“In a (Too) Connected World, How Do We Stay Human?”

Today's world — a world where, although we are “connected” at every moment, more and more people feel disconnected from what truly matters.

We live in an age of paradox. Communication has reached unimaginable levels—unthinkable just a few decades ago. We can send a message anywhere in the world within seconds. We can follow the lives of hundreds, even thousands of people at once. And yet…

We feel more alone than ever. More isolated. More afraid. Why?

Technology has brought us physically closer, but emotionally further apart. Paradoxically, the more our ability to communicate grows, the more depth of understanding seems to shrink. We find ourselves caught in quick reactions and fleeting validation. We live in digital bubbles that give us the illusion of community, but take us away from diversity of thought, from real empathy, from true connection.

People no longer really listen — they wait for their turn to speak. Instead of dialogue, we have parallel monologues. Everything moves so fast, there’s no time left for reflection.

We live in a society that constantly pushes us towards performance, success, image. At the same time, we are confronted with a constantly changing world - economic uncertainty, conflicts and wars (hybrid, economic or military), crises of meaning. In this avalanche, it is easy to fall prey to fear. Fear of the future, of failure, of others. We close in on ourselves, in small circles where we feel we are in control, but lose touch with the broad and complex reality of humanity.

I do not claim to have the truth. I don't want to lecture. But I need to say something simple: we need to be human. With all that that word implies - rights and responsibilities, joys and sorrows, successes and failures.

We need to learn to listen again. To respect. To criticize excesses, extremes, violence, greed and thirst for power at any cost. To cultivate common sense. To accept that being wrong is part of the journey, that vulnerability is not weakness but pure humanity.

We need to condemn extremes - be they ideological, social or moral. To say no to violence in any form, to greed, to the desire for power at any price. To rediscover simple but essential values: common sense, empathy, balance, decency.

Being human is both light and shadow. Successes and mistakes. Rights and freedoms, but also responsibilities. It is not easy, but it is the only true path to a meaningful life.

I write these lines not to 'teach others', but because I, like many of you, am trying to understand what is happening. I want a world in which respect and balance return to core values. A world where we can speak honestly, without fear, without masks.

It may sound naive. But maybe naivety is the antidote to the cynicism that surrounds us.