The MRCSE wise elders and story tellers, who are these people? People who are wise elders not based on physical age, but people who have a depth of understanding. In other words, people who have experienced various aspects of life who can share insight and knowledge to others. MRCSE wise elders can help people and communities grow into a future rooted in sustainability and sustainability education through interconnection with others. There are many wise elders in the world who come from different cultures that can offer valuable knowledge on sustainability. Perhaps we should be reminded that our ancestors existed and flourished for thousands of years in harmony with nature and other living beings.
The film "What Would It Look Like: Global Oneness Project" echoed the theme of respect. As the culture of consumerism spreads, we become disconnected from others and learn to compete for resources. As communities, we separate ourselves from "haves" to "no-haves" and the socioeconomic gap disconnects us from empathizing with others. Our countries compete against one another for power in forms of violence, disrespect and further disconnection. As a result, our feelings, and those of others, no longer matter. We no longer respect ourselves, the people we share the world with, and the natural environment.
The idea of cultural uniformity has plagued our world far too long. If we learn to respect ourselves first, we would learn that as individuals we are all unique. Although we do belong to specific cultures, if we view cultures as unique as ourselves, we can learn to respect cultures for their unique identities and the knowledge that they have accumulated. As a global community, we can share and learn sustainable, educational strategies through respectful communication. Rabindranath Tagore once said, "Uniformity deadens in us the sense of the infinite." I interpret this as uniformity being the end of creative expression, which will kill the excitement of living. It is therefore important to preserve and respect cultures. It is through interconnection and respect that the global community can work together for a sustainable future.
In social psychology, I learned that communal exchanges between people (relationships that are not based on rewards and costs) have a much higher success rate in terms of relationship happiness and quality. Through communication, we can create communal relationships with people of different cultures from our own and begin to use our creative abilities to create a respectful, sustainable future. Many of our wise leaders have hope in this effort, and if we find hope within ourselves and others, we can make a sustainable future for ourselves and all the people we inhabit the world with.
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