Seeking solutions all over the world

MOSES LAKE - Dr. Paul Eide is soft-spoken.

The former Moses Lake School District teacher is currently working as a consultant, finding solutions to varied problems from Egypt to Thailand.

Eide's most recent trip sent him first to New Delhi, India for a math education conference and then to Thailand.

"In India, we were assessing math education in India versus the United States," Eide said. "Thailand was quite different. It was more general."

Eide said he got into his current line of work when he and group of friends were brain-storming about what to do in retirement.

Eide said the group addresses problems that encompass everything from efficiency issues to employee competency issues.

"We give a recommendation that has a 3-month timeline and (the client's) side is to implement our recommendations within six months," Eide said.

In his travels, Eide spends a great deal of time observing cultures. He said each experience he has had abroad has been different.

"When I was in South Africa, they had just gone through the revolution stage," Eide said. "They think murder is OK as long as it's justified. In my experience, you just have to keep an open mind."

Eide noted that one of the biggest difference between the United States and India was the belief in arranged marriages being a more successful way to approach relationships.

"They have a two percent divorce rate among arranged marriages," Eide said. "Their theory is love matches (non-arranged marriages) end badly."

He said statistics support the theory, with the divorce rate among love matches being 40 percent.

Eide said Indian families are more similar to families in the United States in other ways, including the idea of family and the place of women.

"They have large extended families, in the thousands," Eide said.

He said that while women do not vote in India, they do have control of what goes on in their households.

Eide's experience in Thailand still different from his time in India.

"I have never been around such honest people," he said.

Eide also saw that, despite being a democratic country, people in Thailand "have a deep affection for the monarchy."

"The Queen Mother is the most respected person in Thailand," Eide said.

For Eide the real lesson in his travels has been the simplest of all.

"Keep your mouth shut and just be quiet," he said. Listening to people speak gives a picture of who they are and what their concerns are, he said.

With three trips in various parts of the world completed in 2010, Eide said he was looking forward to vacationing with his family before deciding what consulting job to begin next.

"I would like to take the family to Yellowstone or Glacier National Park," Eide said. "I've also been invited to go to Norway."