Would you like to see your view published here? Feel free to contact info@dunya.be for enquiries. All articles below are copyright of their authors. They are ordered by date of publication, the most recent on top.

 

2012 02 06 Natalia Sarro - What if you could think of Identity and Home as concepts under construction? What if Identity was something you create and re-create every single day of your life and it is up to you to decide how it is going to be? - These and more pertinent questions, relevant to anyone who is living and/or working as an expat abroad or has day-to-day dealings with colleagues from a different cultural background, are asked and answered by Natalia Sarro, Senior International Trainer (Intercultural Communication and Expatriate Coaching) in her great blog pages on One Stop Coaching. 

Interestingly, Natalia's blog entry is illustrated with the celebrated Holstee Manifesto "This is Your Life" - a reminder of the Dunya keystone belief that intercultural differences among people are merely superficial, and that, deep-down, the true matters of life are in fact quite generic.

One Stop Coaching is a group of like-minded coaches, most of whom are students or alumni of the International Coach Academy and/or certified by the International Coach Federation. Read Natalia's caption in full here.

 

2012 02 02 Barbara Petzen - Dunya has come across an interesting feature on the representation of Middle East in the (Western) media. The article is by Barbara Petzen, Education Director at TeachMidEast.org (see also this youtube fragment) and was published yesterday on Your Middle East website. How do we know what we know about the Middle East?, Mrs Petzen wonders. And she continues: Developing awareness of how the media shapes our points of view is critical to developing a more complex and nuanced understanding of the Middle East, Islam, and muslims (read Mrs Petzen's caption in full: here).

 

2012 01 26 Francis Laleman - Onder de deur van Marc Vermeulen - That cultural diversity does not necessarily mean that one has to have been born in different corners of the world, is one of the key components of the Dunya approach. And yet, it is not easy to find and meet with a fellow traveller who shares the message that cultural diversity is within each and everyone of us, a mere natural phenomenon to be nurtured in all our our meetings, conversations and exchanges. All the more remarkable was my meeting yesterday evening with Marc Vermeulen, a fellow senior corporate trainer, management coach and public speaker. In his absolutely extravagant meeting space in Mechelen near Brussels, for a few much too short hours, we shared stories and insights -and discovered synergies and parallel lifelines. Today, I read his latest book "Under the Door", Onder de deur (ego's, stiltes en krassende pennen: een experiment), in which he relates his retreat visits to twelve monasteries in Belgium, each time accompanied by just one, sometimes hesitant, fellow monasterium seeker, spending days in absolute silence, but exchanging written notes to each other. What would be the output of such an experiment? - No wonder that the book appeals to me: My own history with monasteries and monks is the subject of many of the training stories and metaphors in my seminars, and many of the management models I tend to like are taken more or less directly from what I learned when I was a young pseudo-monastic traveller in the footsteps of the historical Buddha. Check out, for example, my web page devoted to my teacher Rev Obbegoda Dhammatilaka Nayaka Thera. 

Of Marc Vermeulen's quest I will not disclose the conclusion. If you are a Dutch speaker, you can find out for yourself. If you are not: It's all about true intercultural diversity, discovered through introspection and extrospection, silence and words, in-change, ex-change, and truthfulness.

 

2012 01 11 Francis Laleman - Who will bell the cat? - Today, Sanjay Negi, CEO at Technology for Business Solutions (India), has launched a most interesting discussion at the Q&A forum pages on LinkedIn, with regard to the long-standing debate on minority quotas and reservations systems for the so-called underprivileged in India, and their impact on India’s economy. A person from a so called historically deprived caste, so he argues, gets admission to coveted professional colleges, pays no fees, gets generous scholarships, gets a coveted government job for life, does no work, indulges in acts of corruption (actually heinous extortion euphemistically called corruption in India), gets time bound promotion, lives a carefree life, lives in a government colony, pays little rent, enjoys subsidized municipal services, raises a family in a securely luxurious ambiance and then his next generation gets the same treatment all over again. It all comes down to this, Sanjay puts forward: No doubt in an agrarian economy, caste based feudal systems did handicap some castes....but cities and towns have no caste system. There is no prejudice against anyone in India's cities....then why cover people raised in cities and towns with an agrarian society's caste based reservations. The debate is indeed a sensitive one, and one extremely hard to fully comprehend for non-Indians. But now that even the 2011 census has come to a point that it considers caste to be a feature worth counting (and taking into account), isn’t it indeed time to decide once and for all what it is going to be? Are we considering (or: striving towards) a caste-free society of equal opportunities for all, in a system of unlimited meritocracy with free access for all citizens, confident in their interpersonal and intercultural, multiple diversities? Or are we accepting a society divided in castes – in which case we are, or are not, ready to manage the consequential inequalities by means of correctional levers such as quota and reservation systems? And whatever our choice – can we at least accept that the choice is of an either/or nature and in no case an and/and? – I am extremely keen to read reactions on Sanjay the Bellman, for which members of LinkedIn can click here.

