Professor Rajmohan Gandhi of India, who started his term of office as the new President of Initiatives of Change International on January 1st, writes the following new year message: 

It is with joy, high expectations and a little trepidation that I begin my service as President of IofC-International.

To follow in the footsteps of my predecessors as President, Cornelio Sommaruga and Mohammed Sahnoun, is daunting. They have brought expansive hearts, penetrative minds, a network of influential friends, and a large spirit to their role. I thank them.

The world may be at a watershed moment in its history. The global financial crisis, renewed conflict in the Middle East, climate change, and natural and man-made disasters in Africa and elsewhere, bring grave suffering to countless millions and leave few of us untouched. At times out modern world seems on the brink of breakdown.

Our good fortune is to know that humanity's extremity can be a moment of great opportunity. Renewed awareness of the cost of greed and corruption can inspire new honesty and unselfishness in each of us. Our propensity to demonise 'the other' can give way to fresh compassion. The failure of small and short-term thinking can strengthen our resolve to see the larger picture and take the longer view.

President Obama has awakened hope in the hearts of many worldwide. America, which has provided a home for my wife Usha and me for the last several years, could yet play a reconciling role in the world. We should do all we can to support its re-emerging sense of responsibility and service.

Initiatives of Change is prepared by its history and values to make a contribution at this moment. It will do so not from a position of human strength, nor by seeking recognition or status, but through humbly pointing towards, and responding to, the timeless wisdom which has always been available to guide anyone willing to listen and act.

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