Here I want to write about a global initiative called 1000 Women for the Nobel Peace Prize 2005 (1000 Peace Women). Specifically, I want to discuss the implementation of this initiative in China and the controversies and challenges that arose as a result. In China, the case of 1000 Peace Women is interesting because it showcases an unprecedented effort to promote a culture of peace from a feminist perspective in the country. The initiative points towards the future of peace education in China.

About the Global 1000 Peace Women Initiative

Hundreds and thousands of women work for peace each day from all over the world but many of their stories are left unknown and invisible. The 1000 Peace Women was an innovative project started in Switzerland that called for 1000 women from 150 countries around the world to be collectively nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 2005. Central to the project was the idea that women have a significant role to play in conflict resolution and peace-building, as indicated in Resolution 1325 . A vision of peace in our interconnected world is possible with the participation of women in eliminating both direct and indirect violence. 1000 PeaceWomen Initiative highlighted women’s diverse knowledge, strengths and strategies in building peace by bringing together women from different national and cultural backgrounds, who are making peace everyday, in their own ways, for the Nobel Peace Prize. Essentially, 1000 Peace Women was an attempt to challenge the narrow definition of peace as the absence of war, and the idea that peace is separated from people’s daily lives and therefore unattainable. The global initiative encouraged people to see peace as a way of living and being, which values social justice, equity, and individual agencies including those of women. Although the 1000 Peace Women did not end up receiving the Nobel Peace Prize in 2005, it did raise public awareness and discussions on the issue of gender, development and peace-building. Such was the case in China.

1000 Peace Women in China

The process of nominating Chinese women for 1000 Peace Women was quite challenging from the outset. In 2003, the Swiss-based initiative approached Dr. Lau Kin Chi from the Lingnan University to coordinate the 1000 Peace Women’s chapter in China. Despite a lack of funding and human resources, the local chapter managed to roll up its sleeves and work on the alternative peace project. In 2004, nomination forms were distributed across the country to search for female role models who could be considered as peace activists under the definition of 1000 Peace Women. In 2005, 108 Chinese women were identified and their stories woven with those of others from the rest of the world, ready to be presented to the Nobel Peace Prize committee.

Communicating the idea of 1000 Peace Women to the Chinese audience and collecting stories representative of women’s peace-building work in China was by no means easy (Commentary Essays, 2009). Many people, uncomprehending the vision of peace put forward by the 1000 Peace Women, felt that the project was a waste of Chinese people’s time and energy. Some public intellectuals bluntly commented on the naïveté of the project and its wild idea to nominate ordinary women for the Nobel Peace Prize. There was no need to address the issue of gender in peace building, so was the thought. The idea of peace was overly imaginative and had no relevance to China and its reality, let alone having anything to do with women’s voices and empowerment. There were also fierce debates on how Chinese women were selected for the Nobel Peace Prize. The process of nomination became somewhat political and emotional over questions like what is peace, who are entitled to peace, who has the power to define peace, and who gets the reward for peace.

The public skepticism and criticism towards1000 Peace Women mounted when one of the nominees (famous for her work in fighting HIV/AIDS in China) declared that the initiative was just a hoax and that it had no financial ground and was not transparent in its operation (this was partly due to the lack of resources and experience of the Chinese organizers). Her request to have her name deleted from the nomination list led to splits in public opinions regarding the legitimacy of 1000 Peace Women in China.

In spite of all the dramas that happened in the process of promoting gender and peace building, Dr. Lau and her team managed to survive the resistance and criticism. They held a series of photo exhibits in China and its neighboring regions to portray every single woman nominated for the 2005 Nobel Peace Prize. By showing 999 portraits and stories of peace women and leaving one story to be defined by visitors themselves, the organizers encouraged people to revisit their notion of peace and agency. While raising awareness on women’s engagement in women’s rights, economic rights, livelihood, ecological security and fight against violence against women, the exhibit invited individuals to discover and celebrate “everyday’ peace within and around them.

Significance of 1000 Peace Women in China

The work of 1000 Peace Women in China is significant in that it brought forward two concepts – gender equality/equity and peace – that are still far-fetched in the imagination of the mainstream Chinese society. Under the political context of the Peace Nobel Prize, both concepts further challenged the dominant ways of thinking about roles and status of women and men in the society, especially their positions in peace-building. The sharp responses facing 1000 Peace Women in China suggests a lack of readiness in the society to have constructive dialogues around gender equality, equity and peace.