 

2011 11 23 Francis Laleman - Remembering Montserrat Figueras (1942-2011) - Just over a year after the demise of her spiritual and philosophical mentor, the Indian-Catalan guru of intercultural dialogue Raimon Panikkar (see here), today, the celebrated Catalan musician Montserrat Figueras has lost her own battle against cancer. Born in Barcelona, Montserrat and her sister Pilar started singing in 1966, developing a novel approach and technique for singing early European music with combined historical fidelity and refreshing vitality - lifting as it were both music and lyrics from their dusty shelves of antiquity and flaundering them into the wide open space of modern relevance. With her husband, the viol maestro Jordi Savall, she founded Hesperion XX (later Hesperion XXI) in 1968, and later the Capella Real de Catalunya and Le Concert des Nations. From the seventies onwards, the Savall-Figueras combination created furore at the major early music festivals the world over, not the least at the yearly Musica Antiqua fortnight in Brugge/Bruges (Belgium), where I witnessed how the couple added new dynamics to the Scola Cantorum Basiliensis, Gustav Leonhardt and Kuijken family dominated music scene. As from the late nineties and into the new century, and under the influence of the charismatic ambassador of intercultural dialogue Raimon Panikkar, Savall and Figueras broadened their scope, from being merely researchers and performers to becoming live ambassadors of a unified world (Duniya), in which a continuous stream of cultures melt into one another, creating an unceasing potential of the human genius. The landmark recording of Haydn's Septem Verba Christi in Cruce (2007, introduced by Panikkar himself) was followed by musical and cultural discoveries from the realms of the mixed and hybrid Islamic/Hebrew/Christian cultural heritage of the Mediterrean Basin (Istanbul & Dimitri Cantemir, 2009 - Jerusalem, 2009 - La Sublime Porte, 2010), of South America (El Nuevo Mundo - Folias Creolas, 2010) and of Asia (La Ruta de Oriente, 2007) - bringing together musicians from Japan, China, India, Iran, Armenia, Turkey and Europe in an enlightening intercultural exchange and collaboration. Listening to all these productions, one genuinely feels that (in Kipling's words) there is neither East nor West, Border nor Breed nor Birth, when two great Men stand face to face, though they come from the ends of the earth. - For more, browse the Savall-Figueras company website Alia Vox and read the exquisite music blog Rearranging the Geometry of Heaven - also: watch and listen to Montserrat Figueras performing a gem-like sufi song from the corpus of Mohiyuddin Muhammad ibn Arabi, together with Françoise Atlan and Aicha Redouane (click here).

 

 

2011 10 01 Francis Laleman - Remembering Raimon Panikkar - It has been more than a year since the great Raimon Panikkar passed away, and that he is dearly missed, not alone by me but by many the world all over, is clearly visible through the myriad of testimonials on the Internet (see a/o Rearranging the Geometry of Heaven, taken from the superb music blog On an Overgrown Path). Those of you who have had a chance to participate in one or more of my workshops and trainings are of course familiar with the intellectual legacy of this Indo-Catalan maestro –  but did you also tell your friends about the greatness of Panikkar as a godfather of intercultural community building

Raimundo Paniker Alemany was born November 3 1918 from a Roman Catholic Indian father (a Nair from Kerala) and a Catalan mother. Originally a scholar in both chemistry and philosophy, he obtained a third doctorate in theology (Rome 1961) with a comparative study on the theology of Thomas de Aquino and Adishankara’s 18th century interpretation of the Brahmasutra body of texts. After a brief stint as a member of Opus Dei (which he was evicted from in 1962 on charges of blatant disobedience), he became a professor at Harvard Divinty School, and since 1987 lived in Tavertet, north of Barcelona, presiding over his own centre for intercultural studies, the Raimon Panikkar Vivarium Foundation. He passed away August 26 2010.

For an absolutely heart-warming introduction into Panikkar’s thought, watch him in conversation with Adelheid Roosen, on being a Being, on being afraid, and on being invited to the banquet of life (here). And then, of course, do not forget to watch The Window – and witness for yourself how Dunya’s vision is inspired by this sadly missed great soul. 

