Porto Alegre's Global Village

  
The real business of the World Social Forum is networking and the exchange of information. It is also a chance to see the diversity of approaches to the question of human development and the struggle for human dignity. This is true of all of the events, from the discussion of tough and pithy issues, such as the question of the General Agreement on Trade and Services, to the demonstrations of the use of street theater as an educational tool. The campus of the Catholic University in Porto Alegre, which hosted many WSF activities, has become a microcosm of what one would hope the world social movement would be-open, tolerant, sharing and optimistic.

The compact modern campus is filled with snack bars and small restaurants ideal for quick meetings or a chat over coffee. Its ample grassy spaces are well suited for a quick nap or a leisurely cross-legged discussion circle. The winding paths have been the scene of small marches protesting one or another injustice and the many small squares are the perfect forum for street theater performances. In the buildings above, hundreds of workshops and seminars draw attentive and highly motivated audiences. The intense swirl of activity is hard to grasp, but easy to fall into.

Nothing earthshaking is being said here, but much is being accomplished. New ties, both personal and institutional, are being forged. Young people are finding out about the wealth of resources and channels for their concerns and enthusiasm. Fifteen thousand youths camped out in the beautiful setting of a well-equipped city park add a new life to each of the meetings, along with students from the local area. We meet them casually as we wait for an event to start or as we all search for a seat during the lunch break. Activists and scholars who until now have only been a name or an email address become human when sighted on panels or met in person in chance encounters. Old friends appear and new contacts abound. This is the essence of the global village effect on the campus of the WSF site in Porto Alegre.

The great diversity, the breadth of the subjects, the depth of the discussions and the pageantry of the protests and street theater are too great for one single participant to gather. One noticeable trend, however, is the expansion of the vocabulary to describe the social dimension of growth and development. For example, there is a renewed interest in defining the idea of global governance. This controversial subject is part of an effort to re-regulate the world in the aftermath of neoliberal free market reforms. In particular, it is an expression of the generalized concern over the perception that the WTO is becoming a world governing body with tentacles in every aspect of daily life and the sovereignty of nations. A related concept is the growing use of the term "global commons," which refers to those finite natural resources and physical-geographical sites that are the real patrimony of humanity. These include water, which has been a intensely discussed theme at the WSF and is of great interest for South Florida, as well.

The local Porto Alegre newspaper, Zero Hora, has noted a greater acceptance by this year's forum of the concept of globalization. Anti-globalization is turning into "alter-globalization," in the words of the Catholic social teacher "Frei Beto." He has played an important role in many panels over the last few days. Still, tension continues to surround the issue of rejectionism or reform, perpetuated by certain "Leninist" groups speaking for some important organizations. There is also no change in the unanimous rejection of the FTAA.

To attempt to resolve some of the splits among organizations, the WSF has featured intense coordinating meetings. The main purpose of many of these consultations is to end the duplication of efforts and rivalries among development groups and coalitions. The endeavor seems to have met with some success, but a lot will depend on what happens when the WSF is just a memory. Attempts are being made to develop mechanisms to insure that the spirit of cooperation continues. As the event moves into its last days, it is obvious why it will be good to come together in the same place next year. It will be like coming home to a beacon of what should be and what can be if the energies that are coming together here are focused on moving our world along to better things.