Nonetheless, the initiative was a good medium to educate about and for peace in China as it highlighted concepts like a culture of peace, community-based peacebuilding, transformative agency and optimism of both men and women. Furthermore, it addressed the important issues of gender and incorporated feminist perspectives in its effort to educate. When it presented stories of 108 Chinese women engaging in daily work for a better society, it acknowledged the need for peace to happen at all levels – individuals, groups, national and global, the life-giving power of women, and the social construction of gender roles and its implication on peace education (Brock-Utne, 2005, Mingol, 2009). Peace education is a form of socialization (Brock-Utne, 2005). “Mainstreaming” gender in the promotion of peace education in China is to socialize boys and girls, women and men to respect, appreciate, advocate and learn from each other’s qualities and strengths as human beings, and create a less violent society/world that allows each of us to live without fear and develop our potential.

Hardships notwithstanding, 1000 Peace Women’s work in China successfully planted the seeds and nurtured the ground for future of development of peace education in China. The initiative continues to produce alternative discourses on peace by conducting action research projects on gender, peace-building and sustainability. It brought a smile to my face knowing that women are stirring the discussion of peace in China, and Chinese feminists and environmentalists – early champions of grassroots social movements in China – are joining hands to act for peace in the country.

References
Commentary Essays. (2009). Retrieved from the Peace Women across the Globe (Hong Kong) Website: http://www.1000peacewomen-hk.org/article.html

人的心到底还是需要锻炼。在做教育发展工作时，有时候会觉得力不从心，或者是乱了脚。一行禅师的正念修习十四要诀，一直都伴随着我的成长。虽然很多时候会忘了这些要诀的重要与美好，但知道只要有心，回归当下，安住正念，信心就能生气，一切都有可能。爱与和平将不沦为嘴边谈，晃眼即逝的理想概念。它们是一股强大的力量，能把人们的痛苦在当下转换成幸福。如果我们不能从自己的心做起，何谈公民社会？

正念修習十四要訣

（１）開放

我們知道痛苦是由盲信和不寬容造成的，因此我們決心不膜拜、不局限於任何教義、理論或意識形態，即使它們是來源於佛教。佛教教義只是一些導航要訣，幫助我們學習深入觀察和培養我們的智慧與慈悲。它們不是用來發動戰爭、殺戮或為其殉身的教義。

（２）不執見

我們知道痛苦是由執著與偏見造成的，因此我們決心避免狹隘之心，不被目前的見解所束縛。我們將學習並實踐不執著，以便以開放的心態面對他人的智慧與經歷。我們知道我們現在所掌握的知識並非是一成不變、絕對的真理。真理來自於生活。我們將每時每刻體察自己及我們身邊的生活，終生學習。

（３）思想自由

我們知道當我們把自己的主張強加他人時，痛苦便產生了，因此我們決心不以任何方式　─　權威、威脅、金錢、宣傳或灌輸　－　來強迫他人接受我們的觀點，即使他們是我們的孩子。我們尊重他人擁有不同見解的權利，以及相信什麼、作何決定的權利。但是，我們要通過充滿慈悲的言談話語來幫助他人屏棄盲信與狹隘心理。

（４）感知痛苦

我們知道深入觀察痛苦的本質可以幫助我們培養慈悲，尋找擺脫痛苦的道路，因此我們決心在痛苦面前不回避，不逃脫。我們決心想方設法，諸如通過個人行為、形象及聲音，來與那些處於痛苦之中的人接觸，以便深入理解他們的處境，幫助他們把痛苦轉化為慈悲、安詳與愉悅。

（５）簡樸、健康的生活

我們知道真正的快樂源於安詳、穩健、自由與慈悲，而不是財富或名望，因此我們決心不以名望、利潤、財富或肉體快感為目標，也不把財富積累建立在千百萬人忍飢挨餓的基礎上。我們決心過簡樸的生活，並把我們的時間、能量及物質資源同那些需要的人分享。我們將實踐一種有正念的消費，不飲酒，不使用毒品，或其他使我們上癮的毀壞我們及大家的身體，破壞我們及集體意識的產品。

（６）對治瞋恨

我們知道生氣破壞人際關系並產生痛苦，因此我們決心當憤怒之火升起時照看它，辨識並轉化深埋在意識之中的憤怒的火種。當憤怒撲來時，我們決心什麼也不做，什麼也不說，而進行專注的呼吸或行禪，並且了知、擁抱和深入觀察我們的怒火。我們將學習以慈悲之眼觀察我們認為是憤怒之源的人們。

