November 23, 2015 - 16:55
*"The first would be to come more aware of how the taken-for-granted cultural assumptions influence whether intelligence is interpreted as the attribute of an autonomous individual."(47) A second suggestion woudl be for participants in a learning situation to reinforce each other in giving greater attention to the cultural and environmental patterns that connect, to the consequences that follow from different behaviors, and how these consequences affect others -in both the cultural and natural systems." (47)
Then after knowing about Ecological Intellgence, how well can we implement or have we been implementing ecological intelligence in our daily life? (Reflection and Implementation)
Also, I found the complex linguistic ecology and how abstract words that were shaped in the past could hinder us from thinking intergenerationally very interesting but confusing too. Based on what Bowers said: "it is important to think ecologically about how to rectify the use of our political vocabulary"(49), "the spoken word makes it easier to recognize the different dimensions of the cultural ecology in which it occurs"(48), how should we approah politics-one of the very subjects with so many abstract ideas- with ecological intelligence and how should we approach written words, spoken words and language respectively?
*"Revitalizing the cultural commos enables people to be less dependent upon a money economy that too often exploits the most vulnerable people as well as the environment that future generations will depend upon."(50) "Strengthening of the local cultural commons leads to developing the skills and relationships that are the basis of mutual support." (50) "These words and phrases are based on the same deep cultural assumptions that lead to the kind of indivualism required by the industrial/consumer-oriented culture." (51)
Bower's idea on how fostering ecological intelligence leades to revitalization of the local cultural commons was very striking. But as I've never acquainted with such idea before in my life, I had some hard time understanding what he really meant. What's "mutually supportive intergenerationally connected relationships"? What's "individual emancipation"? What's industrial/ consumer-oriented culture?