Dear Orglearners,
I want to thank Thomas Petzinger Jr. for posting 2 chapters of his book &
the Intro on the WSJ Web. Excellent reading! Several of his points about
technology, environment, and business remind me of a wonderful little book
published a few years ago that puts ecology and business in perspective.
Following are some quotes from the book in case you are interested.
David W. Orr. (1994). Earth in Mind: On education, environment, and the
human prospect. Washington, D.C.: Island Press.
p 57 "Cheap oil has divided our capabilities from our sense of obligation,
care, and long-term responsibility. Oil used at the rate of millions of
barrels each day cannot be used responsibily. the Exxon Valdez oil spill
in Prince William sound, and the dozens of other large oil spills like it,
are not accidents but the logical result of a system that operates on a
scale that can only produce catastrophes. Our mistake is compounded by
the belief that a catastrophe occurred only bcause oil was spilled. It
would have been an equal, if more diffuse catastrophe, had the Exxon
Valdex made it safely to port and its cargo burned in car engines,
proceeding thence into the atmosphere where its contents would have
contributed to air pollution and global warming."
by E.O. Wilson on the back cover "As a rule economists understand
economics, ecologists the environment, and educators teaching. David Orr
is one of the rare authors who understands all three, and in these finely
etched and admirable essays he delivers the revolutionary credo necessary,
in my opinion, for the long-term survival of our species."
Other quotes:
What is wrong with education: It emphasizes theories instead of values,
concepts rather than human beings, abstraction rather than conscousness,
answers instead of questions, ideology and efficiency rather than
conscience.
The plain fact is that the planet does not need more successful people.
But it does desperately need more peacemakers, healers, restorers,
storytellers, and lovers of every kind. it needs people who live well in
their places. It needs people of moral courage willing to join the fight
to make the world habitable and humane. And these qualities have little
to do with success as our culture has defined it.
The goal of education is not mastery of subject matter but mastery of
one's person. Subject matter is simply the tool.
I propose that the way in which learning occurs is as important as the
content of particular courses. process is important for learning.
Courses taught as lecture courses tend to induce passivity. indoor
classes create the illusion that learning only occurs inside four walls,
isolated from what students call, without apparent irony, the "real
world." Dissecting frogs in biology classes teaches lessons about nature
that no one in polite company would verbally profess. Campus architecture
is crystallized pedagogy that often reinforces passivity, monologue,
domination, and artificialiity. My point is simply that students are
being taught in various and subtle ways beyond the overt content of
courses.
--"Robb Most" <bobmost@email.msn.com>
[Host's Note: In association with Amazon.com, this link...
Earth in Mind : On Education, Environment, and the Human Prospect by David W. Orr http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/155963295X/learningorg
...Rick]
Learning-org -- Hosted by Rick Karash <rkarash@karash.com> Public Dialog on Learning Organizations -- <http://www.learning-org.com>