A few days ago a group of young volunteers, bhutanese and young people from abroad started to finalize the upcoming Youth retreat organized by the GNH Centre and a young Wake Up group.
Started to finalize
means going to Bumthang and preparing the hosting facilities on the land of the GNH Centre, preparing all the logistics necessary for such a 3 weeks retreat for 20 or more young people!
The preparation actually is ongoing since a
few months. A whole team is working hard to make this great event happen ! It all starts with a dream….but dreams are powerful as they shape our world !
There will be young people from all different countries and bhutanese
young people coming together to think, to experience, to imagine and to do GNh related projects, here and abroad.
I know some of these young people and they really are great ! Most of them have great studies in environment, social
work, art, economy, sustainability, science, mindfulness…etc
I am really happy that an event with young people will be actually the first GNH Event ON the GNH centre land, as they are the future!
So many young
people just know that « we are what we think » and they know if we think « business as usual » they will not be able to meet the challenges of our times…of their childrens future !
Einstein
said : We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them.
And just listening to the news this morning about Fukushima’s HUGE problem that seems to be looked at in such a shortsighted and
totally irresponsable way, I really had to think of this phrase !
A few weeks ago I met a japanese man in Vietnam working for a diary company in Japan. I asked him about Fukushima and he said : Oh the media does not mention it
so much these days, so it must be quite ok….This answer really worried me as we all know…it will not just go away only because the media choose to ignore it !
My 8 year old grandson asked me one day. What is petrol ?
I tried to explain…fossil fuel…plastic etc and the need to find more sustainable and non polluting fuels in the future. He said to me : I know all this and me and my friends we discuss hours and hours all that we will invent that will not
pollute the earth ! I told him : It is great to be born now, you can invent a new world ! And he said: yes I know!
This morning I read a very inspiring report of young « geniuses who challenge big corporations »
(look it up on upworthy website or the GNH centre FB page) and yes the next generation has to think differently as they need to create the world of tomorrow learning from past mistakes and rethinking our « business as usual way of life »
How can ecological challenges be met if we do not think the world in a more inclusive, more longsighted view, thinking and acting for the wellbeing of future generations, thinking and acting for animals plants, and humans in a more holistic
way.
Yes Bhutan is a developping country with many challenges, yes it needs foreign aid to meet these challenges but it also has something great to offer to the world !
For these young people who come to deepen
their understanding of GNH but also of their own aspirations for their life it is an opportunity from which we will all profit !
We need young generations to think « outside the box » to think and act in a more
respectful and responsable way towards nature, towards consumption, inequalities, and who know that « we are what we think »
In this GNH youth retreat, mindfulness and selftransformation will be totally part of the
process.
We know we have to change ourselves in order to change the world. Greed/consumption, hatred and ignorance are powerful, so to train our mind is essential!
Also working together will be at the chore of this retreat as they know that the
challenges of their future need to be looked at globally and can eventually only be solved « together ».
They need our support. Our positive and hopeful thoughts will empower their vision.