The world needs more empathy: former Governor General David Johnston

With the release of his latest book, former Governor General the Right Honourable David Johnston, says the world needs more kindness and civility between people, communities and nations. 

Entitled Empathy, the book is coined as a “passionate and practical guide for turning empathy into action,” by publisher Random House, a follow up to his 2018 book Trust. 

Following World War II and the period of relative peace that came with it, globalization, increasing inequalities, the digital revolution and climate change have brought new challenges to an increasingly polarized world.

“Then along comes the pandemic, which really shows the vulnerable in all of us,” said Johnston on The Sam Laprade Show. “The world needs more kindness and civility both within our own communities within our own nation, but internationally as well. So that's why I think empathy is important at this point in time.”

Johnston points to the current conflict in Ukraine as an example of a failure of compassion. 

“If you and I could sketch out a spectrum, with the very ideal application of empathy in our lives and the lives of others, and then you wanted to see the complete opposite of that at the other end, it would be that invasion of Ukraine by Russia,” said Johnston. “It's really a total lack of empathy and simply conquest and power.”

“But even in our own communities, I think there is sometimes a determination to achieve political office and then kind of forget what drove you there in the first place.” adds Johnston. “That's where I think an informed citizenry is really important, that we insist upon our leaders, whether in the public sphere or in the private sphere, that they have regard for their community, their environment.”

Johnston and his co-author, Brian Hanington, show readers how they can leverage the power of empathy to make the world a better place personally, through their community and as a country. Each chapter is concluded with practical advice and recommendations on how to enhance empathy, including further resources in the appendix.

Released Jan. 17, Empathy is now available at local book stores and online

Listen to the full interview with the Right Honourable David Johnston on The Sam Laprade show below.