Unnecessary Hunger in a World of Abundance

A new report, The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2026 (SOFI 2026), was published recently, on 21 July 2026. This year’s report is subtitled Understanding and Addressing the High Cost of a Healthy Diet.

SOFI is the United Nations’ flagship annual report on hunger, food security and the various forms of malnutrition around the world. It is jointly prepared by five United Nations agencies: the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the World Food Programme (WFP) and the World Health Organisation (WHO).

 
Progress That Must Not Obscure the Reality

At first glance, this year’s report contains some encouraging figures. Global hunger declined in 2025 for the third consecutive year. Approximately 645 million people, or 7.8 per cent of the world’s population, faced hunger, understood in the report as chronic undernourishment. The proportion was 8.1 per cent in 2024 and 8.6 per cent in 2022.

Despite this improvement, 645 million people suffering from hunger are still 645 million too many. To put this into perspective, the European Union, comprising 27 countries, had a population of approximately 452 million on 1 January 2026. The number of people facing hunger worldwide therefore exceeds the entire population of the European Union by approximately 193 million.

 
2.1 Billion People Lack Reliable Access to Food

Hunger is the most severe form of food deprivation, but it does not include everyone who experiences difficulties in accessing food.

In 2025, approximately 2.1 billion people, or 25.8 per cent of the world’s population, experienced moderate or severe food insecurity. This means that they did not have consistent and reliable access to sufficient quantities of quality food and were sometimes forced to reduce the amount of food they consumed or forgo nutritious foods.

 
One-Third of Humanity Cannot Afford a Healthy Diet

In 2025, approximately 2.69 billion people, or 32.7 per cent of the world’s population, were unable to afford a healthy diet. This means that almost one person in three worldwide did not have sufficient income to afford a diverse, balanced and nutritionally adequate diet.

A healthy diet does not simply provide sufficient calories. It must also be diverse and contain adequate amounts of protein, vitamins, minerals and other nutrients. A person may therefore consume a relatively sufficient number of calories and still suffer from malnutrition because their diet lacks diversity.

The report also highlights the consequences for children. Approximately 150 million children under five years of age are affected by stunting as a result of long-term undernutrition. Only 30.8 per cent of children aged between 6 and 23 months receive a minimum dietary diversity. More than two-thirds of the youngest children therefore do not consume a sufficiently diverse diet to support healthy physical and cognitive development.

 
Healthy Diets Are Becoming Increasingly Expensive

The global average cost of a healthy diet reached 4.28 purchasing power parity dollars per person per day in 2025. It stood at $ 3.44 in 2021 and $ 2.94 in 2017.

Purchasing power parity makes it possible to compare the actual purchasing power of money across countries. It is therefore not a simple conversion of amounts into United States dollars, but an estimate of how much local currency is required in each country to purchase a comparable basket of goods.

The final price of food is not determined by agricultural production alone. Post-farm-gate activities account for between 70 and 75 per cent of the price paid by consumers. Processing, logistics and wholesale activities may account for up to 40 per cent of total costs. Reducing the cost of a healthy diet therefore also requires investment in transport infrastructure, storage facilities, cold chains, irrigation, research and more efficient agrifood value chains.

 
Hunger and Other Global Crises

Hunger and food insecurity cannot be considered separately from other global problems.

When people lack access to food, water, land, employment and basic social protection, poverty, despair and social tensions increase. A lack of food and opportunities for a decent life may be among the factors that force people to leave their homes. FAO identifies food insecurity, poverty, a lack of decent employment, conflict, inequality, environmental degradation and the consequences of climate change as important drivers of migration.

Hunger is often a consequence of war, but it can also intensify conflict. The World Food Programme warns of a vicious cycle in which conflict causes hunger, while hunger can deepen instability and contribute to further conflict. Wars displace people from their land, destroy crops and infrastructure, disrupt trade and increase food prices.

The same applies to climate change. Droughts, floods, heatwaves and other weather extremes reduce agricultural production, destroy livelihoods and increase food insecurity and forced displacement.

The SOFI 2026 report warns that conflicts, weather extremes and reductions in official development assistance and humanitarian aid threaten the progress achieved. It particularly highlights the consequences of conflict in the Middle East, which may further raise food prices due to higher energy and fertiliser costs. According to current projections, between 510 million and 520 million people could still be facing hunger in 2030. The potential effects of weather events, such as El Niño, in 2026 and 2027 are not yet included in these estimates.

 
Sharing of Food

In a world with extraordinary knowledge, technology, productive capacity and wealth, hunger is not simply the result of a shortage of food. It is primarily the result of poverty, conflict, unequal access to land and other resources, climate shocks, high prices, and political and economic decisions.

At the same time, vast quantities of food are lost or wasted. According to FAO, approximately 13 per cent of food is lost during production, transport, storage and processing, before it reaches retail markets. A further 19 per cent is wasted in households, food services and retail.

