|
|
Thread Tools | Display Modes |
#1
|
|||
|
|||
Climate Change, Despair and Empowerment, John Seed's N. America roadshow April/May
John Seed is a guy you don't want to miss! He's one of the strongest
voices for deep ecology. Mike From: "John Seed" Subject: Climate Change, Despair and Empowerment, John Seed's N America roadshow April/May Date: Mon, 12 Mar 2007 18:03:15 +1100 This email is going to John Seed and the Rainforest Information Centre''s N American email list. If you wish to be removed from this list, please reply with "remove" in the subject line. Friends, Ruth and I are going hard on climate change and are about half way through some 50 "Climate Change, Despair and Empowerment" events here in Australia www.climate.net.au. Next month I'll be heading to N America with more of the same in Florida, Arkansas, Ontario, Western Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York. You can find a description of "Climate Change, Despair and Empowerment" below and my schedule at www.rainforestinfo.org.au/deep-eco/schedule.htm I'll also be offering weekend experiential deep ecology workshops in Miami and Ottawa. My first few weeks are fully scheduled but there is the possibility of taking on a few more "Climate Change, Despair and Empowerment" presentations within a couple of hours of Toronto, W Mass, New York City and Ithaca NY. If you know of any groups in these regions that are concerned about climate change and might be interested in hosting one of the "Climate Change, Despair and Empowerment" presentations, please let me know. Here in Australia, Ruth and I are training several people to make these presentations. If you'd be interested in receiving such training while I'm in the NE please let me know. for the Earth John Seed Rainforest Information Centre Box 368 Lismore NSW 2480 Australia 02 66897519 www.rainforestinfo.org.au www.climate.net.au The "Climate Change, Despair and Empowerment" roadshow www.climate.net.au assumes that most people attending have seen An Inconvenient Truth and are somewhat aware of current news about the climate issue. The roadshow aims to: * catalyse, invigorate and support grassroots climate study/action groups across N America. * Address the hopeless despair that many people feel and provide tools to transform despair into empowerment and effective action. This will be based on the Despair & Empowerment work of Joanna Macy and the "Climate Change, Despair and Empowerment" talk which John Seed gave in Massachusetts earlier this year with Pullitzer Prize winning journalist Ross Gelbspan. (The 60-minute film made from this event is available on DVD for free to anyone who agrees to use it to educate their family, friends and community. * unveil the false and "business as usual", solutions being touted by the major political parties such as nuclear power and so called "clean coal". * raise awareness and inspire political action towards the real solutions that we, the people, must insist upon. (eg. end the US's $20 billion a year in subsidies to the fossil fuel industries, support energy efficiency, solar, wind etc.) * provide resources for the many things that we can all do to turn the situation around. www.rainforestinfo.org.au/climate/resources/ * Support a network of Climate Study/Action Groups across N America. By the time the "Climate Change, Despair and Empowerment" roadshow reaches the US next month, there will have been over 50 presentations and workshops in Australia. www.rainforestinfo.org.au/climate/schedule.htm The format consists of 4 or 5 evening "Climate Change, Despair and Empowerment" presentations in a district or city on consecutive weeknights followed by two 1-day Climate Change Despair & Empowerment workshop nearby on the following Saturday/Sunday. The evening forums will include: * a video presentation that includes footage of Al Gore speaking about the importance of grass roots response - leadership in the wrenching changes that are necessary can only come from government and industry once we the people have given them the mandate and the courage. * Solutions to the climate crisis * a discussion on the role of the denial of feelings of helplessness and despair in making us feel helpless, hopeless, paralysed, what can one person do anyway, its too late etc etc. This addresses Gore's insight that many people move straight from denial to hopeless despair about this issue without leaving any space in between for effective action. (see www.rainforestinfo.org.au/deep-eco/cabmourn.htm for a more general version of this argument). * Where no climate study/action group currently exists, the group will be invited to form one there and then. If one already exists, representatives from the group will be invited to give an update on their group's direction, meetings etc. We will discuss the importance of direct democracy and grassroots and that each of us now needs to awaken those around us to the urgency of understanding and action. US Supreme Court Justice Brandeis, 1930: "The most important office of government is citizen." * A discussion on local initatives and local directions * We invite people to host "house parties", invite their friends to watch DVDs, build the network, discuss solutions and spread word of the climate study/action groups. * We invite people to attend the "Climate Change, Despair and Empowerment" 1-day workshop at a nearby venue on Saturday or Sunday. We're training others up to make the presentations and to facilitate the workshops. One Day Climate Change Despair & Empowerment Workshops In the one-day "Climate Change, Despair & Empowerment" workshops, we will be offering experiential processes that generate empowerment as follows: Day 1: Through Joanna Macy's body of work known as "despair and empowerment" (see her book "Coming Back to Life", http://www.joannamacy.net and http://www.rainforestinfo.org.au/deep-eco/cabmourn.htm ) we allow ourselves to recognise our feelings about what is happening to our world. By acknowledging this level of our being rather than just our thoughts on the subject, people around the world have found that feelings of helplessness, hopelessness, "what can one person do anyway?", "It's all to late" etc are transformed into inspired and empowered positive action. Day 2: Through processes which nourish our vast ecological identity, we expand from the narrow confines of our social identity to experience our ancient ecological heritage, that every cell in our body is descended in an unbroken chain from the first cell of life. Then our kinship with all of life shines through the fog of civilisation and rooted in the history of Earth and in the living Earth itself, we seek wisdom and clear thinking on our role as we and our fellow beings face the crisis of global warming. === I am working on creating wildlife habitat that is off-limits to humans ("pure habitat"). Want to help? (I spent the previous 8 years fighting auto dependence and road construction.) Please don't put a cell phone next to any part of your body that you are fond of! http://home.pacbell.net/mjvande |
Ads |
Thread Tools | |
Display Modes | |
|
|
Similar Threads | ||||
Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
Climate Change, Despair and Empowerment, John Seed's N. America roadshow April/May | Mike Vandeman | Mountain Biking | 0 | March 12th 07 02:54 PM |
TdF roadshow, Brixton | elyob | UK | 0 | January 19th 07 05:59 PM |
April Century Rides New England or Mid-Atlantic In April? | B Lafferty | Rides | 1 | March 9th 05 01:31 PM |
Across America with the ABC's John Shovelan | cfsmtb | Australia | 36 | May 21st 04 04:28 PM |