Gross Domestic Product (GDP) is the best-known “number” in economic governance. It drives national policies, sets priorities in the social fields (e.g. there exists a ratio between GDP and how much spending in welfare is considered appropriate by many countries) and ultimately affects the societal landscape of a country (e.g. by determining labour-business relations, work-life balances and the type of consumption patterns adopted by citizens). The type of industrial model supported by GDP dominates physical and infrastructural â€‹geography, from the shape of cities and their relation with the countryside to the management of parks and natural resources. Marketing st... posted on Aug 22 2015 (13,491 reads)

unexpected invitation to Betty Peck and her daughter Anna Rainville’s home for an intimate conference on education, specifically on Waldorf education, is what led me to Ida Oberman. There were a few of us at the gathering who were not especially knowledgeable about Waldorf education, but Betty and Anna have always liked expanding the circle. For decades, Betty Peck’s weekly salon has been a meeting place for a wide range of creative individuals from a variety of perspectives in the thick of Silicon Valley culture. This particular gathering was more focused than Betty’s regular salon meetings and no less interesting for that. It was a chance both for new conn... posted on Aug 24 2015 (7,716 reads)

we create social change without money? I don't have a conclusive answer but just holding that question can raise some very interesting insights. Since we're talking about money, I thought I'd start with a story on Wall Street. One of my friends was running a venture fund on Wall Street. They had a great year, and his boss calls him in to congratulate him and offers the proverbial blank check, "What would you like?" He looks his boss in the eye and says, "What I'd love is a minute of silence before all our group meetings." Wow. The boss is thinking, "In a context where people are billing every three minutes, a minute of silence to do no... posted on Oct 28 2015 (33,451 reads)

people don’t have any problem with seeing compassion as a thoroughly commendable quality. It seems to refer to an amalgam of unquestionably good qualities: kindness, mercy, tenderness, benevolence, understanding, empathy, sympathy, and fellow-feeling, along with an impulse to help other living creatures, human or animal, in distress. But we seem less sure about self-compassion. For many, it carries the whiff of all those other bad “self” terms: self-pity, self-serving, self-indulgent, self-centered, just plain selfish. Even many generations removed from our culture’s Puritan origins, we still seem to believe that if we aren’t blaming and punishing oursel... posted on Oct 19 2015 (29,671 reads)

been covering the science of human goodness, off and on, for almost 10 years. In that time, I’ve seen a dramatic transformation in the way scientists understand how and why we love, thank, empathize, cooperate, and care for each other. This essay originally appeared (in slightly different form) in the May 2015 issue of Shambhala Sun.  Of course, “goodness” doesn’t seem like a very scientific concept. It sounds downright squishy to many people, and thus unworthy of study. But you can count acts of goodness—and all science begins with counting. It’s the counting that has started to change our understanding of human life. For example,... posted on Oct 24 2015 (15,348 reads)

are a slice of humanity: Everyone brings both their wonderful innate goodness and their challenging globby muck to the classroom. Creating a safe and supportive school culture is one of the most difficult tasks principals face as fearless school leaders. When they succeed, it helps everyone—students, teachers, and themselves—bring out the goodness and reduce the muck. Given the extraordinary complexity of this task, wouldn’t it be great to hand principals a “silver bullet” for building a learning environment in which everyone thrives? But alas, no silver bullet exists. For principals who aren’t sure where to start, the Greater Good Science... posted on Nov 11 2015 (13,995 reads)

present, experiencing one's sense of being... Art can bring you there, but if you do art to get there, you won't get there. [laughs] I hate to tell you that, but it's true. RW: To change direction, I'm wondering what some of your memorable experiences are with photography. NH: Well...there was an experience of going photographing with Minor White in a place called Lost Harbor, Maine. I couldn't find any photographs at all. It was very difficult. But there were three images I took on that day. I knew the images meant something, but I didn't know what. The only thing I knew was that I should hang on to them. This was at least ten years after having met Minor Wh... posted on Apr 2 2016 (10,475 reads)