 

 

2011 09 21 Lobna Ismail - Building Cultural Competency - Understanding Islam and Muslim - One of the main on-line resources for anyone involved with diversity at the workplace is DiversityCentral.com. This brief thought, with cultural competency quiz, by Lobna Ismail is taken from their monthly free article offer. Mrs Ismail, an American-born of Egyptian descent, grew up connecting across cultures as the only Arabic speaking Muslim family in an American Christian neighbourhood. For the past twenty years she has been leading Connecting Cultures - providing trainings for public and private sector clients to effectively engage internationally and manage within diverse environments and marketplaces. Of particular interest might be Mrs Ismail's recent main caption on the Connecting Cultures website: 

 In the past months, it has been very difficult to witness the divisive statements and actions against law abiding Americans and Muslims. We have witnessed with the polarizing events regarding the burning of holy texts and the Islamic Center in Upper Manhattan, the 'If it bleeds, it leads" mantra. Want to know how to turn misinformation into understanding?  Visit www.groundzerodialogue.org and watch free PBS documentaries that tell the story of American Muslims, like Kevin James, a firefighter and a Muslim who was a first responder on September 11, 2001. Also visit www.changethestory.net an initiative I worked on filled with resources.  It's worth just watching the opening clip.

 

2010 08 22 Francis Laleman - Schoonheid is het vermogen van een mens om tevreden te zijn - Article (in Dutch) taken from the BZN (Bond Zonder Naam) blog Word echt rijk, a series of thoughts and musings on the essentials of happiness. When asked by journalist Chloe Dyckmans about what happiness and beauty really mean, Francis establishes the suggestion that genuine beauty should not be seen as an external concept to be observed by the beholder, but rather as an inherently "owned" power, to be nurtured by the practioner in all aspects of daily life. 

 

 

2010 11 08 Michaela Broeckx - A User's Guide to Wearing the Veil in Public Life and at the Workplace - Now that Angela Merkel in Germany has declared the multicultural society to be dead, and Geert Wilders in the Netherlands is proposing to demand from the wearer of a headscarf payment of an extra tax for having offended the public, Michaela Broeckx feels that the time is ripe for an innovative outlook on veils, headscarfs, hijabs and even abayas. It is not the multicultural society which is dead, she concludes, but it is its denial which is slowly whitering away into obsoleteness.

 

2010 11 05 Francis Laleman - Anand Kumar and the Ramanujan School for Mathematics, Patna, Bihar - With recent stories of Bihar having the fastest growing economy in South Asia, one might think that all is going well and the efforts of Anand and Jeevan Deep, our community development projects in India, have become superfluous. However, nothing is further from the truth. Blatant social injustice remains to keep the underprivileged from taking part in India's newly found prosperity. To provide children with basic education is more necessary than ever. Read here how this can lead to success, and while you do, discover our Anand website.

 

2010 11 05 Francis Laleman - Human Rights Compliance Assessment - Further to the fact that so many of the Dunya and IBS clients work with multi-sourced models, including outsourcing and offshoring, and in connection with our commitment to improving the fate of the Dalit and Scheduled Castes communities in Bihar (see our website at anand.be), we are proposing this fantastic tool, developed by the Danish Institute for Human Rights (Copenhagen). Click here for more.

2010 09 10 Xenia Orgielewski - Pleidooi voor het gebruik van Appreciative Inquiry in de klas - Appreciative Inquiry, in short AI, an organisational development process with focus on individual well-being rather than forced performance, was adopted from work done by earlier action research theorists and practitioners and further developed by David Cooperrider of Case Western Reserve University and Suresh Srivastva in the 1980s.

Thirty years onward, in this paper (in Dutch), Xenia Orgielewski argues about the values of AI in education. Xenia has been with the Dunya team from the early days, assisting in the development of learning tools and training material. 

2010 08 31 Eddy Van Hemelrijck - An interview with Eddy Van Hemelrijck on Dunya and intercultural management, taken from the 2010 July issue of Human Resources Magazine (in Dutch).

2010 03 10 Francis Laleman - From Indian Antiquity: A Role Model in Community Building through Ownership and Commitment - An analysis of the classic Buddhist text Ratanasutta in the light of creating ownership and commitment at the workplace.

2010 03 05 Francis Laleman - From Indian Antiquity: A Role Model in Sustainable Business, Ethical Governance and Corporate Social responsibility - Provoking thoughts about how to apply the visionary polities of the Buddhist Emperor of India Ashok (3rd Century BCE) in a modern business and/or community environment.

2010 02 09 Francis Laleman - Offshoring: The Power Generator of a Next (Intercultural) World? - A brief discussion of the offshorability matrix is followed by an overview of the main challenges to be overcome by companies introducing outsourcing and/or offshoring in their organisation. Next, as a suggested help, the Dunya Competence of Community is introduced. The article closes with a brief appraisal of K. Mohan Babu's classic on the offshoring of IT services with India as a destination.

