วันศุกร์ที่ 22 มกราคม พ.ศ. 2553

Beyond Limits: Learning to Live Together Peacefully, Sustainably and Sufficiently

By Athapol Anunthavorasakul
(Director & Assistant Dean for Research,
Chulalongkorn University, Faculty of Education, Thailand)

anun_atha@yahoo.com


For more than five decades, His Majesty the King of Thailand, Bhumibol Adulyadej, has dedicated himself to promoting the well-being of the people of Thailand. He has initiated thousands of royal projects which have helped thousands of communities—in remote highlands, flood-prone areas, and endangered coastal regions.



In 1994, King Bhumibol proposed a comprehensive approach called “Sufficiency Economy” (SE) as a strategy for development. The approach was based on concrete experiences he had gathered from working with local people. It focuses on using indigenous knowledge in managing natural resources for livelihood and strengthening communities in remote areas for a better quality of life. King Bhumibol synthesized his observations and offered it to the Thai people to prepare them for risks and economic downturns, particularly the so-called “Tom Yum Kung” crisis.


Beyond Economics

Although the term has the word “economy”, Sufficiency Economy is not only about economic development, but also integrates socio-cultural and environmental development. The philosophy emphasizes a new set of ethical values, a holistic view, and self-reliance based at various levels—individual, group, community, and societal—to empower the people and motivate them to live harmoniously with nature. Sufficiency Economy also includes “balancing” and “cooperation with multi-stakeholders” to sustain the new values.

This innovative approach promotes the middle path of “not too little, not too much” in real life. It advocates critical thinking and decision-making processes as tools in achieving the three main SE principles—“moderation,” “reasonableness,” and “self-immunity.” When applying these principles, knowledge and ethics are recommended as necessary elements.



Today, the philosophy of Sufficiency Economy is being implemented in Thailand at multi-levels and in various sectors including agriculture, business, industry, and tourism. In 2006, Mr. Kofi Annan, the UN Secretary General at that time, presented the “Human Development Lifetime Achievement Award” to King Bhumibol. The UN chief said, “‘Sufficiency Economy’ philosophy . . . is of great relevance to communities everywhere during these times of rapid globalization. The philosophy’s ‘middle way’ approach strongly reinforces the United Nations’ own advocacy of a people-centred and sustainable path toward human development. His Majesty’s development agenda and visionary thinking are an inspiration to his subjects, and to people everywhere.”

In 2007, Thailand’s Human Development Report was published with issues on “Sufficiency Economy and Human Development.” The significant role of Sufficiency Economy as an alternative approach is now respected not only in Thailand but also throughout the world.

SE, Sustainability, and Peace

There are similarities among the values, concepts, and approaches between Sufficiency Economy (SE) and other contemporary innovations such Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) and Education for International Understanding (EIU).

First, they promote the cultivation of human values and harmonious living among people, within people, and between human and nature. SE respects the limits and values of natural resources and offers a way for people—especially agriculturalists who work closely with nature—to use local wisdom and creative technology in food production, while conducting resource management toward sustainability.



Second, the SE principles of “moderation,” “reasonableness,” and “self-immunity” can be equated with the EIU concept of “inner peace” which is not only about the harmony between people, but within people.

Third, SE, ESD, and EIU approaches promote “intra-personal transformation” as well as empower communities through individuals and groups working together to create a new set of values and lifestyle for a better future. In these efforts, ESD/EIU educators and SE workers should promote critical thinking and decision-making as significant tools for communities.

Lastly, ESD and EIU offer a space for dialogue between the “local” and the “global” on development issues. In the writer’s opinion, SE should be considered as a local initiative—formulated and implemented in the context of Thailand—for sustainable development and the creation of a culture of peace.


Sufficiency in Schools




In expanding SE to cover the educational arena, there are thousands of schools and institutes in Thailand where people are attempting to reorient their schools towards sufficiency.



In remote areas where people have limited income but have access to natural resource, SE is used as a strategy to encourage teachers, students, and villagers to work together in managing a school lunch program through “self-reliance.” Planting and feeding programs are included in the school curriculum. Villagers, including parents, attend the program as resource persons in class, as labor in preparing the plot for agricultural activities, and as experts for monitoring and evaluation. A group of housewives volunteer in preparing lunch for the school children. They also teach the young girls how to prepare meals for a hundred students, while the boys do the planting with help from local experts.

School Initiative: Working Together

In urban areas, SE provides opportunities to communities through a school initiative called the Service Learning Project where students conduct a survey of needs and problems of their communities. Some communities promote waste management and the reduction of energy, while others use SE principles to revise their activity planning.



The SE school program has shown that the school is a place where people can live together peacefully, sustainably, and sufficiently. With limited budget and resources and without support from external organizations, a new life in schools has been created by a network of students, teachers, administrators, and community members.

In the writer’s opinion, now that ESD and EIU are being promoted globally through UNESCO’s network of partner organizations, Sufficiency Economy is Thailand’s response—a local initiative and an entry point to the path of sustainability and culture of peace.


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Source

Athapol Anunthavorasakul. "Beyond the limits, learning to live together peacefully, sustainably and sufficiently". Sansaeng Magazine. UNESCO Asia-Pacific Centre of Education for International Understanding. No.26 Autumn 2009

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