By Marco C. Janssen, UTInnovation, the Netherlands
With what is happening around the world these days, I was not able to enjoy the current sporting events that much.
With the tennis tournaments of Roland Garros and Wimbledon, the UEFA European Football Championship, the Conmebol Copa America, the Tour de France, the Formula 1 and the Olympic Games, 2024 is a true sports year and typically this would be one of the main things for me to write about.
However, this year is different for me.
With what happened during the Venezuelan elections, the soap opera surrounding the American elections, the war in Ukraine continuing, the war in Gaza raging on, the immigration crisis in Europe and many more small and larger events, I am not able to enjoy the sporting events that much.
The big question for me is where all this unrest and instability is leading us?
Is it a temporary hick-up and will we go back to the relative peace we have enjoyed for decades, or will the instability lead to a fundamental shift in power and are we facing major global instability?
I do not worry so much for myself as I have been leading a comfortable life and I had a chance to enjoy many of the benefits of visiting many countries, engaging with different cultures, learning, educating and enhancing my views of the world and us humans.
What I am worried about is the generations that come after me and their future.
As of one year, I am a proud grandfather, and it is my grandson Yannick that I think about. This column is for him as I wonder whether he will have the relative peace that my generation has enjoyed, and will he be able to explore the world freely as I have done?
These are questions at an individual level, yet the answer is created by the powers at play at a global level.
The politicians, the captains of industry, the puppet masters that decide what happens on the global stage. Their actions and behaviors will determine whether the world will be plunged into disaster and turmoil, or will remain a relatively stable and peaceful place, even though it has many flaws and issues.
In the end I think that the people that are pulling the strings also have a family and, I hope, a conscience towards the ones they love.
I truly hope that this love will help them to take the right decisions for humanity to prosper and people to live in relative harmony and peace.
I am not being naive as I understand that we all get upset and angry at times, but what we do with these emotions will determine whether we will end up fighting or continue to talk and look for solutions in harmony.
Thus, for the sake of my grandson, I hope that we can keep talking and are able to return to a more peaceful world for all humanity to prosper in.
Biography:
Marco C. Janssen is the CEO of UTInnovation and the former VP of Operational Excellence at TAQA, Digital Grid Leader for Latin America at EY and Director of the Smart Grid PMO at DEWA. He received his BSc degree in Electrical Engineering from the Polytechnic in Arnhem, Netherlands and has worked for over 33 years in the field of Power and Water O&M, Digital Transformation, Protection, AMI and Distribution and Substation Automation. He was a member of IEC TC57 WG 10, 17, 18, 19, the IEEE PES PSRC and CIGRE B5 and D2 WGs. He was the convenor of D2.35 and editor of the Quality Assurance Program for the Testing Subcommittee of the UCA International Users Group. He holds one patent, is the author of the book titled “Recreating the Power Grid”, has authored more than 53 papers, is co-author of 4 Cigre Technical Brochures and 2 books on SmartGrids and Electrical Power Substations Engineering and is the author of the “I Think” column in the PAC World magazine.
