|
“And for us, education of the heart, should be the heart of
education.”
It takes a while for an outsider to fully grasp the work
scope of the Participatory Development Training Centre
(PADETC). Why? Because there are so many components it has
explored over its ten years of development work in Laos. The
centre, which is entirely staffed by Lao people, has its
fingers in many pies: from the production of fuel-efficient
stoves, to fish farming promotion, recycling, media, young
volunteers in schools, and even to teacher training.
“We had to try out different things over the years, to find
an entry point into what we really want to achieve,” says
Sombath Somphone, founder and director of PADETC. “So
everything we did were like little pieces of a jigsaw
puzzle, which we have developed and pieced together. Now
after ten years, a picture is slowly taking shape.”
PADETC’s quest can be summed up in four words:
Education for Sustainable Development
Imagine a house with four pillars, built on sturdy
foundation. This is PADETC’s model of sustainable
development, which is built on a strong base of good
governance and education, while upheld by four pillars of
economic development, environmental harmony, promotion and
preservation of culture, and lastly the spiritual well-being
or heart of the people. All these work together to form the
roof (or ultimate goal) which is Genuine National Happiness,
a concept of joyful living inspired by the Bhutanese idea of
Gross National Happiness.
It seems old-fashioned to speak of spirituality in the 21st
century, but PADETC believes that modern-day education and
development models have ignored this crucial element.
Societies are highly skilled but sorely lacking in qualities
like compassion and social responsibility. |