Reducing food loss and waste is important, but it will not eliminate hunger on its own. Food must also be distributed more efficiently and equitably, while people must have sufficient income and social protection to afford it. Support for small-scale farmers, investment in local production and infrastructure, more accessible markets, adequate social protection, humanitarian assistance and closer international cooperation are all essential.

When food surpluses are produced in some parts of the world while people elsewhere are starving, the international community should establish more effective mechanisms for sharing food and other essential resources. Food is not merely an ordinary market commodity; it is a basic necessity of life and a human right. Access to it should not depend solely on an individual’s purchasing power or place of birth.

Hunger is therefore not merely a statistical, economic or humanitarian problem. It is a moral failure of the international community. The fact that hundreds of millions of people still do not have enough food in an age of extraordinary technological progress, immense productive capacity and almost unimaginable wealth is one of the greatest contradictions of the modern world.

The latest figures show that progress is possible. Yet a slow decline in hunger is no reason for complacency. A world without hunger does not require a miracle. It requires political will, cooperation and a sharing of food and other essential global resources.

 

Sources

• The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2026, a joint report by FAO, IFAD, UNICEF, WFP and WHO. (FAOHome)
• FAO: UN Report: Global Hunger Levels Ease for Third Consecutive Year as Regional Disparities Persist, 21 July 2026. (FAOHome)
• United Nations: Sustainable Development Goal 2 – Zero Hunger. (Sustainable Development Goals)
• Eurostat: EU Population Continued to Grow in 2025, 10 July 2026. (European Commission)
• FAO: data and explanations concerning food insecurity, migration, food loss and food waste. (FAOHome)
• World Food Programme: information on the links between hunger and armed conflict. (WFP)

Greed Arises from Fear

What truly drives us to desire more than we need? Not merely more, but much more.

Behind greed, there is often not so much a desire for wealth as fear: fear that tomorrow, a month from now, or a year from now, we may be living in deprivation and poverty. And so we accumulate possessions.

Yet the more we have, the more afraid we become of losing it. We therefore seek to protect ourselves and separate ourselves from others. We want even more because we believe that greater wealth also provides greater security. We buy security systems, build high fences, while nations accumulate weapons in much the same way.

The more we have, the less happy we may actually become. We grow increasingly fearful, distrustful, and convinced that others pose a threat to us. We begin to see danger in those who have almost nothing. The poor, migrants, foreigners, and those who are different become threats in our eyes.

At the root of greed, then, lies fear: fear of deprivation, of the future, of loss, and of other people. Yet accumulation will not free us from fear and insecurity. On the contrary, it will only deepen them.

Trust and Prosperity

How can we break out of this vicious cycle?

If we ensured a fairer distribution of goods, not only within our local communities but also globally, people would feel safer and more content. They would trust others more, while the fear of deprivation would diminish. There would consequently be less need to accumulate wealth.

If goods were shared more fairly, we would not have to strive so relentlessly for wealth, because even in difficult times we could rely on others' support. We would know that we would not be left alone in times of need.

Our mutual trust would also grow. We would no longer view others primarily as competitors, but as fellow human beings, friends, and members of a community who help one another.

When everyone has enough, we are all truly wealthy.

The Sharing Economy Is Already Familiar to Us All

The economy often seems very complicated, understood only by highly educated economists. It also seems that there are many different economic approaches worldwide. And yet we may ask ourselves: what is the economy, really?

The word economy is, in its very origin, connected with the home, the family and the community. It comes from the ancient Greek word oikonomia: oikos means home, family and the goods needed for life, while nomos means law or management. The economy, therefore, originally means the careful management of goods for the well-being of a family or community.

So let us look at how the economy works within the family or household, the smallest socio-economic community.

In families around the world, regardless of origin, religion, political system, culture or tradition, we can observe a common economic characteristic: the sharing of goods.

Family members do not compete with one another; they share goods. By this we also mean extended families and households. It is hard to imagine parents not sharing goods with their children, grandparents or sick family members. Without sharing, humanity could not have survived at all, since in the first years of life the human being is among the most helpless creatures on Earth.

Economists often teach us that competition and competitiveness are good. But let us look at the consequences within our broadest family – humanity. Hundreds of millions of people are hungry, and a large part of humanity is, in one way or another, deprived of the most basic goods. Is this really a successful economic system?

What if we took what we have known how to do in families for thousands of years and applied it to broader communities – local, national and global? This means: sharing goods.

In this way, we could live side by side, in peace and prosperity.

The sharing economy has therefore long been familiar to us, since we live it every day at home, in the family. Now let us begin to put it into practice in our planetary home as well, within our great family – humanity.

Heat and Sharing

The unbearable heat of recent days will soon pass. At least for a while, we will be able to breathe a sigh of relief. But for how long? What will follow? A catastrophic drought, a violent storm, another heatwave — or all of these one after another?

