The greatest untapped resource in the world is human potential. It’s not oil or gas. This untapped resource exists because our children aren’t getting an education from an early age.
– Nicholas Kristof

While attending the American Montessori Society’s annual conference last week, I had the pleasure of hearing New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof speak to more than 3,500 Montessori educators. With lots to share and a responsive audience, he spoke of the many injustices that he has revealed over the years through his writing and the humanitarian efforts on behalf of those world problems. Speaking to educators provides a welcoming audience, an audience who has the potential to make an impact through their work with children.

One of Maria Montessori’s most important messages is that the future of the world is in the hands of our children; we must develop their human potential. They must be presented the world in order to work to make sense of it and create the change that is needed to ensure the future of our planet and its people. This is the central purpose of a Montessori education. Children are our future. They need the opportunity to learn, to develop an understanding of the world and to begin to create solutions to the world’s problems. The way we care for our world is to care for the children who inhabit our planet and ensure the future of both through education. I can think of no better way to do this than through Montessori education.