Presentation of the Sud Nord Cultures et Développement Network

1. Issue : the notion of "development" draws too heavily on materialistic concepts, productivism and individualism. It relies mainly on Western-inspired technocratic solutions. There is a need for new approaches which take account of and strengthen the dynamic interaction between external influences and local cultures.

2. Activities :

A. Intercommunication :  - meetings and conferences on local, regional and continental levels; - the tri-lingual liaison bulletin "Cultures and Development - Quid Pro Quo, which publishes background articles and book reviews on the subject of cultures and development as well as news and comments on research and work carried out in the field; - the participation in the DPH data bank set up by the Fondation pour le Progrès de l’Homme, and which aims at circulating often inaccessible information.

B. Action oriented research about manifestations of cultural resistance, other ways of envisaging economy and politics, work and freedom, the informal sector, indigenous knowledge and capabilities in agriculture, crafts, medicine, architecture, law, and dynamic forms of interaction between tradition and modernity which are the result and lead to new, complex, hybrid societies.

C. Training in cultural analysis for those working in NGOs in the South and the North and to officials from bilateral and multilateral cooperation agencies. These seminars aim to promote an attitude which takes local culture into account in development programmes. Members of the South-North Network contribute to raising public awareness and the appreciation of other peoples’ cultures through lectures, contributions to conferences, films, books and articles.

D. Lobbying and advocacy in order to encourage respect of contemporary indigenous cultures the South-North Network Cultures and Development lobbies ministries, the UN agencies, the Commission of the EC and NGOs.

E. Intercultural consultancy service.

3. Structure : from the beginning Network Cultures has been non-confessional and has no specific links with any political party, yet it is explicitely open to all forms of spirituality. It is an NGO (Non-Governmental Organisation). The founders of the South-North Network are people from Latin America, Asia, Africa and Europe from both the NGO and the academic world. Network Cultures is composed of individuals acting in their own name. In certain countries in the South and the North groups of members have set up a local network. These function autonomously and find their own funding. The coordinators of the South-North Network in Latin America, Asia, Africa and Europe ensure contact and dissemination of information on a continental level. The international coordination of the South-North Network Cultures and Development is carried out in Brussels, Belgium.