The worst thing would be for all of us simply to shrug it off and continue as if nothing had happened, or as if nothing were happening. We could call this indifference. Or complacency.

It is never too late to act. It is too late only if we fail to act.

But what can we do? Is it enough to drive electric cars and install solar panels on our roofs? Is the so-called green transition enough to save the world from the devastating consequences of global warming?

Undoubtedly, the green transition — a set of measures that lead us away from fossil fuels — is the right path. The question, however, is whether the climate crisis can be addressed primarily by developed countries, which have the resources for such a transition.

If, for example, everyone in Europe drove electric cars and used only green energy sources, would that save the global climate? No. The climate is a global, interconnected whole.

The so-called Third World, or the poorer part of humanity — and poor people also live within the richest countries — has neither the economic capacity nor any real incentive to move towards green energy sources. People who struggle every day to survive can hardly think about solar panels, electric cars, and the energy renovation of buildings.

How many people are we talking about?

“In 2024, approximately 673 million people were chronically hungry, while around 2.3 billion people experienced moderate or severe food insecurity. In addition, 2.6 billion people could not afford a healthy diet in 2024. In 2025, approximately 808 million people are expected to live in extreme poverty, meaning people living on less than 3 US dollars a day.

The situation is similarly alarming across healthcare, housing and education. Approximately 4.6 billion people lack full access to essential health services, 2.8 billion people live in inadequate housing, and around 273 million children and young people are not enrolled in school.

We can therefore conclude that more than half of the approximately 8.1 billion people currently living on Earth are deprived of one or more basic goods, on which not only quality of life and human dignity depend, but often survival itself.” (Deprivation and Inequality)

Thus, more than half of the world’s population — perhaps many more — mostly has no real possibility of making a significant contribution to climate protection. Moreover, many are forced by poverty to use the dirtiest and most outdated energy sources to cook a meal, heat tea, warm their homes, or travel to a neighbouring town: kerosene, coal, firewood, and other forms of biomass.

That is why the climate crisis cannot be solved solely through technological solutions in the richest part of the world. As long as billions of people do not have access to reliable, clean and affordable energy, the green transition will remain incomplete, unjust and insufficiently effective. But even before that, they need food, drinking water, adequate housing, healthcare and everything else that makes survival and human dignity possible.

This is precisely where the importance of sharing becomes clear. If we truly want to reduce emissions and protect the climate, we must share knowledge, technologies, financial resources and essential goods with countries and people who do not have enough power to make such a transition on their own. Climate justice means that no one should remain trapped in poverty and dirty energy simply because they were born in a poorer part of the world — or in a poorer part of a wealthy country.

The practical realisation of the principle of sharing is the sharing economy.

Three People in the Society of the Future

To help us imagine the society of the future described in the previous article, a society based on sharing, cooperation and sufficiency, let us picture one day in the lives of three people. They live in different parts of the world: in Slovenia, Palestine and Sudan. Their cultures, languages, customs and landscapes are different, yet they are connected by something fundamental: none of them lives in fear of hunger, poverty, war or insecurity. All have access to the basic goods that make a dignified life possible.

 
Maja, Slovenia

Maja lives in Kamnik, in a small apartment near the town centre. It is not luxurious, but it is bright, pleasant and energy-efficient. The building has shared spaces and a small rooftop garden. In the neighbourhood, there is a small workshop where residents repair and exchange bicycles, household appliances, tools and other useful items. Sometimes it seems strange to her that people once simply threw away most things rather than repair or share them.

Maja works three days a week as a teacher at a local education centre. She teaches the economy of the common good, the basics of cooperative entrepreneurship and practical skills for living in community. Her students learn not only about markets, money and production, but also about how to distribute goods fairly, how local cooperatives work, how to make collective decisions and why sufficiency is more important than endless accumulation.

Today is her day off. In the morning, she cycles to the market. Most of the food comes from local farms, while some also comes from the wider European system of goods exchange. The prices of basic food are no longer subject to speculation and commercial pressures, because food is recognised as a fundamental good.

After lunch, Maja visits the community centre. A music workshop is taking place there; in the room next door, an Arabic course is held, while in the large hall, young people are preparing an exhibition on rivers as a commons and part of humanity’s shared heritage. Public transport is free, so people can easily get around. Cities are no longer overcrowded with cars, the air is cleaner, and the streets are quieter.

In the evening, Maja reads a report from the International Agency for the Sharing of Goods. This year, parts of Africa have had poor harvests, so grain surpluses from several regions will be directed to where they are needed. This is not presented as charity, but as something self-evident. Just as no one in a family questions the need to help a hungry child, humanity, too, is slowly coming to understand that the Earth is the common home of the human family, and that sharing is therefore something entirely natural.

Before going to sleep, Maja thinks about how differently her parents lived. They worked almost the whole week; they worried about expenses, health, housing, pensions and their children’s future. Today, life is not perfect, but the fundamental fears have receded. People have more time for one another. And to her, this seems the greatest change of all.

