The Great Reset: A new world order or real call for reform?

Here’s a new term that’s been floating around all corners of the internet: the “great reset.”

It has been used by a wide swath of people including Prince Charles, members of the Canadian Conservative Party, and conspiracy theorists alike. The term was first used at the World Economic Forum (WEF) conference, where a kind of global COVID-19 recovery plan was proposed. However, conspiracy theorists have since used the “great reset” as so-called evidence for the absurd notion that global elites are staging a socialist takeover of the world.

The “great reset” may be a flashy and provocative term, but the ideas behind it are nothing new. It’s not the beginning of a new world order, it’s a vague and modest call for social and environmental reform — two concepts that we all need to get behind.

At a WEF virtual meeting, Prince Charles laid out a five point plan for a global economic recovery that is focused on sustainability. He said that the post-pandemic world presented “a unique but rapidly shrinking window of opportunity to learn lessons and reset ourselves on a more sustainable path.”

Besides advocating for carbon pricing, the proposal focused primarily on the private sector; it called on businesses to change lanes and focus on livelihoods and the environment instead of purely profit and growth in the post-pandemic landscape. Far from socialist, it looked to innovation, technology and investment for solutions. The WEF has since launched the Great Reset Initiative.

Justin Trudeau too, became a target for conspiracy theorists after his address to the UN, when he used the word “reset.” Trudeau was describing plans to “re-imagine economic systems that actually address global challenges like extreme poverty, inequality and climate change.”

The accusation that Trudeau is in on some kind of global takeover was escalated by Conservative MP Pierre Poilievre. In response to Trudeau’s COVID-19 recovery plans, Poilievre created a YouTube video that claims Trudeau plans to take advantage of the crisis to create a socialist worldview. It appeals to far right conspiracy theorists and the comment section has attracted a truly scary side of YouTube. He also created a petition titled STOP THE GREAT RESET, adding that “Canadians must fight back against global elites preying on the fears and desperation of people to impose their power grab.” Poilievre is flirting with the far right and there should be no tolerance for a Member of Parliament blatantly spreading this misinformation. 

Trudeau and Prince Charles had a conversation about each of their recovery initiatives and the global fight against climate change. While the two of them are arguably out of touch elites, the idea that they have a secret socialist agenda is laughable. Additionally, Trudeau has a tendency to overpromise and underdeliver. Any notions that these discussions will lead to radical change are likely out of touch.

The “great reset” echoes what has been said in the public sphere by all kinds of world leaders. Similar to Trudeau’s promise to reimagine the economy, “build back better” is a slogan being used by both Joe Biden and Boris Johnson for their proposed COVID recovery plans. While most of these plans lack specifics and for many the focus has shifted to a second wave, it’s actually encouraging to see so many world leaders on the same page.

When this crisis subsides, many are hoping there will be an opportunity to address multiple things at once, whether that be social inequality, the environment, or unsustainable economies. This idea of building back better, in a broad, global sense is necessary as this pandemic has revealed that the current nature of global capitalism is not sustainable. These issues being addressed in the “great reset” of environmentalism and social inequality are fundamentally global issues that need to be addressed as such.

These issues, including the pandemic itself, cannot be solved without a world-wide effort and it is becoming increasingly clear that a “great reset” is exactly what the world needs.