（７）樂住當下

我們知道生命就在當下一刻，並且我們有可能在當下都擁有快樂的生活，因此我們決心在日常生活中的每一刻訓練我們自己深入到生活中去。我們將努力不在過去的事情中迷失自己，或被過去的遺憾、對將來的焦慮或目前的渴望、憤怒與嫉妒挾持。我們將練習專注的呼吸，以便回到當下一刻。我們決心學習正念生活的藝術。通過接觸我們自己及周圍精彩、新鮮、健康的元素，以及滋養我們內心的歡樂、安詳、愛與智慧的種子來幫助我們轉變並治癒我們的意識中的不良因素。

（８）團體與交流

我們知道缺乏交流總是帶來分離與痛苦，因此我們決心訓練自己以慈悲的心來傾聽並講愛語。我們將學習不主觀判斷、不反唇的傾聽方式；不講會產生不和及使團體破裂的話。我們將盡一切努力保持一種通暢的交流，並調和、解決所有衝突，無論是多麼小的一個衝突。

（９）真語和愛語

我們知道言語會產生痛苦和歡樂，因此我們決心學習真實的和富有建設性的講話方式，只使用那些激發人們希望和信心的言詞。我們決心不為滿足個人利益或取悅大眾而傳播不真實的事情，也不講可能引起分裂或憎恨的話。我們不傳播那些我們不知是否真實的消息，也不批評或譴責我們不確信的事情。我們將盡力去揭發不公正的事件，即使這樣做會危及我們的安全。

（１０）保護僧伽

我們知道僧伽的實質和目標是寶踐智慧與慈悲，因此我們決心不利用佛教團體為個人謀利，也不將我們的團體轉變成一個政治工具。一個精神的團體應當是站在明確的立場上反對壓迫與不公正，並且應該在不參與派系爭鬥的情況下為改變不良現狀而奮鬥。

（１１）正命

我們知道我們的環境和社會遭受了巨大的暴力與不公正，因此我們決心不從事對人類和社會有害的職業。我們盡我們的努力選擇一項有助於實現我們智慧與慈悲理想的生計。考慮到全球的經濟、政治與社會現實，我們，將做一個有責任感的消費者與公民，不投資建立剝奪他人生活機會的公司。

（１２）尊重生命

我們知道許多痛苦都是由戰爭與衝突造成的，因此我們決心在日常生活中培養非暴力、智慧與慈悲，推進和平教育，正念的靜慮，以及家庭內部、各組織之間、國內及世界范圍內的和解。我們決心不殺戮，也不允他人進行殺戮。我們將和僧伽一起深入修習內觀，來尋找保護生命、防止戰爭的更好的道路。

（１３）慷慨

我們知道痛苦是由剝削、社會不公正、偷盜及壓迫造成的，因此我們決心培養我們的慈愛，並學習如何與人們、動物、植物及礦物更好的相處。我們將同那些需要的人分享我們的時間、能量、及物資，以此來實踐我們的寬宏大量。我們決心不偷盜、不佔有他人財物。我們尊重他人的財產所有權，但我們要盡力阻止那些把利益建立在人類痛苦或其他生命痛苦基礎上的行為。

（１４）正業

（居士）：我們知道單純由性欲引發的性行為並不能驅散孤獨感，相反它會產生更多的痛苦、困惑與孤獨，因此我們決心在沒有共同理解、愛與長期的感情基礎時不與他人發生性關係。在性關係上我們必須認識到它可能會引起更為深遠的痛苦。我們知道要保持我們和他人的快樂，我們必須尊重雙方的權利與感情。我們要盡一切所能保護我們的孩子免遭性侵害，保護我們的伴侶及其他家庭成員免遭不正當性行為所帶來的家庭破裂。我們將尊重善待自己的身體，保存自己的元氣（精、氣、神 sexual，breath，spirit）以實現菩薩理想。我們應知道將一個新生命帶到這個世界上來我們所應承擔的全部責任，並且要對這個即將為它帶來新生命的世界進行靜思。

The Fourteen Mindfulness Trainings

The First Mindfulness Training: Openness

Aware of the suffering created by fanaticism and intolerance, I am determined not to be idolatrous about or bound to any doctrine, theory or ideology, even Buddhist ones. Buddhist teachings are guiding means to help me learn to look deeply and to develop my understanding and compassion. They are not doctrines to fight, kill or die for.

