Trust is the currency of progress. It’s what holds democracies together, what makes economies function, what turns strangers into communities. Lose it, and everything starts to break down.

Right now, trust is running on empty.

According to the 2025 Edelman Trust Barometer, only 36% of people believe the next generation will be better off. That’s not just a number. That’s a warning sign. A flashing red light. A sign that something fundamental is breaking in the relationship between people and the institutions that are supposed to serve them.

And let’s be clear: This didn’t happen overnight.

• Financial crises that bailed out banks but left families behind.
• Governments that promise change but serve the same interests.
• Media that once informed but now profits off outrage.
• Corporations that talk about sustainability while polluting the planet.

Trust wasn’t stolen from us. It was chipped away, one broken promise at a time.

How Trust Dies (And Why That Should Terrify Us)

People don’t wake up one morning and decide to stop trusting institutions. It happens slowly, then all at once.

• We see politicians lie, and nothing happens.
• We see billionaires amass record wealth while wages stagnate.
• We see AI making decisions about our lives, and we have no idea how or why.

And over time, we stop expecting anything different.

That’s the real danger—not just that trust is declining, but that we’re getting used to it. That we’ve reached a point where corruption, deception, and broken promises don’t even shock us anymore.

Because once trust is gone, what comes next?

• People disengage from politics. And when people stop believing the system can change, the only ones left running it are the ones who benefit from keeping it broken.
• The economy stagnates. If workers don’t trust corporations, if consumers don’t trust brands, if investors don’t trust markets—growth slows.
• Misinformation thrives. When people don’t trust journalists, they trust whoever confirms their fears. When everything feels like propaganda, the loudest voices win.

This isn’t just a crisis of trust. It’s a crisis of what happens when trust runs out.

Can We Fix This? Yes—But Only If We Demand It

Rebuilding trust isn’t about putting out better press releases. It’s about delivering results. And that means:

Radical Transparency. No more fine print. No more vague promises. If an institution wants trust, it has to earn it in public.

Accountability That Actually Matters. If politicians lie, they should lose power. If companies deceive, they should lose profits. If AI makes decisions that affect us, we should know exactly how.

Media That Puts Truth Over Clicks. We need journalism that informs, not inflames. Outrage makes money, but trust makes democracy work.

Leadership That Serves, Not Profits. The institutions that survive the next decade will be the ones that put people first. Not stockholders. Not advertisers. People.

The trust crisis isn’t just about politics, or business, or media

It’s about whether we believe in the idea that institutions can serve the people again.

Because if we don’t believe that, we’ve already lost.

But if we do—if we demand better, if we hold power accountable, if we refuse to accept that this is just the way things are—then trust isn’t gone for good.

It’s just waiting to be rebuilt.

The only question left is: Are we willing to fight for it?