What if collective introspection would help us to better persuade, to better advocate for a more beautiful world? What are the tools we need to disagree better? How can we improve our ability to listen and learn – especially from those we disagree with? Marcela Lopez Levy asks powerful questions …
Every hero and innovator stands on the shoulders of the giants who came before. But sometimes the power of influence one has on another is subtle or indirect. Perhaps it is a life spirit shared by Helen Keller in her autobiography that inspires a scientist to fully engage in her …
“Forty years ago, the eminent Cornell University professor and child psychologist Urie Bronfenbrenner famously concluded, Every child needs at least one adult who is irrationally crazy about him or her. The benefits of a caring adult mentor on childrens well-being have been reinforced in study after study, as well as …
In this hour-long tribute to “The Work the Reconnects,” Pat van Boeckel explores the stories of activists who have used Joanna Macys writings to enhance and support their service and their lives. Van Boeckel does not flinch in describing the devastation now facing the world or equivocate on the justification …
“Hospitality means creating welcoming space for the other. Henri J. Nouwen notes that the Dutch word for hospitality, gastvrijheid, means ‘the freedom of the guest.’ It entails creating not just physical room but emotional spaciousness where the stranger can enter and be himself or herself, where the stranger can become …
“Shekinah Elmore was not yet a physician when she gave her own second opinion. After a year of cancer treatment — including lung surgery, chemotherapy, and a double mastectomy –she was hell-bent on starting medical school. Her doctors tried to dissuade her, recommending that she take more time to recover …
What happens when we look more closely, whether with the naked eye or equipment? Incredible details come into focus, bringing with them the possibility of beauty and interest we might never have conceived of. Imagine what would occur if you suddenly zoomed in on all those things you have lying …
“We weren’t trained to admit we don’t know. Most of us were taught to sound certain and confident, to state our opinion as if it were true. We haven’t been rewarded for being confused. Or for asking more questions rather than giving quick answers. We’ve also spent many years listening …
While contemporary society praises the benefits of mindfulness in domains from schools to workplaces, open, non-judgmental awareness is far from a panacea for solving the world’s most pressing dilemmas. Individuals and nations remain divided on the issues that define us. “Are we really creating individuals who can focus on improving …
In a creative sandbox for what would become Saint-Exuperys most famous line in The Little Prince– ‘What is essential is invisible to the eye.’– he writes: “How does life construct those lines of force which make us alive?Real miracles make little noise! Essential events are so simple!” One such essential …