With the right knowledge all illness can be cured. With the right knowledge pollution can be eliminated. With the right knowledge all tangible and intangible human needs and desires can be fulfilled. With the right knowledge, any problem can be solved, and any desired result can be achieved. With the right knowledge everyone can have a high quality of life, a heaven on earth. Therefore, knowledge is the key to a better world. If humanity recognized this reality, and devoted more resources toward knowledge, we could accelerate the pace at which we reach a better world.

      The three basic ways of interacting with knowledge, are: 1) dissemination from accessing stored information, through teaching, or from other methods of communication; 2) use through actions based on awareness of knowledge; and 3) acquisition of new knowledge from research, through experience, or from other avenues of discovery.

      Computers offer an efficient and economical way to store information, and the Internet provides a method for fast and easy access to information. Therefore, dissemination and use of knowledge could be facilitated by the creation of a master web site for each area of man's accumulated knowledge, a virtual library of all accumulated knowledge. For example, in the area of farming, the United Nations, in cooperation with universities that teach in that field, could create and maintain a web site which contains all current knowledge in that area , so that anyone could access the information. A consortium effort should be initiated in conjunction with governments, organizations, institutions, and industry to create a master web site for each area of knowledge. Such a system has minuscule costs in comparison to the benefits that could be derived therefrom. The full power of current knowledge could be unleashed by such a universal system providing fast and easy access to Humanity's accumulated knowledge.

      The ability to have a better world also requires acquiring the right new knowledge. Subsequently, a comprehensive global effort to discover new information in all fields of knowledge is highly desirable. Other than discovery by luck, most discovery of new knowledge results from "research and development" (R&D). Therefore, Humanity's knowledge can be increased by simply increasing funding for R&D. Less than 2% of current global productivity is being devoted to R&D. Clearly Humanity could and should be investing more in its future. Nonprofit organizations engaged in R&D could consolidate and/or find other means to create efficiencies in operations so that a higher percentage of their funds reach the intended target of research. Efficiency of funds spent on R&D could be increased through a global research consortium that monitors all such activity to help coordinate and guide all R&D efforts. Such a system could eliminate wasteful duplication of effort, and provide a mechanism for sharing of available research knowledge with and between the different R&D undertakings. The consortium could fund a committee of experts to track promising technologies and provide guidance in spending allocations.

      A list of 15,000 nonprofit organizations at  Idealist  promotes change as follows: Action Without Borders is a nonprofit organization that promotes the sharing of ideas, information and resources to help build a world where all people can live free, dignified and productive lives. They currently do this by: 1) Maintaining Idealist, the most comprehensive directory of nonprofit and volunteering resources on the Web; 2) Publishing Ideas in Action, a bi-weekly email newsletter with news and pointers to useful resources for volunteers and nonprofit professionals around the world; 3) Sending out daily Job and Internship Alerts with information about jobs and internships posted in Idealist during the previous 24 hours; and 4) Training nonprofit and community organizations on how best to use the Internet in their work.
 
      This is a nice start but it does not go far enough. The next step needs to be taken. All religions, nonprofit, and governmental charitable programs (such as welfare, unemployment insurance, etc.) could work together for advancing Humanity. The tremendous resources of all such organizations combined could accomplish miracles, such as providing a good life for all as envisioned by  The World Game Institute. The World Game Institute has identified various programs and policies that could provide for food, water, shelter, health care, energy and education for every person in the world, while eliminating all major environmental problems. Without a solution, more than 800 million people will remain malnourished, large segments of the population will continue to suffer from preventable diseases, and over 40 million people will die each year from starvation or preventable diseases. Every hour 4,566 people are needlessly dying. Additionally, plant and animal extinction, deforestation, soil erosion, ozone depletion, and other major environmental problems will continue. The combined total cost of implementing corrective programs is 30% of the world's total annual military expenditures, or 234 billion dollars. It should be noted that the resulting benefits of an overall enhanced quality of life, increased global productivity, and environmental preservation, clearly exceed the costs of these programs.

      Internet knowledge sites, global coordination of research efforts, and actual joint coordination of charitable efforts, are just some of the ways resources can be realigned to unleash the power of knowledge for making a better world. Greater cooperation, coordination and effort must be undertaken by governments, educational institutions, organizations, individuals, and the business community, to advance the use and pursuit of knowledge. During World War II humans mobilized to fight each other. We could now mobilize to fight for each other.

      Every person has thought, at least once in their life, that it would be nice if there were no disease, no crime, no poverty, and/or for some other improvement in the Human condition. Since everyone has dreamed of a better world, it is fair to say that Humanity has a common dream. However, instead of recognizing our commonality, we have created artificial differences among ourselves through concepts such as nationality and religion. While no two humans are exactly the same, we are all of one race, the human race, and we all share the experience of life in an essentially identical carbon based life form structure. We all work for continuing survival while in this structure, and hope for a happy, safe, and good life for ourselves and loved ones. Therefore, everyone has a common desire for the best life attainable. The first step in reaching a common goal is to identify and agree upon the same. Humanity already has a consensus for a better world, and simply should recognize this fact. The next step, after a consensus is reached, is to take action toward the same. Therefore, Humanity should focus its efforts on reaching its common dream. A focused and collective effort for knowledge is the path to the dream. Clearly the present state of the world is not the best Humanity can do. We simply must shine the light of knowledge on the darkness of ignorance, until we find our best. If we take such a path, at some point in the future, Humanity will have a heaven on earth.

      This web page promotes the consensus method, which simply involves putting a dream into words, and spreading those words until a large enough consensus is created to cause positive action by society. Martin Luther King, Gandhi, and others have used this method to improve the world. The words of this dream are a simple message that since everyone desires a good life, we should make the same a common goal, and devote some more resources toward finding the knowledge to make it a reality for all. The total of all human actions determines whether the world is like a heaven on earth, or a living hell. The consensus method seeks results through a multitude of individual and group efforts. The more people involved, the better the results. The more cooperation between the people involved, the better the results. You can start contributing to a better world by helping in spreading this message. Simply look up your representatives (here if a US citizen) and email them a copy of all or part of the above statement, or email them your own statement for a better world. Join in singing the song for perfect world harmony.