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This past weekend I was a theology nerd with over 100 people watching online as Ilia Delio, John D. Caputo, Diarmuid O’Murchu, Catherine Keller, Bruce Epperly, Rami Shapiro, Brandon Ambrosino, and Emily DeMoor spoke at the God 2.0: Pantheism and Quantum Reality conference organized by the Center for Christogenesis. It was only two weeks ago that I was dazzled by Ilia Delio and others at the D2 Conference on the Noosphere (the term coined by Teilhard de Chardin 100 years ago referring to and emerging global consciousness.) I consider the God 2.0 conference a glimpse into a positive future for religion and spirituality, while others might call it "radical theology." Ilia Delio challenged: "What if God is not an unchangeable, all-knowing, all-powerful, Being, as claimed by classical monotheistic religions? "Medieval scholars attributed to God the qualities of immutability, omniscience, and omnipotence, but science tells us that "being" is chaotic, uncertain, unfolding, and entangled!" Sister Delio sees a "Not-Yet-God" (also the title of her 2023 book by that name.) in the process of continually becoming, rather than static. Her presentation Can God be Upgraded? Lessons from Science about God was about changing assumptions and key concepts - reinterpretation, reevaluation, reconstruction, and redefinition. "The universe is a temporal drama of awakening whose meaning can be revealed only gradually by looking, in a spirit of anticipation and hope, toward the horizon of a cosmic future." "The nature of the universe is undivided wholeness and religion should be about relational wholeness." Panelists discussed the urgent need to upgrade theology, particularly in light of quantum physics, cosmology, evolution, and rapid technological advances such as artificial intelligence. We need a new "religion of the earth' to bind us together, to effectively address global, existential threats, and to evolve to higher levels of consciousness and a hopeful future. As Ilia implores in her 2020 book, "AI shows the critical need to reconstruct religion for a world of evolution and complexity... religion is the linchpin to the future of AI-mediated cosmic intelligent life... an AI world, oriented by new religious sensibilities, can bring about an ecological re-enchantment of the earth." Jack Caputo spoke about Something Spooky is Going On: Taking a Quantum Approach to God. He took his point of departure from Tillich’s “Two Types of the Philosophy of Religion, and argued that the two types, the cosmological (theist) and ontological (panentheist), also describe the difference between the respective logics of Newtonian and quantum physics. "The world of quantum reality abides by the logic of the ontological, of ground and grounded, not of the cosmological, of cause and effect." Catherine Keller addressed Earth Matters: Generation, Motivation, Eco-civilization. The old modern materialistic view of the world since Newton is that matter at base inert, lifeless, flat, “stuff.” But Keller argued that matter should "not merely be understood as substance or stuff, but as process, an active process of materialization. This shift in perspective has implications for human's relationship with our ecosystem and all creatures." Diarmuid O’Murchu spoke on Grounding Evolutionary Consciousness in our Time, stressing the need for humans to reconnect with nature and how creativity in evolution has made humans exceptional. He said "Ever since the visionary work of Teilhard de Chardin, evolution has become an ever more central feature of our understanding of life at every level. In our time Sr. Ilia Delio has brought that awareness to a new level of coherence and conviction. How to ground that vision still remains a formidable challenge, particularly for the emerging spirituality of the 21st century." Bruce Epperly presented The God, Theology, and Spirituality of Tradition and Tomorrow: 2.0 and Beyond saying that “Pierre Teilhard de Chardin challenges us to seek the God of Tomorrow. A prolific author, Epp[erly is slowly entering retirement after "a career of over four decades of creative synthesis of academic theology and pastoral ministry." Rabbi Rami Shapiro, himself a panentheist, expounded that "God is Everything" as he explored the I AM/Ehyeh that is Everything/YHVH revealed in Exodus 3:14-15. Brandon Ambrosino offered a theopoetic exploration of the process of God becoming: Gods who Rise, Fall, and Become: Psalm 82 and Entangled Love. God’s character is not the result of being; God is only because of the process of loving. In the order of being, compassion is primary. All this was very heady, abstract, and complex - unfortunately, not something that is easily communicated. In some respects, the conversation is familiar, as I had read books by Caputo, Keller, O'Murchu, and Epperly a decade ago. The writings of Ilia Delio are newer to me as are those of Teilhard de Chardin and modern scientists who acknowledge a global movement toward realizing this new Omega. I believe the Noosphere is both real and very important. Emily DeMoor brought the conference to a close with a 35-minute liturgical grounding experience of devotion to the Divine within - not a supernatural, interventionist God, but a relational whole without a center and with no circumference. I don't expect that congregations (churches, temples, and mosques), their leaders, and their institutional organizations will be quick to give up the "guy in the sky" and embrace this new understanding of God. However, I am still "hoping against hope!" "The true function of religion is 'to sustain and spur on the progress of life - to nurture the 'human zest for life.' Religion is another name for the energy of cosmic personalization and unification."

