See that's the darn problem... "but it will require the elites" (not saying it is untrue), if the common man will not rise above himself, we as a species are doomed, regardless of what the elitists want. Build all the fancy cities, good infrastructure, good everything, but the common man needs external influence to do a deed that contributes to the civilization as a whole, what happens when that external influence goes away? we are back to square one