Driving after one drink too many, a successful executive runs into a high school student who is cycling home. Despite heroic efforts, a small-business owner finally succumbs to bankruptcy after struggling to maintain his customer base while keeping his staff intact and meeting obligations to vendors and lenders. The aspirations of a politician with great prospects for election to his ideal post are shattered by public news of his infidelity. A budding world-class gymnast falls once and sustains an injury that permanently precludes further competition.

Failures that result in shattered hopes and dreams are defining moments. That with which we are deeply identified is cut out from under us. Coping with loss is an integral part of life. How we deal with it determines our sense of success and well-being. People react in different ways. Some never recover. Others, in their own time, set about the often courageous task of re-imagining, redefining and rebuilding their lives. Once humbled, we are in a position to question our assumptions and re-examine our values and priorities. Many find that enthusiasm for the almighty dollar pales when measured up to a joyful heart, healthy personal relationships, earnest social serv­ice or the sense of being a global citizen.

The spirit of change is also fueled by the collective experience of adversity. The self-immolation of a Tunisian man, who felt he had nowhere to turn in a repressive regime, spoke to the entire world and sparked an uprising that has left no Arab nation without protests for freedom. Calls for self-determination have reached a tipping point.

The triple disaster in Japan, many believe, will reawaken the profound capacity of the Japa­nese people for world-class innovation and leadership after more than 20 years of rudderless, sideways movement. The nuclear crisis in Fuku­shima has caused all nations to more carefully weigh risks against benefits of nuclear energy.

We fear that regardless of efforts made by any party, Libya will degenerate into a failed state for the foreseeable future. Libya, which exports valuable sweet crude oil, has stimulated even bolder talk to address international dependence upon fossil fuel. With global energy demand expected to double in the next 40 years, we had much to ponder last week during Earth Hour when we turned out our lights.

As Portugal threatens to be the third European nation that will require a financial bailout, the fabric of the European Union as we know it is called into serious question. We continue to realize that what happens in Lisbon, Tripoli and Fuku­shima affects the health and wealth of people around the world.

Adversity can be a catalyst for positive change, new attitudes and fresh strategies. We each have a unique role to play and something to offer. Although we are unavoidably in this together, we will never forge a grand consensus. That is the human condition. Democracy is the best system of government we have, but it’s still incredibly inefficient. Fortunately, our social networks have given us something better, a way to go viral with our aspirations for a better world.

Ira Zunin, M.D., M.P.H., M.B.A., is medical director of Manakai o Malama Integrative Healthcare Group and Rehabilitation Center and CEO of Global Advisory Services Inc. Please submit your questions to info@manakaiomalama.com.