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Curtin  University  Sustainability  Policy  (CUSP)  Institute               Spirituality  and  Environmental  Sustainability:     Developing  community  engagement  concepts  in  Perth,  Western  Australia           Sandra  Anne  Krempl             This  thesis  is  presented  for  the  Degree  of     Doctor  of  Philosophy   Of   Curtin  University           September  2014 DECLARATION   To  the  best  of  my  knowledge  and  belief  this  thesis  contains  no  material  previously   published  by  any  other  person  except  where  due  acknowledgement  has  been  made.   This  thesis  contains  no  material  which  has  been  accepted  for  the  award  of  any   degree  or  diploma  in  any  university.   Signature:  ...........................................   Date:  1st  September  2014   ii ABSTRACT     Communities  and  organisations  are  rarely  engaged  in  conversations  encompassing   physical,  relational  and  spiritual  dimensions  of  life.  Even  fewer  incorporate  these   conversations  into  governance  processes.  This  research  is  attempting  to  address   this  gap.  It  trials  three  concepts  developed  by  this  researcher:  The  Connectivity   Matrix;  Five  Dimensions;  and  Combined  View.  Each  provides  a  different  lens  and   entry  point  into  the  spirituality  and  environmental  sustainability  conversation.  They   are  used  to  engage  communities  in  conversation  about  their  corporeal  and   metaphysical  relationship  with  nature  and  spirituality:  to  ascertain  the  link  between   these  phenomena  with  decision  making  in  life  and  work;  and  to  analyse  the   influence  of  these  dynamic  experiences,  or  the  lack  of  them,  on  environmental   sustainability.       The  views  of  31  professional  from  diverse  sectors  and  78  participants  in  six   workshops  from  a  variety  of  socio-­‐cultural  backgrounds,  all  based  in  Perth,  Western   Australia,  inform  this  research.  The  inquiry  builds  on  a  range  of  theories  from   contemporary  spirituality,  philosophy,  environmental  science,  neuroscience,   psychology,  economics,  management,  law,  the  arts,  social  science  and  sustainability   policy,  which  cover  physical  and  metaphysical  realms.       Factors  that  cause  resistance  to  or  enable  connection  with  the  dynamic  dimensions   of  life  are  identified.  The  findings  contribute  to  new  multidimensional  definitions  of   nature  and  spirituality.  New  concepts  to  illustrate  and  explain  the  different  modes   of  spirituality  are  developed  by  identifying  the  dichotomy  as  self  and  selfless  and   spiritual  modalities  as  doing,  hoping  and  being.  The  tools  and  approach  trialled  in   this  research  provide  a  model  and  process  for  the  dominant  theoretical   engagement  with  environmental  sustainability  to  consciously  include  the  dynamics   of  both  tangible  and  intangible  dimensions.             iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS     I  acknowledge  the  first  people  of  this  land,  their  ancient  wisdom  and  their   contemporary  journey.     My  sincere  thanks  go  to  all  members  of  my  thesis  committee.  It  was  in  a   conversation  with  Professor  Dora  Marinova  that  I  took  courage  and  decided  to   begin  this  journey.  I  am  very  grateful  that  Dora  agreed  to  be  my  thesis  supervisor.   Professor  Len  Collard  was  my  associate  supervisor  until  his  move  to  University  of   Western  Australia.  Dr  Shamim  Samani  and  Dr  Thor  Kerr  kindly  stepped  in  and  have   supported  me  as  associate  supervisors  for  the  second  half  of  this  journey.  Thank   you  all  for  your  advice,  encouragement  and  for  the  countless  hours  you  have  spent   reviewing  and  providing  feedback  on  my  work.  Thank  you  also  to  Professor  Peter   Newman  for  his  role  as  Chairperson  of  my  thesis  supervisory  committee.     Many  people  have  assisted  me  transition  towards  this  PhD  journey.  