THEMES FROM THE PLENARY SESSIONS
In general I found that the plenaries achieved their objectives of creating a context and providing inspiration for further discussion. However, there was limited opportunity for discussion during these sessions, and one important theme which should have been presented was missing - the relationship between women's empowerment and literacy. This topic was presented later as a skills workshop theme, which allowed for some discussion, but which also marginalized the issue. Given that 70% of illiterate people are women, this issue should have been a theme for a panel presentation to the entire assembly.

Many perspectives were presented about the theme of literacy, popular education and democracy including feminist, native, first world, third world, local and global, north and south. I was struck repeatedly by the passion fueling people's presentations and by the predominance of political, cultural and economic issues in the stories. A literacy worker from South Africa told us about fellow workers who had been harassed and jailed because of their literacy efforts. One woman from Palestine put aside her planned presentation, riveting us with a talk about how the uprising is a perfect example of popular education.

Literacy was also viewed with great caution. One speaker reminded us that the destruction of the world that we are now experiencing was brought about by literate people. Literacy, he argued, has limitations. He suggested that because morality requires you to keep your thoughts, your history and your stories in your mind, it allows for holistic thought. When we think holistically, we can anticipate the consequences of our actions. Thinking holistically was a theme also addressed by two Native speakers from Canada and New Zealand. Dr. Pamela Colorado, a sociologist at the University of Calgary, gave an inspiring talk about indigenous science which incorporates the capacity to love and feel, and the belief that all people are related to everything, historically and in the present. Katarina Mataira, a speaker from New Zealand, told us of the Maori philosophy of learning in which all humankind is "tapu", that is, they are to be treated with absolute respect. Learners, she reminded us, are the best judges of how much and how well they have learned.

WORKSHOPS

One of the frustrations of this assembly was choosing from among the many different workshops. I attended two, one entitled women and literacy and another called funding for women's programs. I also made a presentation in another workshop. Two questions organized our discussion in the women and literacy workshop: 1) what is the relationship between women's literacy and empowerment? and 2) What are the implications of a gender perspective on literacy? (These issues are discussed further in the recent issues of Voices Rising and Convergence², which I would highly recommend).

Entering USU Village

There was general agreement that contrary to what is often presented, there does not exist a direct relationship between literacy and empowerment. illiteracy is often mistakenly seen as the cause of poverty, instead of as a symptom of the deeper problem of unequal power relationships. Literacy can lead to women's empowerment when it is part of a strategy that seeks to change the structure of oppression. It was agreed that literacy programs should be developed and offered when learning to read and write are necessary for social, economic or physical survival.