by Elliott Maynard, Ph.D.
President, Arcos Cielos Foundation Sedona, Arizona, USA The Arcos Cielos Global Ecology Project® A Planetary Restoration Program Using Future-Science Technology The major problems currently facing the human race relate directly to damage caused by human activities to the global biosphere. These fundamental problems include: Overpopulation, Famine, Disease, Deforestation, Desertification, Atmospheric and Water Pollution, and Weather-Related Disasters. If it were possible to use advanced technology to counteract these negative trends on national and global scales, the impact of human activities on the global environmental commons would make a quantum shift towards achieving a sustainable and synergistic balance between humans and their planetary homeworld. Arcos Cielos Research Center proposes a revolutionary new program of education and outcome-based research, with the primary objectives of developing this advanced technology, as well as a set of effective operational protocols…a practical methodology for planetary-scale educational and ecological programming. Although the basic technological elements for a project of this magnitude have existed since the 1940’s, their applications have been limited to areas of alternative medicine and agriculture. When combined with leading-edge science, these alternative technologies can produce a powerful set of entirely new and powerful scientific tools. Through selected applications of a unique new master paradigm called Future-Science Technology®, and by creating fresh new perspectives and approaches, it would be possible for a small international group of scientists and technicians to effect major positive changes in our ecological systems within a short time-frame…and on a planetary scale. The implementation of the proposed project does not necessarily require vast manpower, technological, or financial resources, as with military or NASA-type programs. It can be accomplished at any number of geographical locations, and can be designed to utilize existing telecommunications, satellite, and computer technologies, integrated into the operational framework of Future-Science Technology. The Arcos Cielos Global Ecology Project represents a fresh new response program, designed to stabilize and reverse the destructive trends, which presently impact our planetary biosphere. This program would utilize selected aspects of Future-Science Technology to restore and rejuvenate the ecological health of our marine, terrestrial, and atmospheric commons. This program would also focus on establishing an enlightened awareness of social, environmental, and reproductive responsibility within the global social framework. The ultimate objective would be for every human being to have a clear understanding of their significance as co-evolutionary agents, and a firm mindfulness of their critical responsibilities for functioning in harmony with the planetary ecosystems…for the present and future generations of humankind. Council for Global Transformation© Conceptual Outline "By solving our common global problems, the next stage in history can be a global renaissance. A time when society truly flowers. Where music, the arts, literature, sports, science and individual pursuits come to life. The world will be without atomic bombs. The skies and rivers on the continents will be pristine. A wonderful new culture will evolve." – Steven Hackin, 1992, Global Renaissance 1. A Strategic Council would be formed. This Council would consist of carefully selected leading-edge thinkers, which would include experts from national governments, key corporate entrepreneurs, luminaries, environmental scientists, visionary celebrities and producers and directors of paradigm-breaking documentary films and live productions. 2. The Common Denominator for Selection Criteria would include integrity, wisdom, practical experience and professional excellence. Academic posturing and similar ego-based behaviors would be discouraged, while cooperative and supportive behavior would be celebrated to cut through outdated thought-grids and thus create a new synergistic global, context which would operate within a quantum-thinking modality. 3. Select Groups of Key Thinkers would essentially constitute unique “think and do tanks,” where new ideas could be generated, visualized, incubated; then used to create new strategies for creating effective transformative thought and action. The overall focus of this Earth Council would be to innovate and implement new strategies and programs for: 1) cleaning up the global atmospheric, terrestrial and aquatic commons; and 2) restoring protecting and enhancing our priceless planetary resources. This would include natural resources such as timber, petroleum and mining resources, as well as strategic water and food resources… especially with regard to protecting and restoring ocean and fresh water fisheries resources of the world. 4. The Key Unique Aspects of this Council would depend on the careful selection of the best brainpower in the world. This “brainpower” should be selected based on integrity, working for the common good and with a compassion for all cultures and all life on Earth. This Council would thus become established as a world-class strategic advisory resource for leaders in government, academia, science, and the performing arts. It could also be expanded include selected members the global corporate and military sectors within a context of collaborative cooperation and support. 5. The Basic Rationale behind the creation of this modern day Council might best be compared to the historical model set by the Knights of the Round Table, since the original purpose for this group was to function as a synergistic unit, and channel creative energies provide enlightened leadership for the social consciousness of those troubled times. This Council for Global Transformation could function effectively to bring this ancient tradition into the present - within an upgraded format which involves quantum thinking and compassion for truth in science, business the fine arts and government. Since recent advances in global communi-cations technology have essentially upgraded the “global brain” with several new layers of electronic consciousness, every person on earth now has the ability to link up with this new Global Consciousness Field and interact within its boundaries at the speeds of light and sound. 6. This New Council would more specifically serve as a resource to provide strategic information for identifying and prioritizing strategies for positive transformation that could: a) save years of time, b) save billions of dollars, c) develop new strategies and technologies for stabilizing the effects of global climate change, d) clean up existing pollution in Earth’s atmosphere, oceans and forests; and e) assist in global-scale ecological clean-up and restoration of Earth’s ecosystems, and help to create new “super-foods” that would harness the energy of sunlight and produce cheap, highly nutritional algae and fish-based protein; f) and create new clean energy sources that could free the world from their dependence on polluting fossil fuels, replace national electrical with point-source renewable sources, thus making clean, affordable electrical power available to everyone on earth. 7. Other Global Transformation Projects would include: a) Conflict Resolution through state-of-the-art concerts and light show events, which would involve world-famous celebrities, patrons of the arts and national icons. These productions would be historically unprecedented in that they would employ new ET-based technologies which would be superimposed on the sound and light frequencies used in these productions, to broadcast out to the world through global media channels special harmonic frequencies for enlightenment and healing…especially in troubled areas of the world. Funds from these events could then be utilized to support programs for medical assistance, sanitation, nutritional improvement and social justice in the poor areas of the world. 8. A Board of Directors would be created to establish an initial funding base of $2 million. This financial resource (in terms of quantum field thinking) constitutes a “reservoir” of energy which can be used to get programs into action immediately. [This principle of raising the necessary funding ahead of time, was the reason the European Union was able to come into existence and be effective within a very short time-frame, once the basic decision to implement this program was made]. This funding would be used to secure contracts on a retainer basis for key scientists and consciousness technologists on the Council, to provide travel and basic expenses for participants and to establish the necessary basic infrastructure (i.e. office and meeting facilities, etc.) for the Project. This basic funding pool should also be regarded as a “financial generator” in the quantum context that “much begets more.” Within this context, funding would be utilized intelligently to generate additional funding to bring this organization and its projects up to the next level in terms of getting its global programs into action effectively. 9. An Advisory Board, consisting of a team of key players from different sectors would be assembled to support the new Council as a “Strategic Brainpower Bank,” which could be brought together for round-table meetings periodically, or connected up via teleconferencing in different combinations for specific projects at different times, according to needs and priorities. Their larger function would be to provide guidance in bringing through and putting into action entirely new paradigms for global healing and transformation. 10. An Individual or Team would be delegated to be responsible for organizing basic office, meeting and laboratory facilities. This team should also set up a website as soon as possible, and facilitate the production of a global PR team to introduce and market the Council for Global Transformation concept, and to initiate interviews, promotional DVD’s, press conferences, etc. This team should also establish ideal venues and celebs appropriate for the objectives of the Council, with regard to setting up schedules for the global transformation concerts and light shows in strategic areas of the world. This group would also be responsible for setting up a banking network to facilitate international transfers and currency exchanges. A new global communications system could be established, using state-of-the-art satellite communications to facilitate telecommunications and teleconferencing and thus establish a new and independent global communications network. The end result would be an integrated network for information and exchange, and a “Voice of Gaia” TV and radio networks which would be based on objective news reporting and would highlight “good news” instead of the present debacle du jour reporting. 