International Management Means Managing Different Perspectives: Blind People and an Elephant

Once upon a time, six blind people were asked to report on how an elephant looks. 

Here is a link to a wikipedia explanation of different versions of the story. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blind_men_and_an_elephant

Below I retell the story using photos from different aspects of international issues, including conservation, education, health care, art, architecture, attire, and ethics. The link below each photo takes you to its site.

The Blind People and the Elephant

 http://oregonstate.edu/terra/2011/11/contraceptive-vaccine-under-study-for-elephants-and-horses/

Once upon a time, six blind people were asked to report on how an elephant looks.  Each of them went up to the elephant and ended up feeling different parts of the large animal. The blind person who feels a leg says the elephant is like a pillar. 

http://moreindia.in/blog/2010/02/srirangam-temple/an-small-elephant/

The one who feels the tail says the elephant is like a rope;

 http://childrenstorytales.com/maxwell-the-elephant/

The one who feels the trunk says the elephant is like a tree branch;

http://people.emich.edu/jbradle4/Tool%20Use.html

The one who feels the ear says the elephant is like a hand fan;

http://www.jedicreations.com/wholesale-rayon-folding-hand-fans-wedding-fans-001.php

The one who feels the belly says the elephant is like a wall.

http://www.google.com/imgres?q=elephant+tapestry+fair+trade&hl=en&client=safari&rls=en&biw=1253&bih=706&tbm=isch&tbnid=LDVpoY3qJIft-M:&imgrefurl=http://houston.culturemap.com/newsdetail/07-25-11-organic-home-design-houston-store-sets-out-on-a-fair-trade-mission-of-style/&docid=w5J1xpar4uPDHM&imgurl=http://static.culturemap.com/site_media/uploads/photos/2011-07-25/Ten_Thousand_Villages_Tapestry_THIS.800w_600h.jpg&w=800&h=600&ei=w-n4TuKKOsaltweUvqnhAw&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=782&vpy=382&dur=6745&hovh=194&hovw=259&tx=131&ty=173&sig=100708373467701192433&page=1&tbnh=153&tbnw=226&start=0&ndsp=15&ved=1t:429,r:13,s:0

And the one who feels the tusk says the elephant is like a solid pipe.

 http://wn.com/elephant_tusk

The teacher explains to them:

"All of you are right. The reason every one of you is telling it differently is because each one of you touched the different part of the elephant. So, actually the elephant has all the features you mentioned."

This resolves the conflict, and is used to illustrate the principle of living in harmony with people who have different belief systems, and that truth can be stated in at least six versions!