Conference & Declaration of Sewagram

Sevagram International Conference

on

Non-violent Economy and Peaceful World

Commemorating 80th Anniversary of the meeting of

Lanza del Vasto with Gandhi in 1937, Wardha (India)

 

GjiLdV3d

 

 

Gandhi International (France) and the Institute of Gandhian Studies, Wardha (India) have invited organisations, institutions and individuals interested in promoting non-violence and peace in the world to participate in the Sevagram International Congress on Non-violent Economy and Peaceful world at Wardha, India in October, 2017. This conference was organised in commemoration and celebration of the 80th anniversary of the Meeting of Lanza del Vasto, popularly known as Shanti Das or French Gandhi, with Mahatma Gandhi in 1937 at Wardha.
This conference has been co-funded with the Non-Violence XXI Foundation.

 

Download the PDF programme

 

You can visualise and download the following documents  :

 

List of participants and contributors

 

Sevagram Declaration of the Conference (ENG)

 

Déclaration de Sevagram issue des Rencontres (FR)

 

English papers :

 

 

Objectives of the Conference:

  • The proposed Conference was aimed at providing an International forum for exchange of ideas and sharing of experiences for worldwide, Gandhian, nonviolent, peace organisations, institutions and individuals working for a sustainable world.
  • To commemorate and celebrate the 80th anniversary of the meeting of Lanza del Vasto with Gandhi in 1937.
  • To Coordinate and work out common future actions and programmes

Themes:

The Conference discussed the following themes and the related areas in Plenary Session, Concurrent Sessions and Workshops:

 

Plenary Session

Meeting of two Great minds: Gandhi and Shanti Das

Gandhi’s vision of Alternative Civilization framework for a Non-violent and Peaceful Society

Life and contributions of Joseph Jean Lanza del Vasto (1901-1981) and his search for Alternatives

Pilgrimage to India and meeting with Gandhi and three months stay at Wardha in 1937 and its consequences for his life and times

Community of Ark as creative expression of alternative living and its initiatives and involvements in various Non-violent Struggles

Common Grounds in the Thoughts and Actions of Gandhi and Shanti Das

 

Concurrent Sessions:

  1. 1.Conceptualizing Gandhian Economy in the face of liberalized /globalised world

Challenges of Globalised Economy - Marginalization of deprived sections of society, growing inequality-widening gap between the rich and poor, growing unemployment and jobless growth, over-exploitation of natural resources both renewable and non-renewable, Impact on eco-system and environment

Key Ingredients of Gandhian Economy - Need based not greed based Economy,   Decentralized production and distribution, Appropriate technology, Trusteeship and Bread Labour

 

  1. 2.Ensuring Livelihood / Food Security in a Sustainable Way

Reviving traditional and indigenous means of livelihood through local/rural resource based small scale /village industries using appropriate technology

Promoting organic indigenous agricultural practices to popularize traditional pest resistant seeds and its preservation through farmers, organic manure, local water shed management system to check the onslaught of highly mechanized, genetically modified, MNC controlled seeds, fertilizers and pest-control methods under highly commercialized industrial agriculture system

An appropriate service sector conducive to traditional means of livelihood

Ensuring food security to all including landless and marginalized sections through appropriate and equitable agrarian system

 

  1. 3.Towards a Violence /War free world

The growing violence in all walks of life

The imminent threat of Third World War from weapons of mass destruction mainly of nuclear weapons

Gradual Disarmament with focus on all kinds of weaponry systems of mass destruction

Demilitarization of War zones

Combating terrorism through non-violent means

Building up of a Non-violent/ Peaceful World Order- Think Globally and Act locally – Combining global vision with local initiatives

Workshop on mobilizing popular opinions and international movements for a Non-violent Economy and Peaceful World with more representative character in UN system and other international institutions/organizations