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This 25-page orientation manual, updated and extensively revised in July 2013, explains the work and living situation of the Prout Research Institute of Venezuela, and offers practical advice about life in Caracas, Venezuela.
"What is PROUT?" by Dada Maheshvarananda, monk, author, activist, director of the Prout Research Institute of Venezuela. Listen to English audio file. - Download Powerpoint.[Presentation at the First Global Prout Conference in Venezuela, "Building a Solidarity Economy based on Ethics and Ecology", 7 to 9 July 2011, Parque Central - Sala 1, Caracas]
A conversation with Noam Chomsky about: The Occupy Movement, economic democracy and cooperatives, limiting the accumulation of wealth, consciousness raising, and Latin America. Watch the conversation here.Dada Maheshvarananda:
The viral growth of the Occupy Movement, and the public support of it, is testament to the tremendous dissatisfaction with the inequities and abuses of corporate capitalism. The slogan "We are the 99%" has resonated with many people. What is your view of the potential strength of this type of mass protest and its possibility to effect social change?Noam Chomsky: Well the Occupy Movement already has had a number of significant successes. One of them, as you say, is to kind of change the national discourse. These concerns and fears and so on were, of course, prevalent for a long time for perfectly objective reasons, having to do with changes in the socio-economic system in the last 30 or 40 years. But they weren't crystallized very clearly until the Occupy Movement put them forward. And now they are kind of common coin. So the 99 percent and one percent, the radical inequality, the farcical character of purchased elections, the corporate shenanigans that led to the current crisis and have been crushing people for a long time, the overseas wars, and so on. That's one major contribution.
The other one is not discussed so much, but I think it' s pretty important. This is an extremely atomized society. People are alone. It's a very business-run society. The very explicit goal of the business world is to create a social order in which the basic social unit is you and your television set, in which you're watching ads and going out to purchase commodities. There are tremendous efforts made, that have been going on for a century and a half, to try to induce this kind of consciousness and social order.
KOKOTUKA ORIKUARE - "Together" by Maya Shita, General Coordinator of the Warao people. Indigenous Community Leader of the Moriche. Listen to the English audio file or audio file in Spanish. Read the original Spanish presentation.
“Aparigraha as a new economic paradigm for a culture of peace” by Victor Vyasa (Peru), founder of the Shanti Yoga Center for Harmony and School of Life. Listen to the English audio file or audio file in Spanish. Read the original Spanish presentation.
"The Grammar of Fantasy" by Ole Brekke
director of the Commedia School, Copenhagen, Denmark.
Workshop presentation at the Neohumanist Education Seminar, April 15, 2014 in Caracas, Venezuela.You heard Dada Shambhushivananda explain how Gurukula was established in Dada's presence by Baba. Baba gave Gurukula for the future of humanity. He also said that he's done most of the work. So what is left for us to do? We have to find and out and realize what work Baba has already done. Gurukula has already been established for the future of humanity.
So we're going to fantacize a little bit and try to imagine what was in Baba's mind when he said that. So fantasy is very important in education. Yesterday we heard about the wonderful fantasy of the kindergarten in Denver, Colorado. So we have to put ourselves in that three-year-old mode so the fantasy is bursting out. One book that I recommend for all the projects that deal with children is "The Grammar of Fantasy" by Gianni Rodari, published first in Italian, then in English and Spanish.
Panel 5: “The Creative Force of Community: Women, Identity, Health and Consciousness.” Translation of questions and answers. Facilitator: Lelia Delgado, anthropologist, author. July 9, 2011. Listen to the audio file in Spanish. - Read the Spanish text.
I enthusiastically and without any reservations whatsoever recommend the Prout house, Quinta Prout, as a place to stay in Caracas for an individual, small group or family, or a delegation. The staff and Prout, more generally, are committed to economic and social justice not just for the larger society, but they also demonstrate this in ways big and small every day by the way they treat all who visit and stay there.