We Are Not Prepared
We live in the most technologically advanced age in human history. We can automate industries, edit genomes, communicate across continents in milliseconds… and yet, on the most basic elements of security and survival, our societies remain astonishingly unprepared.
Two blind spots worry me deeply: first aid, and the consequences of a major power outage.
1. First aid should be universal — but it isn’t
It seems obvious to me that first aid should be part of the essential education every human receives. Not once. Not at age 15. Not “if you have have time.” But throughout life:
- at age 5: the first simple gestures
- at age 10: major update
- before 30: adult protocols
- between 40 and 60: refresher courses
These are not professional skills. These are basic survival gestures that save lives — within families, in the street, at school, at work. And yet, toward the end of 2025, the overwhelming majority of the population would not know what to do in an emergency. It is an enormous failure for a society that claims to be advanced.
2. Our unpreparedness for a large-scale power outage is terrifying
Take Europe: 450 million people. Now imagine a massive power outage where everything stops: traffic lights, elevators, water pumps, heating, telecom networks, refrigeration, payment systems, and basic communication.
We have built a civilisation entirely dependent on electricity — yet 99% of us have absolutely no idea what to do if it disappears for 24 hours. Panic would be unimaginable. Systems would break down instantly.
I live in Switzerland, a country known for its organisation and foresight. I looked for official guidance. One of the rare resources is this page from the Canton of Valais: https://www.vs.ch/web/sscm/catastrophes. It is useful — but painfully insufficient.
This is not a Swiss problem. It is the same everywhere: local, regional, national, continental, global. We are not prepared.
If a large outage happens, the panic will be unimaginable. Communication will collapse, and we will suddenly realise how fragile everything is. This is not a technical issue. It is a cultural one.
We need artists, filmmakers, authors, musicians — voices that can wake us up. We need politicians to take this seriously. We need schools to teach it. We need families to discuss it.
I love technology. I am hyper-connected. But precisely because I understand it quite well, I can also see how dangerously dependent we have become. It is time to stop pretending everything is fine.