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October 19, 2015
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 The question is not new. I've been grappling with it for years now, with extremely little to show for my efforts.
Yet, yesterday, in Brisbane, Australia, it was a particularly poignant moment for me when a longtime activist asked me how I saw that we could make it to the future she and I both long for. I was still digesting my experiences from a weeklong Mission Blue and TED sea voyage in the South Pacific, supporting collaboration amongst 100 people who came on board with the intention of scaling up the efforts to save the oceans.
My experiences on this journey left me with new questions and hardly any new answers. "I don't know," I told her, meaning every word of it. I don't think anyone has yet figured out the monumental task of how we can transform, on a global scale, the social and economic structures that continue and deepen the separation and scarcity within which we all live, albeit with drastically different levels of resources.
Joanna Macy, systems thinker and deep ecology teacher, speaks of three aspects of the journey of the Great Turning, as she calls the possibility of massive transformation, the alternative to the Great Unraveling that has already begun:
- strategic actions to stop the worst of the harm being done;
- activities that generate and model the alternative technologies and social structures necessary for a world that works for all;
- and ongoing work to transform consciousness from separation, scarcity, and powerlessness to connection, sufficiency, and full participation.
So while I don't know what will actually create the future I long for, I am relieved to see a framework that leaves room for each of us to do what makes sense to us, so long as we do something.
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| | Miki on the Mission Blue II voyage |
For myself, I continue to not know what will make a decisive difference, and especially how to create change at the level of social systems. All I have, for the moment, is a path and a discipline that make complete sense to me. In each moment, with the people I am with, in the circumstances we find ourselves in, I focus on what would be the most transformative action I could take in the direction of the luminous future I see as possible.
In my most recent post, Attending to Inner Conflict, I provide more detail about how we can approach our difficult decisions in a way that honors our vision and values alongside the reality of the situation and our own limitations.
If finding a way to live fully and to contribute to life beyond yourself speaks to you, then join us for my next free workshop on November 8: Leveraging Your Influence: Power + Love = A New World. It's the first time that I offer a one-day introduction to the themes of my ongoing programs and retreats by the same name. I very much hope many of you will choose to come and see for yourselves what your life could be if you chose to live it from within and take it as far as you can.
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A Leveraging Your Influence retreat
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In addition, at the strategic level, I look for what I, personally can do that will most effectively utilize my unique gifts. For some time now, this has meant focusing on creating and modeling collaborative alternatives: organizational systems, group processes, and interpersonal tools. At BayNVC, we aim to experiment with these, even if only on a small scale. The Center for Efficient Collaboration, our newest platform, brings these tools to the world.
In addition, and very centrally, I conceive of and experiment with new ways of working with money, beyond exchange and beyond ownership. I derive exquisite pleasure from seeing these experiments bear fruit. More and more, people are able to understand and trust the intention behind uncoupling giving from receiving, and transforming relationships of exchange into ones of free giving. In addition, in 2016 I project at least a third of the income related to my public offerings - $36,000 over the course of the year - to come from the Circle of Support, while I continue to expand the range and number of free offerings. We are on target for reaching our goal of bringing the Circle of Support to $2,500 per month. If enough of you join, we may well exceed it this year, making it possible to gift even more of my public offerings.
Curious about my recent voyage? Click here to read about it and the other happenings in the last month, including my time with Arnina who finally made it here, celebrations of supporters, my conversation with Frederic Laloux, and more.
I am writing to you from an airplane, on my way back from Australia, landing Sunday morning. On Thursday, I leave again to the East Coast, to lead one of the last Leveraging Your Influence retreats I am planning to participate in myself. An insight from the informal conversation over dinner last night lingers with me as I reflect on the challenges of creating a world that works for all. Our issues, these days, are global and exponential in nature. Emotionally, we are linear and local. How can we, both individually and collectively, stretch our mindhearts to the evolutionary leap of catching up with the reality we live in to grapple with it effectively?
In hope and peace,
Miki Kashtan
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Sunday November 8, 10:00am-5:00pm
The Humanist Hall, Oakland
The vision of Miki Kashtan's Leveraging Your Influence program is to accelerate the transition to a world where everyone's needs matter. Since 2012 Miki has been leading year-long learning journeys and one-week intensives designed to integrate the three dimensions of nonviolence - love, truth, and courage - and weave them deeply into the fabric of our daily lives. Now, for the first time, she is presenting a briefer taste of the material and on a FREE basis. Register here.
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Facing Privilege Conference Calls
TODAY Monday October 19, 12-1:30 pm PT
November 16, 6:00pm-7:30pm PT
December 17, 8:30am-10:00am PT
A series of free monthly calls at different times to accommodate a variety of people. These calls will provide an opportunity for people to engage with themselves and with others on the deep questions that arise as we reflect on the question of privilege. Register here.
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The Fearless Heart 
Monthly calls. The next four are:
Thursday, Nov 19, 5:30pm-7:00 PT
Sunday, Nov 22, 10:30am-12:00pm PT
Sunday, Dec 06, 10:30am-12:00pm PT
Monday, Dec 07, 5:30pm-7:00 PT
Join Miki and other readers of her blog to discuss whatever she has been writing about there. The Fearless Heart blends theory, deep spiritual wisdom, vulnerable sharing of personal insights and experiences, radical vision, and practical tips for everyday living. This series is free. More info here.
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 The Circle of Support
Dave writes: At most free events there's a basket for donations and a hope that you put something in if you can. So why is there no basket at Miki's free events? Why does she get happy when the people who receive her free offerings and the people who give to make them possible are different people? Because she wants people to discover the joy of receiving without a hint of obligation, and the gift of giving without expectation of reward.
Can we do it? Why would we want to? Because the whole world could run that way. If you doubt that, try reading her Wisdom Tales from the Future that realistically describe such a world: in her Reweaving book (see below).
63 people are currently contributing a total of $2195 per month. You can read all about it here, and contribute if so moved. It's a step towards a real gift economy.
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 Reweaving Our Human Fabric
Imagine: A future world in which we all value people and life and participate in a flow of generosity.
In her new book, Miki weaves together vivid social science fiction stories that bring that world to life with compelling nonfiction about how to get there.
Read three of the stories for free, starting here!
Start a book reading group and give copies to the group. OK, you do have to buy them first, but at 40% off for 5 or more from us!
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