PHOTO: Citizen journalists in Syria, 2012 (Reuters)

At the University of Birmingham’s TEDx 2015, Scott Lucas explains how — in a rapidly changing world of media and technology — each of us is empowered to be an academic/journalist/activist.

No longer are we bystanders or passive recipients of “news”.

This is not a Utopian view. The tools in social media do not inevitably lead to a world of progress and peace. To the contrary, the world of 2014 is one marred by violence, civil war, intolerance, and social and environmental problems.

But at the same time, there is hope. The recognition of those who pursue peaceful resolution, justice, and reforms is not hidden. The voice of dissent is not silent. The “power of the pen” is more than a slogan when pursued through the electronic tools of the 21st century.