11) A Committee and/or Director of Global Networking should be set up to handle networking with other organizations with similar, or complementary goals and objectives, with the objective of opening doors for cultural and scientific exchange between all nations of the world. The United Nations and similar organizations should be included so that these already established infrastructures can work together within a “win-win” context for all parties involved. The focus should be on non-strategic cultural exchange. Heads-of-state, national celebrities, and religious leaders could be brought together to provide a firm foundation of support for these events. FUTURE-SCIENCE TECHNOLOGY® A MASTER PARADIGM FOR THE THIRD MILLENNIUM Future Science Technology is the interdimensional quantum-field science of the future…a new and transformative master paradigm for the human race. This neo-renaissance paradigm incorporates a set of functional bridges between our instinctive, intuitive right-brained thinking modality; and the linear, logical, academic left-brained perspectives which have guided western thinking for the past several centuries. Traditionally, scientific paradigms have been generated from a left-brained linear analysis. This has resulted in compartmentalization, overspecialization, and organizational inertia in our conventional scientific organizations. Over time, these larger organizations have shifted their focus from true scientific discovery to perpetuating their institutional structures. From a historical perspective, what we refer to as “modern technology” has existed for only an eye-blink on the greater historical timescale – since the beginning of the industrial revolution in the late 18th Century. By contrast, intuition-dominated, right-hemispherical approaches to science and medicine have been an integral part of Native American and Eastern philosophies for thousands of years. Neo-renaissance thinking implies a balanced bi-hemispherical approach to the concept of man’s relationship to his environment, and to society as a whole. This new perspective brings an individual’s internal environment (personal consciousness) in touch with the various aspects of his external environment (the physical universe and the natural world). Equally important is the expansion of one’s consciousness into the higher dimensional realms. During recent years, considering lightning-paced developments in computer chip technologies, communications sciences and the global Internet, our human internal perspective has undergone a quantum expansion - shifting from an area of a few square miles (in agrarian times), to an area which encompasses the entire planet, and beyond into the Cosmos. Through recent developments in space sciences and digital technologies, the human consciousness has now achieved the ability to reach out across the vast interstellar distances – even to the most distant galaxies. This quantum expansion and evolution of the human external perspective has been reflected in corresponding shifts in the fundamental nature of the human consciousness itself. Future-Science Technology represents a new operational protocol (i.e. operating system) for the human race, where a set of basic principles are combined into an interactive field, which can become a priceless resource for virtually all aspects of our personal and professional lives. Future-Science Technology also implies a shift from the past, into present- and future-thinking strategies. This concept also extends into the higher realms. It embodies the key components of Evolution and Transformation as “catalytic agents for change.” This new master paradigm also incorporates a shift from local and national perspectives, into an entirely new framework of consciousness, which highlights the future of humanity, the planetary biosphere and, ultimately, the cosmic extraterrestrial community. The time has arrived in Earth’s evolutionary development for the new thinkers of all nations to make the quantum shift from a regional-national perspective, to a fresh new integrated planetary consciousness. Our technology has presently reached the point where we can either choose to enhance – or continue to systematically destroy – the delicate balance of the natural forces which sustain our global ecosphere. If mankind can fully understand the advantages of thinking in terms of ecological preservation, restoration and enhancement as prerequisites for the survival and success of our present and future generations, humanity will have begun a profoundly important transition into a new and exciting phase of its evolutionary journey. This is a journey of quantum transformation into a new third-millennium mindset. It is the wondrous journey of Paraphysical Man, Homo novus. His adventure has just begun! Transforming the Global Biosphere: Twelve Futuristic Strategies Endorsements “If we are to survive as a species on this planet, let us be forewarned that our survival depends on how well we conserve and protect this fragile Earth, as it is a place for each of us to live, breathe, and bask in the brilliant diversity of life.” – Selma Brackman – Executive Director of the War and Peace Foundation, New York “Dr. Maynard is researching a most important topic for the survival of our species. His work deserves wide attention from the public.” – Tom Valone, Ph.D., PE - Scientist, Author, Lecturer, and President of the Integrity Research Institute in Washington, DC, a leading-edge non-profit Organization for the Development of New Alternative Energy Technologies “This book is an encompassing probe that unmasks the complex enormity of the challenges that life on Earth faces...yet it reveals the simplicity of the remedies. Maynard’s trendsetting achievement illustrates how we can learn to see things differently, and then adapt by taking the appropriate actions.” – Andrew Michrowski, Ph.D. Research Scientist, Global Futurist, and President of the Planetary Association for Clean Energy...a unique non-profit Organization for Research and Development of New Environmentally Sustainable Technologies, located in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada “Elliott Maynard has provided important, top-down perspectives in developing metastrategies for humans to protect the global biosphere. Relationship Space is treated as a significant Frontier for the Future, where aware beings must interact with each other, other life forms, and all parts of the dynamic universe. He develops many practicable ideas to support humans playing a dominant stewardship role in maintaining the future sustainability of the Earth.” – Kenneth J. Cox, Ph.D., Chief Technologist at NASA Johnson Space Center, Futurist, Imagineer, and Chairperson for the Aerospace Technology Working Group “I fully agree with your Twelve Futuristic Strategies for Transforming (Saving?) the Global Biosphere. It is appalling that no more attention is given to the Future, especially by national governments. I am convinced that Arcos Cielos Research Center will have a great success and will render great services to humanity and to the world...With admiration for your great work.” – Dr. Robert Muller, Former United Nations Assistant Secretary General, and Chancellor Emeritus of the United Nations University for Peace THE MAGNIFICENT ENGINES OF GAIA: Water as a Critical Resource For Humans and the Global Biosphere Prepared for Dr. Robert Muller, Chairman United Nations Council on Global Water Resources Santa Barbara, California, USA 28-31 August, 2003 by Dr. Elliott Maynard from Most of All They Taught Me Happiness “As for myself, when the moment will come to close my eyes on this beautiful planet, my heart will thank and honor all those who gave me life and the warmth of love, and Him who permitted me to devote my earthly sojourn to peace, justice, and the betterment of the human condition in one of the noblest organizations ever born from the heart of man. I will go in peace and joy, thankful for having been blessed with the miracle of life. I will have loved my life with passion, embraced it with fervor, cherished every moment of it. I will have contemplated with wonder the sky and its running clouds, my brethren the humans, my sisters the flowers and stars. I will have feasted unceasingly on the treasure of life in all of its forms. I will not have dwelled in mediocre ambitions, vain hatred, and useless complaints. I will depart with the belief that there is no end to the flow of life in the universe, that there is no death but only an unceasing change of worlds.” In loving memory of Dr. Robert Muller, Global Peacemaker, Educator & Luminary 1923-2010 The Magnificent Engines of Gaia: Water as a Strategic Resource for Humans and the Global Biosphere Water Sources "Throughout history, water sources have been sacred, worthy of reverence and awe. The advent of water taps and water bottles has made us forget, that before water flows through pipes, and before it is sold to consumers in plastic, it is a gift from Nature." – Vandana Shiva, 2002 – Water Wars: Privatization, Pollution, and Profit Introduction Water is a critical planetary resource for the sustenance and survival of all living things. Planet Earth has three major “environmental commons.” These include 1) The Atmosphere, 2) The Terrasphere (land masses, lakes and rivers), and 3) the Oceans, which includes the seven seas and their interconnecting waterways. Our sun is the primary power source which drives the great ocean gyres and polar-to-tropical circulation currents. The sun also influences the global weather system which cycles life-giving fresh water from oceans, lakes and rivers into atmospheric clouds and back to the surface of Earth again. When viewed from a planetary perspective Earth’s mighty recycling systems might be compared to the respiratory, circulatory and digestive systems of humans. From a planetary viewpoint they constitute “The Magnificent Engines of Gaia.” Three major external forces are responsible for driving and influencing these engines of Gaia. These external forces include the sun, which radiates solar energies to heat the surface of the earth and influence the atmosphere; The moon, whose gravitic attraction creates tidal fluctuations within the ocean basins; and the spin of Earth (Coriolis force) that activates the counter-rotating oceanic gyres in the northern hemisphere and the clockwise gyres in the southern hemisphere of our planetary oceans. The primary driver is the sun, which beams massive amounts of energy to the Earth, heating the