More than a list: The Grand Challenges Approach and legitimate agents of
social change
Abstract
In this paper we ask who is a legitimate agent of social change for
Grand Challenges. To answer this question, we build on the philosophies
of Hannah Arendt, Friedrich Nietzsche, Maurice Blanchot and Emmanuel
Levinas on the human condition. This is important in sensitizing the
project management community to the political responsibility of the
project manager at times of crises and Grand Challenges, when new social
orders, such as the Grand Challenges Approach (GCA), emerge and are
delivered through projects. We introduce philosophers who have spoken
about the human condition a) to escape definitions of legitimacy which
have arisen from the very social processes and institutions which
contribute to social injustices; and, b) because we all share the human
condition irrespective of origin, religion, race, gender, education and
life experiences, and as such it carries significant democratic
potential. The philosophers tell us that an agent of social change is
s/he who acts with the Other as the end goal in mind, and that
legitimate is the social agent who appears in front of the watchful eye
of society and fully discloses past, present and future intentions
(Arendt); who can embody meaning and make decisions based on their
humanity (Nietzsche); who can echo ideals which extend thought,
intelligence, decisions and actions from what is already known to the
creation of new spaces of action (Blanchot); and, finally, who can stand
upright and engage with fellow-world-citizens in defining what is to be
known, the reality of tomorrow (Levinas).