On September 23, 2025, the legendary Explorers Club in New York City became the launching pad for an ambitious global movement. Against the backdrop of a venue steeped in the history of human discovery—where expeditions to the poles, the deepest oceans, and highest peaks have been planned—a new kind of exploration began: charting a course toward planetary hope.
The evening marked the U.S. launch of Hope for Life on Our Planet: Inspiration for Seven Generations, a landmark volume bringing together more than sixty of the world’s most visionary voices. From Nobel laureates to business pioneers, scientists to artists, the book reframes hope not as wishful thinking, but as actionable strategy for humanity’s survival and flourishing. The book includes a chapter by Global Security Institute President, Jonathan Granoff, titled “Wellbeing of Future Generations as We Wish to Be Treated.”
Voices of Wisdom and Action
Jane Goodall, a longtime supporter and advocate of the work of the Global Security Institute, opened the evening with her characteristic blend of warmth and urgency, setting the tone for an event that would bridge multiple worlds. Narges Mohammadi, the imprisoned Iranian human rights leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, contributed her powerful perspective on resilience under oppression. Hans Vestberg, Chairman and CEO of Verizon, delivered opening remarks connecting digital infrastructure to human possibility. The foreword of the book was written by Global Security Institute Advisory Board Member Oscar Arias, a Nobel Peace Laureate and former President of Costa Rica.
Vidar Helgesen, Executive Secretary of UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, spoke to ocean health as planetary imperative. Robert Swan, the first person to walk to both poles, shared firsthand observations of climate transformation. Lord John Browne addressed energy transition from his position as Chairman of Beyond Net Zero, while Robert Thurman, father of actress Uma Thurman, offered Buddhist philosophical perspectives on interconnectedness.
Academy Award-winning actor and UN Messenger of Peace Michael Douglas lent his voice to the cause, alongside Explorers Club President Richard Wiese, who welcomed guests to this historic venue of discovery.
Seven Generations Forward
The book’s title invokes the Indigenous principle of considering impacts seven generations into the future—roughly 140 years. This long-term thinking challenges the quarterly earnings mentality dominating modern decision-making. Osvald Bjelland, Founder and Chairman of the Origination Foundation, explained HOPE’s founding vision: that humanity possesses both the knowledge and means to secure our planetary home, if only we can marshal collective will.
Leonard Levie, Chairman of AIAC and the Explorers Club’s Trustee and Poet Laureate, offered a poem dedicated to this intergenerational commitment, reminding attendees that hope requires both vision and verse, data and dreams.
Moderated by Lyndsay Howard, Senior Advisor at Bloomberg News, the panel explored how biodiversity conservation connects to boardroom decisions, how human rights intertwine with digital connectivity, and how polar ice loss demands energy transformation. The evening demonstrated that hope, properly understood, becomes strategy—a roadmap from crisis to regeneration.
As the event concluded, participants left with renewed conviction: the tools for planetary healing exist. What remains is building the trust, cooperation, and shared commitment to deploy them across borders, sectors, and generations.
The Global Security Institute is dedicated to strengthening international peace and security based on co-operation, diplomacy, shared interests, the rule of law and universal values. Our efforts are guided by the skills and commitment of our team of former heads of state, distinguished diplomats and politicians, celebrities, religious leaders, Nobel Peace Laureates, disarmament and legal experts, and concerned informed citizens. Our focus is on controlling and eliminating humanity’s greatest threat – nuclear weapons.
