Change may be grindingly slow,but results like Ethiopias self-help groups ‘multiplying like yeast’ are worth a wait
Over the years I’ve frequently been a source of amusement to my wife Emma, but rarely more so than when I came domestic from work at DfiD one day a decade ago and recounted to her a particularly mortifying interaction I’d had with the IT department. My computer had gone on the fritz during a password update, and in order to resolve it I’d had to tell the tech support guys my old password over the phone – while a senior official was in the room. Imagine my delight as I had to spell out “f-u-c-k-i-n-c-r-e-m-e-n-t-a-l-i-s-m” while my visitor attempted and failed to stifle their mirth.
Although I expend slightly more discreet passwords these days,I’ve still never really drunk the Kool-aid on change that happens one step at a time, at a grindingly slow pace, or measurable in decades. This can be a rather frustrating worldview when you work on global climate policy – but,now and again, a deeply satisfying one when you collect out and see genuine development happening in genuine places at unreal speed.
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Source: theguardian.com