On the Bright Side

It is ironic that the earliest known civilizations began in what is now known as the “developing” world. The political structures and economies of the developing world are considered emerging, but it is actually more accurate to consider them recovering. I think of it as though our great (great, great…) grandparents suffered from a malignant diagnosis (colonialism) and after many centuries of fighting they are getting their lives back. While we young bucks are busy leading the modern world, is there not something we should garner from our wise ancestors before they toss aside their old ways and get on the industrialized band wagon? What if, in their efforts for material gain and progress, the cultural richness of indigenous peoples could be preserved and even “exported” to the west. Studies by the World Values Survey (worldvaluessurvey.org) indicate that most people in Africa do not report feeling less happy than people in developed nations, despite being the poorest people on the plan...