atmosphere, the surface of the land masses and the upper layers of the oceans, and influencing global weather patterns. Since the oceanic masses are liquid, they have the capability to store moderate and transport tremendous amounts of solar energy in the form of heat...driving the great “ocean conveyer belt currents,” where cold water at the north and south poles sinks at the polar shelves, drops to the nutrient-rich sea bottom and is gradually returned to the surface at the equatorial regions where the heating effects of the sun are the greatest. These oceanic currents “recycle” organic detritus from dead plankton and animals and bring nutrient-rich water from the ocean depths, generating massive plankton blooms in the upper 30 meters called the euphotic zone. Here, through photosynthesis, carbon dioxide and water are transformed into protoplasm...the “substance of life,” and oxygen is produced as a by-product. Since the world oceans occupy roughly two thirds of the planetary surface, the conversion of solar energy into organic compounds in the seas, sequestering carbon dioxide in the process, is of a key factor for the health of the global biosphere. The atmosphere is the reflective counterpart of earth’s oceans and land masses, since it forms an interactive envelope which protects all life forms on the land and ocean surfaces from damage from the hi-energy wavelengths of the sun. This atmospheric envelope also stores and transports water in vapor and droplet form. The interactions between the atmosphere and the surfaces of the seas and land masses also function as titanic “desalination engines,” which convert the saline water of the oceans into fresh water, and also draw water up from the land surfaces through the process of evaporation and evapotranspiration. The water is returned to the planetary surface in the form of rain, snow and dew which is distributed throughout the land areas via networks of lakes, rivers, streams and canals. All animals and plants...from viruses and nannoplankton to the great whales...carry their own “internal ocean” inside their bodies in the form of blood and body fluids, which have an uncanny resemblance to the composition of the seas from which primitive life began. Pure, uncontaminated water is a critical necessity for all living things on the land, as well as for the lakes, rivers and oceans of our planet. "The oceans are a great metaphor ... Everything we do on land ends up in our coastal waters. The oceans mirror the health of our planet." – Ted Danson, President, American Oceans Campaign Polluting the Global Commons Due to the increasing industrialization in Asia, countless tons of pollutants are discharged into the winds which travel across the Pacific Ocean. Contaminated aerosols, already responsible for killing crops and causing disease in Asia, incredibly enough, are now polluting the waters of North America. These ominous “clouds of pollution” have been observed to dramatically alter global climate patterns. (1) For example, in April of 2001 a huge dust cloud, which originated in Mongolia, was photographed by satellites as it moved across the Pacific Ocean and over the west coast of North America. This massive cloud, extending for some 1200 miles and created a whitish haze from Phoenix, Arizona to Alberta, Canada, where levels of airborne particulate matter rose to three times the normal value.2 This single incident...provides a stark example of how polluting agents from sources thousands of miles away can travel through the atmosphere and poison the air and water of another continent. The same is true for the world’s lakes, rivers and oceans, where pollution can travel thousands of miles to contaminate living systems which are far removed from the polluting source. Even the rain, which falls from the atmosphere on to the planetary land masses is no longer free of contaminates. For example, in May of 2003 it was reported that rain falling over twelve eastern states in the U.S. contained levels of mercury, which exceeded federal standards. National Wildlife Federation president, Mark Van Putten, referring to a scientific report stated, “We usually think of rain as pure and clean, but this report reveals that the rain falling over these states contains ominous levels of mercury and threatens the health of people and wildlife.” Since mercury attacks the brain and central nervous system, it can pose a serious threat to sport and subsistence fishermen as well as to the people who consume fish and seafood. Incredibly, 44 states have already issued advisories which warn people to restrict, or avoid entirely, eating fish which are caught in thousands of lakes and streams. (3) It is thus clear that one of the major consequences of human activities on the environment is that our planetary water resources are being subjected to increasing pressures...mainly from human and industrial pollution. This is especially true with regard to the deplorably wasteful practices in domestic, industrial, and agricultural sectors of global society. According to the U.S. sponsored Third-World Water Forum, an impending global water crisis could affect one out of every three people by the year 2025! (4) Contaminated drinking water is the world’s single largest environmental killer! This is especially true for children. According to Berkeley Lawrence Laboratory Physicist, Ashok Gadgil, “Four million children die annually from waterborne diseases; more than 400 deaths per hour. It’s the kind of death toll we don’t jump up and down about, because it’s out of sight to us.” (5) "When enough people change the way they view things, then solutions become evident, often in ways we couldn’t even imagine, before we looked with new eyes. We have destroyed much of the world because of our culture; we can save much of it by changing our culture." (6) – Thom Hartmann, 1998 – The Last Hours of Ancient Sunlight Measuring Earth’s Metabolism NASA Scientists have stated that, for the first time in history, they are able to make a continuous recording of what they refer to as “earth’s metabolism.” Using information from two different Earth observatory system satellites in conjunction with remote-sensing ocean buoys, the scientists are now able to update their data at frequent enough intervals to map the rate at which plant life absorbs carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Using this approach, the scientists can now create calibrated, real-time measurements of various components of the global carbon cycle, which, in turn serve as a basis for monitoring environmental and water-related events such as the expansion of deserts, the effects of droughts and floods, and the impacts of global climate change on plant growth and seasonal fluxuations. This same technology can also be used to monitor global water resources, in conjunction with floods, droughts, and severe global weather events, as well as selected biological events, such as plankton blooms in lakes and oceans, and the growth of aquatic vegetation in response to agricultural run-off of nitrates and phosphates. More importantly, this new application of satellite technology represents a way to redefine our approach to studying global ecology in a much more wholistic way, through an integrated systems approach, instead of the linear assembling of bits of isolated regional data. "As individuals and leaders, we must shift the world’s political system into a new state of equilibrium – an eco-librium – characterized by greater cooperation and by a focus on the future. The solutions we seek will be found in a new faith in the future of life on Earth after our own, a faith in the future that justifies sacrifices in the present, a new moral courage to choose higher values in the conduct of human affairs, and a new reverence for absolute principles that can serve as stars by which to map the future course of our species and our place within creation." – Albert K. Bates, 1990 – Climate in Crisis: A Greenhouse Effect and What We Can Do, p. ix A New Ecological Worldview for Global Society A transformative ecological revolution on a global scale requires a fresh new set of guidelines for thinking and action. Such a revolution must incorporate sweeping social transformations, where every inhabitant of planet Earth participates by living within an inspired and self-imposed global “constitution of sustainable limits”...a set of guidelines which is environmentally synergistic with our planetary ecosystems. If we are truly committed to achieving such a transformation and to blazing bold evolutionary pathways into the future, a new, environmentally focused planetary mindset must be established and implemented at all levels of society. In place of the traditional approach of glorifying the minute details of biological systems, a new integrated and systemic approach to understanding Earth’s major ecosystems and their interrelationship must be taken. Within this context, a concerted effort should be undertaken immediately to protect our precious heritage of global water resources from the effects of environmental pollution, destruction by development, and commercial exploitation and abuse by overuse. Global standards should be established and implemented to protect these resources. Similar standards need to be set into place to monitor, protect and preserve water quality everywhere, and simple technologies should be established to conserve and distribute clean water efficiently. Concurrent global programs need to be implemented to clean up pollution from human, animal and industrial waste products, which have the potential to infiltrate to our water supplies. Global water resources...especially large underground aquifers...are priceless environmental treasures. As such, they need to be adequately measured, mapped, recharged and protected for present and future generations. Since most of these vast underground water stores take hundreds, or even thousands of years to recharge, they should be regarded (like petroleum) from a more finite resource-oriented perspective, so they will not be mindlessly squandered at the expense of future generations. New global programs can be created to develop more energy-efficient desalination plants which use renewable, non-polluting power sources such as solar, wind, wave, or tidal power. This program should be set into motion, in conjunction with community-level water collection, purification, distribution and storage technologies. These programs can be simplistic, cheap, and available to everyone. Finally, programs for environmental education should be set up as soon as possible, to educate all levels of global society, so that people everywhere understand the importance of protection, conservation and the use of water as a precious and strategic life-giving resource. Suggested Strategies for the Protection, Conservation and Use of Global Water Resources 1. A coordinated global program of environmental education should be implemented, to teach all levels of society the importance of protecting and conserving environmental resources for present and future generations. This educational program should be integrated into the earliest levels of school and should include a variety of community education programs for adults. This program should make full use of global radio, television and internet broadcasting media technologies, combined with children’s and adult’s environmental books, newspaper articles and videos. 