 
Jusuf, Palestine

Jusuf lives in Gaza, in a restored coastal city where a good quality of life is slowly but steadily returning. Long decades of war, blockades, destruction and humiliation have left deep wounds. No one denies them. In schools, children learn history, including the difficult and painful parts, but not so that hatred may be passed on. They learn it so that it may never be repeated.

Jusuf is an architect. Three days a week, he helps rebuild residential neighbourhoods. Construction is no longer based on quick profit and expensive private projects, but on the needs of the community. Every family has the right to safe housing, clean water, electricity, green spaces and access to school and healthcare. A large share of energy comes from solar panels installed on rooftops, along roads and in community energy parks.

His work is not only technical. Together with residents, he designs courtyards, playgrounds, outdoor classrooms and spaces for people to meet. Older people say where trees once stood, where the shops used to be and where children used to play. Young people add their own wishes: a library, a music studio, a sports field, a place for learning languages. The city is emerging as a shared memory and a shared future.

In the Palestine of the future, no one lives behind walls or checkpoints. International security is ensured by strengthened United Nations forces, whose task is not to control people, but to prevent violence, protect human rights and assist in the peaceful resolution of disputes. The police are local, accountable to the community and trained to protect people, not to oppress them.

In the afternoon, Jusuf has time for his family. He and his daughter go to the sea. On the beach, people of different nationalities and religions meet. Some speak Arabic, others Hebrew, English or French. This does not mean that all differences have disappeared. Memories are still painful, and distrust does not dissolve overnight. But life has taken a new direction. Children are growing up in an environment where cooperation is an everyday experience, not a distant political ideal.

In the evening, Jusuf participates in an online meeting of cities from the eastern Mediterranean. They discuss water, agriculture, soil restoration and the exchange of knowledge. In the past, states argued over resources; now they try to manage them together. Water is no longer a weapon. Food is no longer a means of pressure. Energy is no longer a reason for war. All these are goods that make life possible, and therefore, they must be accessible to all.

When Jusuf looks at the city glowing in the evening light, he does not think it is paradise. There has been too much suffering for easy words. But he knows that something great has happened: the world has finally recognised that no nation can be free if another lives in humiliation and deprivation.

 
Amira, Sudan

Amira lives in Sudan, in a community beside a restored area with irrigation systems. Her family once had to move several times because of drought, conflict and food shortages. Today, her village is part of a broader African and global system for sharing water, seeds, knowledge, food, technical equipment and medical assistance. This does not mean that problems have disappeared. The climate remains harsh and unpredictable. Droughts, floods and poor harvests still occur. But no community is left to fend for itself anymore.

Amira is a healthcare worker and the coordinator of a local food security centre. She works three days a week, devoting the rest of her time to study, family and caring for the community garden. The health centre has medicines, basic equipment, a telemedicine link with larger hospitals and a team that regularly visits remote settlements. Healthcare does not depend on how much someone can pay.

Every morning, the centre receives data on food stocks, crop conditions, family needs and weather conditions. If a shortage risk arises, a regional support system is activated, followed, if necessary, by a global one. Grain, medicines, pumps, solar panels, or water filters arrive in time to prevent the crisis from turning into famine. The world has learned that preventing suffering is far less costly than responding to disasters after they occur.

In Amira’s community, people often speak about sufficiency. It is not a foreign word, but something very concrete. It means that every family has enough food, clean water, a roof over their heads, and access to a doctor, school and energy. It also means that the land is not exhausted to the limit and that water is used with respect. People know that abundance lies not in endless consumption but in balance.

In the afternoon, Amira visits the school. The children learn English, local languages, mathematics, history, farming, computing and climate literacy. In the schoolyard, trees planted by previous generations of pupils grow. Each tree has a name. The children learn that the future is not distant, but something nurtured every day.

Sometimes Amira listens to the stories of older people who remember times when help came too late, or not at all. When wealthy countries debated, the poor waited. When natural resources were exported, people remained without basic goods. Today, not everything is easy, but the fundamental rule has changed: people’s needs first, then profit. Life first, then trade.

In the evening, Amira joins a community meeting. They discuss a new cooperative, the repair of the road to a neighbouring village and the exchange of seeds with other regions. Decisions are not always easy, but people cooperate because they know that their own security is linked to the security of others. No one is truly safe alone.

As Amira watches the children playing beneath the trees, she thinks that the greatest change is this: the future is no longer a threat. It is no longer something to fear. It has become a space of responsibility, work, trust and hope.

 
One Human Family

Maja, Jusuf and Amira live in different environments. Their stories are not the same. Slovenia, Palestine and Sudan have different historical experiences, different wounds and different paths. Yet in the society of the future, they are connected by a shared principle: the goods of the world are meant for all.

