institute of world cultures programs

Saturday, January 21, 2023
2:00 – 4:00 pm
In-person and Live Webcast (both begin at 2:00 pm)
Concord House, 1407 Chapala Street, Santa Barbara, CA
Speaker: Michael Kourosh, Santa Barbara Design Center

Local design dignitary Michael Kourosh will give a presentation on the craftsmanship, beauty, and symbolism of Persian carpets. The symbolism of Persian carpets is handed down from generation to generation, extending back to before the Common Era. That symbolism often uses the imagery of nature to depict universal themes. But the symbolism is rich and varied, and may represent a variety of other motifs. The presentation will included photos as well as carpet samples.

Saturday, February 4, 2023
2:00 – 4:00 pm
Concord Hall, 1407 Chapala Street, Santa Barbara, CA
In- person and Live Webcast
Speaker: Ya Zuo, Department of History, UC Santa Barbara

IKnowledge has a fundamental role in Neo-Confucian philosophy, and “knowing” is a mandatory procedure via which one reaches the ultimate goal of Neo-Confucianism, the perfection of moral cultivation. A Neo-Confucian exercises her moral agency via knowing with the aspiration of attaining the Way (dao), the state of constant and spontaneous sagacity. In this talk, Ya Zuo will introduce the Neo-Confucian theory of knowledge and explain how it relates to personal fulfillment and flourishing.

Ya Zuo is an associate professor of History at University of California, Santa Barbara. She received her Ph.D. in history from Princeton University. She is a cultural and intellectual historian of middle-period and early modern China. Her first book, Shen Gua’s Empiricism (Harvard University Press, 2018) is a study of historical theory of knowledge, and she has also authored several articles which engage a wide and diverse spectrum of topics, such as the history of emotions, sensory history, medical history, musicology, and book history. Click here for Ya Zuo's CV

Forum
International Politics, Transnationalism, Global Economics,
Environmental Crisis: Ethical Choices

Saturday, February 18, 2023
2:00 – 4:00 pm
Concord Hall, 1407 Chapala Street, Santa Barbara, CA
In person and Live webcast (both begin at 2:00 pm)*
Presenters: Carolyn Dorrance and Maurice Bisheff

"My country is the world and my religion is to do good." – Tom Paine

In this forum, significant global developments of political, economic, and environmental realities will be explored from the perspective of interdependence. Multiple modes of interdependence are shaping, indeed transforming, the lives of citizens and the goals and values of institutions around the world. In doing so, the very shape and aims of interdependence are changing rapidly. Health crises, chaotic migrations, and communication technologies also challenge our responses to interdependence on the macro and micro levels. Ethical as well as sustainable choices must be made to improve the quality of interdependence. While new opportunities are pursued in political, economic, and environmental activities, traditional political forms and limited cultural values are restricting the practical use of these new opportunities. While nations states guard their national interests and psychologies, transnational actors such as corporations, NGOs and volunteer activists create new realities with new problems as well as benefits. Is there an emerging world culture to help us reduce violent conflicts and enervating inequalities? How do we avoid environmental devastation? Attendees will be encouraged to ask questions and propose remedies so that an environment nourishing to human potential and social harmony as well as progress can and does emerge.

Forum
The Character and Teaching of the Ukrainian Philosopher Gryhoriy Skovoroda

Saturday, March 4, 2023
10:00 am Pacific Standard Time (8:00 pm Ukraine Time)*
Zoom presentation only*

Presenter: Professor Juliia Shabonova, Department of Philosophy & Pedagogy, Dnipro Technical University and Head of the Ukraine Institute of World Culture, Dnipro, Ukraine

"Everything will be difficult if there is no dream." – Gryhoriy Skovoroda

Speaking to us via Zoom from Dnipro, Ukraine, Professor Juliia Shabanova will give a presentation about the 18th Century Ukrainian philosopher, Gryhoriy Skovoroda. Sometimes characterized as the Ukrainian Socrates, Skovoroda’s teaching and philosophy focused on the ancient injunction “Know thyself.” Professor Shabanova will give a biographical sketch of the myths and reality of his life, and then focus on his philosophical views on balance, unequal equality, and the importance of the heart and congeniality in work.

Liudmula Kovtun will be the interpreter for Professor Shabanova.