In Charles Darwin's 1859 book On The Origin of Species, he poetically says "There is a grandeur in this view of life, with its several powers having been originally breathed by the Creator into a few forms or into one..." Evolutionary biologist David Sloan Wilson pays homage to Darwin in his 2019 book This View of Life, and dares to elaborate on Pierre Teilhard de Chardin's 100-year-old notion of Noosphere that envisions the emergence of a global consciousness and self-regulating superorganism called the Omega. Wilson asserts that the Darwinian revolution won’t be truly complete until an "evolutionary worldview" is applied more broadly—to everything associated with the words “human,” “culture,” and “policy.” Wilson uses the phrase "evolutionary worldview" more than "evolutionary theory" because a worldview can tell us how to act - "the Omega Point is not only a scientific possibility, but also one worth working toward." (p. 222) An evolutionary worldview provides a "general explanatory framework that identifies why best practices work and how they can be spread across all domains of knowledge and policy applications." (p.230) "An evolutionary worldview encompasses the length and breadth of human experience in addition to the biological sciences." p. 112) The first step in conscious evolution toward viewing the whole planet as a single organism is to challenge the current orthodoxy and adopt the right theory." The book is aspirational "If we can become wise managers of evolutionary processes, we can solve the problems of our age at all scales—from the efficacy of our groups to our well-being as individuals to our stewardship of the planet Earth." I strongly recommend you consider adopting this view of life.

Rabbi Rami M. Shapiro formed the One River Foundation with Frank Levy as "a global community of spiritually independent seekers, creatives, activists, and holy rascals teaching "Perennial Wisdom" as an antidote to the tribalism, ignorance, illiberalism, racism, misogyny, xenophobia, homophobia, and apocalyptic fantasies tearing our communities apart, and inhibiting the thriving of person and planet." They do this "through their One River Wisdom School in Nashville TN and their books Perennial Wisdom for the Spiritually Independent: Sacred Teachings—Annotated & Explained (2013) and The World Wisdom Bible (2017) Richard Rohr wrote the Foreword to Rami Shapiro's 2013 book. referring to Perennial Wisdom as "collective unconscious, globalization or the One Spirit of God. One way to summarize the essence of "perennial wisdom" is: There is a Divine Reality underneath and inherent in the world of things; There is in the human soul a natural capacity, similarity, and longing for this Divine Reality; The final goal of existence is union with this Divine Reality. Matthew Fox wrote One River, Many Wells: Wisdom Springing From Global Faiths in 2000. Thomas Berry notes that out of the world's spiritual literature, and "with reference to the discovery of an emergent universe by contemporary science, he has, it seems, created a new mythic context for leading us out of our contemporary religious and spiritual confusion into a new clarity of mind and peace of soul, by affirming rather than abandoning any of our traditional beliefs.”

USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map, 2023. from the Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture. Accessed from https://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/ The 2023 interactive edition of the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map (PHZM) is now available online here. "The new PHZM is generally about one quarter-zone warmer than reported in the 2012 PHZM throughout much of the United States." But since the USDA PHZM represents 30-year averages of what are essentially extreme weather events and climate changes are usually based on trends in overall annual average temperatures recorded over 50-100 years, the USDA is careful to disclaim that "changes in zones are not reliable evidence of whether there has been global warming." You be the judge. GIS data can now be downloaded directly from the PRISM Climate Group at Oregon State University (OSU). "All Plant Hardiness Zone Maps (PHZM) should serve as general guides for growing perennial plants. They are based on the average lowest temperatures, not the lowest ever. In 2021 PRISM released 30-Year Normal Precipitation maps based on datasets from 1991-2020 describing average monthly and annual conditions over the most recent three full decades. PRISIM;s Drought Indicator shows much of western Oregon in yellow at 70-90% precipitation this past 12 months compared with long-term (30-Year) averages. This new 2023 version of the Plant Hardiness Zone Map has several interactive features. In addition to the capabilities listed above, there are several "widgets" that can be found below the Zip Code Search in the map. Most of Rogue Valley is now in zone 8a (15-20 degrees F), with surrounding hill/mountain areas and Ashland in zone 8b (10-15). An earlier 1990 PHZM map showed Medford in zone 7b (5-10 degrees F)! Brookings OR is now zone 10a. Jackson County Master Gardeners (Oregon State University Extension Service) is having a 2024 Master Gardener Class Interest Meeting on December 13, 2023 from 10- 11 a.m. PT in Central Point, OR. The Jackson County Master Gardener Association chapter of the OSU Master Gardener™ Program also has a separate website. to help us "Learn, Practice, and Teach the Art and Science of Gardening in the Rogue Valley". They have a virtual tour of native plant gardens across the Rogue Valley to help us adapt to climate change.