The Second Mindfulness Training:Non-attachment to Views

Aware of suffering created by attachment to views and wrong perceptions, I am determined to avoid being narrow-minded and bound to present views. I will learn and practise non-attachment from views in order to be open to others’ insights and experiences. I am aware that the knowledge I presently possess is not changeless, absolute truth. Truth is found in life and I will observe life within and around me in every moment, ready to learn throughout my life.

The Third Mindfulness Training: Freedom of Thought

Aware of the suffering brought about when I impose my views on others, I am committed not to force others, even my children, by any means whatsoever – such as authority, threat, money, propaganda or indoctrination – to adopt my views. I will respect the right of others to be different and to choose what to believe and how to decide. I will, however, help others renounce fanaticism and narrowness through compassionate dialogue.

The Fourth Mindfulness Training: Awareness of Suffering

Aware that looking deeply at the nature of suffering can help me develop compassion and find ways out of suffering, I am determined not to avoid or close my eyes before suffering. I am committed to finding ways, including personal contact, images and sounds, to be with those who suffer, so I can understand their situation deeply and help them transform their suffering into compassion, peace and joy.

The Fifth Mindfulness Training: Simple, Healthy Living

Aware that true happiness is rooted in peace, solidity, freedom and compassion, and not in wealth or fame, I am determined not to take as the aim of my life fame, profit, wealth or sensual pleasure, nor to accumulate wealth while millions are hungry and dying. I am committed to living simply and sharing my time, energy and material resources with those in real need. I will practise mindful consuming, not using alcohol, drugs or any other products that bring toxins into my own and the collective body and consciousness.

The Sixth Mindfulness Training: Dealing with Anger

Aware that anger blocks communication and creates suffering, I am determined to take care of the energy of anger when it arises and to recognise and transform the seeds of anger that lie deep in my consciousness. When anger comes up, I am determined not to do or say anything, but to practise mindful breathing or mindful walking and acknowledge, embrace and look deeply into my anger. I will learn to look with the eyes of compassion on those I think are the cause of my anger.

The Seventh Mindfulness Training: Dwelling Happily in the Present Moment

Aware that life is available only in the present moment and that it is possible to live happily in the here and now, I am committed to training myself to live deeply each moment of daily life. I will try not to lose myself in dispersion or be carried away by regrets about the past, worries about the future, or craving, anger or jealousy in the present. I will practise mindful breathing to come back to what is happening in the present moment. I am determined to learn the art of mindful living by touching the wondrous, refreshing and healing elements that are inside and around me, and by nourishing seeds of joy, peace, love and understanding in myself, thus facilitating the work of transformation and healing in my consciousness.

The Eighth Mindfulness Training: Community and Communication

Aware that lack of communication always brings separation and suffering, I am committed to training myself in the practice of compassionate listening and loving speech. I will learn to listen deeply without judging or reacting and refrain from uttering words that can create discord or cause the community to break. I will make every effort to keep communications open and to reconcile and resolve all conflicts, however small.

The Ninth Mindfulness Training: Truthful and Loving Speech

Aware that words can create suffering or happiness, I am committed to learning to speak truthfully and constructively, using only words that inspire hope and confidence. I am determined not to say untruthful things for the sake of personal interest or to impress people, nor to utter words that might cause division or hatred. I will not spread news that I do not know to be certain nor criticise or condemn things of which I am not sure. I will do my best to speak out about situations of injustice, even when doing so may threaten my safety.

The Tenth Mindfulness Training: Protecting the Sangha

Aware that the essence and aim of a Sangha is the practise of understanding and compassion, I am determined not to use the Buddhist community for personal gain or profit or transform our community into a political instrument. A spiritual community should, however, take a clear stand against oppression and injustice and should strive to change the situation without engaging in partisan conflicts.

The Eleventh Mindfulness Training: Right Livelihood

Aware that great violence and injustice have been done to the environment and society, I am committed not to live with a vocation that is harmful to humans and nature. I will do my best to select a livelihood that helps realize my ideal of understanding and compassion. Aware of global economic, political and social realities, I will behave responsibly as a consumer and as a citizen, not investing in companies that deprive others of their chance to live.

The Twelfth Mindfulness Training: Reverence for Life

Aware that much suffering is caused by war and conflict, I am determined to cultivate non-violence, understanding and compassion in my daily life, to promote peace education, mindful mediation and reconciliation, within families, communities, nations and in the world. I am determined not to kill and not to let others kill. I will diligently practice deep looking with my Sangha to discover better ways to protect life and prevent war.

