\"Values are the best single predictor of real behavior,\" according to Paul ray and Sherry Ruth Anderson, the authors of The Cultural Creatives. This group which according to research is 50 million strong is largely unknown even to themselves. But the Cyberworld is allowing them to know each other and for the world to know and hear them. This is evidenced by such groups (websites) as the America\`s Progressive Community - Common Dreams NewsCenter, http://www.commondreams.org/community.htm where over 120 groups on the frontlines of change - represent tens of millions of progressive-thinking Americans.

[NOTE TO THE AUTHOR: please be aware that a large percentage of our readers are not Americans... there are other countries too. Also, your article reads a bit like an ad - which makes me sceptical - however, I`ve published it to give you (and our readers) the benefit of the doubt - mab]

Whatever you do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it.

?Johann Wolfgang von Goethe


Treat people as if they were what they ought to be and you will help them become what they are capable of becoming.

?Johann Wolfgang von Goethe


Based on the bad news that is thrown at us by the main news media we may believe that it is not possible for us to establish a sane world? Our doubts are our defeat.

Nor is it a matter of blind optimism; it is a matter that most of us are ill informed.

Our future might look rather bleak, but we are able to change, and if we squarely face our collective problems, we can arouse the wisdom and effort to solve them. Many small awakenings and efforts add up to a movement, a shift in direction. With only minor effort, a touch of the fingers, a helmsman can change the course of the Queen Mary. My son, Adam, at 12 years old was the best helmsman on a 50-foot sloop sailing from Cape Cod to Nova Scotia. He had the lightest touch and the best feel of the sea?s movement. That seems important, a light touch, a good feel and many small efforts by all of us.

According to Paul Ray and Sherry Ruth Anderson, authors of the Cultural Creatives, \"Values are the best single predictor of real behavior.\" In an appendix to this article, there is a list of values, which define this group. You might want to evaluate yourself against this list. Are YOU a Cultural Creative?

These authors spent more than a decade doing survey research to discover the values that we in the U.S. hold dear. They find that, based on fundamental values, U.S. citizens can now be classified into three major groups:

o Moderns,

o Traditionals, and

o Cultural Creatives.

We all recognize Moderns and Traditionals, but most people don\`t know that the Cultural Creatives exist.

Even the Cultural Creatives themselves are not aware of their huge numbers?50 million strong, according to Ray and Anderson. Here lie the seeds of a cultural revolution?one that is already well along.

And maybe this lack of awareness is changing. When I was recently introduced to the America\`s Progressive Community - Common Dreams NewsCenter, http://www.commondreams.org/community.htm

I was delighted to see the following:

Organizing for America\`s future...
America\`s Progressive Community
...over 120 groups on the frontlines of change -
representing tens of millions of progressive-thinking Americans.


Surely, these groups constitute the Cultural Creatives. My thinking is that this list could be considerably expanded to include many other groups and communities. For example, the author has been a member of the Shambhala-Tibetan Buddhist community (www.DrGeorgeM.US , www.Shambhala.org ) for three decades.

In addition, I feel that there are many closet Cultural Creatives that would emerge and declare themselves if they received encouragement. So the more we trumpet the good news, the more we declare our growing numbers and strength, the more we are able to ensure programs and policies that are compassionate, and wise.

NOTE: The views expressed in this article are based on a recently published book entitled From a World of Madness to a World of Sanity: Guides for Action (see www.DrGeorgeM.US for information on this book.)



Appendix:



Are YOU concerned with many of the following issues? If, YES, then you are a Cultural Creative:



Ecological Sustainability
Globalism: Interest in Travel, meeting foreigners, and concern for the
global ecology.
Women\`s Issues
Concerned about the family, the community, and the global ecology.
Alternate Healthcare
Spirituality
Social Conscience and Social Optimism
Desire Authenticity
Technology Moderates
Information Junkies, Stress Education and workshops.
Print and Radio, not TV
Careful Consumers
Think of the home as a nest. Personalization of home.
Cognitive style: Scan, Explore, Develop the big picture.
Arts & Culture
Natural foods, body care, etc.
Values-based purchasing.

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NOTE TO THE EDITOR: This list could easily be turned into a survey by adding a YES NO choice at the end of each item. I would be glad to provide a report and analysis of the results for posting on your website. Dr. George

Zentek International