In such a society, no one claims that all problems have disappeared. People are still different, nature is still unpredictable, and communities still face challenges. But the starting point has changed. Instead of asking how much each person can gain for themselves, the central question becomes how all people can live well and with dignity.

This is the essence of sharing and cooperation. It is not an abstract theory, but a very concrete life: a full pantry, an open school, an accessible doctor, safe housing, clean water, shorter working hours, calmer cities, restored nature and the feeling that no one is superfluous.

Perhaps it is precisely in these everyday images that we can most easily understand the future we desire. Not as a perfect world, but as a world finally built on the right foundations: cooperation instead of competition, sufficiency instead of accumulation, sharing instead of greed.

If we can imagine such a future, we can begin to truly build it.

The Society of the Future

Let us imagine the society of the future. Not the dystopian society so often portrayed in films, books, and the media. Not a world of extreme wealth and poverty, scarcity, violence, technological control and hopelessness. Let us imagine a different future: a society in which all people live in peace, prosperity and a healthy environment. A society in which humanity finally embraces a simple yet powerful principle: the goods of the Earth belong to everyone, and therefore we share them; cooperation is a more natural path than competition.

Such a future is not a utopia in the negative sense of the word. It is a possibility that we can already sense today in many ideas, movements, and efforts around the world. Yet it seems distant because we are still guided by old patterns of thought, old habits and entrenched beliefs. These teach us that life is a struggle, that the economy is a competition, that everyone must look after themselves first, and that the accumulation of wealth is a sign of success. But perhaps now is precisely the time to ask ourselves: has this mindset really brought us happiness, peace and security?

A Dignified Life for All

The society of the future would be based on a different understanding of the human being and the world. Its starting point would be that every person has the right to the basic goods necessary for a dignified life. Food, water, adequate housing, healthcare and education would not be privileges dependent on place of birth, country, wealth or market conditions, but fundamental rights of every human being.

This does not mean the same life for everyone in the sense of uniformity, as is often imposed by today’s commercially driven globalisation. On the contrary, such a society would respect the diversity of cultures, languages, customs, ways of living and spiritual paths. Equality does not mean that we are all the same or that we all possess the same wealth, but that everyone has the opportunity to live a dignified, safe and creative life. Only when basic needs are met can a person truly develop their abilities, talents and inner potential.

Work, Technology and the Common Benefit

In such a society, our understanding of work would change as well. Because of automation, robotisation, and artificial intelligence, working time could be reduced. People might work three days a week, while devoting the rest of their time to education, culture, sport, family, volunteering, creativity, spirituality, or simply rest. Work would no longer be primarily a means of survival, but a contribution to the community and a form of personal expression.

Today, we often fear that technology will take our jobs. But the real question is not whether technology will replace part of human work, but to whom the fruits of this progress will belong. If the benefits of automation and robotisation belong only to the owners of capital and a small group of the richest, technology will further deepen inequality. If, however, we understand them as a common achievement of humanity, since they are based on the knowledge, skills and experience of many generations, they can become the foundation for shorter working hours, better public services and a higher quality of life for all.

Democracy, Enterprises and Public Services

In the society of the future, our understanding of democracy would change as well. It would no longer be based primarily on a deep left-right divide, which often separates people and reduces the space for cooperation and long-term planning. Democracy should be based on responsibility, knowledge, experience and service to the common good. Candidates for political office and leadership positions should undergo a thorough pre-selection process that considers their expertise, education, experience, knowledge, prior contributions to society, ethical integrity, absence of criminal convictions, and ability to cooperate. Leading a community should not be a reward for ambition, visibility, or membership in a particular political party, but rather a responsible task entrusted to people who have shown they can act for the good of the whole.

Similarly, enterprise governance should also become more democratic. Companies would no longer be understood merely as private property intended to generate profit for their owners, but as an important part of the wider community. Therefore, employees, the local community and, where appropriate, the state should also have a greater role in their ownership and governance. Representatives of employees, owners, the local community, users or consumers, and the public interest could also participate in making key decisions within companies. Such an arrangement would prevent arbitrary decision-making, encourage accountability toward people and the environment, and ensure that companies serve the life of the community and invest in it, rather than merely accumulate profits.

With such an understanding of the economy, public services, which are the foundation of a dignified life, would also be strengthened. Healthcare, education, kindergartens, and care for the elderly should not depend on an individual’s wealth, the profitability of the market, or austerity measures, but should be universally accessible, of high quality, and well funded. These are not costs that burden society but rather common investments in health, knowledge, security, solidarity, and the future of all generations. A large share of workers who would no longer be needed in the manufacturing sector due to automation and robotisation could be redirected to these activities, where human closeness, care, compassion, and responsibility cannot be replaced by machines.

Cities, Security and Shared Life

The cities of the future would also be designed around people, not cars, profit and endless consumption. Public transport would be accessible, high-quality and free. Streets would be greener, safer, and friendlier for pedestrians, children, the elderly, and people with disabilities. Energy would come from clean sources. Housing policy would follow people’s needs, not market speculation and the spread of tourist accommodation. Cities would not merely be places of work and shopping but spaces for meeting, culture, learning, and shared life.

