13 March,2011 08:40 AM IST | | Sowmya Rajaram
A group of young Indians will meet in Chembur today to discuss whether it's possible to build a world free of money and borders, and how to arrive at a day when we can work if we want to, not because we have to
No possessions... No need for greed or hunger/ A brotherhood of man/ Imagine all the people/ Sharing all the world," sang John Lennon in 1971. That may well be the anthem of The Zeitgeist Movement (TZM), an initiative that envisions a similar future by eliminating money, and switching to what they call 'a resource-based economy'.
Whether you are intrigued or confused by this, what you can certainly expect is an answer at Mumbai's first Z Day scheduled to take place at Chembur this afternoon.
Rishi Gangoly (right) with The Zietgeist Movement volunteers
as they interview people on the streets in the run up to Sunday
IT consultant Rishi Gangoly, an activist with the India chapter of TZM, was drawn to the philosophy after he was bowled over by The Zeitgeist Addendum, a film he watched online. "It blew me away," he recalls.
Some Internet surfing later, Gangoly discovered Jacques Fresco, the founder of The Venus Project (an organisation that promotes Fresco's vision of an improved society), which led him to get involved with TZM.
"TZM sees a future where people work because they want to, not because they have to, and a life of shared happiness via collaboration of the Earth's resources," he explains.
A resource-based economy, Gangoly explains, is one that is not based on profit-making. It's one that eliminates the need for borders and ownership, and advocates that the planet's abundant resources be shared.
TZM members believe that intelligent use of technology can eliminate manual labour for money, and help promote a system where people can pursue their interests free of any obligation to work for money.
How does that work? "Automation, which you already see around you, is taking away jobs, causing stress, and creating an even bigger need to sustain this model of money and profit," says Gangoly.
As an example, he talks about automated voice response systems that are in place in the US. They are taking the place of human customer service providers. "The technology to create automated systems that take care of day-to-day activities is already in place.
Because the core aim is to make a profit, the quality of what's available is sub standard. A computer firm makes fewer inferior quality PCs to push up prices by increasing demand, then forcing you to upgrade because these will be outdated in a few years. This, for instance, won't be necessary in a resource-based economy, which believes in eliminating profit altogether."
And for those who dismiss it as utilitarian nonsense, Gangoly says, "Twenty-five years ago, it was utopian to think that your email could be accessed on-the-go on a device as small as your phone. Centuries ago, it was utopian to think that the world was round, not flat.
All the 'isms' we have lived by so faru00a0-- capitalism, socialism, communismu00a0-- are just that; transitional social mores of living. The movement towards a resource-based economy is a natural process of evolution of human thought. The reality of TZM is more inevitable than impossible."
At: Golf Club, Chembur.
From: 2.30 pm to 6.30 pm
Entry: Rs 200. Register online on https://blog.thezeitgeistmovement.in/events
Food, music, art and Devi
From March 14 to 19, Alliance Fran aise de Bombay is hosting the La semaine de la francophonie festival in Mumbai. This year, through a series of events relating to food, music, cinema and the arts, it will focus on the islands in the Indian Ocean. (For full schedule of events, visit www.afindia.org/bombay).
On Monday, Ananda Devi, a celebrated writer from Mauritius, who is also studied by Mumbai University students, will speak on the topic, Following their steps: Women narrators in my novel. Devi has been a writer for 30 years, during which she has become a prominent figure in French literature from the Indian Ocean.
At: GRID, University of Mumbai, Vidyanagri Campus
From: 4.30 pm to 5.30 pm
