THE NEW PAGE

. by Federico Mayor with Tom Forstenzer.
Dartmouth/UNESCO, 1995. (Dist. by Ashgate)
98 pages. ISBN 1-85521-652-3. $39.95

Something inspiring happens to sensitive intellects when placed in positions of global responsibility: While retaining local cultural roots, their compassionate caring becomes universal. Such is the case of Mayor (scientist, scholar, teacher, university rector, politician, Catalan, and Spaniard), since 1987 Director General of UNESCO, where he is responsible for global servant-leadership in education, science, culture, & communication.

The title means to turn from the old "culture of war" to a new "culture of peace." Mayor is passionately devoted to democracy as an indispensable means for turning the page. He urgently calls for "no business as usual" to avert the forseeable catastrophic consequences of combined overpopulation, growing disparity between rich and poor, militarization, & destruction of the planet's life-support system. This includes the tragedy of countless street children destined to become "feral adults."

His is not ritualistic prophetic lamentation, but the constructive creativity of the great teacher-leader. This is a book for everyone engaged in learning and democratic action. It should be in every library, as should its spiritual harbinger (by another inspired UN author), Robert Muller's NEW GENISIS (1982). -G.D.Paige, emeritus, University of Hawaii at Manoa.