Security, too, should be understood more broadly. Security is not only the absence of crime or war. Security also means that a person knows they will not be hungry tomorrow; that illness will not push them into poverty; that a child can go to school; that an elderly person is not abandoned; that the community takes care of those in distress. In the narrower, conventional sense, police forces would ensure people’s safety within countries, while international security would be guaranteed by strengthened, truly shared United Nations forces. War would no longer be an acceptable means of resolving disputes.

The United Nations would become a true centre of global cooperation. Not as a global government, but as a forum in which all countries have a voice and can participate in achieving the common goals of humanity: the well-being of all people, the protection of the global environment, security and peace.

The Environment as Humanity’s Common Concern

In the society of the future, the environment would be understood as humanity’s common concern. Forests, the atmosphere, oceans, rivers, lakes, groundwater and fertile soil would not be treated primarily as economic resources to be exploited, but as the foundations of life on Earth. Their protection would not be left to individual countries, market interests or short-term political decisions, but would become the shared responsibility of all nations.

Special care would be devoted to forests, which protect the climate, soil, water and countless forms of life. The atmosphere would be understood as a common good that no one has the right to pollute to the detriment of others. Oceans would no longer be spaces of ruthless extraction, pollution and waste disposal, but a shared living environment on which the balance of the entire planet depends. Similarly, fresh water would become one of the most important common goods, for without clean water there is no health, no food, no dignified life and no peace.

Such an understanding of the environment would also transform the economy. Economic development should no longer mean the destruction of natural systems, but their restoration, protection and responsible use. Humanity should act as the guardian of the Earth, not as its owner. Only when we understand nature as our common home, and not merely as an economic resource, will we be able to speak of a truly secure and dignified future for all.

Global Sharing

One of the key foundations of such a future would be a system of global sharing of goods and resources. The world today has enough food, knowledge, technology and productive capacity for every person to live with dignity. The problem is not scarcity, but unjust distribution, selfish interests, greed and the absence of true cooperation among nations. A global system of sharing would enable surpluses of food, medicines, energy, knowledge, and other key resources to be directed to where they are lacking, especially in the event of natural disasters, droughts, floods, poor harvests, or other crises. Sharing would also take place at other levels: national, regional, local, in cities and communities. Yet global sharing is crucial to the common future of the great human family.

Such a system would not mean charity from the rich to the poor. It would mean the recognition that humanity is one community, one family, and that basic goods are the right of all. The Earth is not the property of individual states, corporations or a single generation. Its gifts are the common heritage of humanity. Common goods such as water, the atmosphere, oceans, seeds, knowledge, energy resources and technological achievements should be managed responsibly and for the benefit of all people and future generations.

Sufficiency Instead of Accumulation

At the heart of such a society would be the concept of sufficiency. Sufficiency means that at some point we can say, “We have enough.” Enough for a good life, though not necessarily for endless accumulation. Enough food, housing, security, health, education, culture, free time and human relationships. Sufficiency is not poverty, nor is it a renunciation of a good life. On the contrary, sufficiency is a condition for true prosperity, because it frees us from constant competition, comparison and fear of scarcity.

A vision of the future based on sharing and cooperation is therefore not an unrealistic utopia. It may be the most realistic response to the crises of our time. Climate change, wars, hunger, migration, inequality and social disintegration are not separate problems. They all arise from a mistaken understanding of our role in the world, of the commons and of humanity’s interdependence. If we continue to compete for resources, accumulate wealth and resolve disputes by force, we will only deepen the crises. But if we accept the principle of sharing, we will begin to heal their causes.

A Future for All

The future is not predetermined. It does not have to be dystopian. It can be more just, peaceful, creative and human. But such a future will not come about on its own. It must begin in our thinking, in our values, in politics, economics, education and everyday life. It must begin with the simple realisation that we are, first and foremost, human beings, members of one human family sharing the same planet.

That is why we may and must imagine a better future. Such a future is possible if, as humanity, we take a decisive step: from accumulation to sufficiency, from competition to cooperation, from greed to sharing. Perhaps this is where the simplest and at the same time the deepest wisdom of the future lies: the goods of the world are meant for all people. Only when we truly accept this will we be able to begin living as humanity.

Meditations on the sharing economy

1. The economy is a domain of society that must create the conditions necessary to meet everyone’s basic needs and ensure the well-being of humanity, including care for the environment. 

2. Basic human needs include food, clothing, housing, medical care, social services, and education. These are fundamental human rights. 

3. The commons of humanity is the foundation for the resources, goods, and services essential to meeting basic human needs and ensuring the well-being of humanity. They must be managed with care, responsibility, and sustainability. 

