TWENTY EXPANDING ECONOMIC THINKING PR Sarkar
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PROUT IN POWER: Policy solutions that reframe our futures Sohail Inayatullah Prout in Power: Policy solutions that reframe our futures Inayatullah, Sohail, 1958 - . First Edition : 2017 Copyright © 2017. This work is copyright. Copyright in the work as a whole remains with Proutist Bloc India and Sohail Inayatullah. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publisher. ISBN: 978-81-933424-0-4 Printed & Published by : Proutist Bloc India Publications JC 48, Khirki Extention, Malviya Nagar, New Delhi Ph: +91 9212199658 E-mail: [email protected] Contents Preface ii PREFACE WE ARE POLICY Introduction 2 ONE PROUT AND POLICY-MAKING 11 TWO REREADING HISTORY 22 THREE THE SARKAR GAME IN ACTION Beyond Geopolitics 32 FOUR THE ARAB SPRING 43 FIVE AN ALTERNATIVE VIEW OF THE FUTURES OF SOUTH ASIA 54 SIX FUSION AND INNOVATION OR COPY-CAT AND SNAKES & LADDERS 64 SEVEN DEMOCRATIC GOVERNANCE IN ASIA 2030 70 EIGHT BEYOND GOLD Education 80 NINE IS NEO-HUMANISTIC AND PROUTIST EDUCATION PLAUSIBLE? 87 TEN ALTERNATIVE FUTURES OF NEO-HUMANISM 94 ELEVEN CAN PROUT TRANSFORM UNIVERSITIES? 102 TWELVE WIKIPEDIA INC., CORE-PERIPHERY REVERSED OR INCREMENTAL MANAGERIALISM 108 THIRTEEN UNIVERSITIES IN MALAYSIA IN TRANSFORMATION 117 FOURTEEN THE MURABBI, ACADEMIC COOPERATIVES AND AUGUMENTED REALITY IN HIGHER EDUCATION 127 FIFTEEN BRAC UNIVERSITY INNOVATES – BANGLADESH LEADS THE WAY Social Issues 140 SIXTEEN CRIME AND PRISONS 154 SEVENTEEN ALTERNATIVE FUTURES OF CRIME AND PRISONS 159 EIGHTEEN E-HEALTH FUTURES FOR BANGLADESH Political Economy 170 NINETEEN DECONSTRUCTING AND RECONSTRUCTING THE GLOBAL FINANCIAL CRISIS 186 TWENTY EXPANDING ECONOMIC THINKING 194 TWENTY ONE YOGANOMICS 204 TWENTY TWO SPIRITUALITY AS THE FOURTH BOTTOM LINE Conclusion 218 TWENTY THREE USING PROUT TO QUESTION 228 TWENTY FOUR SEVEN POSITIVE TRENDS AMIDST THE DOOM AND GLOOM 236 TWENTY FIVE PROUT POLICY ON CLIMATE CHANGE 240 TWENTY SIX TRANSFORMATIVE STRATEGIES AND THE FUTURES OF THE PROUT MOVEMENT PREFACE Preface i Prout in Power - Policy solutions that reframe our futures PREFACEWE ARE POLICY reated in the late 1950s by the Indian philosopher, mystic, and social Cactivist P.R. Sarkar, Prout or the Progressive Utilization Theory is not only a theory of social change and transformed leadership, but an alternative political-economy; an emergent alternative to capitalism, a vision and comprehensive model of a new future for humanity and the planet. Sarkar's intent was and is (his organizations continue his work) to create a global spiritual cooperative revolution, a new renaissance. His goal is to infuse individuals with a spiritual presence, the necessary first step in changing the way that we know and order our world. Unlike the socialists of the past who merely sought to capture state power – forgetting that the economy was global and thus in the long run strengthening the world capitalist system – or the utopian idealists who merely wished for perfect places that could not practically exist or spiritualists who only sought individual transformation at the expense of structural change, Sarkar has a far more comprehensive view of transformation of which Prout provides the core. Divided into six sections – Prout and policy-making; geopolitics; education, social issues, political-economy; and the conclusion – this book moves from theoretical comparisons of Prout and other macro perspectives on the nature of reality to policy and policy-making. In a series of books in the late ‘90s and early 2000s, along with colleagues, we sought to understand the works of P. R. Sarkar. These included, Macrohistory and Macrohistorians, Situating Sarkar, Transcending Boundaries, Understanding Sarkar and Neohumanist Educational Futures. These efforts sought to compare and contrast Sarkar and his ii PREFACE works with other grand thinkers and ideologies such as Ibn Khaldun, Arnold Toynbee, Pitirim Sorokin, Karl Marx, and many others. They were not empirically - so much as epistemologically-based - seeking to understand the worldviews, the nominations of reality, the contextual frameworks that made Sarkar, Sarkar; that allowed him to critique the world and to envision the preferred future. This book is different. Imaging a future, where Prout is in ‘power’, it moves from macro to meso theory, focused less on comparisons and far more on articulating Prout perspectives, policy perspectives, on the issues of the time. Drawing from the works of Sarkar, we ask, for example, what should Prout policy be toward prisons, or higher education, or eHealth? While Sarkar gives us clues and frameworks, it is still up to the policy-maker to make decisions as to what should be funded, what should be favoured and, more importantly, what the process of decision-making ought to be. While the initial chapters ‘Prout and policy-making’ and ‘Sarkar and macrohistory’ frame this discussion, subsequent