The Earth Charter (EC) is "a document crafted by visionaries over twenty years ago with sixteen principles powering a global movement. The EC enunciates the values and principles by which sustainable development can be achieved. When you apply it to your business, school, or community, you begin turning conscience into action to make all life on Earth thrive.' The purpose of the Earth Charter is "to inspire in all people a new sense of global interdependence and shared responsibility for the well-being of the whole human family, the greater community of life, and future generations. It is a vision of hope and a call to action." Earth Charter International now has info on speakers and abstracts for their 2024 Earth Charter Conference to take place on April, 12-14, 2024 at Rollins College, Winter Park, Florida. Among the Conference speakers will be Mary Evelyn Tucker who will "shed light on the imperative of ‘ecological civilization’ as a transformative educational approach for addressing our current challenges." Stay informed by regularly checking EC's continuously updated Speakers and Abstracts Brochure here. Register for the Conference here. "The activities of the Earth Charter International Education Center highlight the importance of incorporating sustainability values and principles into the processes of learning and decision-making. The Center forges new paths in education for sustainable development, global citizenship education, and makes efforts to connect these with concepts such as planetary well-being and ecological literacy." "The Center’s work is implemented under the framework of the UNESCO Chair on Education for Sustainable Development with the Earth Charter, which works to generate educational programs and research activities specifically at the intersection of sustainability, ethics, and education." In September 2022 the UN organized a “Transforming Education Summit,” convened “in response to a global crisis in education – one of equity and inclusion, quality and relevance”. It emphasized that “many education systems are not providing students with the skills, knowledge, and values needed to face the current challenges." "The world needs to reimagine the education system.” ~ United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG 4.7) aims for learners to acquire by 2030, the knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development, including education for sustainable lifestyles, global citizenship, climate justice, gender equality, and so on. UNESCO’s Futures of Education Initiative produced a report titled Reimagining Our Futures Together: A New Social Contract for Education. It highlights the importance of considering education as a holistic process, involving the “heart, hands, and mind.” It promotes efforts to rethink content and pedagogy and to support teachers as agents of change.

November 30 - December 12, 2023 - in person only in Dubai- The United Nations Climate Change Conference COP 28 Pre-sessionals took place from 24 to 29 November. The overview schedule of the conference is now available. The detailed calendar of events will be published daily throughout the conference. December 7, 2023, at 1 p.m. PT on Zoom - Spirituality Communities is having their monthly webinar Global Kinship, Exploring the Emerging Noosphere addressing the phenomenon of the complexification of human creativity, technology, and consciousness that has evolved within our species. Register here. December 9, 2023, from 3-6 p.m. PT - SOCAN will have a Solstice Gathering to celebrate the season and to enjoy good food, drink, and company. Bring an appetizer or dessert to share and your choice of beverage. Nonalcoholic spiced cider will be provided. Register here. December 10, 2023, from 1 to 3 p.m. - Ashland Climate Collaborative is having a Photo Day at the Plaza entrance to Lithia Park. Photo at 2 p.m. sharp. Everyone who cares about meeting our climate goals is invited. Please RSVP here so they can bring enough goodies. December 20, 2023, at 4 p.m. PT on Zoom - UU Ministry for Earth will celebrate the Winter Solstice early with music, reflection, meditation, and spiritual grounding. They will be featuring the work of the Energy Democracy Project. The service is part of the larger arc of Clean Energy as a Human Right being led by Side with Love. Register Here For. the Zoom Link. December 26, 2023 - SOCAN will NOT be having its Monthly Meeting this month. January 13, 2024, to June 16, 2024, from 9-12:30 p.m. PT - Pachamama Alliance is offering a 6-month course: Cultivating the Visionary Self, a journey where individuals will work with their bodies through what Alixa García calls "Creativity Infused Somatic Practices," which helps move trauma through the body by consciously activating one's relationship with nature and the creative force. Click here for more information and to Register.

Southern Oregon Climate Action Now (SOCAN) has announced that "our fundraising campaign “Reaching a New Level of Climate Action” was very successful, and as a result, we are hiring our first Executive Director!" SOCAN, founded in 2012, has operated as a volunteer-led organization for over a decade, promoting awareness and understanding of the science of climate change and, through the framework of promoting climate justice, encouraging individual and local, state, and federal collective action to address the crisis. SOCAN has now decided to seek its first salaried staff member, an Executive Director. Information regarding this position is available at https://socan.eco/2023campaign/. The job description is available at https://socan.eco/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/First-ED-Job-Description.pdf. From a press release.

