I’m a recovering ambassador, now running an Oxford college. After almost 25 years in diplomacy, including working in no 10 for three prime ministers, I realised that education is upstream diplomacy. If we are to find a way through the challenges ahead – from climate change to pandemics and economic crisis to artificial intelligence – we must act, urgently, to upgrade why, what, and how we learn. I set out to ask hundreds of the most inspirational people on the planet what they wished they had known, and what they would share with the next generation if this was their last day.
I wrote...
Ten Survival Skills for a World in Flux
By
Tom Fletcher
What is my book about?
A handbook on what we need to survive and thrive in a time of fragility and change. Head, hand, and heart: essential knowledge, skills, and values. How do we not just navigate this unstable moment, but take the practical steps to become great ancestors?
When you buy a book we may earn a small commission.
The Books I Picked & Why
Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind
By
Yuval Noah Harari
Why this book?
This is the most extraordinary repackaging of what we know of our shared history. It helps us understand the journey we have made from cave paintings to the driverless car, and the ingenuity and creativity that we must marshall once again if we are to ensure that the tech works for us, not the other way round. It is humbling and uplifting.
When you buy a book we may earn a small commission.
The Silk Roads: A New History of the World
By
Peter Frankopan
Why this book?
This is one of those books that you come back to again and again. Most of us learn a history of the wars that our country happened to win, rather than how we learnt to live together between those conflicts. I asked students in 16 countries to work out what was missing from their education. All identified a sense of global history. This book is the answer to that need.
When you buy a book we may earn a small commission.
Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln
By
Doris Kearns Goodwin
Why this book?
The book on leadership, character, and resilience. And a reminder both that we have navigated similar moments of peril and uncertainty, and that individual humans have an agency to shape the world around them in better ways. History hasn’t ended, and we badly need leaders who can combine intellect with emotional intelligence.
When you buy a book we may earn a small commission.
Letters to a Young Muslim
By
Omar Saif Ghobash
Why this book?
In this gently articulated yet profoundly challenging book, Omar offers advice to his son and reflects on the assassination of his father. He challenges us about the dangers of certainty and the importance of liberty of thought and speech. “I want you to beware of anyone who tells you, with utter conviction, what you should think.” The letters are to his son, but the contents are great truths for all of us.
When you buy a book we may earn a small commission.
This Is Shakespeare
By
Emma Smith
Why this book?
A book of immense humanity and authenticity, which reminds us of how the great themes of great literature and art can offer solace and guidance in moments of fragility. By helping us go back to Shakespeare with less insecurity or baggage, the book opens up new perspectives on how others have grappled with these questions about how to be human. And it reminds us that we are allowed to question, challenge, and have fun.