2010 02 06 Francis Laleman - The business of education and the education business - An intriguing question for professional educators and business trainers: Are we in the education business, or is education our business? - Further to thought-provoking ideas put forward by Professor Bushan Lal Handoo of IECS, Francis Laleman remembers a central scene from Mahanagar, one of Stayajit Ray's acclaimed Bangali masterpieces.

2010 02 05 Francis Laleman - A Very Intercultural Alphabet, or: Alphabetical enigmas (Some Intercultural Competence Required).

2010 02 04 Francis Laleman - More on Defining Intercultural Competence, and how to manage Intercultural Teams - In this article, the author continues the discussion on the definition of ICC (Intercultural Competence), once again referring to Reverend David A. Livermore, and elaborating on a Linkedin discussion initiated by Wagner Branco, who is a Foreign Trade Manager at Mitsui and Co Ltd.

2010 01 29 Francis Laleman - Trials in defining ICC, revisited (for ICC trainers) - Further to hesitations about the standard definition given to Intercultural Competence, Dunya finds inspiration in the writings of the Reverend David A. Livermore.

2010 01 20 Francis Laleman - Trials in defining ICC (Intercultural competence) - As of January 2010, the definition of Intercultural Competence as given by Wikipedia is: the ability of successful communication with people of other cultures. Dunya is not happy with this definition, and refers to Antoinette Cammileri Grima in a presentation available on the net, who goes way beyond Wikipedia and offers a novel starting point to define ICC.

2008 09 09 Francis Laleman - To Be or Not to Be a Global Citizen - Francis Laleman and Vijay Pereira discuss aspects of the philosophy of Kwame Anthony Appiah, as proposed in his acclaimed book "Cosmopolitanism: Ethics in a World of Strangers"

2008 09 08 Francis Laleman - Cultural Diversity vs Universals in the Art of Leadership - Discussions on the Art of Leadership do not cease to grab the attention of the professional community - and this has been so ever since the dawn of history. In the last few decades, many fine experts have written glossy books, inviting the reader to follow the author in search of the ultimate qualities of the good leader, the best leader, the most effective leader, or just the leader, period. Time to (re)discover Kautilya.

2008 08 05 Francis Laleman -  Feeling misplaced, or being a true dunyavaala (global citizen)? - Octavio Pitaluga Neto, Chairman at Top Executives Net, posted an interesting question on the Linkedin Q&A forum, with regard to the feeling of misplacement. [The more] we have become  global citizens, Octavio explains,in this melting pot of knowledge, experiences, contacts and places we have lived in, the more this feeling [of misplacement tends to] grow inside. Sometimes, it´s just about  (a) geography: country or just city specific, (b) line of business/industry, (c) position, or even a combination of these 3 points. Francis Laleman replies.

2008 08 04 Francis Laleman - The Baton passes to Asia - Afterthoughts on an article by Roger Cohen - On April 1st 2008, Wei Luo posted a question on the LinkedIn Q&A forum, asking contributors to share opinions on an article written by NYTimes Op-Ed Columnist Roger Cohen, titled 'The Baton Passes to Asia' and published the day before, March 31, 2008. In his question, Wei quotes Cohen saying "Asia’s rise is about confidence, a fierce culture of education and achievement and a burning desire to succeed."  Wei agrees that this may be true indeed, but he the disturbing bit, he adds, is when Cohen states that the rise of Asia equals  "the end of the era of the white man". Here is a copy of my public answer to Wei's interesting question.

2008 05 23 Eddy Van Hemelrijck - What Linda teaches us about doing business overseas - In his book “All by chance”, Stefan Klein refers to the Israeli-American psychologist Daniel Kahneman who won the Nobel price of Economics in 2002 with the imaginary Linda. In this Article, Eddy Van Hemelrijck further explores wht Linda can teach us, and Francis Laleman concludes with a thought on the concept of the narrative fallacy.

2008 03 08 Francis Laleman - The Search for Universals through Diversity - In February 2008, Sanjeev Himachali, a respected HR professional from the Isle of Mauritius, posted an interesting question on the Linkedin Q&A forum, inviting contributors to share thoughts on what is common in all of us. We, human-beings, Sanjeev-ji explained, have different colours, shapes, sizes, beliefs and cultures. We follow different religions. We are divided by geographical boundaries. We are driven by different motives. We are inspired by different people and stories. Yet, there is something common between us. Whether we are Indians (Asians), Americans, Europeans, Australians, Africans or of any other race, there is something common in us. No less than 68 LI-members jumped on the question to share their thoughts. After closing the question, Sanjeev-ji selected the following answer as "best answer".