4. Commercialization, which encourages competitiveness, self-interest, greed, and complacency, dominates modern economic and social thinking. It contributes significantly to widening social disparities and deepening economic inequality. 

5. Global economic inequality lies at the heart of many interconnected crises humanity faces today, including hunger, poverty, migration, war, and the climate crisis. 

6. Sharing and cooperation stand in direct opposition to commercialization and form the foundational principles of the sharing economy. 

7. Charity cannot replace a just economic system. The sharing economy is based on justice, not charity. 

8. The sharing economy encompasses diverse sharing activities at different levels, with a particular focus on the global level. Its purpose is to meet the basic needs of all people, ensure the well-being of humanity, and protect the environment. 

9. Through the sharing economy, humanity can thrive in prosperity, mutual respect, and peace, united as one large family sharing a common home—planet Earth. 

10. The sharing economy marks the beginning of a profound inner and outer transformation of humanity, founded on right human relations. 

From the e-book: Meditations on the Sharing Economy

Above all nations is humanity

“Above all nations is humanity” is a thought associated with the British historian, political thinker and humanist Goldwin Smith (1823–1910), whose life and work were closely connected with Cornell University. Although his legacy is complex, this idea is remembered as a powerful expression of human solidarity beyond national borders. The words are carved into a stone bench in front of Goldwin Smith Hall on Cornell’s campus in the United States. The bench was given to the university by Smith in 1871, while the hall, named in his honour, was dedicated in 1906.

Its meaning is clear and timeless: above the interests of nations, states, and ideologies must stand humanity as the community of all people. It is a simple yet radical statement, emphasising that compassion, justice and responsibility towards all people must not be limited by national borders, but should form the foundation of our thinking and action.

In an age of increasingly self-centred international relations, the idea that humanity stands above all nations is crucial. Today, power and force often replace treaties, agreements and ethical principles. Although the United Nations, founded in 1945, set humanity on a course of cooperation and shared responsibility, these essential values are increasingly under threat.

The United Nations was created from the hard lessons of two world wars, which showed how national power, selfishness and the sense of superiority can lead to conflict and destruction. Today, policies that emphasise national greatness and exceptionalism risk repeating these mistakes. No nation rises above another. What matters most is our shared humanity.

Every person counts. Each is equal to every other. Everyone has the right to health, well-being, peace, justice and a healthy environment.

Today, the rise of selfishness, greed and violence threatens our common future.

Cooperation, sharing, and respect for every human being are essential for our common future, for above all nations stands humanity. We are human beings first, before we are members of any nation, state, religion, ethnic background, political group or other belief.

Sources: Nad vsemi narodi je človeštvo, Cornell Ezra Magazine, Cornell University Library Digital Collections.

Economy Is About People

When we speak about the economy, it often seems as if it is only about numbers: economic growth, inflation, income, taxes, and so on. Yet we should remember that the purpose of the economy is not numbers, indicators or growth in themselves. Its purpose is human life: people’s ability to survive and to live well.

The same is true of money. Money is not an end in itself. In essence, it represents what we can buy with it. First and foremost, this means the basic goods that enable us to survive and to live a decent life. Today, however, money is increasingly used to make even more money, especially through speculation. A large part of financial flows is therefore caught up in speculation, which mainly serves to enrich a small minority.

Economists, businesspeople and many others often say that there is no room in the economy for emotions such as compassion and love. Business, they argue, should be a matter of reason, free from unnecessary emotion. But is that really true? In reality, positive qualities such as compassion, altruism, goodwill and love are often neglected or denied in economic life, while negative forces such as greed, selfishness and envy often play a major role.

This is sometimes called “business as usual”, regardless of the human or social consequences. Yet with every economic decision, from those made by governments to those made by small companies, we should ask ourselves: what does this bring to people, to society as a whole, and to the environment? Does it bring good or harm?

This is the foundation of all human conduct. We face such questions constantly. Whether we do good or harm is always our choice, and we know our actions have consequences, whether good or bad. Why, then, do we not take this seriously when it comes to the economy?

If we produce guns, they will most likely be used. If we speculate with money, there will be a shortage of it somewhere else. If we hoard goods, they will be in short supply elsewhere. Economic decisions, whether personal, corporate or national, always have real consequences. Sometimes these consequences are very severe.

According to The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2025, between 638 and 720 million people faced hunger in 2024, representing 7.8 to 8.8 per cent of the world’s population. In addition, about 2.3 billion people, or 28 per cent of the world’s population, were moderately or severely food insecure.

These are real consequences of the economic decisions made by the most developed countries and large corporations. Indirectly, they are also connected with all of us who support or maintain such an unjust system, perhaps as consumers, employees or voters.

The economy, then, is not merely a game of numbers, money and “cold” business decisions. It is always about people, their survival and well-being, and the well-being of the planet as a whole. That is why the sharing economy offers a path towards the well-being of all, and with it, towards peace and the preservation of the environment.

