Find this upbeated article in USA Today. And like to keep it here for Shirley & Brian’s tomorrow mind.
Where are today’s Leonardos?
During the Renaissance, students of creative thought — like da Vinci — forever changed the world with foresight and intellect. Today, with a full plate of daunting challenges, here comes the Class of 2009.
By Howard A. Zucker
In the coming weeks, close to 3 million students from across the nation will don caps and gowns, receive diplomas and walk off into an uncertain future. Though economic times might temper the twinkle in their eyes, there is reason to be confident that amid the crowd of graduates are modern-day Leonardo da Vincis whose intellect will solve our global dilemmas.
(Da Vinci: Born in Italy in 1452 and died in 1519./ AP)
Just as 15th century Florence, Italy, brought us the Renaissance and all the miraculous art and architecture, so too can this moment become a turning point for society. Perhaps it is time for a rebirth, a time to create a better world through the energies of the Class of 2009.
This past semester, as a fellow at the Institute of Politics at Harvard University , I witnessed realistic global development projects spun out of the imaginations of Harvard and MIT students. A dialogue with optimistic minds provided for a conversation with tomorrow and a glimpse into the unimaginable.
The Renaissance was a period when our search to perfect one’s worldly knowledge transcended obstacles and bridged intellectual divides. Students of creative thought — including da Vinci, Michelangelo, Copernicus and Galileo— questioned conventional wisdom. And at that precise moment in history, the Earth was finally accepted as round and the concept of human genius was defined.
Theories abound as to what caused the Renaissance. Some claim that the bubonic plague of the mid-14th century brought thinkers to focus upon the human condition.
Maybe our global economic meltdown is today’s plague, or perhaps our expanding carbon footprint, or a looming pandemic of our own. Whatever wrinkle in time that one attributes our state of affairs to, let’s capture the chance and find opportunities to shape a better future. Just as Leonardo, the quintessential persona of the Florentine Renaissance, invented intricate pieces of engineering and explored the mysteries of human anatomy, so too walk — with crisp diploma in hand — visionaries who will shape our tomorrows in ways we only can dream.
Rejuvenation epoch
Could the modern era made up of greed, famine, disease and war be coming to a close? Are the bright eyes of our youthful graduates taking us toward the beginning of a new Renaissance, an era that I choose to call the rejuvenation epoch — a time when we join hands for a better cause?
The chance for greatness exists. It might be in Seattle or Beijing, Dubai or New Delhi, but it breathes the air of enthusiasm. And whoever it might be, he or she will build a new vehicle of thought that crosses allegorical oceans where the storms of uncertainty will lead to a better horizon, a new era for a new world order.
If we could whisk Leonardo from his artist’s pallet and transport him to today, what wonders would he be thinking of? Would he question the escalating gap between rich and poor societies, or tinker with intricate gadgets that cleanse the skies from the crumbs of pollution, or ponder the millions of preventable deaths in developing nations? The foundation behind the Renaissance scholars was the belief in the power of human ingenuity. It was a period when anything was thought possible and hence everything became possible.
The world yearns for inspirational Renaissance gurus. And though pragmatists claim that money is paramount to splendid achievements, the real currency for change requires more than dollars, euros, or yen. It requires a collective will to guarantee a paradigm shift — the vision to secure a better world for future generations.
A new day for history
Let us recognize that the new moment, this rejuvenation epoch, is happening through grand thoughts and grander accomplishments of this season’s graduates. Let this century show, when the world welcomes the year 2100, that the seed was planted by a cross-cultural society at the dawn of the millennium to cast away global troubles of poverty, inequity in human rights, a pandemic called AIDS and a climate in upheaval. Just as the Renaissance masters cast away conventional concepts, so too shall we discard friction that creates inertia in our thoughts. Let’s spawn a new generation, entrusting in those with cap and gown the ambitious objectives of securing a better planet.
The world is more than ready for 21st century Leonardos who dare to make the impossible happen. Let our renaissance fashion a new day for history when the world reached across societal divides and embraced a better tomorrow. The morning’s light has come. We are ready for the Class of 2009 to help us across the threshold into our own Florentine moment.
Howard A. Zucker is a physician and attorney who served as U.S. deputy assistant secretary of health and as assistant director-general of the World Health Organization. He is now a resident fellow at the Institute of Politics at Harvard University.
