As a species we are unable to exist without narratives, through which we seek to understand, order and engage with the world. Storytelling is an advanced way of communicating and negotiating meanings, but also creating new meanings, because it introduces ideas, feelings and experiences that go beyond established cultural standards and models, thus expanding the symbolic world of a culture.
From this deep perception and Grian Cutanda’s commitment, the Earth Stories Collection was born, which brings together traditional stories that convey the world vision of the Earth Charter, necessary to create a socially and economically fair, peaceful and deeply respectful civilization with the Planet Earth and its community of life. The Earth Stories course offered by Knowledge Sets You Free Institute (Instituto Conhecimento Liberta: ICL), Brazil began on October 11, 2023 and should end at the beginning of February 2024. In each class, one or two stories from the Earth Stories Collection are presented, inspiring a joint reflection on the contradiction of values that we proclaim and our daily behavior, recognizing our worldview and transforming it to create a new planetary civilization, based on the pillars and principles of the Earth Charter.
The course is taught by Waverli Maia Matarazzo-Neuberger, faculty member of the Earth Charter Center for Education and our UNESCO Chair in Education for Sustainable Development with the Earth Charter and Advisor to the Earth Charter International. It also represents the History of the Earth Collection in Brazil. The course is open to all participating ICL members and classes take place every Wednesday from 7:00 pm to 8:00 pm via the ICL Streamyard platform and are available online to be watched asynchronously. To find out more about the course and ICL, simply visit the website www.icl.com.br