Everyday Ubuntu (IS101 31)

EVERYDAY UBUNTU

LIVING BETTER TOGETHER, THE AFRICAN WAY

by Mungi Ngomane

Seek Out Ways To Connect

08

Choose Hope Over Optimism

07

Believe in the Good of Everyone

06

Have Diginity and Respect for Yourself and Others

05

Choose to See the Wider Perspective

04

Put Yourself in the Shoes of Others

03

Strength Lies in Unity

02

See Yourself in Other People

01

Learn to Listen So You Can Hear

14

Why Little Things Make Big Difference

13

Find the Humour In Our Humanity

12

Acknowledge Reality (However Painful)

11

Embrace Our Diversity

10

The Power of the F-Word - Forgiveness

09

01

See Yourself in Other People

Background Info for Examples

Summary of Themes

"Seeing yourself in other people is a powerful force for good"

p. 26

"Ubuntu tells us we are only who we are thanks to other people."

p. 21

Desmond Tutu

"You are enough."

p. 24

Anti-Apartheid

Questions for Reflection and Discussion

South Africa

Action Points

Nelson Mandela

02

Strength Lies in Unity

Background Info for Examples

Summary of Themes

"Ubuntu can lift someone up, however hopeless his or her current situation appears"

p. 40

"Ubuntu tells us that our force together can be a force for good.

p. 41

#-Campaigns

"There is always strength in numbers"

p. 33

Salt March

Questions for Reflection and Discussion

1. Are you a part of the "lonliness epidemic"? What do you feel are the primary causes of this problem? How do we as a society/community improve the situation?
2. Do you think that online communities can/do fullfill our needs as social animals? Why?
3. What are some #-campaigns that you been aware of or been a part of? Do you feel that they lead to real change? How?
4. Do you have examples from your life or that of your friends/family where encouragement from a stranger has had a positive impact?
5. What are places where you want to see change happen? What can you do to help?

"I have a dream"

Anti-Apartheid Protests

Action Points

03

Put Yourselves in the Shoes of Others

Background Info for Examples

Summary of Themes

"If you want peace you don't talk to your friends, you talk to your enemies."

p.50

"Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle."

p.49

Johannesburg

p. 55

"We might even find we'd react the same way as others have done, if we were in their shoes for a day."

Ubuntu Round Table

Questions for Reflection and Discussion

1. How often do you try and look at things from another perspective? 2. Have you ever reacted poorly to something because of an unrelated situation?3. Would your reaction be different or similar to the boy who got stabbed in the neck?4. How were the TRC South African Trials different from the Nuremberg Trials?

TRC

Action Points

Amy Biehl Foundation

Stone & Alexa

03

Put Yourselves in the Shoes of Others

Background Info for Examples

Summary of Themes

"If you want peace you don't talk to your friends, you talk to your enemies."

p.50

"Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle."

p.49

Johannesburg

p. 55

"We might even find we'd react the same way as others have done, if we were in their shoes for a day."

Ubuntu Round Table

Questions for Reflection and Discussion

1. How often do you try and look at things from another perspective? 2. Have you ever reacted poorly to something because of an unrelated situation?3. Would your reaction be different or similar to the boy who got stabbed in the neck?4. How were the TRC South African Trials different from the Nuremberg Trials?

TRC

Action Points

Amy Biehl Foundation

Stone & Alexa

04

Choose to See the Wider Perspective

Background Info for Examples

Summary of Themes

"The worse the situation, the wider the perspective needs to be"

p. 65

"Ubuntu teaches us that we should actively look at the world from every perspective

p. 61

TRC

Truth and Reconciliation Commission

"Every Person's Persepctive Matters

p. 62

"Changing your own persepctive is possible."

p. 66

Rwanda Genocide

Questions for Reflection and Discussion

Tutu Foundation

1. Why is it important to recognize that seeing a winder persepctive is a choice that we make?
2. In both South Africa and Rwanda people who had experienced egregious wrongs were encouraged to seek to understand the stories of those who had committed them and move towards reconciliation. Did it work? What made it work? Would it work here and now? Could you do it?
3. What is an example of a group of people you struggle to feel compassion for? What additional information might help make that compassion easier to acheive?
4. What is an example of when your side of the story wasn't understood? How could the situation have been resolved?