Bill Watterson, creator of the revered comic strip Calvin and Hobbes, released in October 2023 a new graphic novel The Mysteries — his first published work in the 28 years since Calvin and Hobbes ended. In the YouTube video above Watterson narrates his collaboration process with artist John Kascht. As Polygon notes, "Kascht’s realistic style and methodical, researched process clashed almost irreconcilably with Watterson’s intense need to keep things sketched and improvised... After a year’s work, the pair dumped everything they had created and started over, realizing that juxtaposing their clashing styles within one image created interesting results with a “weird energy.” “Things clicked when we gave up,” Kascht says." “Working through differences toward a common purpose is practically an act of defiance these days, and I’m as proud of that as of any other aspect of the collaboration,” Watterson says." My recent experiences with Human Energy's Science of the Noosphere Master Class and the N2 Conference are examples of the creative mashup between scientific and spiritual worldviews, working through differences toward a common purpose. The N2 Conference defined itself as "Beyond the Individual" - "an international, interdisciplinary conference fostering creative collaboration for intentionally and ethically steering the future evolution of global consciousness." There was more congeniality at the D2 Conference than in the Master Class, partly because a few disrupters in the Master Class were noticeably absent (because of self-selection) from the D2 Conference, and partly because of actual face-to-face conversations rather than online meetings. However, However, I believe the synergy was primarily due to the intentionality of diverse people, engaged in a common search to find out how to accelerate the rapid expansion of the Noosphere. At D2 we felt part of something bigger than ourselves as individuals and there was an openness to learn from others' points of view. Appreciation and mutual respect were shared among those in the Conference. Diversity evolved into unity because of intentionality. Speaking about both the diversity and unity of the presenters, Robert Wright expressed the sense of collaboration at the D2 Conference: "A number of them I had been keeping in different parts of my brain: David Sloan Wilson I had filed under evolutionary science; Kevin Kelly is a techno-visionary; and Brian Swimme expressed a kind of cosmic spirituality... and now, here they all are in the same room. And that's the kind of synergy that this Conference is all about!" At the N2 Conference there was lots of discussion about how to best communicate a "Third Story." Dr. Clement Vidal identified the psychological resistances and affordances to the idea of the Noosphere by the public at large. Francis Heylighen has been developing a mathematical model to link the philosophical idea of the Third Story as an alternative to traditional religious and scientific stories. Storytellers such as Jennifer Morgan have written age-appropriate children's books to communicate understanding of the universe and evolution. Emily DeMoor presented alternative literary narratives that may be used in secondary-level English language arts courses. Ellen Rigsby talked about college students' understanding of the concepts of the noosphere and the need for developing the human capacity to steer evolution to deal with problems that affect all of humanity. John Cressler presented the challenges and successes of nurturing the Noosphere on college campuses. Film-makers were concerned about using concepts, words, and images that are clearly understood. Teilhard scholar and theologian Ilia Delio uses the word "myth" to identify the importance of science-appropriate worldviews, suggesting religion needs to be updated from ancient Greek and medieval assumptions to be consistent with current scientific understandings. “A myth is always a true story because it narrates a sacred history, not necessarily a factual history, but one that has meaning and value for human life. Myths are true in that they have the symbolic and imaginative power to make us aware of the unity of reality in its greatest depth and breadth” ~ Ilia Delio Collaboration in "steering the future evolution of global consciousness" is the goal of Human Energy. Other organizations such as Pachamama Alliance are seeing the need to share a "New Story"- Love, Wonder, and Climate Action: Crafting a New Narrative, On November 15, 2023, they had a webinar with Alixa Garcia, Robin Wall Kimmerer, and Bill McKibben about the importance of expressing the awe, wonder, and the sheer miracle of being alive in this vast universe.

Thoughts from NPR as you reflect on what makes you most thankful today, think about how to take that energy with you in your daily life: ❤️ Before the first Thanksgiving, local Wampanoags and Indigenous people throughout North America gathered to give thanks 13 times throughout the lunar calendar year. ❤️ Practicing gratitude has benefits to your mental and physical health. NPR's Life Kit spoke to psychologists to create a guide to get better at cultivating gratitude. ❤️ It doesn't take much to find something joyful to be thankful for. Start small with what researchers call "micro-acts" that boost wellbeing.

December 1-3, 2023 online only on Zoom - The Center for Christogenesis is having its Annual Conference: GOD 2.0: Pantheism and Quantum Reality which will explore "how science, culture, and scripture can help us appreciate a wider, more expansive understanding of God in ways that empower us to creatively contribute to the wholeness we seek." Featured speakers include Ilia Delio, Brandon Ambrosino, Jack Caputo, Bruce Epperly, Rami Shapiro, and Catherine Keller. For more information and registration click here. The cost is $180. All registrants will receive recordings of the events. "God is an incomprehensible mystery and our approach to the mystery is shaped by ways of knowing the real, a type of knowledge that cannot be fixed or located in any one age."

