As waters rushed into Japanese shorelines on March 11 the world stood still and watched in horror.

And it is that statement in itself which is fascinating- the world watched.

People in Japan, one of the most technologically advanced nations on Earth, were quick to post videos and images of the waters raging through their neighbourhoods.
Family and friends waited eagerly behind computer screens on social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter to find out if their loved ones overseas were all right.
The entire world was invited in to mourn and be devastated with the country, making it nearly impossible to ignore.
It’s hard to swallow just how many natural disasters have trampled over our world in the past year.
Without naming any in particular, out of fear of excluding or missing the less documented yet equally tragic, there has been an undeniable amount of hardship and loss.
But what of these less documented disasters? Is it not harder for a Third World underdeveloped nation with limited access to the outside world to plead for relief funds and global aid?
Think about the loss of freedom of media that occurred in Egypt not too many months ago. Is it not these very forms of media that allows us to tune in and become engaged and to partner with our world when tragedy or perhaps even victory occurs?
Please note, none of this is meant to diminish the pain and loss of what has and is occurring in Japan. Instead, it is to shed light on the opportunity social media can bring to connecting our world and making sure that no man- and no country- is left behind should something unthinkable occur.
It is a privilege to be able to reach out globally and one that perhaps should be prioritized in nations that desperately need the industrialized world to take heart and be invited into the everyday war, famine and disease that terrorize them.
I would like to believe that we are entering a time of great potential to be globally motivated and that our nature as a generation would be to prioritize people over material, economic, national or military advancement.
Hopefully, we would begin to take as much of an interest in nations through social media as we do our news feeds on Facebook and Twitter.