Short-term thinking is creating long-term problems

Australia is doing well on many fronts, whether compared with other countries or our own history. At the same time, we are trapped in a state of akrasia – knowing what to do in our best interests but steadfastly refusing to do so. In other words, short-termism.

We have abundant fossil fuel and plentiful solar, wind and tidal resources. Why aren’t we leading the world in creating new energy-efficient industries and jobs? Why are we still distracted by a pointless – and outdated – fight between coal and renewables?

We know where the population is growing and where people need to get from and to. Why do we let congestion waste about $20 billion a year in our capital cities alone?

We’re one of the richest countries on Earth with a great healthcare system. Why do we continue to spend more than a third of the combined federal and state health budgets on treating preventable chronic illness like obesity and diabetes?

Why aren't we leading the world in solar energy?Credit: Paul Rovere

It’s easy to rail against the “system” but that doesn’t help. Each of us has a part to play in addressing the problems and finding the solutions. For that to happen, we need leaders, institutions and individuals everywhere to have the courage to speak out – think Rosie Batty on domestic violence and Alan Joyce on marriage equality.

We need humility to trial solutions with no guarantee of success. Think CareerTrackers, which is creating internship opportunities for Indigenous university students; the Greater Shepparton Lighthouse Project, which is working with young people on job opportunities; or the South Australian government with its approach to renewable energy. And we need to bring down the pressure a little, giving others the permission, time and space to fix things.

Why do we let congestion waste around $20 billion a year in our capital cities alone?Credit: AFR

It’s no wonder people feel that no one person can make a difference and that if they try to suggest a solution, they’ll be shouted down. People everywhere feel trapped in a system that prevents them from doing what they believe is best for the future, and they feel powerless to reshape the system. While this might feel dispiriting, solutions are both possible and already being created.

After a career in the private sector and international public policy, living and working in dozens of countries around the world, I started the Australian Futures Project seven years ago to try to understand the reasons for Australia’s short-termism, and to find ways of addressing it. To that end, I've met more than 1000 leaders across Australian society to work out ways to end this logjam while  ensuring Australia’s continued prosperity. I’ve spoken with politicians, public servants, community leaders, chief executives, heads of think tanks and charities, vice-chancellors and academics, and senior editors, journalists and opinion makers.

I asked four questions. Is there really a problem with short-termism in Australia? The response was a unanimous yes. Is this problem any different from other times in Australia’s 230-year history? Yes, again. It’s the worst in living memory. What can be done about it? Only 2 per cent of the leaders I spoke to had concrete suggestions. You read that right: only about 20 of the 1000 leaders had tangible ideas.

There’s no one simple fix. Improvement will come from a messy mix of immediate gains in specific parts of the system, slow system-wide changes, and some failure along the way. It will involve work from the top-down (government, big business, established civil society organisations) as well as the bottom-up (grassroots action and engaging the public at large). Patience and tenacity are required.

It’s almost 120 years since the ground rules for Australia were set at Federation. The world has changed dramatically and Australia’s system for making important decisions hasn’t kept up. It’s like there’s a bunch of new hardware and software but Australia hasn’t updated its operating system.

While some people have taken advantage of this weakness and hacked the system, in other cases it’s just not working as well as it could. The system needs some updates. It’s time for Federation 2.0. A new Commonwealth integrity commission and reforms to the rules around lobbying and political donations are important steps. What if we went further?

Could we unleash a wave of collective purpose, contribution and accountability by setting “national challenges” under which tax would be reduced if Australians collectively reached certain goals? For example, if we reduced obesity and diabetes by enough to save $10 billion a year from the health budget, personal income tax would be reduced by $10 billion annually.

Imagine if the prime minister and opposition leader each gave a state-of-the-nation speech every year explaining their party’s vision, how their policies and actions aligned with the public’s aspirations and values, and why they’d have to make compromises.

What would happen if Australia’s state and federal governments agreed on five big long-term issues, set collective targets spanning elections, provided incentives to reach them and reported on progress every year?

Imagine if we made it easier for companies to balance maximising shareholder value with solving society’s big issues? Would that make it easier for corporations to build new capabilities to serve society? And for individuals (employees, customers, suppliers, investors) to hold corporations and their leaders accountable?

What if every school kid looked forward to their weekly civics class? What if they knew what to expect from their government and democracy, understood their own role as citizens, and had the courage and capability to contribute to the ongoing improvement of the system?

There’s no benevolent dictator coming to save us. We created the system. We own the system. Together, each of us can shape it to serve us for the decades to come. What’s your role?

Ralph Ashton is executive director of the Australian Futures Project, a non-profit, non-partisan organisation dedicated to ending short-termism in Australia.