Worldview s and Integra tion Eduardo Sacayón 102 15 RCE Guatemala: Culture as a Central Point of Education for Sustainable Development RCE Guatemala One of the fundamental principles shared by the partners of RCE Guatemala is the recognition of the richness of the indigenous culture that is key in the strengthening of the national identity, particularly because the culture of the indigenous peoples is closely associated with the country´s biodiversity. It is also recognised that both culture and biodiversity are almost in complete abandonment and marginalised. Moreover, education policies do not consistently address the need for a culturally appropriate education. For this reason, RCE Guatemala is committed to the educational reforms that address the challenge at all levels: primary, secondary and university. The best way for children to learn is to receive their education in their mother tongue, so the RCE supports programmes for the training of intercultural bilingual education teachers. For example, at the university level, the RCE is engaged with the projects that promote indigenous knowledge and wisdoms to be incorporated in the educational mainstream. The RCE is committed to the training of university teachers and the support of indigenous students to strengthen their identity and learn to appreciate their culture. The vision of RCE Guatemala is the recognition of culture as a central point for sustainable development, as well as environmental protection and economical growth without exclusion and discrimination. Introduction It is widely recognised that cultural diversity, environmental conservation, economic and social development of individuals and societies are the fundamental principles of sustainable development. Coincidently, in RCE Guatemala’s region, biodiversity is closely related to cultural richness, which gives societies enormous potential for economic and social development. Unfortunately, that potential has been put behind and is in constant risk of destruction by the capitalist development model, based on social exclusion and marginalisation of large groups, especially indigenous peoples. All around the world, Central America is the region that invests the least in education. For example, in Guatemala, where more than 42% of the population is indigenous, the state spends only $48 on average per year, per inhabitant, compared with $2,714 Norway invests in education for each of its citizens, or the average of $1,500 invested in OECD countries (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development). To the lack of investment in education there is the added problem of a predominantly Western model of education which ignores the wisdom of indigenous people. The UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education, Vernor Muñoz Villalobos, who visited Guatemala in the year 2008, stated that the opportunities to education for indigenous people are very limited. According to him “there appears to be no space to promote cultures, cosmic visions, arts or ancestral traditions of the first people living in this country… However, to build the scientific, technological and cultural capabilities of a developing country it is necessary to guarantee middle and university education. In this sense, plans for the expansion and strengthening of secondary education and state universities must be supported” (UNHCHR 2008). Besides extending the opportunities of access to education for the indigenous people, it is necessary to insist on the necessity that the educative systems may use culturally appropriate resources. In this sense, it is important to consider that cultural contents are closely related to the strengthening of the identity of peoples and to the construction of the nationality of different States. Cultural contents such as history, collective memory of peoples, their heroes, their customs and traditions are part of the educational systems that reinforce the sense of identity and nationality. Otherwise, societies become fragmented, imitating others´ identities, devaluating their self-esteem, facilitating neo-colonisation processes that affect autonomous development of national states.
Traditional Knowledge and Biodiversity
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