CULTURES, SPIRITUALITY AND DEVELOPMENT http://www.aheadinitiatives.in/pdf/csd.pdf
One of the ideas taken from this essay:
the idea of “progress” being a purely material goal is alien to most people of the world.
Because of this, “development” processes will be resisted by people who find life’s meaning in an awareness of their innermost spiritual being, which for some signifies the spark of the divine....
“True economics are economics of justice”, wrote Mahatma Gandhi. Firmly rooted in all religious belief is the notion that the pursuit of power and wealth, particularly at the expense of others, can never lead to contentment. For Buddhists, greed and the dependence on material gain is a prime cause of suffering. ...
Faced with burning social and ecological issues, it is urgent that we should find more sustainable ways to organise life on our planet, ways which enable genuine human freedom and cultural diversity to thrive.
Development strategies and projects still have a role to play. But even more important than these specific inputs are efforts to transform the global trends which are hindering the autonomous development of people according to their own cultural norms and practices.
The perspective of the Bahá’í faith is based on the idea that meaningful development requires the harmonisation of the seemingly antithetical processes of globalisation and
decentralisation, of the promotion of universal standards and the fostering of cultural diversity.