These slides talk about the need to strengthen cultural thinking/knowledge in order to engage in real intercultural thinking

1. 6. The future – Intercultural thinking

2. Neglected history of ethnic minorities in the
countryside
National amnesia (Cleall)
Invisible Empire ( Weymuss)
Geographies and Neglect (Seymour & Jones)
Eurocentrism ( Hobson)
What do we do now?
Educate, promote , strengthen culture
Method
[to enable true
intercultural
thinking]
Learn a traditional language, art, craft, philosophy –
its fun!

3. Why learn these things?
Links between traditional language/art/craft/philosophy and the
environment
- Interrelated and holistic (Convention on Biological Diversity)
Who am I addressing?
Roles & Responsibilities
Positive/proactive – Teachers/Gurus; parents/adults,
students (choose extracurricular wisely), Community centres
(choose projects carefully, develop a vision)
Passive/Supportive – engaged/civic/co-production in Universities
international organisations, private enterprise
What do I do?
I am a traditional dance teacher who re-thinks her teaching methods and practice. I have a
responsibility to the art, to the environment and to our society (long-term), not just to
students and parents (short-term). See full details of my teaching innovation here
http://www.nandavana.org/#!learn-in-style/c1bln

4. 7. Global Outlook
The Green Kumbh

5. GYAN : A Project of
LIVING PLANET FOUNDATION
Kumbh – Like Olympic Torch
“Green Kumbh” - a symbol of the “web of life” and the ecosystem that includes all
animals, humans, plants, microscopic creatures and their habitats on the planet.

6. Green Kumbh Yatra is an initiative of GYAN and Living
Planet Foundation of USA. It is a faith-based response to
climate change and biodiversity conservation which the
United Nations Development Program (UNDP) describes
as “the world’s largest civil society movement on climate
change”.
The main aim of the Green Kumbh Yatra is to mobilize the masses at
grassroots and raise public and political awareness by highlighting
the conservation of Sacred Natural Sites, Greening Pilgrimage Sites
and emphasize the profound connection between the collective
wisdom and resources of the faith traditions and their role in
biodiversity conservation and sustainable use. Pilgrimage sites may
include sacred groves, rivers, mountains, temples, churches,
mosques, synagogues, etc.

7. Bottom-up Approach
Events connected the Green Kumbh Yatra will be broad
public affair/s focused on a bottom-up approach to
creating awareness by local people themselves.
Therefore, local organizations, communities and local
governments in providing on-the-ground and on-site
participation, are essential components of the Green
Kumbh initiative.

8. Ceremonial inauguration of the Green Kumbh Yatra
Eleventh Meeting of the United Nations Conference of the
Parties to the Convention of Biological Diversity (CBD COP 11)
14 October 2012 Hyderabad, India

9. Green Kumbh Route 2012 – 2013
Hyderabad, Allahabad, Benares, Gujarat, Kutch, Panauti, Nepal, Kathmandu, Jerusalem,
Kenya, Birmingham, London, Manchester, Leicester, Bali, USA, Hawaii, Trinidad

10. Hindu Theological Statement 2009 [extracts]
Compiled by Kusum Vyas, Hindu Climate Change Ambassador, GYAN/Living Planet Foundation. Editorial
input from Acharya David Frawley (Pandit Vamadeva Shastri), Dr. M. G. Prasad, Swami Nikhilanand,
Jagadguru Kripalu Parishat, Radha Madhav Dham. Supported and authenticated by Hinduism Today and
its editors.
We believe that our life is a sacred journey and we are all pilgrims on
planet Earth. Our scriptures tell us that being pilgrims is not just
wandering aimlessly, or earning karmic merit by enduring hardship on a
strenuous journey: they exhort us to follow Dharma so we may lead a
daily life of contentment, discipline and righteousness without straining
the Earth’s resources.
Ishavasya Upanishat advises us to lead a devout and frugal lifestyle and
eliminate greed and wasteful consumption: “Everything in the universe
belongs to the Lord. Therefore take only what you need, that is set-aside for you.
Do not take anything else, for you know to whom it belongs.”

11. Our scriptures reveal a clear conception of the ecosystem and our belief
system is permeated by a reverence for all life. We believe that the great forces
of nature (Pancha Mahabhutas), namely earth (prithvi), water (apas), air (vayu),
fire (agni) and space (akasha), as well as our ecosystems are all bound to each
other in a complex web of life within the great rhythms of nature which is
sacred. We believe as the Chandogya Upanishad says that the universe truly is
divine (Sarvam Khalvidam Brahma), meaning that the entire universe, which
includes our ecosystems and us, are aspects of the same divinity called
Brahman. This doctrine of an all-pervading divinity is confirmed as Vasudeva
Sarvam, “Everything is God” in the Bhagavad-Gita, our most popular scripture.
We believe that this teaching may well be the earliest imperative to caution
mankind to be mindful of our impact on the earth. We Hindus must
acknowledge that our Dharma teaches us to love the Earth, appreciate her
beauty and as “wanderers” explore her many mysteries.

12. Many Thanks!
Thanks and Acknowledgement
Heritage team - Photos
Nandagopal – Slide animations
HLF- Project Funding
Hindu Samaj Trustees – Support and Encouragement
Kusum Vyas – GYAN and Living Planet Foundation, USA
Hindu Jewish Association, Manchester – Invitation to present at event
Peak District National Park Rangers, University of Sheffield and
Mosaic colleagues – for their support and enthusiasm
To many many others for their support!