After describing how the Class of 2008 faced the worst financial crisis in generations — losing jobs, earning 36% less than peers who graduated a few years later — Lagarde contrasts their struggle with the Class of 2018's good fortune. Thanks to the decade of international cooperation that rebuilt the global economy and created safer financial systems, the 2018 graduates have more freedom to chart their own course. But Lagarde immediately pairs this gift with a moral obligation, quoting J.K. Rowling: 'You have a moral responsibility when you've been given far more than you need to do wise things with it.' The prosperity they inherit is not free — it demands stewardship.