Someone tell me what this post is supposed to be about. I ask the world... the very small part of it that may read this... where are the connections here?
Can the world bank ever look at an indigenous actor - like the shaman - and see anything but someone who needs to be pulled into the lifestyles and world view of the modern west? On the other hand, if the shaman (any shaman or group of shamans) can infiltrate the psyche of the powerful interests in DC and at the World Bank, there could be real possibility for change in policy and development towards indigenous peoples. Unfortunately, the corporate driven ideals of development appear to be much stronger and more powerful than anything indigenous peoples have been able to conjure up so far.
The shaman is perhaps the figure that the world bank must contemplate more and more as development projects, corporate land grabs, and the capitalist consumerist culture continues to expand into regions once only inhabited by indigenous peoples. Often times, the shaman acts as the public face/leader of his peoples, although in ways that we in the west are unaccustomed to.
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Can the world bank ever look at an indigenous actor - like the shaman - and see anything but someone who needs to be pulled into the lifestyles and world view of the modern west? On the other hand, if the shaman (any shaman or group of shamans) can infiltrate the psyche of the powerful interests in DC and at the World Bank, there could be real possibility for change in policy and development towards indigenous peoples. Unfortunately, the corporate driven ideals of development appear to be much stronger and more powerful than anything indigenous peoples have been able to conjure up so far.
ReplyDeletewhy would the world bank be looking at a shaman in the first place?
ReplyDeleteThe shaman is perhaps the figure that the world bank must contemplate more and more as development projects, corporate land grabs, and the capitalist consumerist culture continues to expand into regions once only inhabited by indigenous peoples. Often times, the shaman acts as the public face/leader of his peoples, although in ways that we in the west are unaccustomed to.
ReplyDelete