See the Seeds of Change Grown by One Bronx Woman , by Chris Peak
first plant that changed my life was a tomato,” says Karen Washington, a black urban farmer in the Bronx. “It was the one fruit that I used to hate.” But after watching one that she’d grown shift in hue from green to yellow to red and taking a bite of it, she was instantly hooked. “When I tasted that tomato, when it was red and it was ripe, and I picked it off the vine, [it]…changed my world because I never tasted anything so good, so sweet. I wanted to grow everything.” For a quarter century, all manner of trees and flowers, fruits and vegetables, have thrived across abandoned lots in the Bronx because of Washington. Deemed &ldq... posted on May 13 2017 (8,407 reads)

What Grace Lee Boggs Would’ve Taught Activists in This Moment , by Stephen Murphy-Shigematsu
principles to help you avoid burnout and continue working toward a better world. Thanks to recent events, many people have felt motivated to march in the streets, call their congressional representatives, or even make protest art. People who have never seen themselves as activists are now feeling the need to do something. Veteran activists are facing the challenge of a renewed effort without suffering burnout. Many of us are feeling a sense of fatigue, after months and months of threats to civil liberties, human rights, and the integrity of our institutions. At such a time, we all need to know how to sustain activism over the long run. Mindfulness offers a way. For many o... posted on Jun 23 2017 (10,065 reads)

21 Lessons in Leadership from an Uncommon Master, by Kelly Wendorf
Pignon is a gifted horseman, artist and the original visionary behind the world-renowned equine spectacular Cavalia. I recently had the good fortune of learning from him during a clinic here in New Mexico. In poignant serendipity, his US tour was a last-minute solution to the French government’s continued cancellation of large events (including his) in response to terror attacks. If you watch Frédéric on stage, you’ll see him amidst many fiery horses, freely expressing themselves alongside him in expertly choreographed musical unison—a breathtaking improvisational display of love, passion, reciprocity and trust in action. It... posted on Feb 13 2018 (22,824 reads)

The Happiness Multiplier Effect, by Tracy Matsue Loeffelholz & Clo Copass
How Money Influences Your Happiness (and Vice Versa) For a joyful economy, spread the wealth. Tracy Matsue Loeffelholz and Clo Copass, posted Dec 08, 2017 ... posted on Aug 20 2018 (11,825 reads)

No Better Place to Meet Yourself, by Moussa Ag Assarid
Ag Assarid (MAA): I don’t know my age. I was born in the Sahara desert, with no papers. I was born in a nomadic camp of Touaregs, between Timbuktu and Gao, in the north of Mali. [...] J: What do they do for a living? MAA: We shepherd camels, goats, sheep, cows and donkeys in a kingdom of infinite and of silence… J: Is the desert really so silent? (MAA): If you are on your own in that silence you hear your heart beat. There is no better place to meet yourself. J: What memories do you have of your childhood in the desert? MAA: I wake up with the Sun. The goats of my father are there. They give us milk and meat, and we take them were there is water and ... posted on Mar 22 2018 (11,593 reads)

6 Causes of Burnout at Work, by Jill Suttie
burnout is on the rise, according to several surveys. People are feeling emotionally exhausted, detached from their work and colleagues, and less productive and efficacious. This makes them more likely to suffer health consequences, need sick days, and quit their jobs. Not too surprisingly, burnout has become even more prevalent during the pandemic, particularly among health care professionals, causing widespread concern. But, while many employers recognize the problem, they often don’t recognize the solutions, says journalist Jennifer Moss, author of the new book The Burnout Epidemic: The Rise of Chronic Stress and How We Can Fix It. ... posted on Nov 22 2021 (5,277 reads)

Mary Ruefle's Stunning Color Spectrum of Sadnesses, by Mary Ruefle
is the dumb silence of slumber or apathy… the fertile silence of awareness, pasturing the soul… the silence of peaceful accord with other persons or communion with the cosmos,” Paul Goodman wrote half a century ago in his taxonomy of the nine kinds of silence. Like silence, sadness too occupies a vast spectrum of hues; sadness too can be menacing — but it can also be beautiful, bountiful in its portality to other realms. Such is the rare, rapturous awareness with which the poet Mary Ruefle paints the color spectrum of sadnesses speckling her slim, miraculous collection of prose poems, meditations, divinations, and deviations My Pr... posted on Aug 21 2022 (5,897 reads)