his address to the 2016 class at DRBU, ServiceSpace founder Nipun Mehta makes a case for the power of stilling the mind, deepening awareness and practicing what he calls the 3 S's: small, service, and surrender. Framed in the context of a rapidly changing world that privileges money, fame and power, his talk is riddled with inspiring counter examples. Drawing on insights from revolutionary Do-Nothing farmer Masanobu Fukuoka, Sufi parables, stories from the White House, a bowing monk and more, Mehta's words serve as a clarion call back to humanity's universal values. Below is the transcript. Thank you, all. Thank you, President Susan Rounds, Bhi... posted on May 31 2016 (50,152 reads)

August 2016 DailyGood featured the powerful story of Buddhas On Death Row -- a multi-dimensional collaboration between two pen friends, one of them a woman in Finland, the other a man on Death Row in the United States. Here is a follow-up piece on their journey as it continues to unfold... Note: Saturday, September 24th 2016 there will be a global conference call with Maria Jain, the Finnish half of this remarkable duo. You can learn more about the call, and RSVP here. Art, inner cultivation, and friendship. Buddhas on Death Row illuminates a profound journey unfolding in the darkest of places, sending rays of light to the outside. The small street-leve... posted on Sep 21 2016 (11,365 reads)

to contrast with it, this open sky. This is why we will change the color of sky when in fact the sky has not been changed in color. RW:  You're saying this is a culturally determined thing? JT:  Yes I am. RW:  You mean, if I was a primitive man, I wouldn't have perceived that shift of color? JT:  Well, that is not exactly clear. RW:  Because it occurred to me, when I was having this experience, that part of it was due to the effects of the after -images of the blue and of the yellowish tungsten light, that these after images amplify each other. JT:  Yes, the laws of simultaneous contrast will work within any culture. That does happen. ... posted on Mar 26 2017 (16,067 reads)

its inception in 1970, Earth Day marks a global celebration of Earth and the concept of peace. It presents an opportunity to demonstrate support for environmental protection. From lush rain forests to arid deserts, thundering waterfalls to serene ponds, majestic glaciers to craggy mountains and teeming coral reefs, Earth is a complex, interconnected planet, filled with diversity and abundance. New species continue to be discovered, and the relationships among species and ecosystems are increasingly revealed in our understanding as intricate and inextricably linked. To be tenants of Planet Earth is a cause for gratitude, but we also have responsibilities to maintain and protect our plan... posted on Apr 18 2017 (11,771 reads)

powerful music video arrives just in time for the millions of students around the world preparing for the milestone of graduation. Written by be-the-change rapper Nimo Patel, animated by the Superfruit Collective (a team of animators based in France), featuring a chorus of amazing Filipino students from the Metta Assumption College, and excerpts from a graduation speech by ServiceSpace founder Nipun Mehta -- this music video is a global labor-of-love collaboration between resonant hearts. Whether you are graduating this year or not, the simple, profound messages of this song, the compelling animation, and the warmth behind all of it are sure to brighten your day.&n... posted on May 4 2017 (27,895 reads)

is more important: your spouse or your Facebook friends? A social psychologist says we need both, for weak ties can make us strong—and sometimes strong ties can make us weak. Do we live in an age of superficial social ties, incapable of genuine human connection? Our Facebook friends may seem to do little more than bombard us with trivial status updates. Texting, chatting, and tweeting appear to have dumbed down our conversations to quick, shallow exchanges. There’s no question that the digital age has changed the way we relate to one another, sometimes to our detriment, as MIT psychologist Sherry Turkle has argued in her book Alone Together. Though many of us can coun... posted on Sep 6 2017 (7,516 reads)

