Peter Evanz Newton
En su capacidad como traductor e intérprete
internacional, Peter C. Newton-Evans se especializa en temas
ambientales, energéticos y de desarrollo socioeconómico. Además, se
desempeña conferencista y facilitador
de talleres en diversas áreas del desarrollo humano, institucional y
comunitario. El principal enfoque de esta labor es el fomento de una Cultura de Paz,
tema que viene trabajando durante varias décadas en calidad de
investigador y activista. Su inspiración para esta actividad es su
participación en la Comunidad Mundial Bahá’í, que tiene más de siglo y medio de servicio a la causa de la unidad en diversidad y la paz.
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Social Theory
IntroductionThe last section reviewed some of the mental models that seek to define
human beings in an ontological sense as an individual or group of
individuals. Other mental models refer to the nature of social order as
such. At first sight, it might seem that this nature should reflect that
of man as an individual. However, deeper consideration reveals that
society is more than the sum of its individual members and therefore
requires separate treatment. Read....
The 'Law of the Jungle![]() Resumen:
En este capítulo se cuestiona la concepción tradicional de la 'Ley de
la Selva' y el dicho de que "el hombre es lobo del hombre", a la luz de
hallazgos recientes por parte de la ecología o estudio de ecosistemas.
Esto es seguido por un análisis de las implicaciones sociales que han
tenido dichas nociones antiguas y las conclusiones que pueden aportar
los nuevos conocimientos para el fomento de una cultura de paz.
Read... (English) Leer más...(Spanish) What was the role of ecology as a science in redefining the meaning of the “Law of the Jungle?”
What is the difference between the old and the new definitions of the “Law of the Jungle?” Is Competition Necessary & Inevitable?
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Argument
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Counter-Argument
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Concepts of Power and Domination

The mental model of competition produces what Michael Karlberg[1] describes so well as an “adversarial culture” or “culture of contest”. In this culture, the prevailing worldview is one of competition, in which individuals and institutions pursue their own interests, there are always winners and losers, and the strongest, most powerful or most influential person, institution or party "wins". Since the outcomes of such a system are rarely equitable, in order to address the injustices that inevitably arise, the culture of adversarialism is surrounded by a culture of protest. The objected injustice then becomes the center of another conflict, which in turn leads to additional protests, and so on.
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According to Michal Karlberg, what is power? What are his two main categories of power? Which category of power does not meet the needs of humanity, and why? Which category power does humanity still need to develop, and why?
Unity vs Identity?

One of the most basic of all human needs is to have a positive identity. In our eagerness to achieve this, we sometimes use various strategies to ‘enhance' our self-image without needing to change, by convincing ourselves that we are all right the way we are. One way to do this is to identify with a group to which we attribute favorable characteristics, be it our family, community, race, ethnic group, gender, religion, organization, etc. In this case, I know I am a ‘good’ person because I am part of a group that has a positive identity which, by association, also belongs to me.
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Is War Inevitable?

When discussing the possibility of a peaceful world, one frequently hears the argument that peace is impossible because “there have always been wars and there always will be.” This argument is supported by educational texts that present history as a continual series of wars, conflicts, revolutions, and struggles, which students memorize along with the details of place, date and important figures. It is as though war were the ‘natural’ state of humanity, and peace a mere anomaly that only occurs once in a while. In reality, however, it is wars have been limited events and have covered a minimum of the total history of each people. To think otherwise is to ignore their years, decades and even centuries of peace, prosperity, progress, and happiness.
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Is war inevitable? What are some of the reasons that people believe it is? How are these reasons contradicted? What is proposed as a more appropriate meaning of war and peace?
Argument
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Counter-argument
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Función Social de la Ciencia

Resumen: La ciencia no se limita a buscar la verdad, sino que es creadora de realidades. En el presente artículo se analiza la manera como la ciencia forma y justifica las actitudes sociales, a fin de legitimar y perpetuar el estatus quo. Se plantea la necesidad de un cambio de paradigma en las ciencias sociales para el logro de una Cultura de Paz y el rescate del rol del científico social y humano como activista o agente de cambio sociocultural.
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