Alex Smith
@alexsmith1982.bsky.social
Senior Advisor & Inaugural Fellow, Obama Foundation • Visiting Fellow, Harvard Kennedy School • Trustee & Board Member • Ex: The Cares Family, Ed Miliband, LabourList.
‘In running, as in life, much of what matters cannot be measured.’
This on quantitative fixation raises good questions not just on how we interact with data on an individual level, but also on how we measure value in civil society, government, and politics.
This on quantitative fixation raises good questions not just on how we interact with data on an individual level, but also on how we measure value in civil society, government, and politics.
Tim Harford: Without my fitness tracker I’d never have run so far. Or behaved so weirdly ft.trib.al/BzKjItF #FTEdit
Tim Harford: Without my fitness tracker I’d never have run so far. Or behaved so weirdly
The marathon, the algorithm and me
ft.trib.al
January 18, 2026 at 9:44 AM
‘In running, as in life, much of what matters cannot be measured.’
This on quantitative fixation raises good questions not just on how we interact with data on an individual level, but also on how we measure value in civil society, government, and politics.
This on quantitative fixation raises good questions not just on how we interact with data on an individual level, but also on how we measure value in civil society, government, and politics.
“That’s a proper goal! And it’s absolutely electric in this ground!”
#MUFC
What a reverse pass by Bruno.
🔴⚫️⚪️ #NeverGoingToStop
#MUFC
What a reverse pass by Bruno.
🔴⚫️⚪️ #NeverGoingToStop
January 17, 2026 at 1:55 PM
“That’s a proper goal! And it’s absolutely electric in this ground!”
#MUFC
What a reverse pass by Bruno.
🔴⚫️⚪️ #NeverGoingToStop
#MUFC
What a reverse pass by Bruno.
🔴⚫️⚪️ #NeverGoingToStop
‘For us, everything can change so suddenly that futures like those of our grandparents don’t have enough ‘now’ to last the pace.’
Loved this from Giuliano da Empoli on the freneticism and instant gratification of modern life, and how these can recondition perceptions about time.
Loved this from Giuliano da Empoli on the freneticism and instant gratification of modern life, and how these can recondition perceptions about time.
January 7, 2026 at 8:45 PM
‘For us, everything can change so suddenly that futures like those of our grandparents don’t have enough ‘now’ to last the pace.’
Loved this from Giuliano da Empoli on the freneticism and instant gratification of modern life, and how these can recondition perceptions about time.
Loved this from Giuliano da Empoli on the freneticism and instant gratification of modern life, and how these can recondition perceptions about time.
The benefits of intergenerational friendship are absolutely huge: reduced isolation, better health outcomes, shared learning in a rapidly changing world, a more cohesive society, economic growth. So good to see efforts like this continuing to get support:
www.thetimes.com/article/1290...
www.thetimes.com/article/1290...
Harry Judd: We must tackle loneliness crisis across generations
The McFly drummer speaks out about young men lacking a sense of purpose and how the charity Kissing it Better is helping them stay happy and healthy
www.thetimes.com
December 5, 2025 at 11:03 PM
The benefits of intergenerational friendship are absolutely huge: reduced isolation, better health outcomes, shared learning in a rapidly changing world, a more cohesive society, economic growth. So good to see efforts like this continuing to get support:
www.thetimes.com/article/1290...
www.thetimes.com/article/1290...
‘We’re supporting grassroots charities, which, through their vital work in local neighbourhoods, nurture community and positive change, and provide a powerful antidote to polarisation, distrust and hate.’
A prescient and necessary campaign, well timed:
www.theguardian.com/society/2025...
A prescient and necessary campaign, well timed:
www.theguardian.com/society/2025...