The Art of Lying Fallow, by Maria Popova
suspect our ability to ask the unanswerable questions that Hannah Arendt knew are the heartbeat of civilization is intimately related to our capacity for dwelling in a particular state of being beyond the realm of our compulsive doing. Bertrand Russell called it “fruitful monotony.” Adam Phillips called it “fertile solitude.” Walt Whitman called it “loafing.” The Buddhist tradition describes it simply as presence. Whatever we may call it, amid a culture of filling the existential void with cultish productivity and an endless stream of dopamine-laced distractions, it is nothing less than a countercultural act of courage and r... posted on Apr 20 2023 (5,067 reads)

Jonathan Haidt: The Psychology of Self-Righteousness, by On Being
it comes to moral judgments, we think we are scientists discovering the truth, but actually we are lawyers arguing for positions we arrived at by other means.” The surprising psychology behind morality is at the heart of social psychologist Jonathan Haidt’s research. He explains “liberal” and “conservative” not narrowly or necessarily as political affiliations, but as personality types — ways of moving through the world. His self-described “conservative-hating, religion-hating, secular liberal instincts” have been challenged by his own studies. What follows is the transcript of an On Being interview between Krista Tippett... posted on Sep 21 2018 (17,576 reads)

Say Wow: A Conversation with Poet Chelan Harkin, by Awakin Call Editors
follows is the edited transcript of Chelan Harkin's Awakin Call Mark Peters:  So it’s now my honor to introduce Chelan. Chelan has been channeling ecstatic poetry for more than a decade now and has published two popular collections of her work, Susceptible to Light and Let Us Dance: The Stumble and Whirl with the Beloved, both of which were released in 2021. Her books aim to remind readers of their inherent joy, to support modes of relating to life that open the heart, and to deconstruct anything about God that doesn’t feel intimate, authentic, and warm. Her publishing journey has been supported by mystical connections and prayer experim... posted on Apr 1 2023 (4,644 reads)

Addressing Social Injustice with Compassion, by Awakin Call Editors
Rhonda Magee is a faculty member at the University of San Francisco law school, an expert in contemplative pedagogy, the President of the Board of the Center for Contemplative Minds in Society, and a teacher of mindfulness-based stress reduction interventions for lawyers and law students. She has spent her career exploring the interrelationship between law, philosophy, and notions of justice and humanity. Having grown up in a segregated North Carolina, Magee developed an early interest in racial and social justice, as well as a deep sense of spirituality and inner work - both aspects of her personal life that profoundly inform her daily work. In this Awakin call conversation, with ... posted on Jun 1 2017 (14,046 reads)

Atul Gawande: What Matters in the End, by On Being
follows is the transcript of an On Being interview between Krista Tippett and Atul Gawande. Transcript Krista Tippett, host: What does a good day look like? This is the question that transformed Atul Gawande’s practice of medicine. He’s a citizen physician on frontiers of human agency and meaning in light of what modern medicine makes possible. And for the millions who have read his book, Being Mortal, he’s also opened new conversation about the ancient human question of death and what it might have to do with life. [music: “Seven League Boots” by Zoë Keating] Atul Gawande: The conversation I felt like I was having was, do we fight,... posted on Jan 11 2018 (29,029 reads)

Navigating the Transition into Caregiving, by Donna Thompson, Zachary White
at Occupy Portland, October 21, 2011. Flickr/K.Kendal via Wikimedia Commons. CC BY 2.0. Personal transformation is usually an experience we actively seek out - not one that hunts us down. But in the twenty-first century, becoming a caregiver is a transformation that comes at us because today the ‘call to care’ is at odds with the imperative of work and the call to individual achievement. Being a caregiver is not something most people think or dream about, let alone prepare for, even though it’s a role many of us will inhabit, since there are approximately 43 million informal caregivers in the United States and 6.5 million caregivers in t... posted on Jun 6 2019 (10,291 reads)

