· 3 min read
This question lay at the heart of a recent encounter I will long remember, a conversation with Christine Lagarde, President of the European Central Bank. We met in the light of her office, in the light of the early spring in Frankfurt. And yet, beyond the view of the city, it was another kind of illumination that accompanied us: the quiet, steady light of dialogue.
More than an interview, it was a moment of human exchange, thoughtful, open, at times philosophical. We explored the current erosion of global cooperation, the dangerous step back from climate commitments, and the deep emotional disconnection we are witnessing in leadership.
President Lagarde, with her signature blend of clarity and grace, spoke candidly. “No delay, no dilute,” she affirmed, in reference to the urgency of climate action. Her reflections were grounded in realism, but also carried an unmistakable tone of ethical resolve. She also warned against the manipulation of emotions in politics, the weaponization of fear and grief for power. And yet, she also emphasized that without emotional intelligence, leadership cannot truly serve people. “You cannot lead,” she said, “without understanding the emotional reality of those you lead.”
This tension, between the necessity of reason and the power of feeling, is precisely the territory where the thinking of Edgar Morin becomes essential. His call for a Renewed Humanism is a call to reintegrate the full spectrum of human experience into our institutions, policies, and ways of relating to one another. Morin reminds us that we are not only rational beings; we are emotional, spiritual, and cultural beings, and that complexity must be honored, not reduced.
Our dialogue touched on multilateralism, the fragility and promise of shared governance, and the responsibility of institutions to evolve without losing their compass. She shared stories from her time at the IMF and ECB, and reflected on what it means to hold firm to principles even as the world shifts. We spoke about China’s “shared community of destiny” and its surprising resonance with Morin’s own vision of interconnected futures, a subtle reminder that wisdom often echoes across cultures, even when politics divide us.
Underlying our exchange was a deeper recognition: that global leadership today must be more than strategic, it must be courageous and human. As President Lagarde reminded me, quoting Churchill: “It is better to jaw-jaw than to war-war.” But talk alone is not enough. We need sacred spaces for honest, intergenerational, intercultural dialogue, spaces where power listens, and where imagination is not a weakness, but a tool for survival.
This is what we are building with the World Humanism Forum, and what I hope to spark with the upcoming publication of Dear Edgar: A Renewed Humanism. Ours are invitations to reconnect what has been fragmented, to find language for complexity, and to rekindle a sense of shared responsibility in a time of great uncertainty.
"Leadership begins where empathy meets courage." Christine Lagarde
"To build a better world, we must first dare to imagine it, together." Edgar Morin
"In times of rupture, it is humanism, not fear, that must become our compass." Claudio Pedretti
This article is also published on LinkedIn. illuminem Voices is a democratic space presenting the thoughts and opinions of leading Sustainability & Energy writers, their opinions do not necessarily represent those of illuminem.