I  would  like  to   thank  Alan  Johnstone  from  Murdoch  University  for  his  support.  Thanks  also  to  my   friend  and  colleague  Linda  Blagg  who  began  her  PhD  journey  a  year  before  I  did  and   provided  much  encouragement  before  and  through  the  process.         To  the  Curtin  University  Sustainability  Policy  (CUSP)  Institute  staff,  fellow  students   and  broader  network  –  I  thank  you  all  for  your  support  and  wish  you  well  in  your   endeavours.       My  friends  at  Curtin  Bentley  campus  supported  me  in  many  ways  –  Marilyn  Metta,   Joy  Scott  and  Michelle  Barrett  –  my  heartfelt  thanks  to  you  all.     l  owe  special  thanks  to  Julie  Lunn  for  facilitating  the  Bentley  campus  connections   and  humanizing  the  maze  of  processes.       There  are  over  a  hundred  individuals  who  have  participated  in  this  research.  Thank   you  for  your  contributions  and  I  hope  I  do  them  justice.         iv I  acknowledge  the  financial  assistance  of  the  Australian  Postgraduate  Award  and  a   Curtin  University  Postgraduate  Scholarship  that  enabled  me  to  undertake  this   research     Finally,  to  my  sons  Nicki  and  Luiz  Pereira  and  families,  my  doctoral  journey  is   evidence  that  sometimes  ideas  from  our  youth  take  years  to  realise  –  but  that  we   should  never  stop  believing  in  our  dreams.             v CONTENTS       Abstract   iii     Acknowledgements   iv     Preface     Background  to  the  development  of  the  First  and  Third  Person     1        concept  from  which  this  research  has  grown     Chapter  One:     An  introduction  to  this  research:  Searching  for  the  deeper  story   9   1.1   The  complexities  of  spirituality   10   1.2 Divergent  views  on  environmental  sustainability   11   1.3 Questioning  existing  frameworks   13   1.4 This  thesis   14     Chapter  Two:    Literature  Review:  The  shifting  global  paradigm     20   2.1   Environmental  sustainability   22   2.2   Nature   31   2.3   Corporate  systems   37   2.4   Spirituality   44   2.5   Conclusions   50     Chapter  Three:  Research  design   52   3.1   Methodology   52   3.2   Research  tools   55   3.3   Data  collection  methods   63   3.4   Analyses  of  Information   69   3.5   Conclusions     71     Chapter  Four:   Nature   73   4.1   Defining  nature   74   4.2   Being  physically  connected  to  nature  through  sensory  engagement   75   4.3   Mindsets  determining  the  level  of  engagement  with  earth’s  biodiversity   86   4.4   Detachment  from  nature  and  ways  to  reconnect   94   4.5   Emergent  themes   102   4.6   Conclusions   117       Chapter  Five:    Spirituality   120   5.1   Defining  Spirituality     121   5.2   Different  positionings:  Interpreting  spirituality  from  within  a  likeminded   127     group  or  from  an  outsiders’  point  of  view.     5.3   The  perceived  foundation  of  spirituality     140   5.4   Spirituality  and  nature     149   5.5   Spirituality  and  sustainability   151   5.6   Emergent  themes       153   5.7   Conclusions   171     Chapter  Six:    Priorities  within  the  five  dimensions   174   6.1     The  Five  Dimensions  concept   174   6.2     Favourite  place   175     vi 6.3     The  three-­‐dimensional  world  (3D):  the  physical  world   176   6.4     The  fourth  dimension  (4D):  the  relational  world   178   6.5     The  fifth  dimension  (5D):  the  world  of  wonderment     181   6.6     Emergent  Themes     183   6.7   Conclusions   195     Chapter  Seven:    Governance   197   7.1     The  percentages  exercise:  the  amount  of  time  that  participants  spend  in   197     community,  corporate  systems,  nature  and  spirituality     7.2     The  impact  of  governance  on  nature  and  spirituality   205   7.3     Governance  systems  that  promote  environmental  sustainability   222   7.4     Emergent  Themes   230   7.5   Conclusions   239     Chapter  Eight:    Towards  multidimensional  sustainability     242   8.1   The  steps  taken  so  far   