2. A Set of universal guidelines and procedures should be created and implemented to protect strategic water resources from contamination, commercial exploitation and overuse. “Strategic water resources” should include springs, lakes, rivers, streams and canals. This protection should be extended to include the protection of the natural watersheds which feed these water resources. 3. Extensive underground aquifers should be mapped and their volumes defined. Since aquifers sometimes cross national boundaries, new policies and guidelines need to be created and implemented for protecting and recharging these precious resources from unregulated overexploitation by commercial interests. 4. Universal standards need to be established for municipal drinking water. These standards need to be implemented, and monitored on a continuous basis to insure that everyone in the global community has access to clean drinking water. Concurrently (especially in developing nations), hygiene and sanitation need to be improved for every level of society, to avoid the pollution of strategic water sources by human and industrial waste. 5. A coordinated global effort needs to be launched to promote the conservation of water resources at all levels of society in all cultures and regions of the world. Guidelines should be implemented for household usage with emphasis on faucet restrictors, low-volume toilets and water-using household appliances. Major focus should be placed on implementing programs for massive reductions of water usage for irrigation, replacing inefficient irrigation systems with modern drip irrigation systems which use far less water more efficiently. 6. Concerted efforts should be made to encourage the use of appropriately designed water catchment and storage devices, and also to install municipal rainwater catchment and storage devices wherever appropriate. 7. A program should be established for developing, manufacturing, and distributing small, cost-effective portable water purification devices, which use an inexpensive ultraviolet lamp. Such units can either be powered from conventional electrical grids, or can be adapted for use with standard auto batteries, solar panels, or stationery bicycle power. A single unit of this type can provide enough safe drinking water for a small village, and thus prevent the onslaught of waterborne diseases...especially in children. 8. Tremendous savings in water resources can be achieved by simply upgrading existing systems of canals and pipelines to prevent them from leaking. This approach would effectively increase the amount of available water for drinking and irrigation in most parts of the world. 9. A major program should be implemented globally, to develop large-scale desalination plants, which use the latest solar evaporative technology. Such installations can be built on floating barges, so they can be towed to seaside or riverside communities. This same technology can also be applied to purifying polluted river water, making it suitable for drinking and household use. 10. Measures should be taken to encourage people everywhere to focus on upgrading and maintaining municipal water purification technology, to eliminate the necessity for drinking imported bottled water. The process of shipping bottled water...often halfway around the world represents a significant and unnecessary use of fossil fuel reserves and creates unnecessary atmospheric pollution. This practice also creates mountains of single-use plastic containers, which are difficult to recycle, and litter even the most remote lands and shorelines of our planet. 11. Most importantly, an entirely new program should be established to coordinate data from the hundreds of environmental sensing satellites already positioned in the space around Earth. These “eyes of Gaia” when properly integrated into a new global supercomputer program, in conjunction with ocean buoy transmitters to monitor the ocean current parameters, can bring our capabilities for environmental monitoring, protection and restoration into an entirely new level of scientific understanding. A key objective of this program would be to integrate this data into a new “living environmental model” of Earth, so that the health of our planet can be monitored on a real-time basis. New applications of remote sensing technology can also be developed to shift the focus from “military intelligence” to “ecological intelligence” which centers on the status of the health of the global biosphere. This shift would allow scientists of all nations to gain entirely new insights into the intricacies of global ecology and the complex interactions of Earth’s dynamic systems. Additional programs can be implemented by re-directing our bloated national defense budgets away from destructive activities, and into new worldwide programs for monitoring and enforcing environmental regulations, for protecting and restoring our precious global water resources for the present and future generations of humanity and for the well-being of all life-forms which inhabit our global biosphere. References: 1. Sylvia Wright, “Trans-Pacific Pollution Worsens,” August 1, 2000, MSNBC; http://www.msnbc.com/news 2. Environmental News Network, “Mongolia Dust Cloud Moves across America,” April 25, 2001; http://en.com/news/enn-stories. 3. Environment News Service, “High Mercury Levels Found in Rain, May 29, 2003; http:/www.eurocbc.org 4. Reuters, “World Water Crisis Will Threaten One in Three,” August 13, 2003; http://enn.com/news/wire-stories. 5. Emil Polk, “Ultraviolet for Health,” Whole Earth,Winter 2000, p. 39; www.waterhealth.com 6. www.climateark.org |
The GaiaShip Project
A Resource for Creating a National and Global Renaissance & The GaiaShip Project Invitation to Norwegian Oil Fund: To invest in ‘Environment and Climate from Oil’ Centre on board the planned GaiaShip In professional association with: Roar Bjerknes, Professional Director of The GaiaShip Project www.gaiaship.org USA and Norway. April 2009 Dimensions Of Change "The Dimensions of Change that are now occurring are extraordinary. Like giant icebergs breaking loose from ancient moorings, and beginning to float free. For the first time in hundreds, even thousands of years, entire civilizations are melting, moving, and changing. We have begun a process of transition that extends, from the Individual to the Global Scale." – Duane Elgin, 1993 – Voluntary Simplicity, p. 1992 INTRODUCTION Proposed ideas and professional initiatives on: The New Norway based ‘Green Fund’. Planned to be evaluated with financial funds from Norwegian Oil Fund. The actual premises and incitement of this exclusive report and document are the facts that the Norwegian Oil Fund has in early April 2009, adopted a ground-breaking new ‘green’ environment, and climate friendly guidelines and profile. At the same time with the projecting and development of The GaiaShip Project ‘Peace Ship’ – with a proposed United Nations flag. At the time of this writing, Norwegian Oil Fund contains more than US $ 500 billion. As the third biggest oil- and gas-producing country in the world, the oil fund’s reserves can increase to US $ 1 trillion – within a few years. Some time ago, a loss of more than US $ 100 billion was reported with regard to the oil fund’s international investments. At the same time, the Norwegian government was criticized for overlooking environmental, climate and human rights issues, etc. – in the rush to earn the greatest possible profits from investing the nation’s oil revenues in international stock markets. This led to an increasingly heated debate within Norway about the correct strategy for investing billions of dollars of oil money. Since 1997, the oil fund has invested in international stock markets, with the objective of earning the highest possible return for a given level of risk. Successive Norwegian finance ministers have stated that the governance of these investments using ethical guidelines is simply “too difficult to define”. Desmond McNeill, head of the Centre for Development and Environment, is among those who have argued constructively that the application of ethical criteria can help reduce the risks of investments, as well as increasing the returns from the oil fund. In the longer term, he believes that investing in companies that operate contrary to accepted social norms involves a greater risk. More and more Norwegian politicians – also inside the ruling government – have argued for establishing environmental, climate change and human rights criteria when making investments from the oil fund. As leading Norwegian experts and politicians have come to believe, once somebody sets a standard, there will be a domino effect and others will follow. This is why it has been vital for many to put pressure on the Norwegian government to use the oil fund as a political instrument as a key strategy for creating a more equitable world. In early April of 2009, the Norwegian government announced and published a comprehensive change in the oil fund’s profile, policy and management – in a strategic decision to make the fund a typical ‘green’ oil fund. According to Norway’s Finance Minister – Mrs. Kristin Halvorsen – at that time, the new oil fund will, in the coming years, use many US $ billions to buy specific environmentally appropriate shares in third-world and developing countries. This unique investment plan will thus focus on sustainable growth in ‘new economies’ in developing countries. In particular, the new ‘green’ oil fund will invest in developing countries’ businesses, with a declared environmental profile – such as climate-friendly energy, energy efficiency, carbon sequestering, and environmentally appropriate water power technologies, pollution abatement and waste treatment and recycling. The Norwegian Finance Minister also announced his intention to introduce a new unique Climate and Environment Initiative, involving more than 8000 of the oil fund’s shareholder companies. Such companies will be required to make public their