''Ancient Futures: Lessons from Ladakh for a Globalizing World'', originally published with the subtitle ''Learning From Ladakh'', is a book by

Helena Norberg-Hodge Helena Norberg-Hodge is founder and director of Local Futures, previously known as the International Society for Ecology and Culture (ISEC). Local Futures is a non-profit organization "dedicated to the revitalization of cultural and biological ...

. It was first published in 1991.

Synopsis

The first part of the book describes the nature of the region of

Ladakh Ladakh () is a region administered by India as a union territory which constitutes a part of the larger Kashmir region and has been the subject of dispute between India, Pakistan, and China since 1947. (subscription required) Quote: "Jammu ...

when Helena first arrived in 1975, prior to the influx of Western ideas and material goods. In particular, Ladakhi women enjoyed high social status and family and community ties were very strong. The second part describes how Ladakh changed socially,

ecological Ecology () is the study of the relationships between living organisms, including humans, and their physical environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community, ecosystem, and biosphere level. Ecology overlaps wi ...

ly and

economical An economic system, or economic order, is a system of production, resource allocation and distribution of goods and services within a society or a given geographic area. It includes the combination of the various institutions, agencies, entitie ...

ly with development. ''Ancient Futures'' discusses the notion of

progress Progress is the movement towards a refined, improved, or otherwise desired state. In the context of progressivism, it refers to the proposition that advancements in technology, science, and social organization have resulted, and by extension w ...

, and explores the root causes of the problems faced by a highly industrialized society. The book has been translated into almost 40 languages and is used regularly at the grassroots level to raise awareness of issues surrounding

globalization Globalization, or globalisation (English in the Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth English; American and British English spelling differences#-ise, -ize (-isation, -ization), see spelling differences), is the process of foreign relation ...

and the loss of indigenous wisdom.Ancient Futures 2009 Edition
Local Futures

References

1991 non-fiction books Anthropology books Books about indigenous rights Anti-globalization books {{anthropology-book-stub