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13 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 15 MARCH 2020 OPINION Timothy Alden OVER the past century, the world has undergone radical and unparalleled change in every imagina- ble way. New technologies have pushed the par- adigm of what we thought was possible. In 1992, political scientist Francis Fukuyama claimed that with the fall of communism and the triumph of liberal democracy, humanity's sociocultural evolu- tion had reached its triumphant conclusion. Yet, as populism is on the rise across the world once again, and as the planet faces unmitigated environmental crises and challenges, it appears that we must now quickly rise to new challenges and adapt. This will require us to think outside the box, as old ideolo- gies and paradigms fail to offer fundamental solu- tions in a changed world. Pre-empting the challenges of the future offers not only the chance to avoid higher adaptation costs later on, but it rewards pioneers with a com- manding position in the field, thanks to first-mover advantage. Those who innovate and seize the day are those who may benefit from the changes to come. Malta and Gozo should be well placed to exper- iment and adapt more quickly than larger states suffering from entrenched interest groups resist- ing change. We do not have to navigate gigantic machines of bureaucracy to take advantage of the knowledge available to us. The French Civil Service alone employs 5.3 million people, compared to the 50,000 in the Maltese Public Service. Contrary to popular belief, the European Union itself gets by with a staff of only 32,000. As a small country, we therefore have the ability to seize the opportunities of our age, so long as we are able to break the hold of special interests groups who want to protect their feudal domain. Certain innovations may seem like madness to those who have grown up in a rigid post-industrial socie- ty where work is carried out under strict criteria. However, as academia blazes across new frontiers and challenges conventional wisdom, we are start- ing to see the value of, for example, a more flexible working life to our economy and our wellbeing. One example where studies are showing un- expected benefits is teleworking. Teleworking – whereby work is carried out from home – is not possible in many professions. However, where it is possible, studies are increasingly showing that tele- working not only offers obvious increases to quality of life, but counterintuitively, it increases produc- tivity also. Preliminary discoveries in the psychology behind teleworking show that rather than abuse of these privileges, many employees put in extra hours overall than were they to sit in the office for a fixed amount of time. Aside from these benefits to the company, tele- working also takes cars off the road and thus implies less traffic, cleaner air and less stressed employees; as they do not suffer the stress of commuting. One can think of the added benefits for those with young children or for those with disabilities. Of course there are nuances to the implemen- tation of teleworking; associate professor Kristen Shockley states that "companies should never just implement telecommuting without changing any- thing else," as there are factors to consider which may be as subtle as how managers may undervalue employees who are not in the office. Working from home in winter may instead be less environmentally sustainable the further north one goes, where people need to use central heat- ing, and it depends on air conditioning intensivity in summer. While these are ultimately a question of how that energy is generated, it may mean that teleworking is preferable at certain times of the year while we transition to an increasingly sustain- able economy. Therefore, the way these changes are introduced have far reaching implications. At the end of the day, however, I am sure we can all recall certain jobs which we could have done from home or in a flexible manner, rather than having wasted time sitting in an office just to clock in the hours. We must also keep in mind that leading global companies are increasingly valuing good health, creativity and innovation in employees, rather than their ability to follow robotic instructions. Recog- nising the value of quality of life, well-being and freedom in employees encourages such charac- teristics. This new way of thinking is immediately recognisable in Malta through the way that inter- national companies offer healthy food at the work- place or flexible hours. By extension, they become more desirable places to work, and attract a better quality of employees. There are many other vistas to explore which can offer unexpected solutions. Fundamentally, a hap- pier and healthier population is good for the econ- omy, and that is why measuring a nation's success from GDP alone is an outdated way of thinking which may ultimately even be self-defeating, and ultimately limit GDP growth itself. It is why third parties have called for Malta to look to New Zea- land, which is looking to focus on gross national well-being instead of GDP. While Malta's economy has grown, we have become more stressed out and more divided, and our quality of life is on the re- treat thanks to environmental degradation and air pollution. The Opposition can genuinely set itself apart and inspire by offering ways to fix a broken system, rather than offer a perpetuation of the old ways of doing things, just with a different flavour or colour. Teleworking, which exists to a limited extent in the public sector in Malta, is only one such new avenue which we can further develop in Malta. Another frontier to explore is the idea of a 4 day working week, which has already been shown to of- fer increased benefits and productivity in at least one successful Maltese company – but that is an ar- ticle for another time. In the meanwhile, let us open our minds to all the unexplored potential, waiting just out of reach. Working in the 21st century Timothy Alden is acting leader Partit Demokratiku but are still nowhere as a seamless as they should in this day and age. If successful, these could shape future workplaces. Likewise, the healthcare and education sector could use with some forced modernising. Doctor to patient video calls as well as online student appraisals (replac- ing parents' day) could well hit it off. The deadly statistics of the Diamond Princess de- livered a huge blow to the cruise liner industry. Per- haps it's not that wise to take a week-long holiday on a grossly inefficient floating sewage plant, which can also double as a viral playground. The fact that other cruise liners were refused port entry should make people re- think their holiday planning, perhaps permanently? Another lesson which can be learned from the hav- oc wreaked by the coronavirus is how globalization has made us vulnerable to very remote dangers. Globali- zation enabled trade, travel, innovation and consump- tion to flourish as it provides the biggest possible stage. However, this has exposed how one market in a previ- ously unknown province in China landed on our shores and disrupted schedules of factories, hotels, schools and hospitals. This makes the case for stronger interna- tional agencies like the WHO to safeguard our health as species and not in terms of fragmented countries with imaginary borderlines. By the way, anyone seen the EU? The 'Spanish' flu pandemic wiped out one third of the human population 100 years ago. Undoubtedly, we have better hygiene standards and advanced medicine incomparable to those times. Nevertheless, experts continue to stress that even in such a critical global sce- nario, a vaccine is still at least 12 months away. Clinical trials must ensure the absolute safety of a vaccine as the last thing the healthcare community needs is further fear of vaccines (see the anti-vax movement in US). Due to the novel nature of the virus, it is still unknown if it will recede in summer. Other flu strains have re- turned after the hotter months. Will thermal screening at airports still be a thing next year? Is constant hand washing and coughing in elbow just a fad or will this prolonged concern develop new, healthier habits? The WHO is very cautious in declaring any outbreak an epidemic and then a pandemic as it needs to man- age expectations and uphold the full trust of the pub- lic. Given how lightly many countries are taking this while Italy have their healthcare system on its knees, the WHO have finally elevated this to a pandemic. This should push other countries which are still at the onset of the outbreak to take this very seriously and avoid cri- ses like Italy, Iran and China. South Korea and their ag- gressive testing is being considered the model response to follow. As Bill Gates' warned back in 2015, we are not ready for the next pandemic. Vaccine research funds dried out when SARS left the headlines, and an immense in- equality exists between countries in terms of basic hy- giene and healthcare facilities. As the world is realizing that this is not a drill, society should come to terms with our new vulnerabilities as a global community. It is also serving as a stark remind- er for Maltese 'millennials' that times are not always booming.