discharges of gasses which impact the atmospheric commons. The oil fund will also initiate a new international program to focus on the so-called ‘Stern Report’, which deals with the global economy’s impacts on climate change. Finance Minister Halvorsen (last year) also stating that the oil fund will also facilitate new international programs to focus on international climate problems – which deal with influences of climate changes on future increasing carbon prices. The ‘Green’ Oil Fund and GaiaShip For these reasons, we are inviting the Norwegian authorities to use GaiaShip to profile, market, and further develop environmental, climate change, and ethical guidelines for the new ‘green’ oil fund. We can offer the oil fund the opportunity to promote itself by, among other things, financing the establishment and operation of United Nation’s environment and climate change programs and centre on board GaiaShip. By using the oil fund as a funding resource, the Norwegian government could follow up with basic financial support plan to assist in making GaiaShip available to the UN bodies. Under the umbrella of the ‘mini-UN’ on board GaiaShip, we propose more specifically that Norway uses money from the Oil Fund to fund a major international ocean-going program and centre under the heading of: ‘Environment and Climate from Oil’. A unique vessel like GaiaShip – with its central GaiaDome, plus a number of other unique and futuristic facilities – can provide an ideal venue for such activities. GaiaShip will have a fantastic conference and concert halls, an Imax and performing Arts theatre, each seating 1000 people. GaiaShip can sail from ‘creative’ city to city, country to country, and continent to continent. Arranging on-board conferences and seminars to debate global issue, while concurrently featuring concerts and similar fundraising events to support the onboard activities. ***** Despite the fact that Norway is located near the Arctic Circle, it has been blessed with the natural moderating effects of the Gulf Stream Current, and vast oil resources...a “natural-resource treasure chest” which has the potential to insure a bright future for Norway and its people. If wisely utilized, this resource has the potential to create a global network of synergistic “win-win” partnerships in selected areas of commerce and cultural exchange…for the benefit of Norway, its Nordic and European Council Allies, and for the global community at large. Within only a few decades, the industrial revolution, which formed the infrastructure for modern society, has been replaced with a technological/communications revolution which has profoundly transformed the social and economic values in virtually all areas of the world. For any nation to insure a bright and promising future for its people, it must avoid becoming bogged down in traditions of the past. Within the context of the present worldwide financial and environmental crises, “business as usual” within this older context will simply no longer work! Instead, we must form a new and enlightened group of world leaders, visionaries, and luminaries who will seek out solutions which combine the support of individuals at grass-roots levels, with the visions of our national leaders. In this regard, it is an “imperative for success” that we move from rear-view-mirror thinking, and shift into a new format of thinking from the present, and into the future. This way, all parties involved can participate in the creation of a rich new inheritance in substance and spirit for all living beings, as well as for the generations yet to come. A nation’s financial and technological resources should be regarded as “precious birth rights” for its people. As such, the management of these resources requires a balance of wisdom, common sense, and a gathering together the finest intellectual and technological resources available on the planet. In order to reverse the presently destructive impacts of human technology on the planetary biosphere, global society will require a powerful and enlightened group of leaders who have the skills and wisdom to facilitate a transformative global renaissance and revolution, which can successfully ride the waves of change into the future. Despite the fact that the human activities have already severely impacted the global commons (our atmosphere, our ocean fisheries resources, and Earth’s land and fresh water resources), advanced clean and environmentally sustainable technologies already exist which, if conscientiously developed and implemented, can provide clean renewable energy and ecologically sustainable lifestyles for everyone on the planet. To achieve the practical realization of these new transformative technologies, we must move beyond the entanglements and restrictions of 20th century thinking, and blaze adventurous new pathways into the future. We must also restructure our outdated, wasteful and self-serving ways of thinking. We must also encourage and support young people everywhere to have the courage to explore and pursue research to develop and implement these new, leading-edge technologies - which often operate outside the scientific and social paradigms of the past. In the eyes of the rest of the world Norway might seem to be a small and geographically remote nation. However, its unique combination of intellectual and natural resources at this time-point in history has positioned Norway and its allies to take a leadership role in global transformation, and to launch a “global green renaissance.” Norway has the capability to become a “model nation” within this context…a nation that can serve as a prototypical example of integrated sustainability, and thus provide a functional model for the rest of global society to follow for the third millennium. To accomplish such a “Magnificent Revolution,” a set of ideas, concepts, and strategies are proposed, for implementing this transformation…by applying the financial resources and new set of strategic investment initiatives so that the Norwegian Oil Fund can become a “primary driver for change,” while increasing bottom-line profitability for this national financial resource. • A concerted effort should be mounted to insure that, as much as possible, all investments in the Norwegian Oil Fund would be scrupulously screened and evaluated, with the objective of moving selected investments out of companies involved with military contracting, or environmental degradation. (This would essentially shift investments from supporting war, to supporting peace). The funds from such non-sustainable investments can be re-invested in new and viable technologies which are “green” in the sense that the associated products and services are environmentally appropriate, and will thus have a positive and peaceful impact on the global biosphere and the global social consciousness. If intelligently screened and analyzed, such “green” investments have the potential to produce equal or better returns than the investments in those corporations which they would replace. • The transformation of Oil to Health and improved quality of life – this strategy is based on the fact that people are living longer than ever before. Increasingly larger amounts of money are spent on healthcare and related services. It would thus seem wise to invest a significant portion of the Norwegian Oil Fund assets into healthcare products and services with the objective of improving existing healthcare systems. Such a program should also combine conventional medicine with alternative healthcare, which would serve to improve the quality of life for everyone. People (both young and old) are spending larger amounts of their money on complementary medical products and services. Such services often fall into the category of preventative medicine, nutritional supplements, exercise, yoga, guided meditation acupuncture, energy balancing therapies, etc. In the larger view, such complementary medical therapies would help reduce stress levels, and thus become a major factor in reducing the major costs of healthcare. • The transformation of Oil to Water – In 2003, when the basis for this paper was originally written, a liter of bottled drinking water, at the rather conservative price of one US dollar per liter, multiplied by the number of liters in a 50-gallon barrel, yields the astonishing price of nearly US$200 for a barrel of drinking water...a value which significantly exceeds the price of a barrel of oil [At a the more current price of two us dollars per liter, this raises the price to US$400 per barrel]. Since Earth’s fresh water resources are being depleted faster than nature can replace them, it becomes an obvious imperative that Norway’s precious water resources should be protected from pollution, and commercial over-exploitation by foreign enterprise. Instead, trade exchange agreements could be established with partner nations being allotted reasonable and sustainable quantities of drinking water in trade for critical goods and services, which are needed by Norway and its people. Part of this effort should be directed at protecting and replanting national watersheds, and also to recharging natural aquifers, in environmentally appropriate ways. One effective strategy would be to use some of the assets of the Norwegian Oil Fund to develop and secure control of new water purification devices and technologies. To prepare for the future, an ongoing research program could be established in Norway to improve existing water purification devices and systems, and to develop new and more energy efficient purification technologies…especially solar desalination systems for tropical and desert nations. This would serve to create a major technology center in Norway for an industry which will become increasingly important and profitable in the future, and would serve as a firm basis for global commerce and exchange. • The transformation of Oil to Clean Energy – The financial resources from the Norwegian Oil Fund could be transformed into the development, implementation, and export of clean, environmentally appropriate energy technologies. This objective could best be approached by establishing centers for research, development, and refinement of existing renewable energy technologies, with the primary objective being the optimal utilization of Norway’s clean, renewable resources (i.e. hydroelectric, wind, wave, tidal, and solar energy) in the most efficient ways possible (e.g. Denmark has established itself as the world’s major exporter of wind turbines). The ultimate objective would be to develop, manufacture, distribute, and market point-source power generation Units, using cutting-edge technology, which would be independent of existing centralized energy grids…thus