I just returned from the N2 Conference held November 17-19, 2023 at the International House in the University of California Berkeley campus. It was called The Future of Human Collective Consciousness. N2 was 'an international, interdisciplinary conference fostering creative collaboration for intentionally and ethically steering the future evolution of global consciousness." It was a celebration of the 100th anniversary of the identification of the noosphere, “N2” signals the exponential pace of the evolution of the noosphere and the reality that the next century will far exceed the last in rapid and radical change to the global mind." The N2 Conference was organized by Human Energy, a non-profit research, media, and educational organization dedicated to introducing the noosphere as a Third Story of the universe that can provide a source of meaning and hope for future generations. The event featured thought leaders, scholars across fields, and eminent scientists, including Philip Beesley, Johan Bollen, Anne Clin, John Cressler, Terrence Deacon, Ilia Delio, Ben Goertzel, Francis Heylighten, Kevin Kelly, Robert Lawrence Kuhn, Jaron Lanier, Wolfgang Leidhold, Raphael Liogier, Louis Savary, Gregory Stock, Brian Thomas Swimme, David Sloan Wilson, and others. The program includes plenary and concurrent sessions featuring invited and selected presentations and a selected poster exhibit. Interactive formats that prioritize discussion and application are welcomed. Live streams of the Plenary speakers were recorded and available on YouTube and below. My blog post is not the official N2 Conference website and the (start times) were for my convenience of reviewing the presentations. Day 1 streamed live on Nov 17, 2023. Ben Kacyra - Welcoming remarks Human Energy founder and President Sheila Hassell Hughes - Conference Co-Chair (live video Day 1 start) Terrence Deacon - On Being a Noospheric Species (.35) Jacob Foster - Panel from Boundaries of Humanity (1.33) Manasvi Lingam - On Some Informational Aspects of the Noosphere and Beyond (2.11) Robert Lawrence Kuhn - A Landscape of Consciousness in the Noosphere: Toward a Taxonomy of Explanations and Implications (3.32) Ilia Delio - Can Science Alone Advance the Noosphere? Understanding Teilhard’s Omega Principle (4:20 video 1 and continued on video 2) Ilia Delio (continued on Day 1 live video 2) Keith Lemna - Polarity in the Noosphere: Reading Teilhard through Pope Francis (.51 on Day 1 live video 2) John Haught - The Meaning of "Noosphere" in Teilhard's Cosmic Vision (1:27 live video 2) Jaron Lanier (2:20 live video 2) Day 2 streamed live on Nov 18, 2023: Ben Goertzel - AGI and Collective Intelligence: Critical Synergies (.7) Raphael Liogier - Transcendence and Modernity: Beyond the Misconception (1:23) Johan Bollen - CollectiveEemotions: Distortions and Belief Traps (2:29) Clément Vidal - A Human Energy White Paper (3:27) Kevin Kelly - The Evidence for an Expanded Noosphere (4:07) Jennifer Morgan - Shaping Noospheric Adults from Early Childhood through the Secondary Level (5:22) Marta Lenartowicz - The Noospheric Frame of Mind (5:55) Gregory Stock - LLMs: Noospheric Portals that may redefine the distinction between Individual and Collective Mind (6:57) Elizabeth Lee - Connectivity and Cultural Heritage: Enabling access to humanity's rich legacy (9:42) Day 3 streamed live on Nov 19, 2023: Francis Heylighen - The Third Story: Self-organizing Evolution as a Source of Meaning (.start at .45) Michael Jacob, Ilia Delio, Terrence Deacon & Francis Heylighen - Transdisciplinary Language for Noospheric Consciousness: Neuroscience, Music, Mysticism (2.02) David Sloan Wilson - The Science of the Noosphere Master Class: An Experiment in Worldview Evolution (4.02) Robert Wright - How Right Was Teilhard? (4.43) Brian Thomas Swimme - Noospheric Experience (7.32) Wolfgang Leidhold (8.01)

November 16, 2023 at noon PT - Electrify Now! is hosting a webinar: All About Gas Leaks. "From catastrophic well leaks to the daily seepage from our stoves, gas leaks are a major reason why “natural” gas (methane) poses such a threat to our health and climate." "Through the lens of one city that is working to understand its gas leak situation, a panel of experts will explain why gas leaks are a major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions and the risk to the health of communities, as well as who is accountable for fixing these leaks." Find out more at Ashland Climate Collaborative. Register for this free event by clicking this link or visit Electrifynow.net.

