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Southern Oregon Climate Action Now (SOCAN) is having its Grateful Americana Benefit Bash fundraiser on November 11, 2023, at 6 p.m. PT at the Bellevue Grange, 1050 Tolman Creek Rd, Ashland, OR. There will be two bands, wine, and appetizers for a fun social time with friends and climate activists. There is no charge for admission, but a donation is suggested. No reply is required. "What about living in Southern Oregon makes us grateful? For some it’s the beautiful forests, for some the rivers and lakes, for some the fishing or the coastal wonders, and for some the winter recreation or world-class wines. All these local delights are threatened by climate change. It’s time to support your friends in as they combat the threat through their campaign: ‘SOCAN: Reaching a new level of Climate Action.’ "Steve Lavering and Mountaintop Sound open the evening with Americana, folk, and a hint of 'grass.' Then, Steve Schein and Shine On round it out with Grateful Dead covers and more Americana. Senator Jeff Golden will join SOCAN to say a few words. SOCAN thanks the bands, plus the following wineries: Troon, South Stage Cellars, the Urban Cork, and Wooldridge Creek for making this event possible. SOCAN has been fighting, and often winning, for Oregon and the planet for over 11 years! How will you show your appreciation?

Here is a partial list of some activities in Rogue Valley and online that may be of interest to spiritual communities and others with eco-sustainability concerns. October 2, 2023, from 6-8 p.m. PT - Join the upcoming Testify to Electrify Workshop at the Ashland Public Library | 410 Siskiyou Blvd, Ashland, OR. This workshop is hosted by Ashland Youth for Electrification to learn more about the policy and prepare testimony in support of the Climate and Clean Air Ordinance. Sign up for the workshop October 3, 2023, at 9:30 a.m. PT online - The BTS Center is starting five Tuesday Book Groups to study: Who Do We Choose to Be: Facing Reality, Claiming Leadership, Restoring Sanity by Margaret J. Wheatley. The dates are October 3, 17, and 31, and November 14 and 28. Plus there will be an online Author Event with Margaret Wheatley on Tuesday, October 24th at 4 p.m. PT Click here for more information and to register. October 4, 2023, at 4 p.m. is the online national launch of Blessed Americas's One Home One Future movement. One Home One Future is "a multifaith campaign to strengthen vitality, relevance, and community connection across generations in local congregations nationwide. It is a coalition effort of American faith denominations and organizations working for visible and collective climate action by faith leaders." Register here. One Home One Future offers seven inspiring pathways to engage: Build Thriving Congregations Support Leaders and Youth Engage & Strengthen Local Communities Work Toward Justice Restore Healthy Creation Strengthen Preparedness Allocate for Climate October 5, 2023, at 1 p.m. PM - Global Kinship presents JD Stillwater on Nature’s Scripture: The Interfaith Promise of Science. "JD’s full-time mission is to lead the wider culture toward a worldview that is more aligned with how reality works. The currently dominant worldview of separation and exploitation only offers imminent planetary catastrophe. To be effective in creating more sustainable systems, we must change the way we think. Global Kinship meets on the first Thursday of the month. Register here. October 7, 2023, from 2-4 p.m. PT - SOCAN has organized a Climate Change Panel presentation at Grants Pass Museum of Art, 229 SW G Street. Presenters will include Ann Chadwick Reed, Natalie Niblack, and Alan Journet. October 9, 2023, at 6 p.m. PT - Global Kinship Meditations - Members of Creation Spirituality's Global Kinship community meet on Monday evening after each webinar for 20 minutes for meditation, turning attention to the emerging Noosphere to allow the focus and vision of our presenter to enter our own consciousness, thereby expanding the Noosphere through our meditation." Register here to receive your personal perpetual link. October 9, 2023 - David Sloan Wilson has created a reading group centered around his novel, Atlas Hugged, starting on October 9th. Atlas Hugged is a fictional portrayal of events that can take place in the real world—the rapid cultural evolution of worldwide cooperation. Admission is free, but a commitment is required to write reflections on the themes of the book, and to share your thoughts with others as part of a scientific research project on worldview evolution. The group will meet weekly online for four 90-minute sessions, starting Monday, October 9, at 6:00 p.m. PT. Learn more and apply here. October 10, 2023 - OLLI at SOU is having a 3-session, weekly, online class taught by Anita Dygert Gearheart on Making Sense of the Climate Crisis. Registration for unlimited OLLI classes for the next three semesters is $150 Learn more here. October 11, 2023, at 10 a.m. PT - Brooks Berndt will moderate a Creation Justice Webinar, with a multi-faith panel of climate leaders that will reflect upon Pope Francis' updated plea for climate action (a "second part" of his encyclical on the climate crisis and inequality on the October 4th feast day of Francis of Assisi,.) Panelists will