Tag: <span>World Citizens</span>

politics without borders Appeals

Politics Beyond National Frontiers.

Featured Image: Photo by  Markus Spiske,  Unsplash.

In our current globalized world society, there is an increased role for politics without borders.  Politics no longer stops at the water’s edge but must play an active role on the world stage. 

However, unlike politics at the national level which usually has a parliament at which the actors can recite their lines, the world has no world parliament as such.  Thus new and inventive ways must be found so that world public opinion can be heard and acted upon.

Beyond The Borders of Individual Countries. 

The United Nations General Assembly is as close to a world parliament that we have today.  However, all the official participants are diplomats appointed by their respective States – 195 members.  U.N. secretariat members, the secretariat members of U.N. Specialized Agencies such as UNESCO and the ILO are in the hall ways or coffee shops to give advice.  Secretariat members of the financial institutions such as the World Bank and the IMF are also there to give advice on costs and the limits of available funds.  The representatives of non-governmental organizations (NGO) in consultative status with the U.N. who can speak at sessions of the Economic and Social Council and the Human Rights Council cannot address the General Assembly directly. However, they are also in the coffee shops and may send documents to the U.N. Missions of governments.

Politics without borders requires finding ways to express views for action beyond the borders of individual countries. 

Today, most vital issues that touch the lives of many people go beyond the individual State:

  • The consequences of climate change.
  • The protection of biodiversity.
  • The resolution of armed conflicts.
  • The violations of human rights.
  • More just world trade pattern. 

Thus we need to find ways of looking at the world with a global mind and an open heart.  This perspective is an aim of world citizenship.

However, world citizens are not yet so organized as to be able to impact political decisions at the United Nations and in enough individual States so as to have real influence.  The policy papers and Appeals of the Association of World Citizens are often read with interest by the government representatives to whom they are sent.  However, the Association of World Citizens is an NGO among many and does not have the number of staff as such international NGOs as Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and Greenpeace.

We still need to find effective ways so that humanity can come together to solve global problems – that is – politics without borders.

René Wadlow, President, Association of World Citizens.

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World Refugee Day.

World Refugee Day.

June 20 is the United Nations (UN)-designated World Refugee Day;  marking the signing in 1951 of the Convention on Refugees. The condition of refugees and migrants has become a “hot”…

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Yin and Yang Education of World Citizenships.

A Harmonious Life and the Principle of Yin and…

Featured Image: Photo by Jben Beach Art on Pexels.

Humanity’s growing desire to discover the world and the satisfaction that comes along with a deeper understanding of the world is becoming more pronounced.
This is a progressive evolution for humanity. The search for the deeper origin of the soul helps people face a future filled with uncertainty. The creation of a world citizenship education system is the synopsis of this global trend.

Everyone is now a global citizen. However, the concept of the rights and obligations of world citizenship has not yet prevailed. To turn the new generation into world citizens with healthy minds and bodies requires massive efforts and endeavors.
Throughout history, the concept of one world is already widely accepted. People are just now endeavoring to find a more harmonious way to live in this one world. All living creatures have a balancing point. Love is the way of life and the source of hope.

The wisdom of yin and yang is a powerful tool to reconcile a world in transition. God has given us life and the journey of living it belongs to each of us.

What is the true meaning of life?.

Those who are born with this understanding rank the highest. Those who acquire understanding from learning rank second. Those who engage in learning because of lack of understanding rank third One undergoes four phases of learning: unconscious
incompetence, conscious incompetence, conscious competence and unconscious competence. One may feel comfortable and safe when not conscious of his incompetence.

However, when new challenges surface or situations change, he will start feeling insecure and a sense of crisis arises out of the insecurity of being incompetent. Almost all learning undergoes the aforementioned four stages. But there is another higher level of the realization of potentiality which starts from changing within the heart. Everyone has his potential but more often than not, the light of inner wisdom is blocked by impurities.
Over the past one hundred years, countless efforts in innate ability theory, cognition theory, learning theory, personality, and social relation studies have been made about the development of a child with the ultimate goal of understanding the unknown, untapped and un-exploited part of human beings.