eliminating the possibilities of large-scale terrorist-sabotage, or storm and earthquake-related disasters. The basic technologies for such advanced power systems presently exists in their experimental stages, but both patents and processes could be purchased using assets from the Norwegian Oil Fund to secure the rights to develop these devices, and bring them into commercial feasibility, at which point they could be manufactured, leased, or contracted out to partner nations, to bring clean, inexpensive electrical power to even the remotest areas of the world. • The Transformation of Oil to Brainpower – this is, without doubt, the most strategic resource of all, since it affects every single individual in Norway, both young and old. Information is knowledge, and knowledge is power! By using a portion of the Norwegian Oil Fund to create and sustain strategic brainpower resources in selected areas of new technology, Norway can become a prototypical vanguard in global green leadership for present and future generations. This objective could be best accomplished by utilizing a portion of the oil fund assets to award “honorariums” to the best key people in science and technology who would come to Norway and share their ideas and aspirations for the future in “think and do-tanks,” which would be organized specifically for this purpose. Groups of the best minds in Norway (including young students) could also be included. In this way these strategic brain-power assets could be effectively “magnified” to permeate the entire educational and social structure of the country, and thus uplift the collective intelligence and culture of the Norwegian people. Additional funds could be made available from the oil fund for scholarships to send Norwegians abroad to work and study in key centers of technology, business, and environmental sciences, and then bring this information back to Norway to add to the collective national consciousness. The GaiaShip Project, as a Strategic Extension of the Norwegian National Consciousness • The GaiaShip Project, headed by Norwegian, Roar Bjerknes, in one sense, conceptually represents a “portable Norway.” This futuristic project might also be thought of as Norway’s version of NASA’s Apollo Project, which put the first man on the Moon. Although such a visionary and futuristic project requires substantial funding to design, build, and outfit this unique world-class cruise ship, the investment pales in comparison to the billions of dollars invested to simply form the basis for either the European or American space programs. In this regard, it is of interest to note that Norway has already taken the lead in of opening new frontiers…having “discovered” and established outposts in North America long before the historically touted voyage of Christopher Columbus. As a complement to the foregoing strategies for transforming the Norwegian Oil Fund by bringing the world to Norway; GaiaShip will also provide the vehicle for bring Norwegians out into mainstream global society, so they can experience even to the remotest places on Earth. This futuristic cruise ship will not only set a new standard for seagoing cruise liners (also a Norwegian tradition), but it will also serve as a “mini United Nations,” which, with its state-of-the-art communications technologies and efficient management, can operate far more efficiently than its namesake counterpart (the United Nations), which has, over the years, become increasingly bureaucratic and ineffectual as an effective instrument for global leadership. By bringing in the support of celebrity sponsors, and world leaders from areas of government, business, science, fine arts, medicine, and education, GaiaShip will also become a “floating ambassador-ship” which will sail the seven seas of our planet as a prototypical model for the future of Norway…and for the enlightenment of all humankind. An investment from the Norwegian “Green Fund” for the basic funding for GaiaShip would insure that Norwegian citizens, workers and students would be the first in line to reap the benefits of this magnificent project, since the ship would in effect “bring the world to Norway.” This “futuristic international island,” would provide the ideal meeting venue for the best of scientific, educational, cultural, medical and visionary minds…bringing them together within a supportive and conflict-free environment. GaiaShip is designed to incorporate lifelong learning and global scientific centers, with special research labs for developing and testing advanced technologies. It would be equipped with luxurious spa, fitness, and rejuvenation facilities, and a complementary medical center, based on Dr. Pilapitia’s world-renowned Ayurvedic health resort in Sri Lanka. Most importantly, GaiaShip would serve an important function as a venue for international meetings, peace negotiations, and celebrations of the arts and sciences. With its International shopping village, celebrity amenities, and the world’s first floating “green” casino, GaiaShip could also come into its own as a self-generating financial enterprise. With its unique futuristic “Floating Ambassador-Ship,” Norway could set aside a portion of the new “green fund’ (based on investments from Norwegian oil fund) to launch programs for global outreach in areas of food production, medical and disaster relief, clean drinking water, waste treatment, education, peace, social justice and intercultural exchange. Student-education and adult social service programs could be established, so that people of all ages from Norway could participate in the joys of service, and in sharing their good hospitality and good fortune with other less fortunate cultures; while at the same time gaining a new appreciation for life while experiencing the satisfaction of helping others. In particular, it is planned for The GaiaShip incorporate the world’s first floating University and Education Centre for: • ‘Green Ocean’ studies. The GaiaShip’s planned Ocean Centre will be headquarters for the proposed Ocean Society, whose principal objectives will be to focus on the marine environment and other ocean-related activities that are likely to impact on the way we will live in the future. • The Society will inform and educate, helping to increase concern for, and encourage better management of the worldwide marine environment. • Gaiaship’ Ocean Society will campaign for a ‘Nobel Ocean Prize’ – to be awarded each year – at an exclusive and prominent ceremony on board GaiaShip – to the person(s) who have contributed significantly to the well-being of the oceans and the sustainable development of the world’s marine resources. • Other Ocean Society projects would include the development of Exemplar Carbon Zero initiative marine vessels, which would be powered by solar, wind and wave energy. As the GaiaShip Project is the key element for transforming Norway’s Oil resources into a positive and altruistic set of possible future scenarios for the country. The best way to launch this program would be to establish a non-profit GaiaShip Foundation as a tax-exempt vehicle for private and commercial donors. Since “commitment” is the essential element for any visionary project of this magnitude, an initial donation of ten million US Dollars from the Norwegian Oil fund would serve as “seed money” for the greater project, so that it might attract other major private and commercial donors. This GaiaShip Seed Fund would allow for financial honorariums and expenses to be granted to key players in the global arena, so that they could participate in think-and-do tanks to get this time-critical project up and rolling as soon as possible. This “honorarium system,” combined with a “discretionary slush fund” would serve to bypass the financially inefficient use of grants and granting systems, academic peer reviews, etc. Such a system is a far more businesslike and financially efficient way of accomplishing objectives, and allows a project to come into fruition at light speed...much like the Manhattan Project, the Lockheed Martin Skunk Works or the Apollo Project. In summary, the transformation of Norwegian’s natural resources into a new and enlightened “global renaissance” for the people of Norway and for the global community at large represents a “magnificent quest for excellence.” This Magnificent Quest can be initiated on a national level, but will eventually expand to include the entire planet. The opportunity is here and now! The keys to a bright and wondrous adventure are in the hands of the enlightened leaders of Norway and their council allies to decide! We, the people of Earth look joyously to that day, when the light of freedom shines forth, from the eyes of people everywhere, and the fear of War no longer lives in our hearts. Thus, will be born a Planetary Independence Day… the first day in history, when Planet Earth no longer suffers the heartless squandering of her natural resources, and can thus experience true peace, happiness, and environmental harmony for all inhabitants of the global biosphere. – Elliott Maynard, 2005 – “Visions for the Future of Humanity and Planet Earth.” The Arcos Cielos University of the Future Project® A Transformative Educational Paradigm for the Third Millennium ABSTRACT The University of the Future Project is a transformative, outcome-based educational system. It incorporates the following principles: 1) Whole-brained thinking, 2) cyber-learning, 3) synergistic teamwork, 4) experiential teaching, 5) intercultural interfacing, 6) lifelong education, and 7) development of the intuitive senses. The system encourages students to develop an enlightened perspective of our global biosphere, and a comprehensive understanding of its biological, social, political, and economic aspects. The basic elements of the University of the Future Concept interact as a dynamic “living fabric” which has the capability to evolve and adapt to successive waves of social and technological change. By integrating the best elements of eastern and western belief systems, optimal development of the physical, mental and spiritual aspects of human potential can become a practical reality. The linear, analytical, left-brained thought processes of industrial-age education emphasize the learning and parroting back of facts, rather than the practical applications of facts to contemporary real-world situation. Accordingly, most conventional educational institutions...especially universities...have been left behind, regarding to their relevancy to the real world. Instead of taking a leading role in creating model learning environments, traditional educational systems have directed the bulk of their energies into perpetuating institutions which are essentially irrelevant