include: Dan Misleh, Founder, Catholic Climate Covenant Rev. Susan Hendershot, President, Interfaith Power & Light Joelle Novey, Director, Interfaith Power & Light (DC.MD.NoVA) Imam Saffet Catovic, Director, United Nations Operations for Justice For All Even if you cannot make the webinar at its scheduled time on October 11th still sign-up, and we will send you a link to a recording of it. Register now! October 12, 2023, at 4:30 p..m. PT - The SOCAN Climate Action Team in Central Point is meeting at the Central Point Public Library to share ideas (like composting, resilience hubs, energy saving, and creating community awareness) for our planet. RSVP: Pam@socan.eco October 15, 2023, from 3-6 p.m. PT - Rogue Climate is celebrating its 10th Anniversary Block Party & Fundraiser for Climate Justice at its office and parking lot, 205 N. Phoenix Ave., Phoenix, OR. They celebrate the community's accomplishments: "from stopping Jordan Cove LNG, to organizing fire relief efforts, passing legislation to work towards transitioning away from fossil fuels, empowering youth climate leadership, and more." Registration is on a sliding scale from $5 to $150. October 16, 2023, the start date for four, online, Mondays at Noon, - ProSocial World and Charter for Compassion present Becoming Creatures of Boundless Love - a month-long journey through Wayne Teasdale’s Nine Interspiritual Elements, led by Diane Berke, Kate Sheehan Roach, and Susan Soleil. Leaders will "engage in dialogue, contemplative inquiry, and spiritual practice in a way that leaves these nine attributes emblazoned on your own mystic heart." Cost: $40. Register here. October 18, 2023 - A two-year program toward a new EcoSpiritual Direction certificate is starting October 18th and ending June 2025. This unique, first-of-its-kind program "combines the powerful eco-spirituality experiential program of Seminary of the Wild Earth with the leading spiritual direction training center out of California called STILLPOINT, which has been training people to companion others in their lives of faith, spiritual practice and action for forty years." Click here for more information and registration. October 18, 2023 from 6-7:30 p.m. PT and October 26, 2023, from 12:00=1;30 p.m. PT - The City of Ashland OR has scheduled two public engagement meetings at Council Chambers, 1175 East Main Street, for residents to give testimony regarding developing the ordinance to protect our indoor air quality by creating an emissions standard for HVACs and water heaters in new construction. . Earlier in September, the Ashland Youth for Electrification campaign held a Rally for Climate & Clean Air and demanded that the city quickly move forward to develop an ordinance. Sign up to give testimony at this link. October 19, 2023, at 2 p.m. PT on Zoom - IRAS will present a free webinar with Bradley S. Artson, Friends or Enemies? Science and Judaism As Partners In Wonder. "Rather than assuming science and religion are adversaries, we will explore how science and religion, properly understood, can offer complimentary pathways to enhance our humanity, augment our sense of wonder at the world and all it contains, and advance a human commitment to expand knowledge, foster healing, and repair the world." Register here. October 19, 2023, to November 9, 2023 - Bioneers is offering The Rights of Nature - Training on how to draft, adopt, and enforce Rights of Nature laws in cities, towns, and counties. Learn more and register here. October 21, 2023, at 4-5:30 p.m. PT - Michael Dowd (Post Doom, No Gloom) is offering a free, 8-week book discussion on Terry LePage's book "Eye of the Storm: Facing Climate and Social Chaos with Calm and Courage with Zoom calls on Tuesdays or Saturdays, starting October 21 and 24. This is a collaborative event of the Deep Adaptation Forum (DAF) and Post Doom. Click HERE for details and to register and receive the Zoom link. October 28, 2023 from 10:00 am - 11:30 am PT - Sustaining Climate Activists hosts monthly gatherings with social time, resilience tool education, and sharing. During the summer months, they meet in person at Blue Heron Park, Phoenix, OR. October 31, 2023, at 6 p.m. PT - SOCAN monthly meeting November 1-5, 2023, online - The Work That Reconnects Network is organizing 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. Registration opens soon. Click here to sign up to receive a reminder when registration goes live! November, 2023, IRAS will present a webinar with Frank Schaeffer, artist & theologian, TBD 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 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 early-bird Registration deadline is October 7th.

September 21, 2023, is the United Nations International Day of Peace. "Each year the International Day of Peace is observed around the world on 21 September. The UN General Assembly has declared this as a day devoted to strengthening the ideals of peace, through observing 24 hours of non-violence and cease-fire." The 2023 theme is Actions for Peace: Our Ambition for the #GlobalGoals. "It is a call to action that recognizes our individual and collective responsibility to foster peace. Fostering peace contributes to the realization of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals will create a culture of peace for all.