Gathering as a Form of Leadership, by Tami Simon
18, 2018 Tami Simon: This program is brought to you buy SoundsTrue.com. At SoundsTrue.com, you can find hundreds of downloadable audio learning programs plus books, music, videos, and online courses and events. At SoundsTrue.com, we think of ourselves as a trusted partner on the spiritual journey, offering diverse, in-depth, and life-changing wisdom. SoundsTrue.com. You're listening to Insights at the Edge. Today my guest is Priya Parker. Priya is a facilitator and strategic advisor. She's the founder of Thrive Labs, at which she helps activists, elected officials, corporate executives, educators, and philanthropists create transformative gatherings. She work... posted on Sep 19 2019 (7,246 reads)

Giving Your Heart Over to Real Change , by Tami Simon
Simon: You’re listening to Insights at the Edge. Today, my guest is Sharon Salzberg. Sharon is a beloved meditation teacher and a New York Times bestselling author. She’s the co-founder of the Insight Meditation Society in Barre, Massachusetts, the host of the Metta podcast. And she’s created several audio meditation guides and courses with Sounds True, along with being a wisdom teacher, featured as part of Sounds True’s Inner MBA program, where she teaches on loving-kindness at work. For Sharon, the practice of meditation and inner inquiry are deeply connected to working on real change in the world. Here, she talks about what it ... posted on Apr 8 2022 (2,724 reads)

Let Us Make Sanctuary, by Tami Simon
follows is the syndicated transcript of a SoundsTrue interview between Tami Simon and Bayo Akomolafe. You can listen to the audio version of the interview here. Tami Simon: Welcome to Insights at the Edge, produced by Sounds True. My name’s Tami Simon. I’m the founder of Sounds True. In this session, we have a super special guest, a new friend of mine, someone whom I find tremendously heart-opening, and I would say mind-shattering. Someone who, in my experience, has opened my mind to new ways of looking at things. His name is Bayo Akomolafe, and he’s from Nigeria, living now in India with his wife and two children. And he’s going to be talkin... posted on Jun 16 2022 (2,494 reads)

Carrie Newcomer: Asking the Right Questions in Song, by Awakin Call Editors
follows is the edited transcript of an Awakin Calls interview with Carrie Newcomer. You can listen to the full audio recording of the conversation here. Preeta Bansal:  Thank you so much. What an honor to be in conversation today with Carrie Newcomer, who is an absolute national treasure. She is a singer, songwriter, recording artist, and educator. The Boston Globe described her as a “prairie mystic” and Rolling Stone wrote that she is one who “asks all the right questions.” She has been called a “conversational, introspective” songwriter who “celebrates and savors the ordinary sacred moments of life&rdquo... posted on Jul 15 2023 (2,846 reads)

THE SCIENCE OF ATTENTION, by On Being
courtesy of Adele Diamond ADELE DIAMOND: Well, certainly it does change, I certainly don't mean to say that the unconscious is not you and there's someone else [laughs] pulling the strings. KRISTA TIPPETT, HOST: My thinking about the education I received, about school testing, and about what I want for my children will never be the same after this conversation I had with the neuroscientist Adele Diamond. What Adele Diamond is learning about the brain is turning some of our most modern ideas about education on their heads. What nourishes the human spirit, the whole person, also hones our minds. I’m Krista Tippett, and this is On Being. ... posted on Dec 6 2014 (26,742 reads)

Jacob Needleman: Money and the Meaning of Life, by awakin.org
(Host): Today, our guest is none other than Jacob Needleman, someone who really embodies today's theme and hopefully we'll be able to dive into on, "Money and the meaning of life." We are really looking forward to it. I know I am, personally. I really want to thank all of you for joining us. Our theme for this week is " Money and the meaning of life". Our guest today wrote that, " we as humans are uniquely beings of two natures. The material, which is focused on the world of action and doing and the spiritual or transcendent, longing for something higher greater and more inclusive of the ordinary self. He has noted that our great possibility... posted on Jul 4 2015 (8,690 reads)

Good Morning, Beautiful Business!, by Judy Wicks
E. F. SCHUMACHER LECTURES OCTOBER 2004, STOCKBRIDGE, MA EDITED BY HILDEGARDE HANNUM Judy Wicks is one of my heroes. She is a single woman who built and runs a financially successful business, which at the same time is socially responsible and ecologically accountable. The White Dog Cafe not only serves regionally grown organic food but actively supports the network of farmers who grow that food. Staff share in profits and decision-making. The White Dog Cafe hosts community discussions around global issues of peace, renewable energy, rights of workers in countries around the world, hab... posted on Apr 17 2018 (7,792 reads)