Writing
These essays were written over the past year as part of an ongoing inquiry into judgment, timing, and what it takes to act well in conditions of complexity. They inform the work Kairos does, and are offered here in that spirit.
Find the Acorns
What Philanthropy Can Learn from Grand Central Terminal
On the difference between planting for the season and building for the century — and how Vanderbilt's acorns became a lens for long-horizon philanthropic thinking.
January 2026
After the Storm
Judgment When Certainty Breaks
On a week of snow, a speech at Davos, and what this moment actually requires of leaders — in philanthropy and beyond.
February 2026
Nearly Impassable
On Mud, Limits, and the Meaning of Enough
On roads in West Africa, capital that stalls before it arrives, and the discipline of knowing what you can responsibly attempt right now.
February 2026
We Eat What We Grow
How the World's Farms, and Your Fork, Are More Connected Than Ever
On food systems, the 2025 EAT-Lancet report, and why what we choose to grow determines far more than what we eat.
October 2025
Goalkeepers, Gridlock, and Glimmers of Hope at UNGA
Notes from the margins of the United Nations General Assembly
On motorcades, SDGs, the Gates Foundation's Goalkeepers event, and the odd alliances where real change actually begins.
October 2025