"Catholics care about climate change. It;s time to take action together."~ Catholic Climate Covenant. The 2023 Laudato Si’ and the U.S. Catholic Church national conference was held virtually over a series of evenings starting on June 14th and concluding on July 27th. The biennial conference series was co-sponsored by Creighton University and Catholic Climate Covenant. The hyperlinks below are to YouTube videos of the Opening Session and Laudato Si’ Action Platform’s seven goals: Opening Session June 14, 2023, featured Christiana Figueres, former Executive Secretary of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) who brokered the Paris Agreement. Session #2 - Response to the Cry of the Poor “is a call to protect our common home for the wellbeing of all, as we equitably address the climate crisis, biodiversity loss, and ecological sustainability.” Session #3 - Ecological Economics - "More than 130 years of Catholic social teaching directly challenges core pillars of mainstream capitalism which celebrates unbridled exploitation of non-human nature and externalizes ecological costs like pollution from business calculations. Panelists shared how such a perspective is incongruent with the Laudato Si' Action Platform's goal and fidelity to Catholic social teaching." Session #4 - Adoption of Sustainable Lifestyles is "grounded in the idea of sufficiency and promoting sobriety in the use of resources and energy". Session #5 - Ecological Education aims to "re-think and re-design curricular and institutional reform in the spirit of integral ecology in order to foster ecological awareness and transformative action." Session #7 - Community Resilience Empowerment "envisages a synodal journey of community engagement and participatory action at various levels". Session #8 - Response to the Cry of the Earth "is a call to protect our common home for the wellbeing of all, as we equitably address the climate crisis, biodiversity loss, and ecological sustainability".

John Dorhauer's 2015 book Beyond Resistance: The Institutional Church Meets the Postmodern World was a call to the institutional church to adapt to a postmodern world - "out of a modality of denial and into a perspective of hope; out of a paradigm of scarcity and into a world of possibility with a growing multiplicity of options and allies." It was a call beyond "church 2.0" (post-reformation) into an emerging, but still undefined "church 3.0" (non-traditional, more mobile, more decentralized, more flexible, less structural, less institutionalized, less organized communities of faith/spirituality, transforming lives for the common good.) Here are a few examples of spiritual groups coming together: Cosmic Mass At the recent 2023 World Parliament of Religions in Chicago, they celebrated Matthew Fox's “Cosmic Mass” with about 700 people. They replaced sitting in pews and reading prayers and being read to with dancing (a spiral dance and DJ dancing) with images (VJ). Matthew Fox has laid out six principles for renewing ritual in a Progressing Spirit post and in the final chapter of his 1995 book The Reinvention of Work called “The Reenchantment of Ritual.” Christophany Groups Ilia Delio founded the Center for Christogenesis with the "holistic vision of integrating spirituality, science, and contemplation– open to all faith traditions. The Center created Christophany Groups "to transform lives and heal our world through communal reflection and collective spiritual practice based on the insights of Teilhard de Chardin and Ilia Delio, who interprets Teilhard through a distinctive Franciscan lens. Christophany Groups are communities that are committed to meeting regularly via Zoom or in-person to discuss articles or books or develop contemplative practices together." Click here for the process of how to start a group. Center for Christogenesis also has an online magazine New Creation dedicated to exploring the theology and spirituality of the Christogenesis worldview.; Monthly Zoom Webinars with Ilia Delio and other spiritual leaders for Center for Christogenesis participants; Hunger for Wholeness Podcasts; and Annual Conferences to bring our international community together to “Explore Love at the Heart of the Universe.” Creation Spirituality Communities CSC is "a network of individuals and communities who experience our own spiritual paths in connection to the evolving paradigms of the universe." Powered by Mighty Networks and Zoom, CSC meets with "those who seek to unify sacred earth and human existence" with live, weekly interfaith worship experiences, monthly Global Kinship webinars, and individual certification classes. They also have biennial gatherings, Immersion Retreats, and Small Group Gatherings. Spiritualigilious Portland-based Rabbi Brian serves a worldwide, internet-based congregation of over 1,000, that is "Spiritualigilious" - "the quality of being Spiritual + Religious, without the baggage." Rabbi Brian has an online (Religion Outside The Box) ROTB Clubhouse, online Saturday Services at 9 a.m. PT, a 77% Weekly Newsletter, a Facebook Page, and active Instagram and TikTok accounts, but video content is stored on their YouTube Channel or Twitch.tv. ServiceSpacePods I first met Brian Zachery Mayer, (aka Rabbi Brian) online through Eric Elnes who is now interim minister at Niantic Community Church. Earlier this week on September 10, 2023 Eric started a global 21-day Interfaith Compassion Challenge on the ServiceSpacePod platform "For more than two decades, ServiceSpace, an all-volunteer global ecosystem that touches millions, has been hosting circles and sacred spaces to "change ourselves, change the world." Through deepening relationships and awareness, these circles aim to awaken a whole that is greater than the sum of the parts. That "hands, head, heart" process – consisting of personal practices, peer learning, group reflections, and design thinking – is now offered on a gifted basis via our innovative "Pod Platform". What started as an unsuspecting experiment during the 2020 pandemic has now mushroomed into a wide range of offerings that await your participation!" Although registration is now closed, here's how the 21-day Interfaith Compassion Challenge works: Register here: https://pod.servicespace.org/apply/interfaith Daily Prompts: For each of the 21 days of the challenge, you'll be emailed a thoughtfully crafted prompt from a unique faith or tradition -- with "heart" music, "head" reading, and "hands" compassion-in-action practice. 21 days, 21 faith traditions, 21 practices. Your Reflections: For each of the daily prompts, you are invited to submit an online reflection, and once you share your reflection, you can read and interact online with the reflections of other global participants. Sunday Zoom Calls: Every Sunday of the challenge (starting Sep 10th, 8:00 AM PDT) will feature a group call with poetry readings, songs, inspiration from a wide range of luminaries, and peer-to-peer sharing.

