March 28, 2024
The Great Cultural Awakening
Welcome to our March newsletter! This month we are sharing an invitation to ‘Meeting the Dreaming’, looking forward to NAIDOC in July, featuring a new important book, The Great Cultural Awakening, which anticipates and lays down the foundations for a new cultural age, sharing about the conferences we’ve attended this month and entering a little debate about Harmony Week and the idea of harmony. There are also photos to enjoy of Peter at the Holi festival in Kathmandu as well as our regular calendar spotlight.
Mungo Explorer
Cultural Infusion has enjoyed a long partnership with geologist Jim Bowler and members of his family. The work they now do builds from Jim Bowler’s world-famous work 50 years ago in bringing awareness to the world of the longevity of Aboriginal occupation in the lands now known as Australia. This recognition has had a profound effect in raising respect and interest for Indigenous cultures of Australia.
This year, Bowler, now well into his 90s, has called for a ‘year of dialogue’ in Australia to commemorate the extraordinary revelations of Mungo Man & Mungo Lady. This 50th anniversary year began at Lake Mungo National Park on 24 February 2024 with a special gathering as reported here and here.
We are thrilled to sponsor ‘Meeting the Dreaming’ as part of this Year of Dialogue and to share with you the invitation.
Meeting the Dreaming will take place on Friday 12 April from 13:30pm to 8:45pm at the Peninsula Hot Springs, 140 Springs Ln, Fingal VIC 3939.
Featuring Jim Bowler, Shane Howard, Amos Roach, Uncle Danny Kelly, Tom Griffiths, Jason Kelly and many, many more.
Schedule
1:30pm–5pm “Deep Time Australia” Panel and Public Discussion, Aboriginal Perspectives, Open Discussions at The Wellness & Activity Centre
6:30pm–8:45pm Evening Presentation, Broadcast & Concert from the Amphitheatre Stage. The evening event includes key speeches from dignitaries and musical performances from Shane Howard (Goanna band) and Amos Roach.
Public are invited to attend the entire event starting from 1:30pm or to come and enjoy the evening presentation from 6:30pm. This event is available for all public to experience free with Bath House bathing $75 entry from 1pm or $45 entry from 6pm.
Book here to participate or watch the evening presentations live broadcast here. For any enquiries, please contact ben@unity.earth.
Our collaborative and popular project Mungo Explorer is a body of work containing resources that align with years 4 and 7 on the Australian History Curriculum.
The Great Cultural Awakening
Everyone needs fellow travellers and people who understand, appreciate and encourage their work and vision. Cultural Infusion is grateful for the support we receive from people right across the world.
Our Founder and CEO Peter Mousaferiadis has had a long, productive friendship with D. Paul Shafer, one of the world’s leading cultural theorists. In 2019 Peter featured in Shafer’s book The Cultural Personality as someone who ‘epitomizes the cultural personality in certain ways’ because of his commitment to the central importance of culture.
Shafer’s most recent book, The Great Cultural Awakening has just been published and is already being hailed as a masterpiece. From Founder and Chair of International Child Art Foundation Ashfaq Ishaq: ‘While some may believe that “politics is everything” and “it’s the economy, stupid,” this lucid and insightful book makes you realize why culture matters far more.’
The Great Cultural Awakening devotes some pages to the work of our organisation.
We recommend this book to everyone who wants to be part of the Great Cultural Awakening, which you can help create right now through thought and action.
Buy The Great Cultural Awakening here.
Keep the Fire Burning! Blak, Loud and Proud
Not surprisingly, we love NAIDOC Week, which emerged from Aboriginal rights’ protests against Australia Day in the 1920s and is now a nationwide celebration and recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. This week is an important key to supporting the wellbeing and thriving of the highly diverse cultures that originated on the lands and islands now known collectively as Australia.
This year’s NAIDOC theme is KEEP THE FIRE BURNING! BLAK, LOUD AND PROUD.
Our brilliant presenters have many offerings for this year’s NAIDOC, which begins on 7 July this year. Book early!