Members of the Institute This forum will be a Zoom link. Non-members may request a link by emailing: donna@worldculture.org
The presentation will also be recorded and made available on our IWC YouTube channel for future viewing:
https://www.youtube.com/user/iwcinsantabarbara/live

EARTH DAY Forum
Healing Grounds: The Deep Roots of Regenerative Farming

Saturday, April 8, 2023
2:00 – 4:00 PM (PDT)
Concord Hall, 1407 Chapala Street, Santa Barbara, CA (see below for more infomation)
Presenter: Liz Carlisle, Environmental Studies, University of California Santa Barbara

Modes of participation: In person and live webcast (more information below)

"Know the ways of the ones who take care of you, so that you may take care of them. Introduce yourself. Be accountable as the one who comes asking for life. Ask permission before taking. Abide by the answer. Never take the first. Never take the last. Take only what you need. Take only that which is given. Never take more than half. Leave some for others. Harvest in a way that minimizes harm. Use it respectfully. Never waste what you have take. Share. Give thanks for what you have been given. Give a gift, in reciprocity for what you have taken. Sustain the ones who sustain you and the earth will lst forever.."~ Robin Wall Kimmerer, "Braiding Sweetgrass"

In celebration of Earth Day this year, Assistant Professor Liz Carlisle will talk about the deep roots of regenerative farming. Through stories of Black, Latino, Latina, Native American and Asian small farmers in the United States, we will learn how traditional methods of growing food used by their ancestors, that focus on cooperation and reciprocity in nature, are being rediscovered and applied today in a variety of contexts to create healthy, balanced ecosystems. She will also point out some of the costly ramifications to the globe of ignoring the wisdom inherent in these traditions.
Her latest book is entitled Healing Grounds.

Monday, April 24, 2023
3:00 – 4:00 PM (PDT)
Concord Hall, 1407 Chapala Street, Santa Barbara, CA
In Person Event, masks are optional
Presenter: Brenton Kelly, Quail Springs
Presented by the UNA-USA, Santa Barbara & Tri-Counties

In celebration of Earth Day, the IWC is co-hosting with the UNA-USA, Santa Barbara & Tri-Counties*, to present Brenton Kelly in Concord Hall on Monday, April 24th at 3:00 pm. Brenton serves as the Watershed Stewardship and Advocacy Director for the Quail Springs Permaculture community. Brenton will talk about watershed and water issues in the Cuyama Valley, one of the driest areas in the State, and its implications for global water issues.

Born in Lusaka, Northern Rhodesia, he witnessed a variery of civil and revolutionary conflicts across Africa as a child. Brenton attended UCSB and earned a BA in Environmental Studies and Studio Art. He managed the Isla Vista Recreation and Park Disctrict and practiced the art of land stewardship. He bought Island Seed and Feed with an old friend, Matt Buckmaster, and served the community with his knowledge. In 2008, Brenton and his wife, Jan Smith, moved to Quail Springs to help advance food production systems and program offerings by farming and teaching. *United Nations Association–United State of America, Santa Barbara and Tri-Counties.

Click here for a printer-friendly flyer

Saturday, May 20, 2023
2:00 – 4:00 pm (PDT)
Concord Hall, 1407 Chapala Street, Santa Barbara, CA
In Person and Live Webcast
Presenter: Russ Lewin

The design that is reflected in a beautiful product has the ability to enhance the experience of individuals and even inspire us in a way that helps us incorporate a higher standard of design in our own work, and in the way we live our lives. Two individuals that are particularly effective in rendering their designs on a grand scale include Jony Ive and Frank Gehry.

Jony Ive was the Chief Design Officer for Apple computer for 22 years. He helped design the iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, Mac OS, Apple Headquarters and a myriad of other items. His creative design process is unique, and it can teach other individuals how to discover their own creativity through design. Jony once said, "Good is the enemy of great."

Frank Gehry is a modern architect famous for designing the Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, the Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, and many other recognizable buildings around the world. His work incorporates audacious configuration and innovative design. He relies heavily upon curvature in his work. Gehry once said, "Architecture should speak of its time and place, but yearn for timelessness."

We will explore the work of these two wildly creative individuals. In addition, we will explore the inner processes through which their creations eventually come to birth as described by them.

Image credits: top: Daniel L. Lu,), CC BY-SA 4.0; ;bottom: dfbarrero is licensed under CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
https://creativecommons.org via Wikimedia Commons

Live Webcast begins @ 2:00 pm: https://www.youtube.com/c/IWCinSantaBarbara/live
The presentation will also be recorded and available at the same link for future viewing.

Click here for a printer-friendly flyer

Saturday, June 10, 2023
7:00 – 9:30 pm (PDT)
Concord Hall, 1407 Chapala Street, Santa Barbara, CA
In Person Event Only

America will never be destroyed from the outside. If we falter and lose our freedoms, it will be because we destroyed ourselves.
– Abraham Lincoln

From DreamWorks, Steven Spielberg directs three-time Oscar winner Daniel Day-Lewis in his not-to-be-missed Academy Award-winning Best Actor performance in Lincoln (2012). The film has an all-star ensemble cast including Sally Field, Tommy Lee Jones and Joseph Gordon-Levitt, among others.

This inspiring and revealing drama focuses on the 16th President’s tumultuous final four months in office as this visionary leader pursues a course of action to end the Civil War, unite the country and abolish slavery. Lincoln sheds light on a man of moral courage and fierce determination.
There will be time for discussion at the end.