Communities are our defence against hatred. Now, more than ever, we must invest in hope
For this year’s Guardian charity appeal we are asking readers to donate to Citizens UK, The Linking Network, Locality, Hope Unlimited Charitable Trust and Who is Your Neighbour?
www.theguardian.com
December 5, 2025 at 4:48 PM
‘We’re supporting grassroots charities, which, through their vital work in local neighbourhoods, nurture community and positive change, and provide a powerful antidote to polarisation, distrust and hate.’
A prescient and necessary campaign, well timed:
www.theguardian.com/society/2025...
A prescient and necessary campaign, well timed:
www.theguardian.com/society/2025...
30% of rooms listed are in properties with no living room; 49% of renters say theirs is used as a bedroom; 44% say this affects mental health.
Just another example of how, even in homes, shared spaces and chances for human interaction are diminishing.
www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle...
Just another example of how, even in homes, shared spaces and chances for human interaction are diminishing.
www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle...
The death of the living room: ‘It’s hard to invite people over – not everyone wants to sit on a bed’
The number of rental properties without a lounge is surging, and people are having to eat and socialise in kitchens, bedrooms and stairwells. How can you relax and build community without a communal a...
www.theguardian.com
November 27, 2025 at 9:47 AM
30% of rooms listed are in properties with no living room; 49% of renters say theirs is used as a bedroom; 44% say this affects mental health.
Just another example of how, even in homes, shared spaces and chances for human interaction are diminishing.
www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle...
Just another example of how, even in homes, shared spaces and chances for human interaction are diminishing.
www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle...
Purpose is a continuum, something passed down generations, and today's work is the unfinished business of those who came before us.
Thanks Beautiful Truth Magazine for the chance to talk about purpose, belonging, and building connection in disconnecting times:
thebeautifultruth.org/my-life-on-p...
Thanks Beautiful Truth Magazine for the chance to talk about purpose, belonging, and building connection in disconnecting times:
thebeautifultruth.org/my-life-on-p...
Alex Smith: The Long View of Belonging — The Beautiful Truth
Alex Smith talks to Hannah Finch about building bridges across generations, tackling loneliness, and why the future depends on our ability to stay connected.
thebeautifultruth.org
November 25, 2025 at 9:51 AM
Purpose is a continuum, something passed down generations, and today's work is the unfinished business of those who came before us.
Thanks Beautiful Truth Magazine for the chance to talk about purpose, belonging, and building connection in disconnecting times:
thebeautifultruth.org/my-life-on-p...
Thanks Beautiful Truth Magazine for the chance to talk about purpose, belonging, and building connection in disconnecting times:
thebeautifultruth.org/my-life-on-p...
‘Everywhere I went, there were happy, sensitive, emotional, and chivalrous men… Everyone’s feeling the same sentiment: togetherness, community.’ ❤️
www.rollingstone.co.uk/music/oasis-...
www.rollingstone.co.uk/music/oasis-...
Oasis’ Reunion Tour Was All About the Joy of Positive Masculinity
This year’s wildly successful shows marked a moment of reconciliation for the Gallagher brothers — and brought out the best in lots of dudes
www.rollingstone.co.uk
November 24, 2025 at 8:37 PM
‘Everywhere I went, there were happy, sensitive, emotional, and chivalrous men… Everyone’s feeling the same sentiment: togetherness, community.’ ❤️
www.rollingstone.co.uk/music/oasis-...
www.rollingstone.co.uk/music/oasis-...
Our mission at The Obama Foundation is to inspire, empower, and connect next generation leaders to change their world.
Three of those leaders sat down with President Obama in London recently to discuss how to meet the challenge of rising authoritarianism.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=gRNa...
Three of those leaders sat down with President Obama in London recently to discuss how to meet the challenge of rising authoritarianism.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=gRNa...
How to stop authoritarianism across the globe: a conversation with President Obama
YouTube video by Obama Foundation
www.youtube.com
November 10, 2025 at 2:02 PM
Our mission at The Obama Foundation is to inspire, empower, and connect next generation leaders to change their world.
