Apparently this natural inclination to connect everyone and
everything I know is a result of my “connectedness” strength (per Strengthsfinder 2.0). But just because I
sense hidden connections doesn’t mean that I understand how to make the most of
them. And there is a lot to learn about how organizations can (or whether they ought)
to work together!
One of the questions on my heart – which I knew from the
beginning would not be fully answered through this practicum experience, but
which is still related – is “how can western institutions of higher education
collaborate with those in developing countries in ways that are both
sustainable and transformational to their regions?” My practicum was, to some
extent, a baby step in that direction – a step toward taking the ICCD program
itself further into the empowering vision and values it champions, seeking a vision
of wholeness for the world, in collaboration with that world; valuing the voices
of others, and their empowerment, toward that wholeness. And out of this
springs a desire to share higher education with those who are less empowered,
but whose cultures and voices are vital to that vision of wholeness. After all,
knowledge is power. And knowledge that is affirmed and certified by others –
such as a master’s degree – is a special type of power, because it opens the
door for one’s voice to be taken seriously on a global scale. And that can empower
cultures. I think specifically of how Bruce Olson’s work with the Motilone has
resulted in educated Motilone lawyers who are empowered to address their people’s
status with the national government.
I am a westerner. It’s taken me many years to come to grips with this. J Thinking about becoming Ukrainian didn’t really make me Ukrainian; marrying a man from Argentina hasn’t made me Argentine (although I try at times, and it’s highly entertaining). I have to love my country, city, and culture, because there is no escaping them – they’re part of me even if I travel. So if the question is “What can we do”, I must start there with the western context. I assume (perhaps my connectedness drives me to assume) that there is something we as westerners have to offer in many situations. We are relatively wealthy, we speak the world’s most empowering language fluently, and many of us are driven to make a difference. But I also know that this difference must come from within each culture and context. This begs the question – what can we do to encourage that? What can we as westerners do – and particularly, as higher educational institutions or universities – to promote empowerment of indigenous leaders overseas? Certainly we can look at curriculum, make it contextual, really get into the culture… But can we even take it a step farther and actually promote the empowerment of indigenous institutions of education? (Through my practicum, I learned of two universities that do this: Eastern University and Bakke Graduate University.) And if we begin to see other higher educational institutions as cultural resources to be valued and protected, how should that shape our own agendas when entering their “territory”, so to speak? Understanding that the balance of power is generally in favor of westerners – might we who seek to empower others have a kind of moral obligation to find effective, empowering, and sustainable ways to partner with the educational institutions that are already on the ground, in places where they do exist (and where there’s a risk of exploiting that power imbalance)? Certainly knowledge itself is empowering, so in that sense there is nothing wrong with just exporting a program and filling it the less-privileged. But then again, we who have studied intercultural dynamics can always give examples of times when an action that seemed obviously helpful was actually harmful… or simply was not as helpful as it could have been, had the contextualization process been more thorough. What if knowledge could be channeled through existing institutions that truly represent the culture? Can it be done without any loss to students in terms of degree validity?
The kind of education that is worth exporting or
collaborating to create must also keep transformation as the end goal. So the question
is not merely about finding sustainable and empowering ways to provide education
in key underserved areas, but also about making sure that the education that is
provided leads to societal transformation. With that in mind, a second question
that occurred to me is “What kind of higher education can bring transformation?”
Or to put it another way, “How can higher education best serve the needs of the
developing world? What is currently being done in higher education, and with
networks?”
These are pretty big questions and issues. In the proposal
to set up an online cohort with two weeks onsite in Oxford, England, we did set
out a plan to collaborate with another institution (Oxford Centre for Mission Studies),
but we really had no need to address the issues of power that I’m bringing up
here. England is a western country too!
That said, I trust that one way or another God will carry
this vision forward until we’re at a place where we do need to consider the
best way to interact or partner with existing institutions in developing nations.
I would love to see ICCD eventually launch cohorts in other areas of the world –
and to have students from those regions that most need healthy development. It’s
only right to have a global dream for a program concerned with global issues.
