There is a growing list of things in which we have collectively under-invested:
Hospitals; Schools; Water; Energy (renewable generation, storage, transmission), Transport (public transport, roads, ports, airports, etc); Affordable Housing; Science & Technology (R&D), etc.
In many of these cases the under-investment is chronic.
This makes me wonder: where have we over-invested?
Likewise, we are increasingly faced with constraints caused by skills shortages.
We don’t have enough teachers, nurses, builders, engineers, etc.
So, what do we have too many of?
Any debate around these questions seems to quickly descend to the question of who and when. Normally it’s those currently responsible blaming those who were previously responsible for the decisions they made. Or those previously in power unironically asking those now in power why they haven’t fixed the inherited problems yet.
But I’m more interested in the why.
What are the structural things that cause these errors to be made? And, how can we change those things?
The best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago. The second best time to plant a tree is today.