Three of those leaders sat down with President Obama in London recently to discuss how to meet the challenge of rising authoritarianism.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=gRNa...
Three of those leaders sat down with President Obama in London recently to discuss how to meet the challenge of rising authoritarianism.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=gRNa...
The loveliest and perhaps most socially relevant John Lewis Christmas ad in years.
Beautifully captures the complexity of male connection, technology, the passage of time, intergenerational love, and so much in between.
youtu.be/z1bRlnyQeDk?...
Beautifully captures the complexity of male connection, technology, the passage of time, intergenerational love, and so much in between.
youtu.be/z1bRlnyQeDk?...
Where Love Lives | John Lewis & Partners | Christmas Ad 2025
YouTube video by John Lewis
youtu.be
November 4, 2025 at 1:36 PM
The loveliest and perhaps most socially relevant John Lewis Christmas ad in years.
Beautifully captures the complexity of male connection, technology, the passage of time, intergenerational love, and so much in between.
youtu.be/z1bRlnyQeDk?...
Beautifully captures the complexity of male connection, technology, the passage of time, intergenerational love, and so much in between.
youtu.be/z1bRlnyQeDk?...
With so many challenges and opportunities ahead in the coming years, how can we ensure our boys and young men develop values of respectful masculinity, community, and entrepreneurship?
October 24, 2025 at 7:40 PM
With so many challenges and opportunities ahead in the coming years, how can we ensure our boys and young men develop values of respectful masculinity, community, and entrepreneurship?
You could always tell these homes were going to be special, because United St Saviour's Charity was focused on community – for those living in the homes, and the wider world outside.
bbc.com/news/articles/c4gwlz6k96no
bbc.com/news/articles/c4gwlz6k96no
Riba Stirling Prize 2025: Appleby Blue Almshouse named Britain's best new building
Appleby Blue Almshouse in London wins the Royal Institute of British Architects' Stirling Prize.
bbc.com
October 17, 2025 at 9:00 AM
You could always tell these homes were going to be special, because United St Saviour's Charity was focused on community – for those living in the homes, and the wider world outside.
bbc.com/news/articles/c4gwlz6k96no
bbc.com/news/articles/c4gwlz6k96no
Reposted by Alex Smith
💜 We belong to clubs but just as importantly they belong to us.
October 6, 2025 at 2:34 PM
💜 We belong to clubs but just as importantly they belong to us.
Successful social movements find ways to build civic power, to cross class differences, and to mobilise those who don’t yet agree.
For all those looking for hope in times of challenge and change, this is a strong call to action, for the UK as well as elsewhere:
www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc...
For all those looking for hope in times of challenge and change, this is a strong call to action, for the UK as well as elsewhere:
www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc...
America Needs a Mass Movement—Now
Without one, America may sink into autocracy for decades.
www.theatlantic.com
October 15, 2025 at 9:52 PM
Successful social movements find ways to build civic power, to cross class differences, and to mobilise those who don’t yet agree.
For all those looking for hope in times of challenge and change, this is a strong call to action, for the UK as well as elsewhere:
www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc...
For all those looking for hope in times of challenge and change, this is a strong call to action, for the UK as well as elsewhere:
www.theatlantic.com/magazine/arc...
'It's a narrative you don't often hear in our media... [but] I've always seen communities come together.'
Yes, this is a time of challenge and lost social interactions, but when people work together with hope, stronger communities are possible:
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/vide...
Yes, this is a time of challenge and lost social interactions, but when people work together with hope, stronger communities are possible:
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/vide...
Luton v Tommy Robinson: the myth of a town divided – video
Summer 2025 was marked by a surge in anti-immigrant protests, attacks on mosques and racist graffiti across the UK. The unrest, stoked by far-right agitators such as Tommy Robinson, sought to pit comm...
www.theguardian.com
September 12, 2025 at 10:45 AM
'It's a narrative you don't often hear in our media... [but] I've always seen communities come together.'
