When everything is in short supply.

Just when the world was recovering a little bit from the Covid pandemic, the terrible war in Ukraine started with the additional tensions and financial consequences for the rest of the EU. The world is once again on fire. “Suddenly” there is an apparent shortage of everything: raw materials, machines and people!

However, there is something to be said about that "suddenly". For decades, let me just address the EU and NL, the government and society have lived as if growth and globalisation would never come to an end. Under the guise of distributing wealth around the world, the main focus, with some good-natured exceptions, was on where the raw materials and products could be produced and bought the cheapest; thus, making the most money. Our consumerism and throw-away behavior contributed to this and was nourished by it at the same time.

But the Covid pandemic and now the war in Ukraine shows us clearly how much we have become dependent on other producing countries; as long as those countries are reliable and stable that's not a problem, but there are countries that use that dependency in the geopolitical relationships. The EU recognises this and, through trial and error, is trying to do something about it with increasing production in the region, better internal collaboration and a less naive “foreign” policy. Whether it's all wise, I don't know either; I have my own opinions on that, but am fully aware that I don’t have the answers.

The shortage of people did not suddenly arise either: "we" have known for more than 20 years that around 2021 (Corona has masked it for a year) huge shortages of personnel would arise; simply by looking at the aging and dejuvenation I could draw the graphs already some 10 years ago. But the companies and the government have (knowingly?) looked away all these years, a long-term vision is only there for 3-4 years anyway and managers come and go; as an example, even until 2020 there were all kinds of reorganisations with lay-offs and difficult negotiations on collective agreements.

But times have changed!

Well, my opinion (and I hope I have a correct expression for my Dutch one) happens to be “Necessity is the mother of invention” and my view is that if needed humanity is capable of great things. You saw this, for example, in the development of the Covid19 vaccine; where people in Africa, among others, had to wait more than 5 years for vaccines for Ebola and Malaria (and also for the first two Corona viruses!), the vaccines for Covid19 were developed and rolled out within 2 years... fantastic, but it makes you think.

What could this mean for the various crises? We currently have so many that it is almost overwhelming, but they need to be addressed. Analytical as I am, a number of project management words immediately pop up: inventorise, inclusive/diverse, cohesive definition, focus/priority, leadership, collaboration, step-by-step, broad and social support, investing, training, implementing, adjusting/ flexibility and communication.... Not necessarily in this order.

Just some reflections:
What to do in Ukraine I leave to the Ukrainians (and experts), I only sincerely hope for them that it will soon be over, in the meantime supporting them as much as we can. Perhaps, for those willing and able, by training them in those fields that are crucial for the rebuilding and reconstruction (in all areas) of their country in combination with (temporarily) working in the EU.
For those with the lowest income who often live in poorly maintained social housing, provide not only additional financial support, but also give training opportunities and perhaps prioritise this group first in making their homes more sustainable? Or 'stimulate' housing associations and private owners to make sustainable improvements?
Instead of forcing everyone (in NL) to implement a hybrid heat pump in 2026, which may be an outdated technique by then, perhaps more focus in the short term should be on the fast increase of temporarily (!) mobile wind and solar parks (on farms?) until we have a better view on which sustainable techniques are the most optimal for the long term (electrification, hydrogen?).
Globalisation, which has made the world outside the Netherlands more accessible, has also created a sort of “race-to-the bottom”. Good examples are (Dutch national airport) Schiphol with its quantity-over-quality approach and as a result underpaid and overworked employees, the years of low wages, for example in healthcare and the police; and I can well remember how years ago the cleaning lady in our company with red cheeks used to race through our offices because she had only a limited time per room to clean and was not even allowed to lift an ashtray to clean under it. I am certain that people suffered personally (high sick leave), but the visible chaos and social pressure has finally made Schiphol realise that Quality must come before Quantity. Perhaps Airport Schiphol (in combination with airports Lelystad, Eelde, Twente, Eindhoven and Maastricht) needs to focus on becoming the greenest hub airport of the world, with government investments in for example, what new developments show is possible, hydrogen-powered aircraft (less noise pollution, reduction of nitrogen and particulate matter emissions).
With the sharp rise in raw material prices, not only energy costs are increasing, but more and more also the prices of food, equipment and (construction) materials. In addition to research on biopolymers, can we perhaps also do something positive with that mountain-high mass of plastics that have already been produced in the past decades? Recycling today seems to be limited to optimising separation, adding a (small) part to virgin material, reuse in less demanding applications or incineration (with all the associated environmental consequences). Are there perhaps “greener” and low-energy requiring routes to break down the polymers using bacteria and amplified “weather conditions”? Should the government invest in those universities that conduct research into this?

I also am happy with our new Minister of Education, Culture and Science Robbert Dijkgraaf, who, perhaps due to his scientific character and background, foremostly thinks and speaks in terms of strength and possibility in response to the weaknesses and threats.
He thus inspires the new (and older) generation to not do the potentially harmful things less or not at all, but instead encourages to do things really differently (in the short and long term).
That is rethinking (think again!), or in good old Dutch culture: making a virtue of necessity!

But that also requires that we put our heads together, communicate, collaborate, think less politically, become divers inclusive, understand each other and not judge, because we have come this far together and we must and can shape the future together.