International Consultation on Light Development

15 April 2010

Paleiskerk, Paleisstraat 8, The Hague

Program

  9.30     Doors open. Informal gathering with coffee and tea 

10.00     Day Chair's welcome -  Ineke Bakker (Oikos)

10.05     Light Development: Context, Vision, and Process - Louke van Wensveen (Oikos)

10.10     Feedback Round I:  What is going on?  How do we respond? 

             Current Development Challenges - Wendy Tyndale (UK)

             3P Development Response - Marnix Niemeijer (Tear)

             Plenary Feedback

10.35     Feedback Round II: The light development concept

             People: Light-like Relationships - Jan de Valk (Stoutenburg)

             Planet: Lightly Digestible Processes and Products - Cathrien de Pater (Ministry of LNV)

             Profit: Light-weight Living - Paul Hendriksen (Transition Town Deventer)

             Plenary Feedback 

11.15     Break

11.35     Feedback Round III: Religion in a light development culture

             Religious Identity in Light Development Cultures - Expert TBD

             Religious Diversity in Light Development Cultures - Frans Wijsen (Radboud University)

             Plenary Feedback

12.00     Review: Insights and open questions

12.30     Lunch 

www.religie-en-ontwikkeling.nl

Feedback Process

Seven participants, selected for their complementary expertise, shall each give a brief feedback statement on one aspect of the light development concept and program design.  To focus the process, experts will comment on prepared discussion theses related to their expertise. After this structured feedback round, all guests are invited to join in a plenary discussion.  

Examples of Light Development

See on our wiki what light development can mean in practice. Do you know of another example?  Contact the Knowledge Centre Religion and Development--or add your example directly to the light development wiki!

Light Development - Summary

What is light development?

Light development is a new way to structure 3P (People, Planet, Profit) development cooperation.  At the project level, it is a design concept that combines social, ecological, and economic values in religion-sensitive ways. At the organizational and network level, it is an anchor for a 3P development cooperation culture.

Why is light development important?

Currently, social, ecological, and economic values are seldom integrated from the very first stages of project design, let alone in religion-sensitive ways.  At the same time, many professionals in the sector and people in local communities appreciate the urgency to do so, given the linked social, ecological, and economic crises and their underlying moral and spiritual perversions.  Fundamentally, the resilience of vulnerable communities in the face of intensifying global threats is at issue.

What is the connection between light development and sustainable development?

Light development takes the form of practices that are designed to be sustainable from the inside out (light practices).  In sustainable societies, most of these practices are woven into the regular responsibilities and routines of the household (e.g., home maintenance, small-scale food production, cuisine, child care and education, health care, shop keeping, artisanship and cottage industry).  As cultural activities that realize and reveal evolving visions of light development, light practices are the basic human building blocks of sustainable societies.  They are the local roots of a just and viable global civilization in an age of resource depletion, ecosystem stress and climate change.

How does light development express the three Ps of sustainable development?

When people engage in the practices of light development, they consume and produce in a cradle-to-cradle manner, while personally and socially flourishing in integral and resilient ways. Their sustainable and constructive participation in the larger systems of the Earth can be expressed in terms of the three Ps of sustainable living:

• People: people find that participating in light practices tends to realize and reveal light-like, relational qualities of the good life;
• Planet: the processes and outputs of light practices are lightly digestible by the biological and technical metabolisms of planet Earth;
• Profit: people find that participating in light practices reliably generates goods and services that support a more light-weight quality of life in their households and communities.

In what senses is light development 'light'?

Light development refers to cultural processes (practices) and products (artefacts) that can be described as light-like, lightly digestible, and light-weight.  These metaphors indicate the 3P qualities of practices and their products (People, Planet, Profit; see above).  The qualities of being light-like, lightly digestible, and light-weight refer to physical experiences that most people would recognize.  This helps to communicate the principles of 3P development in local contexts. 

What is the connection between light development and integral human development?

Light development combines current ethical discourse on integral human development with the 3P principles of sustainable development.  In the history of the KCRD, the concept of light development builds on two KCRD partner conferences (Soesterberg, 2005 and 2007). Both conferences focused on the role of religion in development cooperation. In particular, they underscored the need for an integral approach to human development. As religious traditions typically emphasize, there should be a balance between material and immaterial development (e.g., between building houses and building relationships within and between households).  Light development is a design concept that gives hands and feet to this balance. In particular, fostering (and measuring) the light-like quality of household practices corrects the common bias towards material goals in development practice.

Whose initiative is light development?

The Knowledge Centre Religion and Development is exploring light development as an integrated response to current social, ecological, economic challenges and their moral-spiritual underpinnings. It does so on the basis of interdisciplinary investigation into recent issues and trends in religion and development cooperation.  The research staff of the KCRD has proposed light development as an anchor concept to focus and facilitate the emergence of a resilient 3P development culture, including projects and programs, networks, funding, and advocacy. 

Where can I find more information about light development?

The research staff of the KCRD has launched a wiki (interactive web site) with general information about light development, practical examples, and proposals for a related network structure (non-profit, cooperative franchise), funding (including CDM options), and policy support. You can request writing privileges to this wiki by sending an email to kenniscentrum@religie-en-ontwikkeling.nl.  This would allow you to give the KCRD research staff online feedback.

Are there already practical examples of light development?

Yes. The light development wiki showcases existing projects that successfully support light development at the household level. These are projects that stand out because they effectively foster the immaterial as well as the material aspects of human development, while respecting ecological integrity. You can request writing privileges to this wiki by sending an email to kenniscentrum@religie-en-ontwikkeling.nl.  This would allow you give the KCRD research staff online feedback about these examples.  We also welcome your suggestions for other projects that you would recommend as good examples of light development.

The KCRD research staff looks forward to working together with you to explore light development as a religion-sensitive approach to 3P development cooperation.

date: March 19, 2010

contact: L.M. van Wensveen (l.vanwensveen@stichtingoikos.nl)

© 2010 Knowledge Centre Religion and Development

Light development™ is a non-profit franchise trademark of the Knowledge Centre Religion and Development

www.religie-en-ontwikkeling.nl