242   8.2   What  the  journey  has  unfolded   245   8.3   Current  global  frameworks  seeming  inability  to  transit  to  sustainability   250     without  the  dynamics  of  spirituality     8.4   Concluding  statements  and  visioning  the  next  stage  of  the  research   252     References   258     List  of  Appendices   270     Appendices   271                   vii TABLES  and  FIGURES   Preface   Table  P.1   The  First  Person  and  Third  Person  System   4   Table  P.2   Community  Spirit  and  Strategic  Planning   6   Table  P.3   Nature  in  our  community  and  corporate  lives   6   Table  P.4   Spirituality  and  Nature  in  our  community  and  corporate  lives   7     Chapter  Three   Table  3.  1   Concept  1:  Connectivity  Matrix:  Spirituality  and  Nature  in  our   57   community  and  corporate  lives   Table  3.2   Concept  2:  The  Five  Dimensions   61   Table  3.3   Concept  3  –  The  Combined  View   62   Table  3.4   Stages,  tasks  and  processes  for  conducting  the  data  analyses   70     Chapter  Five   Table  5.1   Concept  4:  The  Three  Modalities  of  Spirituality   155     Chapter  Six   Table  6.1   Viewing  the  commonalities  between  the  categories  of  two   185   psychology-­‐based  theories  on  the  dimensions  and  capabilities  of  the   mind   Table  6.2   Summary  of  the  three  highest  ranked  categories  for  favourite  places,   186   the  three-­‐dimension  object,  fourth  dimension  relationship,  and  fifth   dimension  activity.         Figure  6.1   Participants’  favourite  places   176   Figure  6.2   Summary  of  responses  to  the  most  important  three-­‐dimensional   177   object  in  each  participant’s  life   Figure  6.3   Summary  of  participants’  responses  to  the  most  important  fourth   179   dimension  (4D)  –  relational  aspects  in  their  lives   Figure  6.4   Summary  of  participants’  responses  to  the  activity  they  spent  the     most  time  in,  within  the  fifth  dimension  (5D)  or  realm  of   182   wonderment     Chapter  Seven   Table  7.1   Average  time  spent  in  each  category   201   Table  7.2   ‘Actual’  time  spent  in  ‘self’  and  ‘selfless’  activities   202   Table  7.3   ‘Actual’  and  ‘Ideal’  time  spent  in  each  category   203   Table  7.4   Group  2  ‘Self’  (Community  and  Corporate  combined),  and  ‘Selfless’   204   (Nature  and  Spirituality  combined)   Table  7.5   Llopiz’  chart  interpreting  the  positioning  of  spirituality  and   222   governance     Figure  7.1   Averages  of  percentage  of  time  spent  in  each  category  [percentages]     201   Figure  7.2   ‘Actual’  time  spent  in  ‘self’  and  ‘selfless’  activities  [percentages]   202   Figure  7.3   Group  2  –  ‘Actual’  and  ‘Ideal’  time  spent  data  [percentages]   203   Figure  7.4   Group  2  ‘Self’  (Community  and  Corporate  combined),  and  ‘Selfless’   204   (Nature  and  Spirituality  combined)  [percentages]     Chapter  Eight   Table  8.1   Key  findings  from  this  research   253   Table  8.2   Connectivity  Matrix  –  the  next  stage:  Multidimensional  Sustainability   256       viii PREFACE       Background  to  the  development  of  the  First  and  Third  Person  concept  from  which   this  research  has  grown.       This  preface  serves  to  provide  some  background  to  the  First  Person  and  Third   Person  Systems  concept  (Krempl  2006).  This  concept  is  the  foundation  on  which   this  research  has  grown,  and  references  are  made  to  it  at  various  points  through  the   study.     I  developed  the  First  Person  and  Third  Person  System  (Krempl  2006:10)  as  a  process   for  community  engagement  and  planning  in  the  1990s.  The  concept  was  conceived   through  learning  from  life  experiences  informed  by  my  complex  heritage  and   growing  up  in  multicultural  Singapore  during  its  transition  from  colonial  rule  to   independence.  It  evolved  over  several  decades  of  working  in  arts,  culture  and   broadcasting  in  developed,  developing  and  underdeveloped  countries.  