Fixed & Growth Mindset

Action Points

05

Have Dignity and Respect for Yourself and Others

Background Info for Examples

Summary of Themes

Theme 1

p.

Theme 2

p.

Background 1

Theme 3

p.

Background 2

Questions for Reflection and Discussion

1. ??
2. ??
3. ??
4. ??
5. ??

Background 3

Action Points

Background 4

06

Believe in the Good of Everyone

Background Info for Examples

Summary of Themes

When you choose to see the good in others, you end up finding the good in yourself.

pg.95

People are human beings, produced by the society in which they live. You encourage people by seeing the good in them.

pg.92

Nelson Mandela's extroardinary reaction towards his prison guard

I believe each one of us is a saint until the contrary is proven.

pg.92.

Questions for Reflection and Discussion

Ubuntu round table was developed with the tutu foundation

1. Would you consider yourself an optimistic or pessimistic person? Do you believe being pessimistic is nessarily a bad thing?
2. Do you personally have faith in humanity or do you believe it's truly lost? Was there a time that you thought something different than you do now?
3. What acts of kindness have you either done for another person or received yourself?
4. During the pandemic, there were lot of negative aspects, however, what were some good things you did or experienced during this time?

Action Points

Conflicts in the middle east

Heal divisions

Find common ground

Build bridges

World conflicts. and mediating peace

07

Choose Hope Over Optimism

Background Info for Examples

Theme 1

During the worst of times, hope is often the only thing left and can be the difference between life and death. Pg.112p.

Theme 1

During the worst of times, hope is often the only thing left and can be the difference between life and death. Pg.112p.

Theme 1

During the worst of times, hope is often the only thing left and can be the difference between life and death. Pg.112p.

Summary of Themes

Theme 2

Hope for a better future can help our present difficulties to appear temporary Pg.115.

Background 1

Theme 3

he kind of hope that creates a willingness to position oneself in a hopeless place and be a withness, that allows one to believe in a better future, even in the face of abusive power Pg.116

Tony Blair working towards peace with Northern Ireland

Magnus creating a charity to help make children in Malawi's hopes come true

Questions for Reflection and Discussion

1. What's the differnce between optimism and hope?
2. Do you think that we should nurture furture generations to be more optimistic, realistic, or pesimistic as they grow up? Why?
3. If you do volunteer work, do you believe that your motive to volunteer is because of wanting to give something you have or something that you once didn't have that you don't want others to ever lack?
4. When you were at your lowest low, what was the process of coming back from it? Does it align with what the book listed?

Nelsen Mandela spent 27 years in prison as a plitical prisoner

Action Points

Accept the situation

Live in the moment

Set Goals

Anthony Ray Hinton was arrested for multiple murders and robberies which he didn't commit

08

Seek Out Ways to Connect

Background Info for Examples

Summary of Themes

Theme 1

p.

Theme 2

p.

Background 1

Theme 3

p.

Background 2

Questions for Reflection and Discussion

1. ??
2. ??
3. ??
4. ??
5. ??

Background 3

Action Points

Background 4

09

The Power of the F-Word - Forgiveness

Background Info for Examples

Summary of Themes

Forgive Yourself

"You are only human, so its time to forgive you" - Ubuntu p145.

"The weak can never forgive. Forgivness is an attribute of the strong" - Ghandi P.135

Forgiving is Strength

Background 1

Forgivness is a Future!

"Without forgivness thre is no future" - Desmond Tutu p. 144

Background 2

Questions for Reflection and Discussion

https://www.cancer.gov/about-cancer/understanding/disparities

1. When did you first learn about forgivness?
2. How often do you truly forgive someone?
3. When was the last time you said, "I forgive you" ?
4. Why do you think it is so hard to forgive?
5. Do you find yourself holding grudges or shame that can be forgiven?

Background 3

Action Points

Background 4

Forgive yourself

Forgive others

Forgive others' actions

10

Embrace our Diversity

Background Info for Examples

Summary of Themes

"A man bleeds, suffers , ,despair s not as an American or a Russian or a Chinese, but in his innermost being as a member of a single human race" - Adlai Stevenson

p.

