The Society of Sustainability | Seneca Business: Principles for Responsible Management Education

Riya Seethal is a student in the Sustainable Business Management program. In this blog entry, she speaks about the views of Indigenous peoples and what we can learn about conservation and preservation.

“I am because we are.”

These words can be encapsulated by a single African saying called Ubuntu. The origins of Ubuntu came about from the Nguni Bantu communities in South Africa. Whilst there are various interpretations of this expression by African countries, what it essentially means is that humanity is bound together by an invisible thread that connects us as people, and we can only achieve greatness in our lives if we stand together.

As a student in the Sustainable Business Management program, I was exposed to Canada’s Indigenous people as part of the course ‘Social Impact’. The unity and solidarity of the aboriginal people held strong through the years of oppression, and they have made great strides in having the past acknowledged. What remains a hard truth is that they are constantly fighting for their rights for a just and equitable society.

This Photo by Unknown Author is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND

The connection indigenous people have amongst the community is also felt in their connection to the land. Their spirituality is deeply rooted in the soil of this land and therefore their understanding of how the earth should be treated and cared for has been ingrained in their culture and beliefs and it is this knowledge that has been passed down from generation to generation. From Africa to North America, we can learn from the cultures of Indigenous people, who relied on the land through times of drought, famine, disease and other variables of nature. They survived without the westernization of modern technology and science. We have the knowledge and expertise to educate ourselves on the topic of what conservation and preservation really is. We need to just listen. (Enviropaedia)

As the famous Archbishop Desmond TuTu said “WE ARE because the earth is”, WE ARE running out of time to save the earth. WE NEED to come together in the spirit of Ubuntu and collectively act as a nation of the world to make a difference.

#strongertogether

By Riya Seethal

Sustainable Business Management 

References

“Eco-Ubuntu.” Enviropaedia, http://www.enviropaedia.com/topic/default.php?topic_id=336#:~:text=Eco%2DUbuntu,Sustainable%20Development%20).