Whys.

The efforts have paid off by offering explanations to many of the “whys” in human life. When understanding the true meaning of life, a great sage once said: Who was I before I was born? Who am I after I am born? Another sage said that one’s present life is the
collective result of the past lives and one’s next life will be a consequence of this life. These words express the meaningof life and the responsibilities one is obligated to in life.
Only with this understanding and awakening will one start purifying and correcting the polluted Qi. This will further change and inspire the direction of qi towards a better field.

The process of correcting by doing, enlightening by correcting and continuing to improve based on the enlightened wisdom is important. This positive cycle is the path of Tao, it enlightens the world and leads us towards a brightly illuminated universe.

All things exist for a good reason.

We should all strive to truly understand ourselves and to examine and structure our future life with the aforementioned sage’s saying in mind. Who was I before I was born? Who am I after I am born? All things exist for a good reason.

The reason does not arise out of thin air, but can be attributed to a circular cycle. We should not only look at the bad side or the bright side, but treat the cause and effect in a centered and balanced way.

Correct thinking builds a mind of pure serenity, which helps us see the light of wisdom. We then know what to do next. The long and deep process is a repetition of the four stages of learning. World citizens can increase their resistance to negative thinking through this practice. Negative thinking is one of the major mental problems in the 21st century and worthy of our serious attention.

Having by Thinking.

The key to the realization of a higher level lies in the purification of heart. After the purification of heart, we will possess the capability of “having by thinking”. For example, we can have a good mood by thinking we are actually in one. Everyone has a heart. And we can install a button for happiness in our hearts. Whenever we are in a bad mood, we push the button and activate the good mood. It is easy and can be done without help from someone else. The energy of heart is strengthened and stored. When the habit becomes deeply ingrained, it will help purify our thoughts.
We must emphasize that the heart is unrestricted and free. When one is willing to practice freeing one’s heart, it does not necessarily take a long time. Leaps of advancement are not uncommon. Stephen Covey said,

“10% of life is made up of what happens to you, 90% of life is decided by how you react.”

This explains a concept of looking on the bright side of things and not being controlled by external situations. What is most important is that we must have the strength to resist being influenced by the “10% events”.
What we are doing is to achieve the full harmony of life. How should world citizens strive to improve themselves? We suggest to start with the concept that one’s present life is the result of his past lives and his next life will be a consequence of this life. Think deeply about what role we play and what we have encountered in this life.
Everything befalls us for good reasons. We will be able to predict what our future life will be like by studying the consequences of everything we did in this life.
We have to be responsible for our lives through discovering the inner world of soul and discarding external disturbances. A healthy mind and body in harmony is our respect for life. All living creatures have a foundation upon which they prosper. The world community presents itself in many different ways. History shows that our forefathers of different races left the same message – the original humanity is pure and clean. A life attitude of pureness and cleanness is to approach the origin of universe and the understanding of a real one world.

Professor Stephen Covey in his home (2010). By Sterling.morris, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

Yin and Yang.

Understanding the balanced way of yin and yang helps us know the past, seize the present and prepare for the future. The highest level of the wisdom is to prevent bad things from happening and turn bad things around. If this is indeed true, then we should all start by cultivating ourselves. World citizens’ new understanding of a harmonious life and the principle of yin and yang will contribute greatly to a stable, safe, peaceful, and affluent world.

What we have to strive for is the balancing point, or the tai-ji point. We understand the importance of harmony in life and we need to use the centered way of yin and yang principle to deal with daily affairs or to govern the nation. Yin and yang works like a mirror through which we are able to see the reflections. Therefore, a man with yin yang principle is able to locate the resource of problems and find solutions. This is the working of wisdom.

We hereby advocate a deeper and proactive understanding of life in harmony and the way of yin and yang in order to have a profound balancing effect on the lives of generations to come.
The source of happiness comes from diligence, perseverance and self-assistance. The deeper meaning of consolidating the people’s will and power is to deliver recommendations for the advancement of world citizenship education in order to broaden our minds and lighten up our ways.

Author: Dr. Hong, Tao-Tze.

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