Eco-Swaraj ISSUE13: Difference between revisions
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==What's it about?== | ==What's it about?== | ||
Ashish Kothari | Ashish Kothari introduce us to the word Eco-Swaraj by showcasing initiatives from India where people live in communities with their own eco based self-ruled system. These initiatives emerged in reaction to the global ecological collapse or due to more local socio-economical inequities. | ||
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The word "Swaraj" could be translated as self-ruled decision making-system in local assemblies. This system wishes to bring more autonomy to communities and be independent from governments in favor of social collectives. Eco-swaraj adds these values to a personal and collective responsability towards each others and towards the environment. | |||
==How they do that== | ==How they do that== |
Latest revision as of 13:30, 5 October 2020
What's it about?
Ashish Kothari introduce us to the word Eco-Swaraj by showcasing initiatives from India where people live in communities with their own eco based self-ruled system. These initiatives emerged in reaction to the global ecological collapse or due to more local socio-economical inequities.
The word "Swaraj" could be translated as self-ruled decision making-system in local assemblies. This system wishes to bring more autonomy to communities and be independent from governments in favor of social collectives. Eco-swaraj adds these values to a personal and collective responsability towards each others and towards the environment.
How they do that
- Ecological collapse / Socio-economies inequities
⇩
- raise of alternative movements
- re-affirmation of current lifestyle
- resistance movements against power concentration
- re-affirmation of current lifestyle
⇩
- common features in those initiatives = emergence of general set of values/principles
- forming a broad ideological framework based on the principle of autonomy:
- self autonomy
- self governance
- self determination of indigenous people
⇩
- The term Swaraj, simplistically translated as self-rule decision-making in local assemblies:
- self-rule system (from India with national independence)
- individual + community + autonomy / freedom
- social and environmental responsibility
⇩
- ‘gram sabha’
- village assembly
- decision-making organ
- consensus principle adopted ⇨ vote system.
- The villagers not allow
- any government agency or politicians to take decisions on their behalf
- nor may a village or tribal chief do so on his/her own.
⇩
- Resistance movement by claiming 'people approval'
- right of consent
- being helped by Justice institutions
⇩
- Dalit women's oppression/exploitation
- Remarkable revolution in
- sustainable farming
- alternative media
- collective mobilisation
- created grain banks for the poor to access
- linked farmer producers to nearby consumers
- ...food sovereignty and security
- by generating their own media content ⇨ create their own narrative.
⇩
- Eco-Swaraj practice
- human
- animals
- earth rights
- aiming for social justice
- equity
- consideration at the center of everything
⇩ So:
- Ecological wisdom and resilience
- humanity as part of nature / and in harmony with it
- Social well-being and justice
- equity in socio-economic and political entitlements / collective & individual freedoms
- Direct or radical political democracy (every human can be part of decision making/government mainly
- involved into facilitating connections of people/initiatives
- Economic democracy (prosumers's control over their own economy / local business as main
- strength without excluding outsiders / minimized private property / not looking for expansion but well-being (anti-capitalistic)
- Cultural and knowledge plurality
- transmission of knowledge/processes to public domain, to everyone
⇩
- RED Societies foundation
- Sort of structured / systematic version of eco-swaraj
- equality/equity
- respect for all Life
- diversity/pluralism
- balancing collective/individual
- RED/ Eco-Swaraj
- evolving worldview as an alternative to
- capitalism
- stateism
- patriarchy
- state repression
- corporate impunity
- climate crisis
- inequality
- racial
- ethnic conflicts
- landgrabbing
- dispossession
- displacement of communities
- and other structures of inequity and exploitation for the sake of development.