Multicultural Living
Global & Cultural Awareness
This category is the home to original and linked writing found to be provocative as these authors learn to be appropriate and loving in a multi-cultural context.
Last Thursday night our intercultural group met to talk about the recession. I brought two things: food that was leftover from another event that day which included bread pudding made from those leftovers, and a lot of enthusiasm for O’Bama’s speech on the previous Tuesday. It seems to me that both sum up my ideas about the appropriate responses to economic downturns: 1) make the most of what you have and share with others, and b) encourage the world leaders to put money into building up areas of their countries infrastructures at the same time putting people to work.
This morning I woke up a little disturbed... (Interested? To find out more click the read more link)
Hi everyone,
The Cork intercultural discussion group met on Thursday and I am glad I was able to participate in such an exciting conversation. As you have guessed, the topic was "The end of the world as we know it."
Our facilitator started us off by considering the role that travel has in the topic. Of course as we move around the globe the older ways of basing our lives and our relationships on family ties diminishes. Also as we live in new places and take on the cultural norms of that world, our old world context, as previous proscribed by family and culture, also diminishes in importance. We tend to take on what we consider the best and let go the norms of both the old and the new that don't suit us as well.
The electronic world has changed and will continue to change the world as we know it. While I write extensively on that topic under "the future(s) of education," our discussion on Thursday included one of our members wives and her enjoyment of classmate pages as a way of keeping up with those at home. Facebook was also discussed, with one of us representing the older (don't use any of these much) point of view, another not using some but others. I think our group's range was pretty typical as to what we would hear in a mixed age group setting anywhere.
The shifts in environment was briefly mentioned as another obvious way the world as we know it is ending, but, as is often the case the most provocative discussion came up in the last 20 minutes.
The world as some know it may end for some and has ended for others, because of the fall of world powers. Two of our group are…
Discover Irish Culture
Written by Administrator
The video you'll see if you follow the read more link below is a perfect example of Irish culture as Margie and I see it and live with it every day:
The use of the Irish language
The support of young people
The way in which the island folk would likely have traditional music in their blood
The laughter and kindheartedness that shows through
The love of music
I could go on and on - but just click on the read more link to watch the video and you'll see - Alana
Discover Life Lessons from Africa
Written by E. Alana James
Hi everyone,
As many of you know I have a couple of friends working for two years each in Africa. Occasionally their blogs bring up points that have some bearing on ideas we will need to be aware of in The Future(s) of Education project. First I'll quote Darcie who is providing medical aid in Kenya (follow this link to see her amazing array of photographs).
We never would have imagined that people living in rural East Africa would carry cell phones but many do. They don't have electricity or running water but they have cell phones. It makes sense when you think of it. People who are homeless in America do the same thing. It gives you some point of contact with the outside world.
A blogger that I follow (Will Richardson) reported a few days ago on the provocative start to the PDF conference as the keynote speaker (Zephyr Rain Teachout) asked: "How many people have within them the knowledge of how to form a local group and to use that group to change the structure of their society?" My immediate response was: "I do, and most of the people I know do." After all don't I see it all around me in Transition Towns Kinsale, Alan's starting Fairtrade Kinsale and that group going on to form the Kinsale Peace group.
So what are the steps as I see them and do those steps agree with what is out there in the distributed content world?
Discover: Stories Immigrants Tell
Written by E. Alana James
I have found that fitting in, being accepted, being allowed and able to contribute all you know in your new country are central points of discussion between immigrants (when they trust one another). Ireland is a hard place to do any of those three, but the challenges are subtle. Having come from a country (the US) where immigrants throw “racism” up as their way of discussing these same issues, I know that not everywhere in the world are the walls as subtle as they are in Ireland. Twice this week I was engaged in conversations that point to people feeling left out and I think they deserve mentioning here.
Read all about this event and the great fun it was under the RL 4 Fun Section/ Blog from Ireland.
Our Readers
