Thoughts from Dublin: What is Non-Negotiable
In June this year, the Swiss Cancer League wrote an open letter to the CEO of Philip Morris asking him to reconsider the advertising campaign for a new product. They were right to do so. The slogan was fundamentally misleading and disingenuous, yet another example of unethical leadership.
It is not ok for leaders to put profits above people’s health. It is not ok to ignore the science. It is not ok for marketers to dissemble.
It is time our political and business leaders recognised that facts exist, that there is such a thing as a discoverable truth. It is time that our leaders answered difficult questions honestly. It is time that we had the maturity to expect substance and decency from our leaders and hold them to account.
This is why we sponsor Laidlaw Scholars. This is why we are changing the emphasis of our Scholarship from research to leadership.
We are not in any way suggesting that research isn’t important, or that we mean to diminish its value. Research is vital. But it is not enough. We need a new generation of leaders who are passionate about research and have the skills, the EQ and the will to lead with integrity.
Too many of our current leaders, those who have shown appalling lapses in integrity, graduated from some of the best universities in the world. We cannot rely on academic excellence to translate into ethical leadership. This is why the Leadership-in-Action element of the scholarship programme is so critical. Students who understand and appreciate other cultures; who experience real hardship; who have to handle stress, conflict and multiple priorities; and who achieve goals outside of their comfort zone, are likely to make better global citizens and leaders than those who do not and have not.
At its core, we are looking to ensure that Scholars have:
- an immersive experience, of which the actual immersive project duration is a minimum of 4 weeks with an additional pre planning and post debrief of a week to 10 days. Anything less than this is not long enough to become fully attuned to a culture and a place
- lived in a NEW and challenging environment, outside of academia and outside of their comfort zone. This does not have to be overseas, there are many disadvantaged communities in the US, UK and Asia
- done something which makes the world a better place; produced real world impact, beyond research outcomes (or at least have begun that journey)
- developed and applied their leadership skills further
- demonstrated an ability to lead others and deliver SMART goals.
There are a host of different ways that you, our participating universities, can deliver this; and we have every confidence that, as usual, we will be in awe of what our Scholars do. We are not fussed about in which order the research and leadership projects happen, or indeed if the research is split across two summers. We are not wedded to either Think Pacific or Raleigh International if anyone knows of better partners. We are agnostic about self-developed projects or placements. The five points above though are non-negotiable.
Any questions, please do not hesitate to give Pat or me a call. We look forward to working with you on this next phase of the Scholarship.