Trust in a Changing World

Most people I meet and talk to see a world in need of more trust. We need to be able to trust each other, our communities, institutions, and governments. Many are longing for healthy societies with high levels of trust, where people and nature thrive.

Trust and Brands

The 2025 Edelman Trust Barometer shows among other things that brands are now trusted more than traditional institutions, with a clear shift from “we” to “me.” People expect brands to improve their everyday lives, bringing optimism, joy, and opportunities to learn. At the same time, when brands fail to act or speak, people assume inaction, leading to reduced trust and weaker intentions to engage or purchase. Trust is not given; it must be earned through relevance, action, and transparency. As Edelman concludes: "The landscape has changed, and so has what people expect from brands. Our data shows that trust isn't won with purpose statements - it's earned through relevance, responsiveness, and relentless clarity of action."

Trust Matters

Trust is an intrinsic part of human nature and essential for psychological well-being and development. From a healthy bond of attachment bringing safety, love and trust early in life between infant and caregiver to later in life being important for creating healthy societies, where people thrive.

Science suggests that humans are hardwired to trust, that people want to and even need to trust, but will not trust blindly. The Oxford Sociologist Diego Gambetta showed that trust often relies on signals, small observable, embodied cues that people use to judge whether someone is trustworthy. Stanford-based Sociologist Karen Cook, who has studied trust in social exchanges and institutions, found that trust grows when systems provide accountability and sanctioning mechanisms that reduce the risk of betrayal. Trust is both embodied in our nervous system requiring sensory signals of safety and grounded in rational evidence.

Research has also shown that trust strengthens economies and societies: where trust is high, inequality is lower and democracy stronger. When individuals engage successfully in exchanges involving trust, not only increased trust and but also positive emotions are created.

Ultimately, evidence and justification are required, reflecting a rational need for assurance in our interactions. People need solid evidence that their trust is warranted, that other people's future actions will safeguard their interests. Trusticate, as a platform for transparency, can help provide the evidence and clarity, many people need to justify and sustain their confidence, turning trust from a vague sentiment into a tangible reality. Trusticate offering it's tool to standard-setting organizations, intermediaries, project developers, NGOs, and marketplaces.

A Hopeful Path Forward

Humanity is running tired, and we must unleash more of our abundant inner potential to get us back on track. There is hope, as we humans are hardwired to love and trust. Different fields of science and practice, alongside institutions, governments, businesses led by heart-based working people have potentials to a larger extent to collaborate to restore trust, strengthen human connection, helping both people and our planet to thrive.

Thank you for reading!

Notable references:

Cook, Karen S., ed. 2001. Trust in Society. New York: Russell Sage Foundation.

Edelman. 2025. Edelman Trust Barometer Special Report: Brand Trust, From We to Me. Edelman. https://www.edelman.com/trust/2025/trust-barometer/special-report-brands.

Gambetta, Diego, ed. 2000. Trust: The Making and Breaking of Cooperative Relations. Rev. ed. Oxford: Basil Blackwell.

Paxton, Pamela, and Jeremy Adam Smith. 2008. “America’s Trust Fall.” Greater Good Magazine, September 1, 2008.