To achieve universal social justice, we must escape our local, national, and regional bubble, and consider humanity worldwide.
Full interview available now: https://youtu.be/016Mnl7QWrs.
In my latest interview for the School of Social Justice, I interview Kirk-Anthony Hamilton, Founding CEO of Infiniti Partnership Inc. Kirk is a Jamaican businessman who has dedicated his career to creating a more level playing field internationally, a global representative of the Caribbean. He runs multiple organisations all of which have sought to elevate his community in a world where the top economies dominate.
As someone from the former British colony, Jamaica, Kirk faced huge challenges trying to bring in foreign investment into his home region. He describes how he has been boxed in as small fry, simply because of the country he is from. Kirk’s career is an impassioned testament for how the country you’re born in should not define your destiny. His attitude is: “This is how it is. But this doesn’t work. And there’s a better way to do it.”
I met Kirk at the World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting in 2016. We were two of fifty young members of the Global Shapers community selected to attend Davos. There I saw him representing his region, and making a case to Presidents, Prime Ministers, and CEOs for Fortune 500 companies, for why they should visit and contribute to the Caribbean. 6 years on, we reconnected in Bermuda, where he was central to making a gathering of youth leaders happen.
If you are curious to know the link between international development, foreign investment, and social justice, watch this interview. We also discuss the impact of colonialism and slavery, the inequalities faced by people internationally, the challenges entrepreneurs face, the importance of meeting in person, what is needed to set and reach big goals and why story-telling is one of the most crucial skills everyone should learn.
My two main lessons from this conversation are that: (i) when thinking about social justice, we should not limit our analysis and conclusions to a local, national, or even regional level - we should and must think about social justice on an international and global level: social justice can be achieved only with an understanding of humanity worldwide. And, (ii) meeting in person is crucial for coordinated collaboration, progress, and change.
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Full interview available now:
- Youtube: https://youtu.be/016Mnl7QWrs
- Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3JNMEvQBCpfQqMEL2zU7lq
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Hope you enjoy the conversation, and learn as much as I did. And I hope that you are able to use the lessons to go on and change the world.
Alvin
Founding Director
schoolofsocialjustice.com