Hello World!
Today I will dare to talk about myself in order to introduce myself and hopefully gain some credibility among readers of eco friendly lifestyle blog.
My name is Mojca, 23 years old Slovenian, Balkan routed European and citizen of the Globe. To provide you more with technical data: full time student of economics - finance and banking, working since age of 19, did a bit of traveling, studying abroad in Switzerland, with general interest in sustainability, literature, music and crafts, currently writing diploma thesis entitled "A project of transformation process from integrated production to organic fruit growing based on fruit growing farm Frešer" as one of the my first community activation as well as living today - healthy, grateful and happily.
The song "Living Darfur" from previous post made me think where this global awareness starts and what should be the correct respond to it. Africa has always been a continent I felt empathy with since the inequity is so obvious: smiles are so pure, great music with rhythms that makes you swing your hips, Nature is wild and animals and man live together through sentries BUT issues like enslaving , apartheid, guns, water wars, AIDS, children army, drugs, oil wars, materials wars, selling off the land... are affecting everyone living today.
I was deeply touched by the work of Tomo Križnar at one of his evening talks with presenting his movie called "Darfur: War for Water". After the movie he explained the current situation in Darfur - meanwhile his soul was weeping, you could see it in his eyes, but he cured it with a smile, with a look that clearly announced his strength, his courage and his passion to fight for better tomorrow. A look I will never forget. So, what he actually did few days after that presentation was, that he took some of old computers that nobody wanted to use anymore and took them to Darfur, teach people how to use the media and through internet give them opportunity to spread their voice around the World; somehow to teach the worldwide public about their current situation.
Soon after that I felt the need to learn more about current situations worldwide. Unfortunately Darfur is far from being the only one. I founded out there is a "school of political literacy "organized by association for development of humanity which organizes lectures once a week in Maribor, Slovenia. One of the first lectures I have visited was "About Africa differently" by mag. Eyachew Tefera from Ethiopia. He pointed out very diverse problems concerning Africa, including the incomplete knowledge about African geography. What he also said was "help your country and by that you will help Africa". Europe is not prepared for mass invasion of African refugees that might appear here one day as well as we are not aware that might come a day when Europe will get cold and Sahara will get green again because of the global warming.
If we feel the global heart, we understand that sustainable development needs to start taking part in three pillars: social, ecological and economical. I do believe we all need to activate in local participation, in our own communities, where output can be seen and shown not only today, but also tomorrow. How? This is what I will try to discuss in my next blog entries.
To life!
ps. looking forward to your feedback
Tuesday 26 May 2009
Global Awareness & Local Activation
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9 comments:
Hej Mojca! I like your way of connecting the ecological issues with the poverty and other humanitarian issues, in this case with Darfur. I have only recently realized how intimately, and how totally the poverty and human rights questions are intertwined with the whole of the ecological problems.
read on :)
Welcome Mojca! Any friend of Gorazd is my friend. I love your way of thinking and I couldn't agree with you more. No wonder, since I am a theologian and economist at the same time :).
Unfortunately, economy is what makes this world go around. That's why we got ourselves in this unpleasant position in the first place. But thanks be to God that through sustainable way of thinking and doing business there is a light at the end of the tunnel. And I'm positive socially responsible business will prevail at the end. Honesty and fairness will win!
Looking forward to your new entries...
Davor
hey Davor,
what a pleasant surprise :) "You cannot achieve happiness and your full potential unless every aspect of life is balanced." - http://www.financeprinciples.net/
write on... and people, read on!
Though, I wouldn't agree it is the economy that makes the world go around, I see it only as a tool and nothing more. Just like broker - shifting money as ordered, nothing more. And the unpleasant position we are in, it is the matter of peoples greed, not economy itself, don't you think?
Which part of us was unbalanced? We might continue this over a cup of tea...
Mojca, you gave some very good food for thought in the last comment: "And the unpleasant position we are in, it is the matter of peoples greed, not economy itself, don't you think?"
I can see this as a title of a philosophy essay. :)
The counter-question would be: Hasn't economy (its principles and functioning) been shaped, to its very core today, by greed itself?
most probable, it was greed that shaped the core of economy, but it does not mean its economy's fault.
one should understand (after all, there is all knowledge online caught in short stories or long studies) and by that see through economy - through each product and evaluate if its really worth of ones support (meaning exploitation of children, tests on animals, using pesticides, transportation)...
in the end is always the consumers choice, isn't it?
this is what the multinationals will always claim, though I think it is their responsibility to count ALL the true factors when setting prices, including the waste of a product etc
then the choice would be easier, but as its not, it is on you to decide :)
You're right of course. There is much that we as customers can do, yet thre are limits to our influence etc. Many multinational companies - but not all - use advanced psychological research in order to know how to manipulate and create desires in us, so that we would buy and secure their wealth.
The author of "Story of stuff" shows it well: Some multinational companies grew much bigger than governments, their influence is greater, so governments serve their purposes instead of that of the majority (when these clash). It is this weakness (or unwillingness) of governments to force the multi-rich into tough decisions which makes the advance of the eco-policies so slow I believe.
Well if I say that the economy is what makes this world go around, and if you say the human greed is the key, I think we're both headed in the same direction :). The common denominator is making profit, right? So, we were thinking about the same thing...
I see your point and I agree. Yes, human greed is the root cause of this economic crisis... and probably all others in history.
However, as the film "story of stuff" showed, we can do something about it. That's why I am a strong proponent of SRI (socially responsible investing). SRI has already proved its power in the past, and is increasingly becoming a mainstream in finance. This fact encourages me although sometimes it's hard to see the end of human greed and its effects. The history is about to repeat itself one way or another... some other crisis will emerge. But that does not mean we should stop turning our lights off more often, or should consume more than we need to the expense of our world.
And Mojca, your quotation of my blog... ah, that blog was just an attempt to become a blogger... something i definitely need to do soon!
And hopefully, you will be my fellow readers then... :)
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