Global Solidarity Report 2023

“The only solution to these unprecedented challenges is an unprecedented increase in global solidarity. The good news is that people everywhere have more solidarity with each other than governments have so far mustered. We need to channel that good will into real action.”

“By focusing our attention on the collective impacts we face, the institutions we need to respond effectively, and the identities that, in the end, are the basis on which sustainable progress will be founded, this report reminds us of the necessity to “reignite global solidarity,” the theme of this year’s UN General Assembly.”

“We must bring individuals back to the forefront of multilateralism. A lot of people feel that the realm of international affairs is too distant and abstract for them to meaningfully impact it. But it doesn’t have to be that way.”

“When we talk about 1.5ºC, it’s not a political statement – this is what science demands of us as a minimum. Who will join us in acting on the basis of science?”

“If a new disease were to emerge from Nigeria, the whole world would be at risk. That is why international cooperation is so important – not just for Nigeria, but to enable every country to set the systems in place to protect its own people, and the rest of the world, from diseases that do not respect borders.”

“Current levels of solidarity cannot adequately address the climate loss and damage that vulnerable countries face from the amount of climate change already baked in. But this report shows that we must not give up hope. The ingredients of a solution exist in public perceptions, hopes and anxieties.”

“The prevailing structure for financing global challenges is that of “foreign aid.” In this paradigm, a few rich countries are expected to foot the bill. A number of very poor countries are expected to benefit. Meanwhile, the vast majority of the world’s population live in countries that are hardly expected to contribute, or benefit, or decide on much at all. This is the logic of charity, not solidarity.”

“If we can forge a greater sense of global solidarity through shared identity – imagining others around the globe as an extended community about whom we care deeply – this may compel climate-related sacrifice in the manner a soldier goes to war for the nation.”

“The pandemic we face today is a pandemic of poor and expedient choices by world leaders, many in the private sector and a powerful few who drive the decisions that continue to harm our planet and its population. We must pivot to a new ambitious path – one with solidarity and partnership at its core – otherwise our health and survival are in peril.”

“Only by fostering the solidarity we need at all levels – from local to national to regional – are we likely to see governments whose short-term values and interests coincide with the longer-term action we need to preserve peace and a livable planet for our kids.”

“The Global Solidarity Report 2023 has for the first time measured the state of our international community. Our great Swedish professor Hans Rosling used to say: “The first thing to think about the future is to know about the present.” This report helps us do that.”