BOOK LAUNCHING IN BANGKOK

THE WELLBEING SOCIETY. A Radical Middle Path to Global Transformation. Author: Hans van Willenswaard Publishers: Garden of Fruition, Bangkok, 2016 The book re-envisions the complex learning journey of a group of persons shaping over a decade Suan Nguen Mee Ma social enterprise, a small-scale coffeeand bookshop in the old city-centre of Bangkok. In the footsteps of social critic, Buddhist scholar and Right Livelihood Award laureate Sulak Sivaraksa, whose bookshop in Bangkok was a secret meeting point for activists during various periods of military dictatorship, Hans – educated as a ‘cultural worker’ in Amsterdam in the ‘60ies – and his wife Wallapa start in 2001 an ‘alternative’ publishing house for books on social transformation, spirituality, ecology and visionary leadership. From the books they publish, including translations of the works of the Daila Lama, Vandana Shiva, Matthieu Ricard, Paolo Freire, Kinley Dorji and Arthur Zajonc, a golden thread gradually emerges leading them to encounters in Bhutan, the Mekong region and The Hague: City of Peace and Justice. Reflections on Gross National Happiness from the perspective of both Eastern and Western philosophies lead step-by-step to an appeal on civil society selfempowerment in the face of governments and the corporate sector; to a groundbreaking exchange platform on ‘Re-thinking Property’; and critical assessment of the agriculture policies of ASEAN. From there the book comes to 1

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Students of Panyotai Waldorf school perform classical Thai dance and music at the book launching and opening, 23 August 2016, of the two-weeks Mindful Markets social enterprise course.

a point of clearly positioning a wellbeing society scenario as a radical middle path characterized by networks of social enterprises rooted in organic agriculture – agro-ecology – and the centrality of common property.

Ajarn Sulak Sivaraksa who celebrates his 84th birthday in March 2017.

The book doesn’t stop there. From the perspective of the tragic forced disappearance of Sombath Somphone, a good friend of Ajarn Sulak, Wallapa and Hans delve deep into questions on existing paradigms of (land-) ownership during a sabbatical in the Netherlands. After Sombath distributed a video Happy Laos to the participants of the Asia Europe Peoples’ Forum (AEPF) in 3

Vientiane, capital of Laos, and voiced out concerns about mounting land grabbing in his country and the Mekong region, he was held at a police station for a paper check – and was never seen again. Land issues that affect farmers at micro scale as much as territorial disputes at macro level, like in the South China Sea (others say the East Philippine Sea), ask for reconsidering perceptions and legislation on property and sovereignty. The recent verdict of the Permanent Court of Arbitration – the court being the result of the First Hague Peace Conference of 1899 – on the South China Sea; the climate case of Dutch civil society organization URGENDA against the State; and the launching of the Oslo Principles on behalf of an expert group represented by Jaap Spier, Advocate General in the Supreme Court of the Netherlands, all point at a tremendous challenge for ‘The Hague’ to come-up with new insights on the question Who Owns the Earth, and on world citizenship. The launching of the Earth Charter in the year 2000 at the Peace Palace in The Hague opened perspectives on a new generation “human” rights or rather: “Earth Rights”. The book ends with signaling another event that may pose a serious challenge to international legislation that favours corporate ownership over civil society’s commons: the Monsanto Tribunal. The civil society tribunal will be held in October 2016 at the Institute of Social Studies (ISS) in The Hague. The book is an appeal of a non-expert towards global transformation: much needed evolution of the United Nations based on the incorporation of Earth Trusteeship as a vessel of civil society inclusion. Social entrepreneurship can be a powerful approach to making global transformation happen. The book ends with a proposal to contribute to the commemoration of 70 Years Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 2018. 4

Hans offers the first copy of the book to Ajarn Sulak.

The book launching coincided with the festive opening of the international Mindful Markets social enterprise course with participants and resource persons from India, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Indonesia, Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar, Bhutan, Malaysia, Russia, USA, the Netherlands and Thailand.

Social enterprise course participants and Mindful markets team with the student performers of Panyotai Waldorf School. Location: Srinakharinwirot University Theatre Hall, Bangkok.

How to order the book:  Please send your postal address to [email protected] Area Thailand Asia Europe USA

Price 320 THB 12 euro / 14 US $ 12 euro 12 euro / 14 US $

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Postage free 4 euro / 5 US $ 6 euro 7 euro / 8 US $

 Add postage to the price x number of books (+ donation if you wish) = amount  Deduct 10% if you order 10 books or more; and 20% for 20 books or more Mention WELLBEING SOCIETY and make a bank transfer to: Account Number: 024-269003-5 Name Account Holder: SCHOOL FOR WELLBEING Bank Name: Siam Commercial Bank Branch Name: Charoen Nakorn Address: Siam Commercial Bank, Charoen Nakorn Road, Klongsan, Bangkok 10600 Bank Code: SICOTHBK Or: Accountnumber (IBAN): NL11INGB 0005 092613 Name Account Holder: J R H van WILLENSWAARD Address Account Holder: 60/2 Tivanont 34, 11000 Nonthaburi, THAILAND (Dutch account with address abroad) Bank Name: ING Bank Bank Code: INGBNL2A

CONTENTS Preface 1. Introduction 2. A Wellbeing Society Scenario for the 21st Century? 3. Critical Holism 4. Re-Thinking Property 5. Organic Food for All 6. Who Owns the Earth Afterword Appendices ISBN 978-616-7368-77-1 Pages 224 6