The Thirteenth Mindfulness Training: Generosity

Aware of the suffering caused by exploitation, social injustice, stealing and oppression, I am committed to cultivating loving kindness and learning ways to work for the well-being of people, animals, plants and minerals. I will practice generosity by sharing my time, energy and material resources with those who are in need. I am determined not to steal and not to possess anything that should belong to others. I will respect the property of others, but will try to prevent others from profiting from human suffering or the suffering of other beings.

The Fourteenth Mindfulness Training: Right Conduct

For lay members: Aware that sexual relations motivated by craving cannot dissipate the feeling of loneliness, but will create more suffering, frustration and isolation, I am determined not to engage in sexual relations without mutual understanding, love and a long-term commitment. In sexual relations, I must be aware of future suffering that may be caused. I know that to preserve the happiness of myself and others, I must respect the rights and commitments of myself and others. I will do everything in my power to protect children from sexual abuse and to protect couples and families from being broken by sexual misconduct. I will treat my body with respect and preserve my vital energies (sexual, breath, spirit) for the realization of my bodhisattva ideal. I will be fully aware of the responsibility for bringing new lives in the world, and will meditate on the world into which we are bringing new beings

Plum Village Practice Center

http://www.plumvillage.org/

El Sistema – youth orchestra in Venezuela:
http://www.viewchange.org/videos/venezuela-the-pied-piper

Mallika Sarabhai – Using Dance for Social Change
http://www.ted.com/talk/mallika_sarabhai.html

Grassroots Soccer
http://www.viewchange.org/videos/a-game-for-life

Popular Education through Drama in Costa Rica
http://www.viewchange.org/videos/seeds-of-empowerment

Malawi – AIDS education through “edu-tainment”
http://www.viewchange.org/videos/2-things-involved

Between 2009-2010, I worked at a Chinese grassroot organization in Toronto - Chinese Canadian National Council Toronto Chapter (CCNCTO) – coordinating civic engagement projects. A question that I always had in mind is “what does civic engagement mean to the Chinese Canadians.”

Ripple Effect 2010 was born in early 2010 out of my quest for an answer to the question. It’s a program that aims to build civic leadership among Chinese Canadian youth living in Toronto. Of course, it also fulfills CCNCTO’s objective to promote social justice, equity, civic participation and diversity in the city.

The Ripple Effect youth produced a series of short youtube clips that reflect what civic engagement means to them.

Civic engagement means an understanding of history (personal & local), identity, an urge to take action to improve the society/community, being involved, staying informed. Civic engagement is about relationship building, empowerment and connection.

Here are the videos produced by Ripple Effect 2010
http://www.ccnctoronto.ca/?q=node/21

- heart, head and hand with continuous opportunity provided to them and personal professional growth.

- addressing economic and income issues facing youth

- use social media such as facebook, youtubes etc, learning from the youth about strategy.

- face to face contact with youth

- inspiration and dream. taste of success

- align with youth development (biologically)

b) How can we use social media for dialogue and creative ideas?

c) How do we use games to tell stories?

d) How responsive are Teachers to take some of these innovative ideas and connect them to curricula?
e) How do we ensure that marginalized kids are included in the discussions?

f) How do you keep the discussion positive when you are conveying dark topics?

Example

Breakout! is a highly original interactive documentary series, which explores global issues through the viewpoint of  teens. Each episode is packed with facts and stories of young activists. To view these series, please visit http://www.youtube.com/user/Breakoutonline

Here’s the notes http://www.box.net/shared/ypqdf6xyh3 from the online presentation. It gives a brief overview on how to write a good grant proposal. Thanks to Charity Net USA which has a very useful resource page for nonprofit.

Here are some useful links about Appreciative Inquiry

Appreciative Inquiry Commons http://appreciativeinquiry.case.edu/
“a worldwide portal devoted to the fullest sharing of academic resources and practical tools on Appreciative Inquiry and the rapidly growing discipline of positive change. This site is a resource for you and many of us–leaders of change, scholars, students, and business managers–and it is proudly hosted by Case Western Reserve University’s Weatherhead School of Management.”

Key People in Appreciative Inquiry
David Cooperrider, John McKnight, John Kretzmann, Diana Whitney

The facilitator of the workshop is from the University of the Streets Cafe in Montreal. The University of the Streets Cafe has been doing public conversations for more than 6 years. It aims at creating gathering places for citizens to pursue lifelong learning and engagement through public conversations. It believes that collective discussions are an opportunity for people of diverse backgrounds and realities to meet, in a respectful environment – where all perspectives are welcome.

