freely and frankly: please purpose for institutions. Institutions with community review what they had learned so continue to respect their confidences in the clarity of social purpose are doing well in More realism but less cynicism from all of far during the pandemic and prepare for action spirit of Ditchley. the crisis. Those whose purpose is muddled us as the public. We appear to be in a cycle in the struggle to renew and rebuild that surely or minimal are struggling to find their way. of perpetual disappointment with our leaders, lies ahead. Over seven hundred people joined What struck me most is that this crisis is This applies across government, politics, amounting to a deep cynicism that effective the Project spanning different generations, a complex challenge to our belief in the the private sector and civil society. A clear leadership is even possible. This feeds a geographies and fields of expertise. Over the fundamental value of personal freedom. sense of purpose will sustain institutions as ‘a deep suspicion that everyone in public life is three weeks we held over thirty events and This came out most explicitly in Nick Burns’ guiding light’ through the difficult times ahead corrupt. Journalists have been shocked to discussions with an extraordinary range of conversation with Secretary Condoleezza and over the long term. Brad Smith described discover that the public views them as part panellists and speakers. Rice but was implicit in many of the other Microsoft as a company where technology and of the ‘elite performance’, the flip side of the discussions. We will have to find our way business must ultimately be subservient to coin to the politician on the make. In the UK, This introduction lays out, from my personal through this pragmatically, balancing freedom democracy. NHS and London police leaders’ the appointment to the role of prime minister perspective only, some of the major themes with the need of the moment for order and discussions also stressed how clarity of has become the almost inevitable prelude to that emerged. Key points and participants for compliance. But we need to be clear at all mission was helping them work through the a long-lasting loss of personal reputation. But each session are in the following section, with times that a resumption of the human journey grey and ambiguous dilemmas of this crisis. we haven’t yet identified where and how we will each bullet summary linked to a fuller account. towards individual empowerment and freedom discover the more perfect leadership we crave, In addition, almost all the sessions remain remains our overriding aim. We should try The necessity of competence for today’s world and we haven’t yet quite admitted to ourselves available to view on demand on the Ditchley to use our recovery from the crisis as an not yesterday’s. Mission and purpose are that our leaders generally reflect what we have Summer Project digital platform. Whenever opportunity to take a big new step forward going to ring hollow without a basic ability to become. We have a right to insist on standards, you have a spare half hour I recommend toward that often interrupted but never deliver. The root of incompetence in crisis is but we have got to get away from the position revisiting, as it amounts to a tremendous abandoned dream. a failure to have prepared in normal times, that everyone who disagrees with us is either resource of wisdom and commentary from whether this means stockpiling equipment stupid or evil, all the time. As Madison wrote 2 3 in the Federalist papers, ‘If men were angels, virus like COVID-19. We should work on our Well founded confidence is both the best using Twitter, at least other than as a sign post no government would be necessary. If angels vulnerabilities, for example trying to develop defence and the best ambassador. We need to to serious work. Slogans and soundbites have were to govern men, neither external nor cyber deterrence and more resilient supply be both clear eyed about the nature of China their place but it’s noticeable that we wisely internal controls on government would be chains, but we can only go so far before we today and frankly critical on actions that we don’t apply them to things we really care necessary.’ But we’re not devils either. We, the kill the free exchange that defines us and is see as incompatible with our conception of about, such as our personal relationships. Why public, have to take responsibility and realise the source of our success. We can’t separate universal human rights, or that threaten our do we apply them so freely to our democratic our agency alongside leaders. success at home from success abroad. core interests. There were unpleasant aspects relationships? Most of all, let’s stop lying, to of the West’s mercantile embrace of China’s ourselves and to others. There’s a global More value to quiet and local, rather than noisy We have to put our trust in the power of economic possibilities that we should reject as pandemic. Superpower competition could and national, virtue. Taking responsibility freedom. Secretary Condoleezza Rice made incompatible with who we are. We shouldn’t let have unintended consequences. It’s time to means doing things in real life, not just emoting an extraordinarily personal and articulate China use Russia as some sort of well armed get serious. It’s time to find some common on social media. The crisis has shown the plea for belief in the power of free men and but crazy younger brother that only the sober purpose. immense capacity of the public for kindness, women to prevail. This strange crisis poses and greater power of China can contain. But our neighbourliness and resourcefulness, difficult questions for freedom in its blurring main approach has to be positive, not negative. As the second wave of the pandemic builds alongside its less attractive revelation of personal and collective risk and intrusion The democratic world remains profoundly in intensity in Europe and beyond, then it is of inequality and hate. There is a hunger into personal life. We will have to find our competitive and we should stop talking below clear we face a tough winter. With this in mind, for responsibility and the right to allocate way through this pragmatically, balancing our weight. We need to make investments in Ditchley’s October conference, in hybrid face resources at the level that most people can freedom and order, but we need to be clear the future: more vision, more competence, to face and virtual form, explores the difficult comprehend, which means locally. People at all times that a resumption of the human more innovation and more education. Together question of what we should do if hopes for say they want ‘levelling up’ to be something journey towards individual empowerment and these investments should build confidence in vaccines and effective treatments prove they are helped to achieve, not something that freedom is our aim.
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