Yes, this is a time of challenge and lost social interactions, but when people work together with hope, stronger communities are possible:
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/vide...
Yes, this is a time of challenge and lost social interactions, but when people work together with hope, stronger communities are possible:
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/vide...
Of course employers should consider culture when hiring. But we need more exposure to, not protection from, people we disagree with – in work as in society. Working through tensions is part of what drives successful collaboration and cohesion.
www.thetimes.com/article/09e1...
www.thetimes.com/article/09e1...
Rejecting a job applicant over their football team is fair, judge rules
Bosses have the right to consider whether a prospective employee would get on well with existing staff, the employment judge said
www.thetimes.com
September 10, 2025 at 6:48 PM
Of course employers should consider culture when hiring. But we need more exposure to, not protection from, people we disagree with – in work as in society. Working through tensions is part of what drives successful collaboration and cohesion.
www.thetimes.com/article/09e1...
www.thetimes.com/article/09e1...
What a privilege to meet the 35 new Obama Foundation Leaders in Europe last week, as they began their six-month program.
In total, the Foundation has welcomed 205 new Obama Leaders from multiple regions, as we work to empower the next generation to change their world:
www.obama.org/programs/lea...
In total, the Foundation has welcomed 205 new Obama Leaders from multiple regions, as we work to empower the next generation to change their world:
www.obama.org/programs/lea...
Meet the 2025-2026 Europe Leaders
Meet the new cohort
www.obama.org
September 9, 2025 at 7:27 PM
What a privilege to meet the 35 new Obama Foundation Leaders in Europe last week, as they began their six-month program.
In total, the Foundation has welcomed 205 new Obama Leaders from multiple regions, as we work to empower the next generation to change their world:
www.obama.org/programs/lea...
In total, the Foundation has welcomed 205 new Obama Leaders from multiple regions, as we work to empower the next generation to change their world:
www.obama.org/programs/lea...
‘One wonders how much longer we can avoid adding a personal finance GCSE to the national curriculum. No child should leave school with zero understanding of savings, pensions, and all the pitfalls – especially in this age of industrialised scams.’
observer.co.uk/news/sport/a...
observer.co.uk/news/sport/a...
Footballers’ financial naivety has put them on the losing...
The revelation that former players lost millions in investments is a sad tale of misplaced trust
observer.co.uk
September 7, 2025 at 8:39 AM
‘One wonders how much longer we can avoid adding a personal finance GCSE to the national curriculum. No child should leave school with zero understanding of savings, pensions, and all the pitfalls – especially in this age of industrialised scams.’
observer.co.uk/news/sport/a...
observer.co.uk/news/sport/a...
“All of us, side by side, united while celebrating our differences”
Nicely said, @markfergusonmp.bsky.social ❤️
Nicely said, @markfergusonmp.bsky.social ❤️
August 28, 2025 at 6:43 PM
“All of us, side by side, united while celebrating our differences”
Nicely said, @markfergusonmp.bsky.social ❤️
Nicely said, @markfergusonmp.bsky.social ❤️
Reposted by Alex Smith
Fantastic hire by @labourlist.bsky.social - when I was Editor, Emma was one of best contributors to the site in every sense. She understands what LabourList is and what it has the power to be. Good luck @emmaburnell.bsky.social labourlist.org/2025/07/new-...
Emma Burnell announced as new LabourList Editor - LabourList
LabourList is delighted to announce that Emma Burnell has been appointed as the new Editor of the leading media and events platform for all things Labour.
labourlist.org
July 25, 2025 at 6:39 AM
Fantastic hire by @labourlist.bsky.social - when I was Editor, Emma was one of best contributors to the site in every sense. She understands what LabourList is and what it has the power to be. Good luck @emmaburnell.bsky.social labourlist.org/2025/07/new-...