On November 16, 2023, at 6:00 a.m. PT the Institute For The Future is having a Foresight Talk: Dreams and Disruptions: Gamification for the Future with Shermon Cruz, Chair of the Association of Professional Futurists. Register here. 'Games transport us to imaginative scenarios. They empower us to alter future outcomes based on our ability to think ahead and make strategic choices. Please join us when Shermon Cruz, Chair of the Association of Professional Futurists, shares the inner workings of “Dreams and Disruptions,” his newly released scenario-building game. Cruz’s methods are based on about two decades of futures work." "To construct and stress-test unthought-of futures, Cruz incorporates time horizons, emerging issues of change (including sentient AI, food poverty, etc.), indigenous and cultural drivers of change, planetary-wide disruptions (nuclear winter, supervolcanic eruptions, etc.), plus leaders and movements using Sarkar's Law of the Social Cycle." "For the Foresight Talk, Cruz will discuss his efforts to accentuate certain elements in scenario development and futures discourse, including the value of randomness; systems thinking; anti-fragility; and decolonial perspectives. Come learn about Cruz’s mission to create a global network of players sharing and uploading their most spectacular futures imaginings — and more about the game that’s been played more than 100 times around the world. " Speaker bio: Shermon Cruz is the UNESCO Chair on Anticipatory Governance and Regenerative at Northwestern University, Philippines. He holds leadership roles as Chair of the Association of Professional Futurists and The Millennium Project Philippines. Prof. Cruz is the CEO, Founder, and Chief Futurist of the Center for Engaged Foresight, a strategic foresight and futures innovation firm with global operations headquartered in Manila. Additionally, he serves as Adjunct Faculty and Director of the Futures Thinking Program at the Asian Institute of Management. https://engagedforesight.com/ Dreams and Disruptions: https://www.dreamsanddisruptions.com/ Association of Professional Futurists:

Rather than talking about abstract ideas, telling a personal story is a more effective way to communicate on an emotional level to have an impact about something important to you. "Climate Stories Project (CSP) is an educational and artistic forum for sharing stories about personal and community responses to climate change. CSP focuses on personal oral histories, which bring an immediacy to the sometimes abstract nature of climate change communication." You can become a Climate Stories Ambassador with the help of CSP tol: Craft and share your own climate story Receive training and guidance to conduct climate story interviews​ Connect with other Climate Story Ambassadors from around the world Learn valuable environmental communication skills Promote an inclusive and effective movement to confront the climate crisis​ "​As an Ambassador, you'll record 1-3 climate story interviews with people in your own community during a 3-month time span. Following the initial online training, you'll take part in two additional online meetings to discuss your progress with other Ambassadors and learn from each other about using climate storytelling to promote an effective response to the climate crisis." Participation is free and open to all. Ambassadors who submit their own story and at least one interview will receive a certificate of completion of the Climate Stories Ambassadors program. Check out the New Mytos Facebook page of author PJ Manney for a broad perspective on storytelling. She authored "Yucky Gets Yummy: How Speculative Fiction Creates Society"​ and "Empathy in the Time of Technology: How Storytelling is the Key to Empathy,"​ foundational works on the neuropsychology of empathy and media.

On Sunday, November 12, 2023 many Indians around the world will be celebrating Diwali, the Indian festival of lights that Hindus, Sikhs, Jains, and Buddhists traditionally observe. Diwali represents the symbolic victory of light over darkness, knowledge over ignorance, and good over evil Diwali is primarily a Hindu festival, but variations of Diwali are also celebrated by adherents of other faiths. According to Pew Research Center Diwali is celebrated by 85% of all adults in India, Which includes the vast majority of Jains (98%), Hindus (95%), and Sikhs (90%), as well as most Buddhists (79%) and large minorities of Christians (31%) and Muslims (20%). Hindus commemorate Diwali as being the day Rama returned to his kingdom in Ayodhya with his wife Sita and his brother Lakshmana after defeating the demon king Ravana. Hindus of Eastern India and Bangladesh generally celebrate Diwali by worshipping the goddess Kali. Jains observe their own Diwali which marks the final liberation of Mahavira. Sikhs celebrate Bandi Chhor Divas to mark the release of Guru Hargobind from a Mughal prison. Newar Buddhists, unlike other Buddhists, celebrate Diwali by worshipping Lakshmi. "The five-day celebration is observed every year in early autumn after the conclusion of the summer harvest... In the lead-up to Diwali, celebrants prepare by cleaning, renovating, and decorating their homes and workplaces with oil lamps and colorful art circle patterns. During Diwali, people wear their finest clothes; illuminate the interior and exterior of their homes with earthen lamps; diyas and rangoli, perform worship ceremonies of Lakshmi (the goddess of prosperity and wealth); light fireworks; and partake in family feasts, where sweets, dried fruit, nuts and gifts are shared." [from Wikipedia] India is the most populous country in the world with one-sixth of the world's population. With over 1.4 billion people, India overtook China to become the most populous country at the end of April 2023.

