[WATCH] Ubuntu and combining morality with technology with Her Majesty Queen Diambi at AIBC UAE 2022

Moderated by the excellent Dustin Plantholt, Her Royal Highness Queen Diambi addresses AIBC’s community about the need to focus on the “why” behind technological sophistication rather than solely on the “how”

The outspoken activist Martin Luther King Jr once feared that, as a civilization, our technological power had superseded our wisdom to use it. Looking at the sheer power at our fingertips and our failure to utilize its full potential for good, he argued that

We have guided missiles and misguided men.

As technological sophistication is matched with deepening income disparity, environmental degradation and a worsening geo-political climate, Her Majesty Queen Diambi argues that the main tool that betters the welfare of people globally is kindness.

When we talk about kindness, the most valuable currency is love. We can continue talking about other currencies and fiat but we need to realize that these are only tools in order for us to better our lives.

Dustin then illustrated her point through a quote from the Buddha that stated that an act of kindness was a gentle way to shake the world.

Through the invitation of Dustin, Her Majesty Queen Diambi then reflects on the role that she had in the telling of Africa’s story especially now when emerging tech was set to have an enormous impact on the continent as a whole.

Sometimes we forget that wisdom should be in the midst of our creation and wisdom requires us to be selfless… Africa has a lot to offer. Not many people know Africa well since for many centuries there’s been a blackout or omerta on African history.

Elaborating on the continent’s contributions to the world of science, H.M. Queen Diambi has personally researched the multi-faceted and complex history of the African people with her noting that many interesting and even crucial discoveries were provided by African minds through African thought.

Many people don’t know that in Africa, the Congo specifically, we had been doing mathematics for 25 thousand years. Another amazing work from Africa was the foundation of information technology with the binary code coming out of Africa. Many discoveries in science, mathematics, trigonometry, arithmetic, medicine and technology that came from Africa are yet to be given credit to.

Reflecting on the fact that humanity has spent three-fifths of our existence as a species on the continent developing our understanding of the natural world and living in harmony with it, H.M.. Queen Diambi asked the community and the world as a whole to reconnect with the continent as the human experience is mainly an African experience.

Moving towards technology’s role in the near future, H.M. Queen Diambi reflected on the role that Blockchain had in the very near future of the continent.

Blockchain is an interesting and innovative technology but it’s not a new concept. In Africa, most of our civilizations were built upon the principles that are now driven by Blockchain which is really about the decentralization of the decision-making process and the ownership of information.

She pointed out that, through advancements in science and technology, the democratization provided through the Blockchain allowed people to move past the concept of individual wealth and to embrace a more holistic perspective on prosperity, one that embraced rather than discriminated.

We’re starting to understand that our personal wealth is not going to be meaningful unless we have a collective wealth that is rightly and equitably distributed.

When Dustin then asked her to elaborate on the principles that brought her to where she is today, H.M. Queen Diambi elaborated on the deeply beautiful concept of Ubuntu. The Nguni Bantu term literally translates to “humanity” but encompasses a much deeper and even existential concept of humanity as one family, bonded by empathy and realized through respect. This concept sees the authenticity of the individual being empowered by the community, placing one in a greater, broader and more meaningful context.

Ubuntu is a fundamental African value meaning “I am because you are.” We don’t exist in a vacuum, we exist because of the interactions with others and with the interactions we do in others’ lives. For me, enlightenment is not about being in a forest or a mountain alone. For me enlightenment is every time I see a beautiful being that is a miracle manifest engaging with me.

H.M. Queen Diambi then pointed towards the pressing need for the societies of the future to ally their scientific progress with a return to a more soulful wisdom that prioritizes human wellbeing rather than material gain.

Let’s do a Metaverse, let’s do an NFT, let’s do everything but at the end of the day what is it for if it isn’t there to improve someone’s life and to sustain the biodiversity of our planet?