• We're planning a project for TakingITGlobal (TIG: http://profiles.takingitglobal.org/harrih). We want to organize a workshop and make a publication on the following subject. In a way individualism means respecting people, giving them their own space and time, and a chance to choose by themselves. That's very good, but individualism has also a negative side, because it leaves people alone and lonely, alienated from each other. For example it's almost impossible to start a conversation with a stranger in Finland. You can't just sit down next to someone and make a friendship for example in a bus. It's not easy to make friends with a stranger in the street. You can ask advice or help and talk about some general matters, but in most cases you will not change any contact information with the person. And why can't we just meet a person and end up visiting his or her home? Why is such thing, which is common almost everywhere in the world, is so hard for us, westerners? We want to challenge this thing in the Finnish culture and provide an alternative way to live in Finland. We're not going to force people to make friends, but we realize that there are a lot of people in Finland who want to make friends and have a closer friendship with others. Yet there is no way to do that because you will easily be misunderstood. You're not allowed to be interested in people and to show that interest openly here in Finland. This makes life extremely boring. Why do we always need a reason to talk with a person or to go someone's home? Having an interest should be good enough a reason. We should become interested in people around us and have a chance to express that without misunderstandings.

• Send me a message or feedback: harri_hietanen@yahoo.com

Yes - that's me!