Page - 94 - in Reflective Cosmopolitanism - Educating towards inclusive communities through Philosophical Enquiry

94 REfLECTIvE COsMOPOLITANIsM 1. The eyes are to the face as …. Example: lighthouse to the ships 2. Getting angry is to friendship as…. 3. Spending time with a friend is to friendship as…. 4. Trust is to friendship as…. 5. A plant needs water as a friend needs…. 6. Having different friends is to a person as having…. 7. A person with no friends is to happiness as…. Episode 2. There is no pitch to train on Leading Idea 1: Identity/Belonging The question of identity comes up in both episodes, and in several parts of the text. On one hand, we will deal with this issue from the perspective of individual/community and the de- termination of our identity as people who belong to many communities (this manual, episode 8, leading idea 1 “Individual and Community”). On the other hand, we will address identity in connection to belonging in a certain place. These issues are closely related to the shaping of our own identity in connection to both the things we choose and the things we don’t. Ques- tions like: “What does belonging somewhere mean?”, “What part of our identity do we build ourselves and what part do we receive?”, “What defines us more, what we choose or what we receive?”, “How do we label others, according to what they choose or to what they receive?” These types of questions are essential when working in large, culturally diverse, contexts. A classical way of building identity and belonging, common in nationalistic speeches, is based on building borders based on differences, with the risk of classifying what’s different as some- thing worse. On the other side, a cosmopolitan approach, based on respect for the local (what is common), a link to the value, and openness to the global (what is different, from outside), tries to overcome narrower visions of identity focused mainly on difference as separation. This chapter deals with the idea of belonging or not belonging in a neighborhood, wheth- er it depends on having been born there, or on feeling that you belong there. The situation will be the starting point that will allow us to guide the discussion towards the issue of identity. You can find further resources on the concept of “identity”’ in the manual to Tina & Amir, episode 5, leading idea 1 “Who am I?” and leading idea 2 “Citizenship”, with discussion plans and exercises on identity and citizenship that may complement this topic of identity. Discussion Plan: Who am I? Where am I from? 1. Is it possible to be from one place and after some years, belong to a different place? 2. Can we be from more than one place at a time? 3. Can we belong to more than one place at a time? 4. Can we be from nowhere? 5. Can we belong nowhere? 6. Imagine that someone was born Madrid but has to move every five years be- cause his mother is a diplomat. First, he lived in Paris, then London, then Rabat. Now he lives in Kenya with his father who is German. Where is he from? Where does he belong?