Posted by Helen and Don Gordon
on 7/2/2004, 2:14 pm
144.139.115.21
We have taken an interest in this site as we made friends with some Solomon Island people from Malaita and just last April a friend of ours was involved in a health project in HauHui. We have also been involved in community development projects with indigenous Australians in the Central desert area in Australia - teaching office skills, setting up arts & crafts
industries, and setting up Community Councils etc. Here, dependency on government handouts, is soul-destroying, inhibiting any initiative for people to get up and work and do things for themselves. Alcohol abuse, drug-taking is a problem, even children sniffing petrol, are major problems as well as severe health issues and just general apathy. It is so sad as just 30 years ago these people were very proud independent nomadic people.
From our studies in socio-economic development and our experiences, your thinking is along the same lines as our own. Education for service is fundamental (your father's story was excellent - modern educators are only now starting to think like this) competition in any form, whether in business, development projects, education is only relevant when it is subservient to the overall good. This is not so in the Western world where selfishness and greed have become the driving motives. In the long run this self-destructs.
Your thinking to be effective does need to go beyond the keyboard and intellectual services, and also realise that the "uneducated man" can also have great thoughts and is capable of shaping his own destiny. We need to stand beside the villagers assisting with knowledge and co-ordination expertise but not making decisions. The decisions should be made by those who are going to implement them. However, often they can't initially see beyond their own immediate needs, if these are in a critical state. There are many strategies for overcoming these issues, and important to not overplay your "superior" knowledge, nor to manipulate the situation but to offer advice, knowledge, understanding and then let go and see what the people come up with themselves. You have already seen that it is important not to start with money - it doesn't work particularly in the first instance. Rather here is some knowledge and together with your own understanding you can empower yourselves to develop your own communities. Any community-based effort that empowers the individual and is for the overall good is to be supported and encouraged no matter how small the effort. Because this is humanising it must eventually bring good fruits that bring general well-being.
The image of the prosperous western world often brings an illusion of well-being to those who are living in under-developed countries, and often they think if they can just acquire the material benefits that we have they will be happy. Unfortunately this is not true and human happiness is not so easily bought.
We just want to send our best wishes for your efforts and hope you will succeed in your objectives. We will follow your efforts with interest.
Yours sincerely
Helen and Don Gordon
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