Thrilled @emmaburnell.bsky.social is the new @labourlist.bsky.social editor. Emma started writing for the site in 2009 and has always been thoughtful, pluralist and deeply connected to the site’s mission. Good luck, Emma, and congrats to all involved on a great hire.
labourlist.org/2025/07/new-...
labourlist.org/2025/07/new-...
Emma Burnell announced as new LabourList Editor - LabourList
LabourList is delighted to announce that Emma Burnell has been appointed as the new Editor of the leading media and events platform for all things Labour.
labourlist.org
July 25, 2025 at 5:48 AM
Thrilled @emmaburnell.bsky.social is the new @labourlist.bsky.social editor. Emma started writing for the site in 2009 and has always been thoughtful, pluralist and deeply connected to the site’s mission. Good luck, Emma, and congrats to all involved on a great hire.
labourlist.org/2025/07/new-...
labourlist.org/2025/07/new-...
'Those near a Sure Start centre in early years performed better at 7, 11 and 16 and got better GCSEs. At 15 they had 15% fewer absences from school. 12- to 14-year-olds had 50% fewer mental health hospitalisations.'
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
To those who question what Labour stands for – look at Best Start. It will change Britain’s future | Polly Toynbee
Sure Start was New Labour’s finest achievement, and the Tories destroyed it. Now it’s back with a mission to put children at the heart of everything, says Guardian columnist Polly Toynbee
www.theguardian.com
July 8, 2025 at 1:33 PM
'Those near a Sure Start centre in early years performed better at 7, 11 and 16 and got better GCSEs. At 15 they had 15% fewer absences from school. 12- to 14-year-olds had 50% fewer mental health hospitalisations.'
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
"We have much to lose in the erosion of neighborly concern, the impetus to look out for others we don’t know that well. Neighborliness is collective belonging."
This is thoughtful about how progress comes when people from different experiences bond:
www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-i...
This is thoughtful about how progress comes when people from different experiences bond:
www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-i...
I crisscrossed America to talk to people whose views I disagreed with. I now have one certainty
I’ve spoken to white nationalists in Tennessee and Black activists in Texas – and learned about what it takes to connect across difference
www.theguardian.com
June 3, 2025 at 7:58 AM
"We have much to lose in the erosion of neighborly concern, the impetus to look out for others we don’t know that well. Neighborliness is collective belonging."
This is thoughtful about how progress comes when people from different experiences bond:
www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-i...
This is thoughtful about how progress comes when people from different experiences bond:
www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-i...
So good to see Ed Miliband so humble about the past and so passionate about the future (especially on climate) in this @therestpolitics.bsky.social with @alastaircampbell2.bsky.social and Rory Stewart. Two fantastic episodes, ultimately rooted in hope:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=rvMg...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=rvMg...
Ed Miliband: Why Blair & Farage Are Wrong About Net Zero (Part 2)
YouTube video by The Rest Is Politics: Leading
www.youtube.com
June 2, 2025 at 7:49 PM
So good to see Ed Miliband so humble about the past and so passionate about the future (especially on climate) in this @therestpolitics.bsky.social with @alastaircampbell2.bsky.social and Rory Stewart. Two fantastic episodes, ultimately rooted in hope:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=rvMg...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=rvMg...
Retention is just as important to an organisation’s culture and success as recruitment. MUFC have lost some very good players prematurely over the years. McTominay and Lukaku deserve every success at Napoli ⚽️
GOLAÇO DO NAPOLI
Napoli 1x0 Cagliari
⚽️ Scott McTominay - golaço
🅰️ Mateo Politano
🏆 Série A | última rodada
Napoli 1x0 Cagliari
⚽️ Scott McTominay - golaço
🅰️ Mateo Politano
🏆 Série A | última rodada
May 23, 2025 at 8:14 PM
Retention is just as important to an organisation’s culture and success as recruitment. MUFC have lost some very good players prematurely over the years. McTominay and Lukaku deserve every success at Napoli ⚽️