"Network Sherpa" ??

"Network Sherpa" :( 

This term is uncomfortable for me as a neo-term for Teacher.  The Sherpas are an ethnic group who originally hailed from Tibet,  but now inhabit the high altitude southern slopes of the Himalaya in the Mt.  Everest region - Solu Khumbhu.  They are not "people who carry stuff" as is  the western cultural meme.  The name for "people who carry stuff" (Nepali:  bokne manchhe) is "porter".  

I'm not sure the origin of "Network Sherpa"(anyone know?) but I believe it needs a bit of revisiting.  #moocmooc

MOOC MOOC Day 1

I'm joining a MOOC (Massive Open Online Course).  This is a first for me.  Normally, I'm a lurker, but, I want to learn more about contemporary teaching pedagogy.  In higher education, this seems to be how the playing field is shifting: more access to more information for more people. (I dream to see this information be accessible to everyone, regardless of socio-economic status, but this may be a while away).

I am involved in contemporary education thanks to my interest in/study and practice of alternative, mostly experiential, education and my connection with the Rangjung Yeshe Institute and their Online Learning program.  I join this MOOC with the intention to expand my understanding of how we, with our limited resources, can best create the opportunities for people to find our online courses, and get the most out of them.

This RSAnimate video is one I've seen before, but this context has made it all the more pertinent.  Hunches need a little help from their friends sometimes, and what a way to do it with this incredible, addictive tool we have in the 21st century. It convinced me to jump on board this journey and engage rather than lurk.

More to come - let's see how this first MOOC goes for me.  I look forward to networking with any and all who are interested in similar topics!

Old Video Footage of Nepal

Found this website via Anil ji with clips of old video footage from as early as 1950, when Nepal was first opened up to foreign visitors. 

Poor and Land-locked...

Or Resource-rich and Land-linked?

It seems as if the focus of creating a better future for Nepal in terms of economic development and peace is blurred by misunderstanding of cooperation and connection between nation states.  From this article in the Hindustan Times, the leader of the recently created Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) (CPN(M)), Mohan Baidya, is unable to face the reality that his country is inextricably linked to the Indian (and Chinese) economies.  It may be in the nation's best interest to play the political game rather than shut the door in India's face - For example, the entire country relies every single day upon cooking gas and other resources brought directly from India and carried up into the hills.

Nepal need not forcibly assert its independence from bordering nations, but realize the reality of interconnectedness. 

But, that's not what's happening, unfortunately. 

Nepal's Struggles Continue

Constituent Assembly dissolved: May 27, 2012.  New elections set for November.  Why did Bhattarai dissolve the Assembly?  There may be a bigger game afoot as the Maoists split.

Read more here.

Sulak Sivaraksha on 'Engaged Buddhism"

"In America and Europe, everyone is very active. But if you become too active, you lose the essence of Buddhism. You only have the Buddhist labels. One must cultivate peace to be compassionate. Without this, what you do, even as an 'engaged Buddhist' is just a lot of activity with no good purpose."

- Sulak Sivaraksa, “In Exile from Siam”