chapters are generally case studies, drawn from live workshop situations where decision- makers have attempted to develop scenarios and strategies as to the future of a particular issue: university reform and eHealth strategy, for example. Others are more theoretical, focused on understanding how the world is changing and how Prout might respond to this changing world. Chapters in the section ’Beyond Geopolitics’ in particular focus on this area, though the chapter ‘Democratic governance in Asia 2030’ is based on an Oxfam sponsored workshop that brought together civil society leaders to imagine alternative futures of Asia. Prout policy-making, of course, as the first chapters explore, is based on the key tenets of Prout: the theory of macrohistory, spirituality, neo- humanism, global governance and political-economy. Prout policy- making, however, is truly futures-oriented as it challenges the present, unpacking the power relations embedded in today’s world and seeking to create an alternative politics of reality. It uses the future – scenarios, visions, and strategies – to open up the present, and allows for new worlds to appear. These worlds not only challenge the deep culture of the modern episteme, but they also challenge how we measure the iii Prout in Power - Policy solutions that reframe our futures world. The chapter ‘Using Prout to question’ develops a checklist of questions for Prout activists and policy-makers to use as they ponder Prout responses to particular issues. ‘Spirituality as the fourth bottom line’ challenges the economic determinism and the single bottom line model that is considered the rule today. This meso level approach thus eschews grand debates on the nature of capitalism, and moves to how we measure the good in societies. Of course the nature of value is not lost sight of, as in the chapter that compares Amartya Sen and P. R. Sarkar. Most of these chapters have appeared in Prout Journal. I am thankful to the editors, Dada Santosananda and Arun Bhattacarya, for their permission to reprint these articles in this book. The true inspiration for this work comes from a Prout Conference held in Denmark in 2010. At that conference, participants such as Dada Dhyaneshananda, Govinda, Roar Bjonnes, and Dada Maheshvarananda all suggested that we need a journal to develop Prout perspectives on futures issues. This journal, as it turned out, did not get off the ground. Indeed, we were unable to decide on a title, such was the newness of Prout policy- making ventures. However, I was inspired by them and decided that in my writing, in my workshops, I would always conclude by asking: what is the Prout view on this topic? How would Sarkar approach the problem of the global financial crisis, for example, or climate change, or even the Olympic Games? Of concern was not just what might be Sarkar’s perspective, but what needs to be deliberated prior to articulating Prout policy, that is, what is the policy framework? Much of this book is about that. What do we need to think about when considering Prout policy? Even if you – the reader – disagree with the suggestions offered, I recommend that you ask yourself why. What might be your policy recommendations? If, for example, you were the Minister of Higher Education or Minister of Health or head of an international bank, how would you approach the problems in front of you? How would you deal with competing interests? How would you ensure representation and participation? How would you ensure that there was maximum productivity as well as a rising floor to protect the most vulnerable? These are tough questions; they invite us to reflect, but also to act. iv PREFACE Many of the solutions articulated were developed in workshop/strategy sessions that involved hundreds of leaders. Prout became an asset to these global leaders to reflect on what they needed to do differently. One way, I have done this is through the Sarkar Game. Invented by Professors Hayward and Voros, the Sarkar Game creates a situation in which participants experience world history, experience the problems of their organisation in real time. They then use the experience to search for solutions – do they need more warrior power to protect workers? Or is more economic innovation required from capitalists? Or new ideas from intellectuals? Or more work from workers? Or as it often turns out, is a new leadership style and indeed ontology needed? And if so, what is the guiding worldview for this framework? This in turn leads to discussions on neo-humanism and policy-making, on deep inclusion and the role of the leader and leadership team who transform the present to create the alternative future. All books lie at the end of long trails and, certainly along with words and worlds of Sarkar, I would like to thank those who taught me how to think differently about policy: in particular, from the University of Hawai’i, James Dator, Deane Neubauer and Michael Shapiro.