Queen Rania of Jordan has called for strength and resilience, which will be required to shoulder humanity’s shared challenges at the SXSW London 2026 conference.
She said, “Today, we find ourselves in a moment that demands clear communication and determination – but just like anyone who has gone too long without breaking a sweat, we are discovering that our muscles have gone soft. The worst part is, atrophy is self-reinforcing. When we believe we cannot lift something, we do not try, and the less we try, the less we can lift.
“It’s the weight of Israel’s genocide in Gaza, where tens of thousands of Palestinians have been killed, and the entire population is still denied adequate healthcare, nutrition, or shelter. It’s the weight of the on-again-off-again war in Iran and the air raid sirens echoing across the Arab World. Of fragile ceasefires. Of hundreds of thousands displaced in Lebanon. Of weaponised famine in Sudan.
“This heaviness is amplified, in no small part, by the technology in our pockets. I can’t help but see the spiritual equivalent of tech neck; the built-up heaviness from constantly looking down,” the Queen said. “And yet, we’re expected to put one foot in front of the other and keep going.
“Dr Martin Luther King Jr. famously spoke of the need to bend the arc of our moral universe. But what if that arc is unyielding not because of its weight, or our inability to hold it, but because people are pushing in opposite directions – and in the process, cancelling each other out? At the risk of sounding biased – though I am – I believe Jordanians consistently demonstrate the value of community, discipline, and humility.
“Jordanians, many themselves no strangers to scarcity, have also supported aid efforts to Gaza in droves. Some call it optimism; I call it faith – a particular type that in Islam, we refer to as tawakkul. Tawakkul is not a call for passivity or surrender. Rather, it means you do everything within your capacity, and trust in the outcome.”
“You lift in community, with humility, again and again and again – and then, you let go.”
The SXSW London 2026 is held from 1 to 6 June in the London neighbourhood of Shoreditch.
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