The N2 Conference - The Noosphere at 100: The Future of Human Collective Consciousness is meeting this week November 17-19, 2023 in Berkeley CA, and I am looking forward to attending in person, having been immersed in Human Energy Project's 10-week Science of the Noosphere Master Class this past summer. From the event website: "N2 is an international, interdisciplinary conference fostering creative collaboration for intentionally and ethically steering the future evolution of global consciousness. Celebrating the 100th anniversary of the identification of the noosphere, “N2” signals the exponential pace of the evolution of the noosphere and the reality that the next century will far exceed the last in rapid and radical change to the global mind. “N2” also suggests how the noosphere amplifies our access to human understanding - beyond the individual “n of 1.” Click here for an overview of the N2 Conference. Plenary speakers are Terrance Deacon, Robert Lawernce Kuhn, Ilia Delio, Jaron Lanier, Ben Goertzel, Clément Vidal, Kevin Kelley, Gregory Stock, Elizabeth Lee, Francis Heylighen, David Sloan Wilson, Robert Wright, and Brian Thomas Swimme. There will also be break-out group meetings and other presenters. Click here for the detailed Conference schedule. N2 is an in-person conference with opportunities for remote participation. Keynotes and selected featured presentations will be live-streamed for open access. Virtual registration will allow remote attendees not only to view the live stream but also to submit questions to the keynote and selected featured presentations and will include a PDF program of all presentation abstracts. Online participation is free. Register here for the Zoom link.

Wayne Teasdale, in chapter 7 of his 2001 book The Mystic Heart, writes about embodying and empowering the prophetic voice for justice, compassion, and world transformation. "The prophetic voice vigorously acknowledges the unjust events and policies that cause enormous tension, misery, and dislocation in the lives of countless numbers of people. Wars; the plight of refugees (most of whom are women and children); unjust economic, social, and political conditions that enrich a small class of rulers while oppressing the masses; threats to the environment - all are matters that should evoke the moral voice and our willingness to respond." ProSocial Spirituality expresses it this way: "The function of the prophetic voice is to be willing to speak truth to power - to call out social and cultural structures, institutions, and systems that create and perpetuate suffering through injustice and oppression. It is to name, bear witness to, and engage in the struggle to change these systems wherever they exist." "The prophetic voice is the dimension and expression of compassion that seeks not only to alleviate existing suffering but address the systemic causes of suffering and transform them. Wayne Teasdale tells us that this prophetic function is “the awakened and utterly necessary function of leadership in the area of justice.” "As our realization of our inextricable interconnectedness grows, we recognize, as Dr. King pointed out, that “injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” And so we are called by conscience and compelled by our vision of the inherent unity of life to work for justice not only for all human beings but, increasingly, all living beings, including animals, living ecosystems, and the earth itself. We understand, again in the words of Dr. King, that “we are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny.” “True compassion is more than flinging a coin to a beggar. It is not haphazard and superficial. It comes to see that an edifice that produces beggars needs restructuring.” ~ Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr "Just as with the many ways we can express compassion and selfless service, the prophetic voice can be expressed and supported in many ways, depending on our own gifts, abilities, talents, and skills. What it asks of all of us, regardless of how we express it, is that we acknowledge and claim our power to be an agent of positive change in the world." "Courageous acts of personal witness to deep inner truth can begin to stir in others the same profound longing to bring their inner values and outer actions and lives into greater congruence. Because the decision to live in a way that is aligned with our inner values and truth may go against the grain of existing structures and prevalent ways of thinking, we may become discouraged trying to explain ourselves to family and friends who don’t share or understand our views. We need kindred spirits to accompany us in embodying and empowering the prophetic voice for social justice and transformative change." “There comes a point where we need to stop just pulling people out of the river. We need to go upstream and find out why they’re falling in.” ~ Archbishop Desmond Tutu Humanity is facing two global threats to life as we know it: climate change and nuclear war. Both are within our ability as a species to solve with appropriate policy actions for the common good. People must insist that world leaders take immediate action to solve the looming climate crisis. Make your voices heard. It is past time for a cease-fire in Gaza! There are dirty hands on both sides. Hamas' atrocities are inexcusable, but Israel's retaliatory response with huge civilian casualties is not proportional to self-protection. Evolutionary leaders are calling for peace.

Terra, the Sustainability Pavilion in Dubai, United Arab Emirates in the Persian Gulf. The United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) will take place November 30- December 12, 2023 at Expo City in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. View the COP 28 UAE thematic program. The overview schedule of the conference is now available; the detailed calendar of events will be published daily throughout the conference. Nov. 30 - Opening Ceremony Dec. 1 - Opening World Climate Action Summit Dec. 2 - G77 & China Summit Dec. 3 - Health/relief, recovery and peace Dec. 4 - Finance/trade/gender equality/accountability Dec. 5 - Energy, industry, and just transition Dec. 6 - Multilevel action, urbanization, and built environment/transport Dec. 8 - Youth, children, education and skills Dec. 9 - Nature, land use, and oceans Dec. 10 - Food, agriculture, and water "In his Pre-COP opening speech On October 30, 2023, Dr. Sultan Al Jaber, the COP28 President, called for unity, action, and multilateralism. Addressing the 70 Ministers and over 100 country delegates present, Dr Sultan was clear: the world needs to do more and seize the opportunity of COP28 to take action and keep 1.5 within reach."