to new-millennium society. As a transformative educational paradigm, the University of the Future Concept offers a set of exciting, financially efficient innovations and alternatives for revitalizing traditional educational programs...with the major emphasis being placed on learning how to learn. Highly energized, intellectually stimulating, and emotionally synergistic learning environments are designed to bring out the best in each individual. Students participate in hands-on interactive learning experiences, with each student being encouraged to develop and express his or her own unique potential. As students continue to mature and evolve, they are directed toward relevant real-world career tracks. Thus, education can become an inspirational, transformative and socially relevant adventure in self-discovery...designed to expand and enlighten the human consciousness, and to provide evolutionary momentum for the success and advancement of the human race. INTRODUCTION Thirty years ago, Alvin Toffler, in his bestselling book, Future Shock, had this to say, with regard to traditional educational systems: “What passes for education today, even in out “best” schools and colleges, is a hopeless anachronism. Parents look to education to fit their children for a life in the future. Teachers warn that lack of an education will cripple a child’s changes in the world of tomorrow. Government ministries, churches, the mass media...all exhort young people to stay in school, insisting that now, as never before, one’s future is almost wholly dependent upon education. Yet for all this rhetoric about the future, our schools face backward toward a dying system that will be dead before they are. To help avert Future Shock, we must create a super-industrial education system. And to do this, we must search for our objectives and methods in the future, rather than in the past.” (1) The Arcos Cielos University of the Future Project is a transformational, outcome-based global educational system. It is designed to function as a co-evolutionary agent for the third millennium. This unique new system is an integral part of a more comprehensive master paradigm called Future-Science Technology® developed over the past three decades by Dr. Elliott Maynard at the Arcos Cielos Foundation in Sedona, Arizona. Essentially, the University of the Future Project is a new system of “educational brainware.” It can be regarded as a set of tools for re-integrating the art of teaching with the art of learning back into the heart of the educational process. Although this new system was originally focused on the university level, it can be adapted for any educational level from kindergarten through to university, as well as for all aspects of technical and management training institutes. The system is also ideal for lifelong learning programs. The University of the Future Concept works with “sets of opposites,” which create a unique synergistic effect, when they are integrated into existing educational programs and teaching systems. Examples of such “opposites” might include, ancient and modern philosophies, eastern and western worldviews, local and global perspectives, conventional and alternative technologies and physical and subtle-energy systems. From a future-science technology perspective, whenever the energies of two such opposites meet, the opposing wave fronts collide. At the interface between the two wave fronts, a third force is generated. This new force combines elements of both the original opposites, but also embodies a fresh new catalytic energy. In ancient times, the interfacing of two cultures, national, or religious groups most often resulted in bloodshed and warfare. Once the initial violence died down, however, relatively stable periods of cultural renaissance and creativity would usually prevail. Within the enlightened spirit of third-millennium consciousness, traditional ego-centered differences between various global factions must be set aside, being replaced with creatively productive “think-and-do tanks,” and “outcome- based workshops.” Such an enlightened approach to problem-solving has the potential to produce entirely new systems and solutions to the plethora of the human-created problems, which are presently impacting our planetary biosphere. When opposing idealologies and institutions can begin to work together within a context of wisdom and understanding, the resulting creativity and productivity can be channeled into forging powerful new paradigms for the future. These dynamic new paradigms would incorporate the best of both opposites, generate unique practical solutions to the world’s problems, and embody the synergistic capabilities for transforming Marshall McLuhan’s global village into an enlightened, ecologically sustainable global super-nation. THE UNIVERSITY OF THE FUTURE CONCEPT Traditional education focuses on past events, thought-forms, and time-frames, which originate from an industrial-age mindset. The linear, analytical, left-brained thought processes of this system tend to overemphasize the learning and recall of facts, rather than the practical applications of these facts of real-world situations. Traditional education analyzes concepts by breaking them down into component parts, instead of studying them within dynamic real-world contexts. To bridge the gap between traditional education and our new information-communications culture, an infusion of new enthusiasm and energy is needed. Support from government and corporate sectors is also essential, to effectively transition education into a system which is appropriate for new-millennium society. The University of the Future Project offers unique, educationally efficient, and cost effective alternatives to traditional education. This new system provides the “ultimate in personalized education,” with major emphasis being placed on learning how to learn. Students are provided with a set of life-management skills, designed to enhance success and survival in the real world. In addition to a balanced foundation in educational skills, learning is “career-directed,” according to each student’s individual abilities and aspirations. As a third-millennium educational environment, the University of the Future is both supportive and synergistic. All learning programs emphasize outcome-based experiential learning, which is strongly focused on leading-edge environmental programs. Exciting adventures in self-discovery and transformative development occur within a neo-renaissance environment, where apprenticeship-mentor relationships are encouraged between students and instructors. Additional emphasis is placed on intercultural interfacing, using “cultural hybridization” to generate new ideas and perspectives. High-tech is artfully combined with hands-on high-touch, and information prioritization and management is emphasized throughout all areas of study. Other prime objectives of the University of the Future Program include: 1) development of the core self, 2) the attainment of maturity, 3) the acquisition of wisdom, 4) the practice of compassion for others and all living things, 5) a focus on support and synergy, and 6) major focus on developing the natural intuitive abilities. The University of the Future Paradigm regards the past as an exemplary resource to be “mined” for wisdom and experience. Learning programs strongly focus on present skills, events, and situations, with special emphasis on the implications of our present decisions and actions on the future of human society and the global biosphere. COMMUNICATIONS FLUENCY AND EVOLUTION In the course of social evolution human culture passed a series of milestones which included: written Language, which was first embodied in professional scribes. The invention of the movable-type Gutenberg press marked the advent of printed mass media, which caused a corresponding shift from a right-brained to a left-brained thinking modality. The progression of communications devices which followed included the typewriter, teletype, telegraph, telephone, radio, television, fax machine and computer. In conjunction with transcontinental cables, and eventually wireless satellite technologies, the global internet has emerged as a unique “electronic manifestation” of what might best be termed the Global Consciousness Field. Within the new digital communications context, the following ancient oriental precept takes on entirely new meaning: “If a picture is worth a thousand words,” a video (or movie) is worth a thousand pictures. It would thus appear to follow, that a direct experience would be worth a thousand videos. Accordingly, all students within the University of the Future System would be encouraged to achieve basic levels of “communications fluency” in photography, videography, photo-enhancement technology and video-editing. This, in addition to basic written and verbal communications skills an related technologies such as photo and video presentations and website design. CYBER-LEARNING Cyber-learning embodies the technologies and resources of computer sciences, digital Imaging, telecommunications, and distance learning. The global internet and its associated technologies have endowed cyber-learning with the capability to become an educational resource of unprecedented power and evolutionary potential. As an interactive educational tool, distance learning is financially efficient, and adaptable to any working, or parenting schedule. Distance learning is usually self-paced, and can be pursued on either a part- or full-time basis. Distance learning programs can be set up in conjunction with existing educational centers, or drop-in technical labs, where computers, software, and live instructors are available on a 24-hour basis. Distance learning represents a powerful new educational resource for enriching home schooling, and is also an ideal technology for lifelong learning programs. Other aspects of cyber-learning include digital information management, which combines digital communications, the internet, and written and audiovisual resources, stored on CD’s, DVD’s and similar digital media. Digital information management requires a basic familiarity with these information resources, as well as the ability to employ effective data-mining strategies to effectively extract, prioritize, store and organize information into appropriate formats. Other facets of cyber-learning include a basic knowledge of electronic-commerce (E-commerce), an understanding of website design and management, as well as the basic aspects of virtual reality. Virtual reality, in combination with internet communications technologies, offers tremendous potential as a learning tool. Although virtual reality environments were originally developed