Early on in the workshop, we tried to answer 4 questions

What is a conversation?

What are the differences between conversations, dialogues, and discussions?

What is a public conversation?

Who participate in a public conversation

We learned that conversations were more informal, random, spontaneous, involve more than two people. Public conversation is a more facilitated type of conversation. It has a direction.

University of Street Café public conversations are two hour events held in cafes and other public places. Each conversation focuses on a pre-determined question, sometimes, in a series around a particular theme, with each instalment exploring a different aspect of this general topic.

The people who make up each conversation include: a moderator who is responsible for the structure and flow of the conversation; a guest to get the ball rolling by sharing his/her perspective on the question at than, and participants who are interested community members of all ages, and from all kinds of backgrounds.

It’s interesting that the facilitator asked us not to introduce ourselves in the beginning. She hoped that the workshop model the format of a public discussion. She said as the day progressed, we would gradually learn who we are and where we stand. Her words turned out to be right J

Around mid-day, we learned about the importance of a public conversation and what are the elements that make up a good public conversation

In small group discussions, my team mates and I discussed how we could bring public conversation to the work we do. I was thinking that I could try out this methodology in my CCNCTO work. I was thinking how public conversation can be used to create a space for citizens to learn about different issues and how this can be a training of trainers module? Guess I need to think more on this.

According to the Community Development Institute, community development is 

Working together towards collectively and democratically chosen goals, we know that people can achieve significant changes. Setting this in motion from the grassroots, from the bottom-up, and sustaining efforts to improve community well-being, and to increase equity and social justice…this is community development in our opinion. Within this label there are many approaches and ideas at play:

“Community development” . . . “community engagement” . . . “community organizing” . . . “neighbourhood action” . . . “health promotion”… “community capacity building” . . . “popular education” . . . “community economic development” . . . “Anti-racism and anti-oppression work”… “participatory action research” . .  “community arts”… “community asset building” . . . “community-based research” . . . “social justice movement building” …

Whatever we call it and whether we are volunteers or paid workers, we all have some things in common. Primarily, we’re trying to make a difference in our world by finding ways for people in neighbourhoods, communities, or regions to gain more control over their lives, and mobilizing for better living conditions, more social justice, peace, equity, and opportunities to participate, contribute and benefit from society.

In late July, a delegation of teachers and staff from Guan Ai and RCEF got on the train from Shanxi for a 30-hour journey to Hebei Province. We went to attend a training organized by a NGO called生活教育行动 (“Life Education Action”). The main purpose of the training was to spread the “seeds” of Tao Xingzhi’s works and philosophy.

Tao Xingzhi was one of China’s most progressive educators. He was a student of John Dewey’s at Columbia Teacher’s College and promoted “life education” in China through founding and running several progressive schools for common people (i.e. workers and rural students). He also started a rural teacher training institute. Tao wrote a great deal about his philosophy of education which is pithy, clear, and inspiring. Although his name is famous in China, the details of his educational values, and in particular his focus on and ideas about rural education, are no longer well known.

Most of the 300 people at the training were principals from elementary and middle schools in Qinglong County. We were the only delegation from another province. After the training, we went on a hike of nearby 花果山 (so named for the mythical mountain in “Journey to the West”) along with rural teachers from a local school. We also went to the seaside town of 北戴河 (Beidaihe) for a day so that Guan Ai teachers from land-locked Shanxi could meet the ocean for the first time.

These are some of the main takeaways from the conference:

• Teachers and principals in China often don’t know that one of their own—Tao Xingzhi, a native Chinese—was one of the biggest proponents of the kind of education now being promoted by the national curriculum reforms. They hear more about foreign (western) educational theorists and go to trainings where overseas educators speak, but few people have read Tao Xingzhi’s writings or know what he did. He is not talked about much even though his values are often being promoted. RCEF should connect our message more to Tao Xingzhi’s legacy.
• After Tao Xingzhi’s death, there have sadly been too few people working in rural areas to continue developing curriculum and teaching methods that embody his principles. Today, many people talk about his philosophy but few people know what it means in practice. The work and achievements of RCEF and Guan Ai School is therefore of historical and practical importance. We can see ourselves as “descendents” of Tao and also as pioneers, turning philosophy into much-needed practice suitable to the needs of rural children in this day and age.

*this entry was a part of RCEF July Diary 2009