Hope is the torch that shines light on the plague of darkness
Photo: Via Medium
2022 the year when we will restore our hope in the transformative power of GOOD EDUCATION
The Next Chapter of the Global Climate Policy Story is Taking Place in the Classroom
This is Why We Need a New Golden Age of Wisdom, Honesty and Hope
Our Children and Grandchildren are Showing us the Path
They are our Hope. They are the Light at the end of the tunnel
Photo: Light at the end of the tunnel by Ryan Engstrom
“Look deep into Nature, and then you will understand everything better.” ~ Albert Einstein
“Unless we are willing to encourage our children to reconnect with and appreciate the natural world,
we can’t expect them to help protect and care for it.” – David Suzuki
…And This is Why Education Must Come Back to Nature
Photo: DAN DINU / REWILDING EUROPE
We all know well that 2020 and 21 have been a unique and challenging year for all of us all over the world.
The pandemic has become a pervasive and chilling backdrop to a changed world and a timely reminder of our own vulnerability on a planet teetering on the edge.
So how do we as individuals, communities and society reset and restart? How can we begin to reimagine the better days yet to come? How do we acknowledge the threats, and work together to build a world of connection, collaboration, unity and hope?
Illustration and artwork by Rosemary Grossman
‘Heaven is my father and earth is my mother,
and I, a small child, find myself placed intimately between them.
What fills the universe I regard as my body;
what directs the universe I regard as my nature.
All people are my brothers and sisters; all things are my companions.’- Zhang Zai (1020–1077)
2021 is drawing to a close and as we celebrate, ushering in the new year, many of the fundamental questions for humanity remain. Who am I? Where have I come from? Why are we here? What is the purpose of it all? What does it mean to be human? What does it mean to live a life of meaning and purpose? What does it mean to understand and appreciate the natural world? What does it mean to forge a more just society for the common good? Why are things getting worse, with poverty increasing, and mother nature in pain and agony? Who can save the world? What can one person do to make it a better place? Where do we start?
Then, there are other fundamental questions, questions of values, principles and spirit. Questions such as:
What is Education? What is Knowledge? What is Wisdom? What is Beauty? What is Justice? What is Love? What is Philosophy? What is Humanity? What is Nature? What is Art? What is Culture? What is the World? What is a University? What is a School? What is Literature? What is Poetry? What is Life? What is Teaching? What is Work? What is Vocation? What is Money? What is for the Common Good? What is Kindness? What is Humility?...
Other pertinent questions include:
What is it for a human life to be going well and be happy? What is the value of happiness, and what is the relationship between the value of happiness and other types of value, especially moral and ethical values? What is the source of true happiness and well-being? What is a good life? What is the purpose of economic life? What is true affluence? What is genuine wealth? Does money hold the secret to having a happy life? Should money be a means to an end or the goal itself?
In the olden days, when values and principles were valued and important, EDUCATION was the path to search and find answers to these fundamentally big questions. EDUCATION was the searching light to teach us that a better world is possible when it is built on principles that promote life and love; that these are stronger than hatred and divisions. That we should seek the common good rather than seeking individual profit. That truth and lies are different and integrity is possible. That freedom is more than a word and needs responsibility anchored to it. And that all in all, without virtue and character, knowledge is deprived, and life is devalued.
Noting all that was noted above, I am delighted and honoured that our GCGI, our friends and community, we all together, have been at the forefront of struggle, hope and activities and have responded vigorously to the pertinent and timeless question: how can we, the teachers, educators, parents, grandparents, policy makers,..., create spaces in schools, homes, universities, communities,..., where children’s, students’ and the youth's whole being, (that is, heart, body and mind), is nourished, nurtured, enabled and empowered?
To celebrate and honour our vision, mission, hope for the better world, and indeed, how to realize that world, below I have noted a selection of postings from our archive to keep the flame of hope burning, shedding light on our path to the promised land of prosperity, justice, fairness, kindness for all.
Desperately seeking Sophia: The Wisdom of Nature
A path to spiritual enlightenment and hope to heal and nurture our Mother Nature
The Tree of Wisdom, Old whimsical tree in the Wicklow forest, Ireland. Photo: Jenny Rainbow: fineartamerica.com
‘O You Who’ve gone on Pilgrimage
Come, Come, Whoever You Are, Come
Ours is not a caravan of despair.
Ours is a Journey of Hope
What You Seek Is Seeking You’~ Rumi
Why Mother Nature, Good Education and Hope for a Better World are in Perfect Harmony
Make 2022 the Year of Education, Not any education, not the current dominant neoliberal education, but the education inspired by the wisest teacher, Mother Nature
‘But ask the animals, and they will teach you, or the birds in the sky, and they will tell you; or speak to the earth, and it will teach you, or let the fish in the sea inform you. Which of all these does not know that the hand of the LORD has done this? In his hand is the life of every creature and the breath of all mankind.’-Job 12:7-10
‘The first act of divine revelation is creation itself. The first Bible is the Bible of nature. It was written at least 13.8 billion years ago, at the moment that we call the Big Bang, long before the Bible of words. “Ever since God created the world, God’s everlasting power and divinity—however invisible—are there for the mind to see in the things that God has made” (Romans 1:20). One really wonders how we missed that. Words gave us something to argue about, I guess. Nature can only be respected, enjoyed, and looked at with admiration and awe. Don’t dare put the second Bible in the hands of people who have not sat lovingly at the feet of the first Bible. They will invariably manipulate, mangle, and murder the written text.’... Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM, The First Bible
The Next Chapter of the Global Climate Policy Story is Taking Place in the Classroom
Desperately seeking Sophia: The Wisdom of Nature
The heart and the soul of education is wisdom
Nature the Best Teacher: Re-Connecting the World’s Children with Nature
On the 250th Birthday of William Wordsworth Let Nature be our Wisest Teacher
In this troubled world let the beauty of nature and simple life be our greatest teachers
Environmental Crisis, Hope and Resilience
‘Nature and Me’: A Beautiful and Inspiring Path to repair our relationship with life
In a world that seems so troubled, how do we hold on to hope?
Make COP26 The Dawn of a New Beginning
I Refuse to give up Hope: Earth Is A Mother that Never Dies
Land As Our Teacher: Rhythms of Nature Ushering in a Better World
Our Heritage is Arboreal and interwoven with the Life of Trees, OUR BEST ALLY FOR THE CLIMATE
Poetry is the Education that Nourishes the Heart and Nurtures the Soul
Britain today and the Bankruptcy of Ideas, Vision and Values-less Education
Brexit, Trump and the failure of our universities to pursue wisdom
Neoliberalism destroys human potential and devastates values-led education
What if Universities Taught KINDNESS?
Storytelling: The Heart and Soul of Education
The Journey to Sophia: Education for Wisdom
Wisdom and the Well-Rounded Life: What Is a University?
GCGI is our journey of hope and the sweet fruit of a labour of love. It is free to access, and it is ad-free too. We spend hundreds of hours, volunteering our labour and time, spreading the word about what is good and what matters most. If you think that's a worthy mission, as we do—one with powerful leverage to make the world a better place—then, please consider offering your moral and spiritual support by joining our circle of friends, spreading the word about the GCGI and forwarding the website to all those who may be interested.
May you find joy in the simple pleasures of life and may the light of the holiday season fill your heart with the hope for a better world
Christmas and New Year Message Holds True: A Time to Be the Voice of Hope
Winter Migration by Terje Kolaas (2021), Norway/ Via The Guardian