by the U. S. Military for combat training and battle strategy, the technology offers exciting possibilities for creating immersive educational experiences...especially when combined with “natural reality” (field work in natural environmental settings). VR simulators can substitute for many aspects of piloting military aircraft; or operating precision race cars, spacecraft, deep-submersible vehicles or heavy construction equipment. VR simulators provide cost-effective training, and reduce the need for real-time operation of expensive vehicles and construction equipment. As hi-tech virtual simulators continue to evolve, their applications will become more common in areas such as medicine and the environmental sciences. Already, in medicine, human-controlled robotic manipulators surpass the capabilities of direct hands-on surgical contact between patient and surgeon. Telerobotic manipulators have recently become so precise that human heart bypass surgery is often performed using endoscopic techniques. Since only small openings are necessary for inserting the endoscopic tubes into the chest cavity, patients are able to return quickly to their normal daily routines, following a short hospital stay for post-surgical observation. In this scenario, the surgeon sits at a robotic control console, usually located a few feet away from the patient, and equipped with hand and foot controls. The surgeon receives tactile feedback from variable resistance controls, and visual feedback from a video monitor, which has the capability to shift views via voice commands, and provide real-time feedback of the internal surgical procedure via tiny video cameras, inserted through the endoscopic tubes. Although these pioneering procedures have initially taken place with the surgeon in the same room as the patient, telecommunications technologies can just as easily link up doctors and patients in different parts of the world. Video gaming technology has placed interactive virtual reality in the hands of the general public. This technology offers tremendous potential as a learning tool for training the reflexes and mental reasoning processes. Although initially designed for children, computer and video games have also recently emerged as a significant adult pastime. The variety of games runs the gamut from tactical military warfare, to building cities, governing kingdoms, and terraforming planets. Other “sims” involve managing virtual families, or raising “cyber-pets” equipped with their own unique artificial personalities. These digital entities have the capability to grow, learn by trial-and-error, reproduce, and even die. Although the transformation of videogaming into learning technology is still in its infancy, the compression of an entire interactive virtual world into a single compact disk is undeniably one of the greatest miracles of our times. THE GLOBAL INTERNET AND “WEBUCATION” The global internet has become a major transformative force for third- millennium society. The internet effectively allows us to effectively collapse time and space. It permits anyone, anywhere to communicate, interact, and transact business with other individuals located anywhere on the planet...or even in outer space. The internet never sleeps. It functions tirelessly 24-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week. Data and information stored in cyberspace can be accessed at any time, from any location. As a “global equal-opportunity communications medium” the global internet dissolves social, national, ethnic, and economic barriers. Interestingly, there is evidence to suggest that the Internet has significantly increased energy efficiency, while effectively reducing atmosphere pollution from conventional auto travel. Apparently, electronic commerce, e-mail, videoconferencing, and distance learning have all served to eliminate a significant percentage of physical travel, and have also correspondingly increased the functional efficiency of certain areas of corporate organizational structure. (2) “Webucation” is the inherent capability of the global internet to function in a self-teaching capacity. Through a process of trial and error, the “website” has evolved as the “human/artificial Intelligence interface of choice.” From a Future-Science Technology perspective, a website might best be described as a “self-aware communications interface between humans, computers and the planetary data- field.” A website has the capability to instantly adapt and evolve according to the digital inputs and interchanges which occur within its boundaries. Indeed, the website has apparently developed into a viable “cyberspace entity” in its own right. It is becoming increasingly sophisticated at a breakneck pace...improving its efficiency, communicating with audio, animation, and real-time video, and using the latest hardware, software, and communications technologies. Considering the transformations which have already occurred, it is only a matter of time before the basic website concept shifts from a two- to a three-dimensional medium, incorporating virtual reality, and holography...eventually creating Immersive Interactive Experiences which will resemble the holodeck on the Starship Enterprise. CREATING A SYNERGISTIC LEARNING COMMUNITY The creation of a synergistic learning community involves designing a futuristic learning environment which essentially functions as a co-evolutionary ecosystem...a community with heart and spirit. Spiritual growth and development, and the creation of an evolving group consciousness are also important aspects of the process. Complementary to these principles are: a sacred regard for the natural world and respect for the personal space of others. In conjunction with the more esoteric aspects of the University of the Future, a basic set of body/mind development skills have also been incorporated into the system. These basic skills include food preparation and proper eating habits, nutritional education, physical skill development and recreation, yoga and the martial arts, and paraphysical fitness, all of which integrate physical and mental functions with the higher consciousness centers of the human biological entity. Another often neglected aspect of holistic education is a balanced set of life management skills, critical for survival, success, and happiness in real-world society. Key aspects of these life management skills include proper manners and appropriate social behavior, time management, stress and anger management, financial management, career management, mate selection, family management, reproductive responsibility, and parenting. This program is based on a self-generated code of ethical behavior, which emphasizes honesty, integrity, commitment, and full understanding of a karma-based value system, with “karma” being defined as, “the ultimate example of self-responsible behavior” (What goes around, comes around). Christianity’s Golden Rule or the Buddhist eight-fold noble path serve equally well as ideal behavioral models. THE UNIVERSITY OF THE FUTURE AND SUBTLE-ENERGY MANAGEMENT Fundamental to the University of the Future programs is the understanding and practical application of subtle-energies in virtually all aspects of our lives. By achieving an understanding and functional knowledge of subtle energies, we learn to operate at the interface between the physical and quantum realms, thus extending and magnifying the basic capabilities of the human entity. With the recent integration of alternative and conventional medical practices, this new-millennium scientific approach has already become a practical reality. Similar approaches to science, technology, and education are already beginning to yield correspondingly dramatic innovations in their respective areas. Subtle-energy phenomena integrated into the University of the Future programs include: Earth Energies (understanding the natural planetary currents and their effects on the human body), and Supersensonics (the awareness, development and integration of natural human intuitive abilities into business, science and daily life activities). Other subtle-energy disciplines include Environmental Energy Enhancement (the magnification and focus of natural positive energies, achieved by combining traditional sciences such as Feng Shui and Geomancy, with modern electronics technology). Subtle-Energy Awareness, also fundamental to consciousness development and paraphysical fitness, is achieved through special exercises, designed to develop focus and concentration, enhance mental efficiency, and stimulate creative thinking. Martial Arts and similar esoteric disciplines function correspondingly to augment the mental and physical abilities, and to expand and sharpen the intuitive senses. CONCLUSION When the first television picture of Earth were beamed back to its inhabitants from Space, this event was said to be the beginning of Self-Awareness for our Planet...the point at which Earth’s “Global Brain” achieved self-Consciousness. [Recently this concept has been referred to as “The Overview Effect.”]. Considering the rapid development of communications technology since that time, the communities and nations of Earth have become electronically melded into Marshall McLuhan’s Global Village. The rapid application and deployment of the telegraph, telephone, radio, TV, VCR, fax, interactive internet, and Earth-orbital satellite arrays now constitute a “self-aware global intelligence.” The one-room schoolhouse...the educational foundation of rural America...appears to have metamorphosed into something inconceivable only a century ago. The computer has become transformed into an educational portal to the global brain...”A Global Schoolhouse in a Box!” The University of the Future Paradigm embodies the development of high-energy, intellectually stimulating, and emotionally supportive learning environments, designed to teach and nurture every individual student. Within immersive experiential environments students experience adventure learning, which emphasizes creativity, cooperation, self-reliance, spiritual development, conscious evolution, and the pursuit of happiness. For a paradigm to be dynamic and timeless, it must be flexible, evolvable and grounded into practical reality. These objectives are fundamental to the University of the Future as an educational system for it to be successful for meeting the challenges we all face together in the Third Millennium. ENDNOTES 1. Toffler, Alvin, 1970 – Future Shock, Random House, New York, pp. 342-343 2. Joseph Romm, A. Rosenfeld and S. Herman, 1999 – The Internet Economy and Global Warming. The Center for Energy and Climate Solutions, www.cool-companies.org
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