"We have become not a melting pot but a beatiful mosaic. Different People, different beliefs, different yearnings, different hpes, different dreams." - Jimmy Carter

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvdHqS3ryw0

"Nobody knows everything but everyone knows something." - African Proverb

p.

Background 2

Questions for Reflection and Discussion

1. What do you do when you notice someone is left out ?
2. When was a time you embraced someone?
3. How would you define Humility?
4. Was there ever a time where you felt different?

Background 3

Action Points

Background 4

Change isn't always bad

Everybody Brings Something To The Table

finding equality in Diversity

11

Acknowledge Reality (However Painful)

Background Info for Examples

It rains on every roof

Find people who will make you better

Michelle Obama

African proverb

There is universal respect and even admiration for those who are humble and simply by nature, and who have absoliute confidence in all human beings irrespective of their social status

p.

Nelson Mandela

Questions for Reflection and Discussion

1. What is your way of embracing the past and moving on?
2. Do you use your past to shape the way you live your present life
3. Does someones past alter the way you see them?
4. What is your definition of being humble
5. Lets take a test! Search: Queendom.com reality test

Action Points

Embrace all facets of your life, the good, the bad, and the ugly

Accept without blind judgement

Accept your past and embrace it

12

Find Humour in Our Humanity

Background Info for Examples

Laugh as much as possible, always laugh. It’s the sweetest thing one can do for oneself & one’s fellow human beings.”

Maya Angelou

The laughter of a child is the light of a house

African proverb.

Summary of Themes

Title 1

Mairead Corrigan Maguire

"Learn to laugh at yourself"

Mungi Ngomane.

Dumi Senda

Questions for Reflection and Discussion

1. Have you ever heard of the phrase, "laughter is the best medicine?"
2. How has laughter helped you in times of stress?
3. If your classes are stressful, what are some ways you can use humor to help?
4. Whats's your favorite dad-joke?
5. Are clowns scary or funny?

6. Game

Show meant for humor

Action Points

Seek Out Humor

Laughter is a unifying force

Learn to Laugh at Yourself

Seeking out humor

13

Why Little Things Make a Big Difference

Background Info for Examples

Summary of Themes

We all count and so does everything we do

"Every single tiny act we do can snowball into something bigger"

Time is the biggest gift you can give

"Time is prescious because once it's gone it's gone forever - don't waste it"

Mother Theresa

Gratitude > Attitude

"Basic gratitude goes a long way to helping us find contentment"

Nelson Mandela

Questions for Reflection and Discussion

1. What are some example of small or little things that make your day?
2. Are there certain things or ways of texting and messaging that have a positive or negative correlation?
3. RBF is a form of non-verbal communication. Are there things that you do that give positive or negative non-verbal cues?
4. What are two aspects of your life that you could use gratitude more often in?
5. How can you make a differnce? What are some small acts of kindness that you can do?

One Billion Acts of Peace

Action Points

Take time for human interactoion

World Kindness Day

Little things = great change

Genuine smiles are powerful

Hannah Buttjer & Ruby Robertson

14

Learn to Listen So That You Can Hear

Background Info for Examples

Summary of Themes

Nelson Mandela p. 213

You can't reach a decision in a dispute unless you listen to both sides,

By listening or hearing without judgement, we can make progress toward living better.

p. 218

Background 1

The relief someone experiences when they have been heard is immense.

p.

p. 221

Background 2

Questions for Reflection and Discussion

1. Do you think you make a conscious effort to listen to others?
2. When is it easy to listen to others? When is it difficult?
3. What might you hear if you choose to listen?
4. Think of a time that you chose to listen even if it was hard. What was the outcome?
5. What about when you chose not to listen, what was that outcome?

-Telephone activity -Finish the song activity: https://youtu.be/Z8p6x4U1GM8?si=Eyvy1a-T8lwcMoF1

Background 3

Action Points

Background 4

Active vs. Passive Listening

Give time and attention to others

Listening= knowledge, empathy, connection

Hope Chiattello & Lainie Bouillon