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6th Annual Ideal Village Conference (online)

Post-Pandemic Normal: The path forward

Stanford University, Sept. 29-30, 2021

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The Ideal Village Concept

Ideal Village program is an integrated collaboration platform aimed at delivering holistic solutions for education, healthcare, energy, water, sanitation, and sustainable livelihoods that lead to healthy, self-sustained, economically viable rural communities globally.  The Coronavirus Pandemic has impacted all lives across the globe, irrespective of national origin, color, gender, social or financial status, or any other population classifier.  The severity, duration, and impact of this virus has surpassed what even most experts had predicted.  With recurring pandemic waves brought on by viral mutations, inequities in vaccine distribution, and lack of public trust, the world is facing several multidimensional challenges with no easy answers.    

 

The 1st Ideal Village conference at Stanford University in June 2016 focused on “Innovations for the Ideal Village”, and focus themes in subsequent years included: “Collaborations for the Ideal Village” (in 2017), “Empowerment of Women in Rural/Underserved Communities” (in 2018), “Corporate Social Responsibility” (in 2019), and “Sustainability and the Pandemic (in 2020). Last year’s on-line conference registered 660 attendees from 35 countries, with a wide range of experts discussing the importance of sustainable development in the context of the pandemic. 

 

The 2021 Ideal Village Conference: 

The 2021 Conference will focus on post-pandemic challenges and potential solutions in the key areas of Healthcare & Nutrition, Education, Water & Sanitation, Energy & Environment, and Livelihoods.  The pandemic has created far greater awareness of the critical shortages affecting millions in underserved regions of the world, the impact of unconstrained urban and industrial development and consumptive lifestyles, which have contributed to societal inequities and climate change, among other drastic consequences.   

 

The conference will feature panels of experts and leading authorities from international agencies, research institutes, the tech industry, non-profit foundations, and academia to address specific challenges and viable solutions.  The challenges that the world has experienced for more than 18 months as the pandemic waxed and waned in different global areas include – inadequate access to medical facilities, lack of essential medicines, oxygen supplies and hospital beds, overworked frontline medical and essential services staff, lockdowns, remote schooling, work from home, a widening “digital divide”, inequities in vaccine supply, social isolation and loneliness, mental health problems, migrant labor problems, misinformation regarding safe practices and vaccines ….the list is seemingly endless. 

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On the bright side, several success stories demonstrate how humanity has adapted and responded to these challenges.  Technology-based solutions like tele-health and tele-education, collaborative on-line tools to enable professional and family gatherings, re-awakening of man’s duty to help fellow beings in need, families living together again, home delivery of food and essential supplies, reduced level of emissions/carbon footprint, cleaner air, accelerated efforts in pursuing non-fossil energy sources, unprecedented vaccine development cycles, international cooperation in research, and “new age” entrepreneurship – these are some examples of how human ingenuity helped us survive during these testing times.

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The world may have changed forever, thanks to the ongoing pandemic. An existential threat of such proportions gives us pause to reflect and re-think societal priorities, and perhaps evolve a post-pandemic world that is more equitable, environmentally cleaner, with improved work-life-family-nature balance. This conference will feature inspiring thought leaders to guide us along this path of back to basics, the revival of human goodness and a values-based society that builds a global Ideal Village through innovation, technology, compassion and cooperation leading to new growth opportunities and a healthy planet Earth.

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Contacts

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