This week has been long, and I have learnt huge amounts which is very difficult to convey on a blog, however, I shall attempt to fill you in on some of what has stood out for me.
The main themes this week have been the impact of world view on our perception of the world around us. A world view is the set of assumptions and beliefs that determine how we live and how we interpret and respond to life's challenges.
The main categories are:
- Naturalism - where reality is viewed as ultimately physical
- Animism - where reality is viewed as ultimately spiritual
- Biblical theism - where reality is viewed in both spiritual and physical terms
In the West, the world view is generally naturalistic and in the developing world the world view is generally animistic. Understanding someone's world view is key to understanding how they relate to the world.
In the context of understanding someone's world view we looked at how you go about working with the poor, and how to approach not only effective development but transformational development. Sustainable or real change results from a change of world view, however, this takes time. You cannot force a world view on someone, it needs to grow and develop in the individual.
When doing developmental work, it is not beneficial to a community if you come in and to try to change them, or to force on them technology and ideas which do not fit with their world view or culture. It is imperative to understand the area you will be working in and to approach a community with love. For instance, giving a community a shiny well with a pump is not always the answer, because if they don't have any connection to that technology, what will motivate them to fix it when it breaks? Whereas a well with a rope and bucket may provide the same clean water, but when the bucket breaks they will get a new one, rather than abandon the well. The community can connect with the concept of the bucket and rope, but the pump seems like technology which has been set up by the West and therefore they need them to fix it, even if this is not the case, this is the perception. Essentially if the community does not understand what you teach them (whatever that may be, healthcare or water treatment etc) they will never maintain any change after you have gone as they have never understood or personally accepted the new idea.
In the context of understanding someone's world view we looked at how you go about working with the poor, and how to approach not only effective development but transformational development. Sustainable or real change results from a change of world view, however, this takes time. You cannot force a world view on someone, it needs to grow and develop in the individual.
When doing developmental work, it is not beneficial to a community if you come in and to try to change them, or to force on them technology and ideas which do not fit with their world view or culture. It is imperative to understand the area you will be working in and to approach a community with love. For instance, giving a community a shiny well with a pump is not always the answer, because if they don't have any connection to that technology, what will motivate them to fix it when it breaks? Whereas a well with a rope and bucket may provide the same clean water, but when the bucket breaks they will get a new one, rather than abandon the well. The community can connect with the concept of the bucket and rope, but the pump seems like technology which has been set up by the West and therefore they need them to fix it, even if this is not the case, this is the perception. Essentially if the community does not understand what you teach them (whatever that may be, healthcare or water treatment etc) they will never maintain any change after you have gone as they have never understood or personally accepted the new idea.
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