Cultural Infusion at NeuroEdConnect 2024
Cultural Infusion was pleased to participate in NeuroEdConnect 2024 with a booth showcasing our wide range of programs and performances, carefully crafted to nurture cultural appreciation, inclusivity and empathy among students and educators.
NeuroEdConnect was a full-day interactive Professional Learning session created by psychologist and mind health specialist Maria Ruberto from Salutegenics and Bianca and Kritz Sciessere, ex-classroom teachers, functional behavioural specialists and co-founders of The Big Sister Experience.
Big Data & AI World London
On 6 and 7 March, Peter Mousaferiadis delivered several talks, chaired a panel and facilitated a series of ‘fireside conversations’ about big data and its role in AI at Big Data & AI World in London. The conference was attended by 15,000 people.
Peter highlighted the importance of treading carefully as we race to implement AI and the need to include every voice in the development of large language models. As he says, ‘Algorithms are still making the assumption we’re all starting from the same place. This couldn’t be further from the truth. Without inclusive datasets that capture the complexity of identity of being and becoming in the AI age, we risk perpetuating division, exclusion, and poverty and conflict which is costing the world more than 17 trillion dollars annually (according to the Global Peace Index).’
A standing-room-only crowd came to hear Peter’s keynote. His post ‘Diversity in the Age of AI: Diversified We Grow’, which was based on the keynote, can be read here.
Thank You for Your Support for Harmony Week!
Harmony Week – even the concept of harmony itself – has been attracting some well-meaning criticism that it is a way of hiding structural and systemic racism.
We believe we can address the causes of racism and all other forms of discrimination while simultaneously celebrating, embodying and envisioning harmony. In fact, we believe we must embrace harmony if we want less discrimination.
Harmony Week does not invalidate the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, which commemorates the Sharpville massacre and is an important day to acknowledge. The Sharpville massacre also marked a turning point in South Africa’s history and led to the end of apartheid in that nation. This demonstrates that change is possible and in fact inevitable.
Can we even afford to bury our dreams? Harmony Day is a particularly meaningful time for children to celebrate and share their cultures with each other.
We are not alone in our views about Harmony Week. Thanks to our supporters, this week is one of our busiest times of the year. This year our Education and Experiences team continued to deliver cultural education programs and events to metropolitan, regional and remote areas throughout Australia, from Mini Multicultural Days at early childhood centres to Multicultural All Days at schools.
A reminder that all bookings now benefit from our recently introduced offer of 3 months’ free access to Learning Lands, our cutting-edge curriculum-aligned resources.
Peter in Kathmandu
Our March newsletter wouldn’t be complete without sharing some of the photos Peter has been sending us from Kathmandu, where he went to attend the Salzburg Global Seminar Asia Peace Innovators Forum (APIF) with another 50 leaders who have come together over 4 days to work on projects that are fostering greater peace in the Asia Pacific region and beyond.
Our Catalyst for Peace initiative grew out of our involvement with APIF.
To his great delight, Peter found himself with Parag Mankeekar, Co-Founder of RealLives Foundation (in top left photo), right in the middle of the Holi festival on 25 March.
Holi is a Hindu festival celebrating the arrival of spring in the northern hemisphere and the victory of good over evil. It is said that the throwing of colours over each other is a game the Hindu god Lord Krishna played with his consort Radha and the gopis (milkmaids). The story represents playfulness and deeper themes: the passing of the seasons and illusory nature of the material world. Each colour has meaning in the Hindu culture.
We’re impressed at how well Peter’s face paint matches the Diversity Atlas colour scheme.
Peter described Holi in Kathmandu as the best experience he’s had in his entire life!
Calendar Spotlight: International Dance Day, 29 April
International Dance Day falls on 29 April. This day celebrates the significance and importance of dance as an art form and recognises the cultural value of dance. Through captivating performances, the artistic diversity of the world is enjoyed.
Cultural Infusion has a vast range of dance programs that share the joy of Aboriginal, East Asian, South East Asian, European, Middle Eastern, African and South American cultures.
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