still don't know how beautiful Nature is, there are a lot of things we don't understand totally. I feel our understanding will be higher when it's collective. When more and more people have this understanding, we will be able to see more gifts Nature has ready for us. -- Joserra Gonzalez Jose Ramon Gonzalez (“Joserra”) is a service-hearted generosity entrepreneur, meditator, and activist for the common good. He is also the founder of "ReLoveUtion" -- a renaissance of compassionate societies. What follows is an edited transcript of an Awakin Call interview with Joserra, moderated by Rina Patel. You can read the full transcript or listen to the ... posted on Jul 21 2017 (8,793 reads)

was either Donna Billick or Diane Ullman, the founders of the Art and Science Fusion project at UC Davis who mentioned Meredith May to me. It was four years ago. We were probably standing out in their pollinators garden at UCD.  “Just yesterday a reporter from the San Francisco Chronicle was up here. She keeps bees on the roof of the Chronicle building.” The image of bee hives on the roof of the Chronicle building in downtown SF captured me. I wanted to meet this reporter and asked for her name. It was Meredith May.  As Meredith said, “The best interview I ever did came out of that!” And thanks to the connection, she sent me a note when her first bo... posted on Oct 10 2017 (7,417 reads)

the nomadic community of Narikuravars in Tamil Nadu, the only mode of livelihood comes from selling beads on streets or worse, begging. Amidst the various ostracised communities in the state, Narikuravars are a marginalised group who continue to be shunned from mainstream society and have no access to primary opportunities like that of education and employment. However, one young boy’s perseverance in making the world a better place for his community has not just earned him the tag of being the flag bearer of the Narikuravars, but also the nomination for this year’s International Peace Prize for Children. He has achieved this by con... posted on Apr 29 2018 (10,678 reads)

is the telling of a myth part of that? MS: The thing that distinguishes oral storytelling from, say, modern novels or theatre, is that the listener has to do an awful lot of work. Good storytelling is a skeletal activity and what is happening in a room is a hundred people are leaning forward, because their imagination is having to work very hard to conjure flesh out of the wider story. Even listening to stories is not a passive experience. You are meeting the energy of the teller and the images within the story, so the energy is triangulate. CDC: Do you think mythology plays a particular role now in a world which is becoming increasingly fragmented and meaningless? MS: Y... posted on May 13 2018 (7,712 reads)

SCOLARO: So I wanted to begin by asking you what thoughts you’ve been having lately. What’s been on your mind? PICO IYER: Well, after a very crowded and congested year, I’ve managed to steal the last two weeks in almost absolute silence here in Japan. So I suppose I’ve been thinking about the folly of knowing, the virtue of seeing how little we know, and the beauty of just taking a deep breath. Which I’ve written about before, but I haven’t always practised! I’m getting to spend just a few days reading, writing, taking long walks, playing ping-pong every day. And sitting on my terrace in the blazing November sunshine, usually with a cu... posted on May 11 2018 (12,514 reads)

in 1979 in Belgium to a Turkish father and a Swedish mother, Filiz Emma Soyak knew by the age of five that visual art was her calling and way of expression. Her heritage, travels and wanderlust provide continuous inspiration and perspective. Motherhood changed her world and signified a major shift in her work to a more mindful practice and a conscious approach. More than ever now she reflects awareness about living in the present. Unu Spiro translates to ‘one breath’ in Esperanto, a language designed to unite, and one in which everything is rooted in the present. I began my one breath paintings as a meditative practice to appreciate the present mome... posted on Jun 8 2018 (11,309 reads)

occur in life. Challenges arise for all of us. The beauty of it all is that these struggles are something which, if attended to, can deeply connect us. Think for a moment about whatever may currently be bringing some difficulty in your life. Perhaps these challenges are manifesting in any or all of the physical, relational, survival or emotional realms. Your experience is perhaps not very easy, but I do have good news for you! You aren’t alone. Some of us have moments in time when everything may seem to be on track, but that is a pretty rare occurrence for most everyone. The universality of this “affliction” hit me while driving recently on Highway 1 ... posted on Sep 6 2018 (10,103 reads)