Working on a Dream is the title of a new CD album that Bruce Springsteen is due to release on 27 January. He has been quoted as saying that he hopes Working on a Dream has caught the energy of the band fresh off the road from some of the most exciting shows they have ever done.

But today a more important dream comes alive. A dream someone has been working on all along with his excellent team for the last months. Day in, day out.

I am referring to American President Elect Barak Obama who will be sworn in as President of the United States after winning the election convincingly.

If his autobiographical books were inspirational, and his campaign speeches were stirring indeed, I will not be in the least surprised if his inaugural address today will offer a sense of vision, determination, boldness and a quest for radical change and solutions.

I sincerely hope that not only the dream that we all dreamt together – even though we were unable to cast our vote for him from afar – will materialise, but that he will indeed usher in a new era, one that will project the benevolent side and the positives of the American way of life.

Such a task can only be achieved if he indeed marks a radical break from the past in terms of domestic, foreign and economic plus obviously environmental policies.

On the foreign front we have already seen positive movement with the drift towards a team of diplomats whose credentials, even if not perfect, seem impeccable, when compared to those of the neo-conservative ideologues who will soon become their predecessors.

Someone recently speculated that Europeans await him with anxiety, eagerness and also some nervousness. The reasons are that they want change in America, that they are uncertain if it will really happen but at the same time some suspect that they might be asked to shoulder more responsibility than in the past.

Take Afghanistan as an example.

What is sure is that Obama will be visiting Europe more than once this year and pretty soon.

In April it should be London for a G20 follow up meeting. Then Baden and Strasbourg for a 60th Nato anniversary summit. In June he will be back for a G8 summit in Italy and also a US-EU summit in Prague or Brussels.

One of his biggest presents to the human rights cause will be the anticipated closure of the Guantanamo detention centre. It will be definitely applauded all round, even though it might create problems as to where the current detainees will be sent.

Obama will also have to do something about the radar system planned to deter Iranian missiles. Western Europe is very concerned about it because they feel America could only intensify tensions through such an action while others believe that the real target is not Iran but possibly Russia. Western diplomats have told me in private that this has been needlessly provocative to Moscow.

Expectations are bound to be high for two main reasons. Because Obama was so inspirational in the campaign and also because when one draws up the balance sheet one will find that the Bush administration ended up draining and lessening effective US power in the world at large.

The world will be watching to see if the phased withdrawals from Iraq will happen and whether a negotiated solution on Afghanistan could be reached.

The Bush administration’s biggest strategic and tactical blunder was that it did not use American power to solve problems but basically used it in ways that made the problems far worse.

Some have questioned whether it was wise to accept that India would not be a party to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty and that the nuclear facilities under the control of the Indian military would not be subject to international inspections.

Accepting Pakistani nuclear capability was another sin of omission and admission. Rather than reining them in the US ended up providing them with billions of dollars in aid for various reasons.

In removing Saddam from power Bush made Iran stronger, thus helping the country he feared most gain more clout.

Bush is also responsible for having squashed his only ray of hope – Colin Powell, who always talked about taking force off the table and replacing force with diplomacy. The net result was that his views were rejected.

Do not expect Obama to turn his back on Israel as a special or strategic partner, but if he can bring some fairness and balance to the Middle East he will have already gone that extra mile!

Environmentally Bush was a walking disaster while he also served as commander in chief as he witnessed and arguably brought along the decline of America’s economic strength, something which made national security considerations and implications far worse rather than better!

But Obama is needed most to restore American confidence in itself and its credibility worldwide.

To expect Obama to solve all these problems overnight would be tantamount to day dreaming, but the bigger the agenda the more he can rise to the occasion if he manages to put himself and stay on track as from day One.

Admittedly some Obama appointments made liberals a bit edgy but I have a strong feeling that he will deliver.

But to my mind the Obama team that will face the strongest host of challenges will be the one on energy.

Obama vowed to press ahead despite the faltering economy and suggested that he would invest his political capital in trying to break logjams.

Someone recently described him as the man who can’t wait to be President.

I feel confident and inspired because the man said it all a few weeks ago in Chicago.

‘This will be a leading priority of my presidency and a defining test of our time. We cannot accept complacency nor accept any more broken promises...’

God bless Obama. And God bless America.

e-mail: [email protected]

Leo Brincat is the Main Opposition Spokesperson for the Environment, Sustainable Development and Climate Change