Asia Challenge 2020
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“Asia’s Challenge 2020”
What is the most important challenge facing Asia over the next decade?
Why? What should be done about it?
Unhealthy development: a lack of values education and personal generosity
CHIM Chamroeun
Do we really have enough will to come together and cope with challenges? Let us have a look at this metaphor of our body which consists of trillions of cells. “A main purpose of a cell is to organize. Cells hold a variety of pieces and each cell has a different set of functions.” Some are processing food into energy and transport to feed other cells; brain cells are transmitting electrical signals to send messages; muscular cells are for movement; some killer cells combat bacteria; others regenerate new tissues around wounded area, and so on. Our cells work together to keep our body system alive. Have we learnt the lesson from the cells? As Asian citizens or citizens of the world, have we been cooperative enough to tackle our regional or global challenges? Are some people willing to get slightly down, from their wealthy life styles, to being unselfish and cooperative? Have the less fortunate been provided opportunities so that they are capable of taking part in cooperation?
This article is addressing four issues – materialism and consumerism, gender inequity, traffic accident and governance all of which are caused by a lack of intrinsic values, leading to a more imbalanced and unhealthy development. Values education and personal change are empathized as the vital factors for a sustainable development.
First of all, let us explore about materialism and consumerism in Asia and the impacts they bring about. Korea and China, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released in February, topped the poll at 69% for being the most materialistic people in the world. The figure followed by India 67% and Japan 63% while the world average is 43% (Chosun Ilbo News, 24 February 2010). Corin (2009) said “Hong Kong is a very materialistic
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*
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“Asia’s Challenge 2020”
What is the most important challenge facing Asia over the next decade?
Why? What should be done about it?
Unhealthy development: a lack of values education and personal generosity
CHIM Chamroeun
Do we really have enough will to come together and cope with challenges? Let us have a look at this metaphor of our body which consists of trillions of cells. “A main purpose of a cell is to organize. Cells hold a variety of pieces and each cell has a different set of functions.” Some are processing food into energy and transport to feed other cells; brain cells are transmitting electrical signals to send messages; muscular cells are for movement; some killer cells combat bacteria; others regenerate new tissues around wounded area, and so on. Our cells work together to keep our body system alive. Have we learnt the lesson from the cells? As Asian citizens or citizens of the world, have we been cooperative enough to tackle our regional or global challenges? Are some people willing to get slightly down, from their wealthy life styles, to being unselfish and cooperative? Have the less fortunate been provided opportunities so that they are capable of taking part in cooperation?
This article is addressing four issues – materialism and consumerism, gender inequity, traffic accident and governance all of which are caused by a lack of intrinsic values, leading to a more imbalanced and unhealthy development. Values education and personal change are empathized as the vital factors for a sustainable development.
First of all, let us explore about materialism and consumerism in Asia and the impacts they bring about. Korea and China, according to a Reuters/Ipsos poll released in February, topped the poll at 69% for being the most materialistic people in the world. The figure followed by India 67% and Japan 63% while the world average is 43% (Chosun Ilbo News, 24 February 2010). Corin (2009) said “Hong Kong is a very materialistic
References: Retrieved from all the following websites, by August 2010. -------------------------------------------- [ 2 ]. Sample countries randomly selected by the author from the World Values Survey database: China, Hong Kong, India, Japan, Malaysia, South Korea, and Thailand. [ 3 ]. The latest I could obtain from Asia-Pacific Road Accident Database of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) [ 4 ]. According to the UNESCO, there are four pillars of education: ‘learning to know’, ‘learning to do’, ‘learning to live together’, and ‘learning to be’. [ 5 ]. More information could be found at www.livingvalues.net [ 6 ]. More information could be found at http://ecosia.org