I  developed   the  concept  to  guide  me  in  working  through  the  biggest  challenge  I  faced.  This  was   with  bridging  sensory  learning  experiences  with  professional  systems,  information   and  knowledge  required  in  the  corporate  world  without  devaluing  either.  I   observed  that  often  those  skilled  in  the  processes  of  the  professional  or  corporate   world  tended  to  treat  communities  rich  in  oral  traditions1  as  inferior.  This  appeared   to  be  because  of  a  lack  of  appreciation  and  understanding  of  different  ways  of   learning  and  knowing.  Recognising  the  intrinsic  value  of  both  oral  tradition  and   corporate  approaches,  I  often  found  myself  playing  a  facilitating  role,  fostering   awareness  of  the  strengths  of  the  oral  tradition  and  professional  communities,  and   the  role  that  both  play  in  diverse  situations.                                                                                                                                   1  I  define  oral  tradition  as  being  a  sensory  process  because  it  involves  more  than  the  spoken  word.  In   communicating  orally  the  person  speaking  or  listening  engages  several  sensory  skills  at  the  same   time  (Krempl  2006:146).         1 My  heritage   My  heritage  stories  provide  some  background  and  understanding  of  how  and  why   the  First  and  Third  Person  Systems  came  to  be.       The  Dayak  people  —  a  South-­‐East  Asian  indigenous  group  —  was  my  mother’s   dominant  heritage  line.  My  mother  was  brought  up  by  the  Dayaks.  Her  paternal   grandmother,  a  Dayak,  became  her  guardian  because  my  mother’s  mother  (who   was  part  Balinese  and  Danish)  died  soon  after  she  was  born.  Adding  to  the   complexity,  my  mother’s  paternal  grandfather  was  Chinese.  At  around  the  age  of   twelve,  mother  was  taken  from  her  grandmother  and  her  Dayak  home,  to  be   ‘civilised’  in  a  convent  in  Singapore.  This  was  the  beginning  of  her  urban  life  and   mother  used  to  tell  many  stories  of  traumatic  transition  times,  her  feisty  resilience,   and  her  pride  in  being  Dayak.     My  father  was  Austro-­‐Hungarian  from  many  generations  of  classical  musicians.  He   was  a  Hungarian  citizen,  living  and  performing  in  Budapest  until  1933.  His  parents   were  Austrian.  The  bleak  situation  in  Europe  in  the  thirties  resulted  in  my  father   leaving  Hungary  with  an  orchestra  for  better  work  prospects  overseas.  During  those   years  Hungary  underwent  numerous  upheavals.  It  became  communist  in  the  late   1940s  whilst  my  father  was  performing  with  the  orchestra  in  Singapore.  He  died   never  seeing  his  homeland  again.       I  grew  up  in  colonial  Singapore  with  parents  who  had  reconstructed  their  identities,   cultures  and  sense  of  belonging  but  they  also  held  strongly  to  values,  skills,   learnings  and  stories  from  their  cultural  upbringing.  Apartheid  laws  were  alive  and   well  in  colonial  Singapore  as  were  racial  tensions  and  unrest.  I  seemed  to  live   between  different  worlds:  Asian  and  European,  oral  and  written  cultures.  It  could   be  said  that  my  positioning,  because  of  my  heritage,  could  give  me  the  right  to   speak  on  behalf  of  each  side  because  I  had  a  ‘legitimate’  foot  in  each.  However,  this   was  not  the  case.  From  a  young  age  I  learnt  the  importance  of  growing  trust  and   respect  across  diverse  socio-­‐cultural  contexts  and  the  value  of  establishing  common   ground.       2

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Chapter Two: Literature Review: The shifting global paradigm. 2.1. Environmental sustainability. 2.2. Nature. 2.3. Corporate systems. 2.4. Spirituality. 2.5. Conclusions. 20. 22. 31. 37. 44 Amartya Sen (2010), an Indian economist and Nobel laureate, provides some insight into the foundations of hi
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