At the start of the new year, a feeling of helplessness can overcome us.

In Switzerland, the tragic events in Crans-Montana confront us with the unspeakable: the arbitrary death of forty young lives. On the international scene, the kidnapping of Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela is a brutal reminder of the extent to which international relations are still often governed by the law of the strongest, the greed of the dollar and oil. Finally, in the United States, the convergence between the nationalist populism of the MAGA and the technological empires – which intend to run the state like a business – is undermining the rule of law and threatening democracy.

Today, international law, solidarity and respect for the living world often seem to go unheard in the spheres of power, public discourse and the media.

The risks of lucidity without horizon

But if we stop at this observation alone, lucidity can become a trap. It can feed anxiety and paralysis, fear and denial, or anger that drives us to action – certainly – but not always the right or most effective one.

Clear-sighted optimism

This is where lucid optimism comes in. By optimism, at The Hub of Possibilities, we mean neither naivety nor denial, but a demanding, committed stance. This posture invites us to :

• Remember that what is lacking today is not information – we are saturated with it – but visions of the future capable of reopening the field of the possible.
• Recognize that the future is not written. Any projection of the future is a fiction. The question then becomes: what fiction do we want to support? What direction do we want our collective commitment to take?
• Admit that the future depends on our individual and collectivechoices. The future is made. This means cultivating the courage of commitment, even when we’re only a minority defending a different future. But here’s the good news: even if you’re part of a minority, you’re not alone, nor are you powerless …. because change has always started with a minority.
• Choosing to pay attention to the weak signals of change, here and now. Because what we pay attention to exists, is reinforced and spread.

How can we take concrete action?

Taking action means building a vision – individually and collectively – of where we want to go. Then it means showing that solutions already exist. Finally, it means moving forward step by step to help them grow, support them and mobilize around them. And it means celebrating our successes – not just analyzing our failures.

Let’s take an example.

In the podcast “2040, j’y vais!”, which I host for Hub des possibles, I met Bruno Rossignol, head of catering and food at EPFL.

EPFL serves over 6,500 meals a day in 34 restaurants. On his arrival, Bruno Rossignol was given a clear challenge: to comply with the Paris agreements by 2030, and thus move towards a zero-carbon diet. He set about this task without grand declarations, but with rigor, method and determination.

It starts by listening to the people who are primarily concerned: students. Contrary to popular belief, many of them express their weariness with fatty, ultra-processed, over-salted or sugary food – energetically deceptive and not very conducive to concentration. Then, by mobilizing EPFL laboratories, he set up smart garbage cans to precisely analyze food waste. Finally, nearly 7,000 products are monitored: origin, production method, packaging, weight of ingredients, menu composition in some 30 restaurants.

The study also reveals what influences food choices: replacing the word “vegetarian” with more appetizing descriptions, or adjusting the price of meat dishes, significantly alters behavior. These data make it possible to set a clear course: consume local and seasonal produce, reduce meat consumption and cut down on waste.

The results are unequivocal. By 2025, EPFL will offer 60% vegetarian menus; 100% of food will be local and seasonal, including in vending machines. The target for 2030 is to go from 6.2 kg to 2.5 kg of CO₂ equivalent per kilo of food.

This example shows that change, even on a large scale, is possible. And can be desirable, if it follows the right paths.

What we give our attention to grows

At the Hub of Possibilities, in 2026, we invite you to open your eyes to everything that’s emerging. To everything that nurtures dialogue, democracy, the rule of law, the regenerative economy and innovation for the common good. We invite you to pay more attention to your sphere of influence, and to take concrete, step-by-step steps towards building tomorrow’s world. And even if yesterday’s world, based on violence and extraction – even predation – takes up a lot of space, it’s also a call to become more powerful in doing things differently.

Projects, companies and movements already exist in French-speaking Switzerland. They enable us to cultivate joy and strengthen our power to act – even in difficult times. So let’s take care of them! And let’s take care of each other!

Chantal Peyer
Co-founder of Hub des possibles
Host of the podcast “2040, j’y vais!”