November 1-5, 2023, online - The Work That Reconnects Network is having its first-ever Gaian Gathering. "The event is online and features a curated mix of world-renowned keynote speakers, skill-building workshops, and live practices of the Work That Reconnects. We’ll also have spaces to express our creativity through art and music, and find community through networking designed for meaningful connections." November 2, 2023, at 1 p.m. PT on Zoom - The Global Kinship Group of Creation Spirituality Communities meets every first Thursday of the month at 1 p.m. PT. This month they will have a webinar presentation by Dr. Ursula Goodenough, PhD: Taking Nature to Mind and Heart: Exploring a Religious Naturalist Orientation. Register here. Members of the Global Kinship community also generally meet on the Monday evening following each webinar; this month it will be on November 13, 2023 at 6 p.m. PT for 20 minutes to "turn our attention to the emerging Noosphere to allow the focus and vision of the presenter to enter our own consciousness, thereby expanding the Noosphere through our meditation." Register here. November 3, 2023, at 3 p.m. PT on Zoom - ProSocial World is presenting a free seminar by Sarah Woods: Fateful Lines – How Changing the Story can Change the World, Sarah, an award-winning playwright, and creative systems thinker, will explore "how working with story and pattern can help reveal fateful lines, and support the current challenges we have as a species, living with other species, on a finite planet." This seminar will be especially of interest to those in the arts attuned to an evolutionary perspective. Register here. November 8, 2023, at 10:00 a.m. PT on Zoom - UCC Environmental Ministries is presenting a webinar: From Greenwashing to Environmental Justice. Panelists will provide a critical assessment of the greenwashing and corporate capture of the upcoming Climate Change Conference (COP28), and will also cast an alternative vision and pathway forward. Register here. Rev. Fletcher Harper, Executive Director, GreenFaith Matthew Illian, Director of Responsible Investing, United Church Funds Rev. Chebon Kernell, Executive Director, Native American Comprehensive Plan Cansın Leylim, Associate Director Global Campaigns, 350.org November 9, 2023, in person only - the Garrison Institute will be hosting Metamorphosis: Create the Transformation We Need Now - "a daylong public forum gathering leaders and practitioners in contemplative-based social change. Many notable individuals will lead dialogues and immersion groups, including Mary Evelyn Tucker and John Grim." This is an in-person-only event in New York City. Follow Yale Forum on Religion and Ecology on their Facebook page. November 9, 2023, at 2 p.m. PT on Zoom - IRAS will present a webinar with Frank Schaeffer, artist & theologian: The Loneliness Tsunami: A Second Look at the Sexual Revolution. Register here. November 11, 2023, at 6 p.m. PT - Southern Oregon Climate Action Now (SOCAN) is having a fundraiser Grateful Amicana Benefit Bash at the Bellevue Grange, 1050 Tolman Creek Rd, Ashland, OR. November 14, 2023 - Bioneers Learning is presenting a 4-week course Honoring Your Emotional Ecosystem on Tuesdays starting November 14th through December 5, 2023, from 11 a.m. - to 12:30 p,m., PT led by author, researcher, and emotions-and-empathy expert Karla McLaren, M.Ed., Register here. November 14, 2023, at 5 p.m. PT on Facebook live - Global Ministries is having their EarthKeepers Commissioning celebrating this year’s projects supporting sustainability in resilience, energy, food production, waste management, and more. Fifty-seven leaders will be recognized who are "working to ensure the just restoration and flourishing of God’s creation." Register here. November 17-19 2023 - Human Energy presents the N2 Conference – The Noosphere at 100: The Future of Human Collective Consciousness at the International House, University of California, 2299 Piedmont Ave., Berkeley, CA 94720. The 3-day conference, features thought leaders, scholars across fields, and eminent scientists, including Philip Beesley, Johan Bollen, Anne Clin, John Cressler, Terrence Deacon, Ilia Delio, Ben Goertzel, Francis Heylighten, Kevin Kelly, Robert Lawrence Kuhn, Jaron Lanier, Wolfgang Leidhold, Raphael Liogier, Louis Savary, Gregory Stock, Brian Thomas Swimme, David Sloan Wilson, and others. The program includes plenary and concurrent sessions featuring invited and selected presentations and a selected poster exhibit. The program will be available for free online. November 28, 2023, at 6-7:30 p.m. PT - SOCAN will have their monthly meeting at Medford Public Library, 205 S Central, with Garett Long, Director of Agriculture, Troon Vineyard speaking about Dirty Hands & Clean Hearts: Addressing Soil Health with Biodynamic and Regenerative Farming November 30- December 12, 2023 - in person only in Dubai- The United Nations Climate Change Conference COP 28 Pre-sessionals will take place from 24 to 29 November. The overview schedule of the conference is now available. The detailed calendar of events will be published daily throughout the conference. December 9, 2023, from 3-6 p.m. PT - SOCAN will be having a Solstice Gathering to celebrate the season to enjoy good food, drink, and company. Bring an appetizer or dessert to share and your choice of drink. Nonalcoholic spiced cider will be provided.