How are the issues of biodiversity related to the idea of threats to cultural

diversity? Do you believe that governments should be actively involved

(through legislation and funding) in protecting cultural diversity?
Governments should be actively involved in protecting cultural diversity but to a
limited extent. The primary group responsible for protecting the diversity
should be the specific group or culture itself, however, governments should
allow for the culture to enjoy its own traditions, religions, and beliefs.
Governments should also allow the people within the culture to enjoy their own
language, however, the government should not be required to fully support the
languages of every culture within its country with properly translated forms, or
a requirement that everyone else within a country or society also follow those
traditions.
In the You Tube vide o, the spe a ke r indic a te d tha t the loss of indige n ous cultur e s c ould
be blamed upon the quest for power. While that may be true, in some cases, it
seems that there are reasons other than a quest for power that have caused
governments to demand similarities among its population. Governments seek to
create order. Democracies also seek to create participation with the citizens
and the government. If there are no similarities, such as the need for a
c ommon la ngua ge or c ommon rule s, it will be diffic ult f or a soc ie ty, and a n
e c onomy, to suc ce e d. Of c our se , the de f initi on of succ e ss ma y va r y, howe ve r,
the need to ensure that individuals have appropriate levels of food and housing
are fundamental. Most governments and economies seek to ensure that most
citizens are able to provide for these fundamental needs. In addition, in order
f o r t h e c i t i z e n s t o v o t e a n d t o u n d e r s t a n d t h e i s s u e s a n d r u l e s o f t h e s o c i e t y,
there must be some similarities in language and customs.
There is a compelling argument that trying to make everyone the same will destroy the
ability to create new types of thinking or different ways of approaching
problems. When I was fortunate enough to travel with my family to Ireland, it
was depressing when the actual meal numbers at the McDonalds corresponded
to the ones at home. At the same time, despite the similarities, the differences
in customs and thinking in Ireland were still interesting and different. While
adopting similarities, the country was still able to maintain many of its core
values.
The ability of individuals from multiple cultures to communicate should ultimately be
a positive for our planet. Having a smartphone that is similar to one owned by
individuals in places like China allows young people today to begin dialogues
with individuals who have experienced a very different lifestyle and who have
different needs and values. While it may arguably be bad that the Chinese are
starting to like McDonalds, the alternative will be the ability for people in the
Wes t e r n w or l d t o b e gi n t o u n d e r s ta n d m or e of tr a d i t i on s of t he E a s t .
It is truly sad that some languages are dying and indigenous cultures are disappearing.
Governments need to spend dollars to allow these cultures to maintain some of
their values and to celebrate their traditions. Australia seems to be doing that.
Here in the U.S., although more work needs to be done to preserve the cultures
of those who have emigrated, some traditions are celebrated and allowed. For
example, in my hometown, Jewish children were allowed to miss school for
R o s h H a s h a n a h a n d Yom K i p p u r , a l t h o u g h t h e r e s t o f u s s t i l l a t t e n d e d s c h o o l .
To the extent that the number of children missing for various holidays does not
become overwhelming, these types of celebrations should be honored.

While governments should be involved in supporting multiple cultures, they must

continue to establish fundamental features and beliefs that support the
structure of the society and its fundamental beliefs.