Conversation Blog: Global Citizenship (March 2011)

[IPJC Office]

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[Clara Bernard]

The cultural diversity of Holy Names University allowed students to relate more easily to March’s Justice Cafe’s topic of “Global Citizenship.” Being a citizen means having rights but also having some responsibilities toward the community. After watching “The Story of Stuff,” students were concerned about the consumption and production cycle that we are all contributing to.

At the governmental level, lobbyists are working hard to influence the laws that our representatives are making, and at our consumer level, it is hard to make a different choice from our neighbor.   Participants were critical of the on-going advertisement for new products.  We often think we need more but it does not make us happier.  So, the question was raised: “what can we do to change the cycle?” “Will our action make any difference?” “What will be the impact of our actions on someone else’s life?”

As a group, we concluded that we are all responsible for taking small actions that can make a difference. In the mean time, we agreed on the fact that it is difficult to balance the cycle with an awareness of what is fair or what contributes to the common good.