 

Source: FAO, IFAD, UNICEF, WFP and WHO, The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2025.

Maitreya’s Priorities: Sharing as the Path to Justice and Peace

According to Share International, Maitreya’s priorities are focused on the essential needs of every human being: adequate food, housing for all, healthcare and education as universal rights, the restoration of the environment and the establishment of peace. At the heart of these priorities is a simple but far-reaching principle: a more equitable sharing of the world’s food, resources and technology. Share International summarises this message in the words attributed to Maitreya: “Without sharing there can be no justice; without justice there can be no peace; without peace there can be no future.”

This message is especially urgent today. Humanity faces a deep divide between those who have more than enough and those who lack even the basic necessities of life. Recent global data show that around 700 million people faced hunger in 2024. At the same time, billions lack access to safe water, sanitation, or adequate housing, and about 250 million children and young people remain out of school.

Share International presents this global inequality not only as a moral failure, but also as a danger to peace, social stability and the environment. A world based on competition, excessive consumption, and the blind pursuit of market forces cannot create balance or justice for all. Instead, it deepens social division, environmental destruction and insecurity.

The proposed answer is the principle of sharing. Sharing is not presented merely as charity, but as a new basis for economic life and international relations. It means recognising humanity as one family and accepting that the world’s resources should be used to meet the needs of all people, not only the interests of a privileged few.

According to Share International, Maitreya will call for a reordering of global economic priorities so that food, housing, healthcare and education become universal rights. This would also include protecting and healing the environment, and building economic systems based on sustainability and sufficiency rather than overproduction and waste.

Ultimately, Maitreya’s priorities place humanity before profit, cooperation before competition, and responsibility before indifference. The choice, as presented by Share International, is between continuing on a path of division and destruction, or accepting sharing as the foundation of a just, peaceful and sustainable civilisation.

Source: Share International, “Maitreya’s priorities.”

The Economy and Its Fundamental Task

The economy is a social field whose fundamental task is to create the conditions for meeting the basic needs of every individual and for the well-being of humanity, including care for the environment.

Just as politics is concerned with leading and organising society into a functioning whole, the economy is concerned with its material side. It creates the material conditions of life for individuals and society as a whole.

That is why politics and the economy are so important and closely connected. The life of each of us is strongly shaped by the way they function.

In a narrower sense, political and economic systems directly shape these two fields. They determine their institutions and political and economic relations.

Today’s economic system, supported by politics, creates great inequality: on the one hand, widespread poverty and hunger, and on the other, immense wealth for a small part of humanity. This inequality is one of the root causes of the world’s greatest problems: social conflicts, wars, migration, the climate crisis and more.

Political and economic systems are built by people. They therefore change in line with our values and beliefs. Of course, more powerful actors have greater influence, but it is still people who shape, accept and maintain a particular political and economic system.

This means that we can also change these systems, which is good news. The first change needed is a shift in the economic system, since it causes many of the world’s greatest problems and crises.

The economy must not be separated from human values such as compassion, care for others, solidarity, respect and, ultimately, love. We cannot simply separate it from life and say that it is merely business as usual.

We cannot be caring parents, loving partners, good friends and considerate neighbours, and then, in companies and corporations, destroy the environment, exploit people in poorer countries and undermine their economic systems through financial instruments. These things simply do not belong together.

The way we behave towards those closest to us should also guide our behaviour towards all other people, in politics, companies and other institutions. The economy should express the best in human beings, not the worst: selfishness, greed, competitiveness and hatred.

Therefore, the fundamental task of the economy can only be fulfilled through compassion, solidarity, respect for others and the capacity to express love. In practice, especially in the economic sphere, these human qualities are expressed as the sharing economy.

Maitreya: A Message for a World in Crisis

Amid widespread political, economic and social crisis, many people are seeking a new direction. Share International presents Maitreya as a response to this search, describing him as a central figure expected by several major religions under different names. 

Maitreya is not presented as the founder of a new religion, but as a teacher and guide for all people. His message, intended for everyone, calls on humanity to recognise itself as one family and to create a civilisation based on sharing, justice and global cooperation.

This message speaks directly to today’s persistent inequalities. Share International summarises Maitreya’s priorities as ensuring universal access to food, water, housing, healthcare and education, as well as the restoration of the environment.

Sharing is the central principle, not merely as charity, but as a foundation for organising human life, economics and international relations. A more just and equitable distribution of resources and technology could help humanity move towards peace, trust and balance. According to Share International, Maitreya’s role is to inspire humanity to take these steps and to create a more just and sane world for all.

Maitreya’s message is clear: humanity’s future depends on cooperation, sharing and meeting the needs of all people. It is not only a call to belief, but also a call to responsibility: to ensure that no one is deprived of life’s basic necessities and to recognise that the health of the planet and the well-being of humanity are inseparable.

Source: Share International, “Maitreya the World Teacher”