In every capitalist economy there are anti-capitalist movements, activists, and even political parties; in a way, that there are no longer anti-democratic movements, activists, and parties. – Geoff Mulgan
So is civil society prepared for the future? Probably not. Most organisations have to live hand to mouth, juggling short-term funding and perpetual minor crises. Even the bigger ones rarely get much time to stand back and look at the bigger picture. Many are on a treadmill chasing after contracts and new funding. – Geoff Mulgan
Many people leave government disillusioned about its ability to achieve change and cynical about politicians. I left with rather opposite lessons. – Geoff Mulgan
Courses can, and should, incorporate the excitement and fun of programming games, apps or even real digital devices. – Geoff Mulgan
The most important innovators often don’t need any technologies – just imagination and acute sensitivity to people’s needs. – Geoff Mulgan
The City of London has never been known for understanding technology and has never matched Silicon Valley’s tradition of knowledgeable investment in technology start-ups, just as the U.K. government has never matched the vast investment made by the U.S. government. – Geoff Mulgan
Even many of the teenagers who feel confident on navigating the web simply don’t have the skills needed to ‘write and create’ digital tools, not simply consume them. – Geoff Mulgan
Over 5,000 years, states have made surprisingly consistent claims about their duties. They have promised to protect people from threats; promote their welfare; deliver justice and also, perhaps less obviously, uphold truth – originally truths about the cosmos, and more recently truths drawn from reason and knowledge. – Geoff Mulgan
Most governments do have inbuilt biases in favour of the rich and powerful, and most do contain plenty of manipulators who love intrigue, who have lost whatever moral compass they may once have had and who protect themselves with steely cynicism. – Geoff Mulgan
Conflicts are never caused in any simple way by identity, culture or economics. Where resources are scarce, or there are strong historical memories of conflict, small events are more likely to inflame passions. – Geoff Mulgan
The smug complacency of technology adverts disguises a pretty mixed picture, with too many people not connected, too many passive users of technologies designed for interactive, and far too much talk about empowerment but far too little action to make it happen. – Geoff Mulgan
Europe has shown how government can be organised in a network. Its institutions both compete and co-operate and include a directly elected parliament that does not appoint the executive, independent judiciaries and a complex set of relationships between the Commission, the Council of Ministers and the Parliament. – Geoff Mulgan
A tablet replacing an exercise book is not innovation, it’s just a different way to make notes. – Geoff Mulgan
One effect of an individualistic culture that’s poor at instilling mutual respect is that people jump more quickly to anger or violence. – Geoff Mulgan
There is a yearning for people to return to elementary moral virtues, such as integrity and commitment. We distrust people who have no centering of values. We greatly respect businessmen, for example, if they display those virtues, even if we don’t necessarily agree with the people. – Geoff Mulgan
Computing should be taught as a rigorous – but fun – discipline covering topics like programming, database structures, and algorithms. That doesn’t have to be boring. – Geoff Mulgan
Big business increasingly likes to portray itself as socially concerned, adopting the style of civic action through ‘campaigns’ of varying degrees of cynicism. – Geoff Mulgan
Democracy isn’t solely about polite conversations in parliaments. It needs to be continually refreshed with raw passions, anger and ideals. – Geoff Mulgan
Predation is part of the everyday life of capitalism, in sectors as mainstream as pharmaceuticals, software and oil – where people’s money, their data, their time and their attention are routinely taken in fundamentally asymmetrical exchanges. – Geoff Mulgan
The end of life is likely to be an important focus for innovation. Most people die in hospitals, tied up with tubes and with their bodies pumped full of drugs. Yet most would rather die at home and with more control over the timing and manner of their death. – Geoff Mulgan
Before the Second World War, L’Oreal in France was an active supporter of the French fascists. The cosmetic group’s founder Eugene Schueller was an active member of the ‘Cagoule’ group, committed to the violent overthrow of the Third Republic, and hosted meetings at Oreal headquarters. – Geoff Mulgan
Freecycle groups match people who have things they want to get rid of with people who can use them. – Geoff Mulgan