DIFFERENT PEOPLES, ONE WORLD Concluding Lecture: So are Multicultural Societies necessary? HARI SRINIVAS ROOM: I-312 / Studies in Multicultural Societies

Levels of Culture A “cultured” person: Culture at the level of an individual The Culture of a society: Understanding culture as a part of a group of individuals, a community, or a society The Culture of a global society – of humanity as a whole

Culture at the level of a single individual defines that person’s behaviour, values, ethics and morality. It is indeed the characteristics of that person Levels of Culture

Culture at the level of a community or society is defined by how the individuals in that community/society interact with each other, and the media that they use for the purpose. Levels of Culture

Culture at the global level is in fact the sum total of everything that humans have created and the common features that bind us all together … Levels of Culture

Cultural themes CULTURE Arts Drama Food Dance LiteratureArchitecture Behaviour, Ethics and Morality As the field developed it began to combine political economy, communication, sociology, social theory, literary theory, media theory, film/video studies, cultural anthropology, philosophy, museum studies and art history to study cultural phenomena or cultural texts

At the global level, we look at policies that promote the preservation of culture For example, the work of UNESCO At the individual level, we look at policies that promote the development of culture through education, training and learning ^ essentially through interaction with other people

Why culture? Cultures and the cultural environment provides the necessary context and the tools to develop and implement policies As policy researchers, it helps us understand the people towards whom we are creating policies!

Is Multiculturalism necessary?! Globalization processes will force countries and societies to become multicultural

Is Multiculturalism necessary?! Localization processes will use multiculturalism to be unique and ‘different’

Is Multiculturalism necessary?! Historically multicultural societies will promote it for preservation goals

Is Multiculturalism necessary?! “New” multicultural societies will promote it for economic and political goals

Is Multiculturalism necessary?! Multiculturalism will help highlight individual cultures and provide opportunities for display

Is Multiculturalism necessary?! Multiculturalism is about human history – and its preservation will provide an identity for communities

Is Multiculturalism necessary?! More than the ‘visible’ aspects, multiculturalism is really about the ‘invisible’ aspects of culture

Is Multiculturalism necessary?! Multiculturalism policies have very clear economic benefits – for innovativeness and competitiveness

Is Multiculturalism necessary?! Multiculturalism in a practical sense helps build a strong tourism sector

Is Multiculturalism necessary?! Multiculturalism has its negative impressions as well – too messy and troublesome!

Is Multiculturalism necessary?! Racism, human rights, migration policies are some of the challenges for multicultural societies

Is Multiculturalism necessary?! Multiculturalism should really be a skill that all of us should have in order to be better “global” professionals

Contact me … Send me an anytime! Hari Srinivas Resources, websites, ideas, notes will be available online: /