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Tibetan Diaspora: Perspective of Youth

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TIBETAN DIASPORA: PERSPECTIVE OF YOUTH Tenzin Seldon
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Page 1: Tibetan Diaspora: Perspective of Youth

TIBETAN DIASPORA:

PERSPECTIVE OF YOUTH

Tenzin Seldon

Page 2: Tibetan Diaspora: Perspective of Youth

The UN defines youth as people between the ages of 15 and 24 years

Page 3: Tibetan Diaspora: Perspective of Youth

18% of the world’s population62% reside in Asia

1.2 billion youth in the

world

Page 4: Tibetan Diaspora: Perspective of Youth
Page 5: Tibetan Diaspora: Perspective of Youth

History of Tibet

1959:

Page 6: Tibetan Diaspora: Perspective of Youth

1959: Destruction

In March of 1959, a

mass Tibetan

uprising

6,000 monasteries

destroyed

1.2 million innocent

people killed

Page 7: Tibetan Diaspora: Perspective of Youth

Escape

80,000 Tibetans fled, following Dalai

Lama

Page 8: Tibetan Diaspora: Perspective of Youth

1960-1990:

Reconstruction

Tibetans made an effort to

increase international

awareness about the situation

inside

Set up:

Central Tibet Administration

Education system

Economic, political, and

spiritual institutions

Page 9: Tibetan Diaspora: Perspective of Youth

Refugee Community

Total 150,000 Tibetans in the total Diaspora

120,000 refugees remain in India today

Rest 30,000 live in Nepal, Bhutan, Europe,

and America

‘Model refugees’

Page 10: Tibetan Diaspora: Perspective of Youth

Youth

2009 Demographic Survey:

62% under 34 years old

26,000 students Tibetan schools

DoE oversees a network of 73 schools

Central School for Tibetans (28 schools), Tibetan

Children’s Village (18 schools), Sambhota (12

schools), Snow Lion Foundation (12 schools in

Nepal) and Tibetan Homes Foundation (3

schools)

Page 11: Tibetan Diaspora: Perspective of Youth
Page 12: Tibetan Diaspora: Perspective of Youth

Empowerment

“to provide opportunities for young people to

develop the competencies they need to

become successful contributing members

of their communities”

(Pittman & Wright,1991)

Page 13: Tibetan Diaspora: Perspective of Youth

STIMULI

YOUTH EMPOWERMENT PROCESS

PROCESS

voice giving

education

information sharing

training

...

citizen awareness

Self-esteem

...

RESULTS

participatory democracy

society

religion

politics

culture

economy

Page 14: Tibetan Diaspora: Perspective of Youth

Research Question

What are the main intergenerational

differences in the Tibetan refugee community

in Dharamsala, India?

Page 15: Tibetan Diaspora: Perspective of Youth

Diaspora/Transnational Identity

A dispersion of a people from their original

homeland.

Stuart Hall:

One group with shared culture and a shared

history or ancestry.

Page 16: Tibetan Diaspora: Perspective of Youth

Methods

Qualitative, community-based participatory

research

30 individual and focus group interviews

Generation Definitions

Generation Y (young) – 15-35

Generation O (old) – 60+

Generation Y Generation O

Page 17: Tibetan Diaspora: Perspective of Youth

Field sites

InterviewScholarshi

p

Page 18: Tibetan Diaspora: Perspective of Youth

Global Phenomenon

Larger generational conflict globally

Work (problem-solving, management)

Related intergenerational conflict in Hmong,

Vietnamese, Indian and other Southeast

refugee communities

Page 19: Tibetan Diaspora: Perspective of Youth

Findings

Religion

Language and Culture

Political

Page 20: Tibetan Diaspora: Perspective of Youth

Religious Differences

‘Blind faith’ of adults in Buddhism and Dalai Lama Yeshi: “My father and so many of our older folks have

too much faith in His Holiness, the Dalai Lama to solve every problem… and it sometimes makes me think that this type of blind faith is detrimental to any form of true democracy in our society”

Dolma: “yes, we students don’t agree with this type of blind faith, we have our own opinions…”

Religious figure as political head stifle democracy

Page 21: Tibetan Diaspora: Perspective of Youth

Language and Cultural

Differences

Who is your role model?

“Michael Jackson, Justin Bieber…”

Increasingly difficult to communicate

Effects of modernization (pervasiveness of

technology)

Page 22: Tibetan Diaspora: Perspective of Youth

Political Differences

Youth facing apathy – lack of empowerment

(institutional and private)

“I have no way to express myself and there are not

many leaders in our community who represents my

ideas…you know? We can’t change anything either”

Freedom vs. autonomy

Separation of church and state

Page 23: Tibetan Diaspora: Perspective of Youth

Implications

Policy impact

Education curriculum

NGO outreach

Domestic policy

Future scholarship

Page 24: Tibetan Diaspora: Perspective of Youth

Public Service Plan

To use dialogue as a powerful and dynamic

tool which enriches community building and

solidarity.

Set a dialogue goal of 30-50 diverse

intergenerational participants.

Page 25: Tibetan Diaspora: Perspective of Youth

Questions?


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