Bioneers Learning is presenting a 4-week course Honoring Your Emotional Ecosystem on Tuesdays starting November 14, 2023, 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. "This course is useful for anyone wishing to grow their emotional intelligence and strive for something more. This is "a journey into the Emotional Ecosystem and learn how getting in better touch with your emotions can help you become not just a better leader, but a better person." "The Bioneers Learning Community offers a space for you and other members to connect with instructors and each other to discuss course materials, share projects you’re working on, and invite feedback on your ideas. This is also a space to start new projects and collaborations with members in your region and community. Bioneers Learning also offers the following learning opportunities: September 6 - October 11, 2023 - Design Thinking for Leaders: Making Innovation a Habit - Practical training for leaders to build innovation into their problem-solving approaches systematically. September 25 to October 17, 2023 - Slowing Down: Cultivating Healing Spaces of Belonging - Mindful and creative practices to help slow down, heal, and collectively receive our greatest wisdom teachings. October 19, 2023, to November 9, 2023 - The Rights of Nature - Training on how to draft, adopt, and enforce Rights of Nature laws in cities, towns, and counties.

David Sloan Wilson introduced Kurt Johnson on the ProSocial World YouTube Channel to discuss interspirituality. Today was the final session of a 10-week Master Class on the Science of the Noosphere organized by the Human Energy Project. David Sloan Wilson (an evolutionary biologist who advanced multilevel selection theory) assembled an impressive collection of scientists, scholars, futurists, artists, and storytellers and over 60 participants. The syllabus was challenging with twice-a-week 2-hour Zoom sessions plus several hours of preparation watching pre-recorded video interviews with various scientists. The participants were varied, but also impressive intellectually and spiritually. Human Energy Project is promoting a Third Story, which draws on the world's wisdom traditions in a way that is consistent with the latest scientific understanding of evolution, biology, chemistry, physics, cosmology, anthropology, sociology, and psychology, providing "a source of meaning for future generations in our globalizing world." The First Story of the Universe, based on traditional beliefs, has been eroded by science. The Second Story of the Universe based on relativity and quantum mechanics has led many to believe in a random universe and purposeless evolution. A Third Story of the Universe is based on Teilhard de Chardin’s notion of the Noosphere, his scientific work, and the work of other scientists with compatible theories such as Terrence Deacon, Francis Heylighen, and David Sloan Wilson. One of the Master Class participants and the Spirituality of the Noosphere small group leader was Dr. Kurt Johnson, who has worked in professional science and comparative religion for over 40 years. He served on the faculty of New York’s Interfaith Seminary for 12 years and, for 25 years, was associated with the American Museum of Natural History, also in New York. He is the author of The Coming Interspiritual Age (2013) and Our Moment of Choice (2020). "Interspirituallity" is part of the "great intersubjective discussion" the world so desperately needs but to a great extent has never had. Science is a part of this discussion, as to how reality is experienced, observed, and described." ~ Dr. Kurt Johnson Dr. Kurt Johnson's Impressive Background Kurt Johnson is both a scientist (entomologist) and a recognized interspiritual leader. He has been deeply influenced by his mentor Brother Wayne Teasdale, and five other interfaith luminaries including Matthew Fox, Thich Nhat Hanh, Raimon Panikkar, Thomas Merton, and Bede Griffiths. Teasdale, who originated the word "interspirituality" is famous for saying "The only viable religion for the Third Millennium is spirituality itself." By that, he meant "the deepest of subjective and objective experiences that lead to pro-social behavior." Prosocial is the opposite of antisocial. It is an important part of this discussion as its goal is to promulgate prosocial behavior, and behavior is greatly affected by the stories we tell and accept. Johnson is a founder of Light on Light Press. which publishes Light on Light (emphasizing spiritual practices and inspired lifestyles), Yoga, Healing and Peace, and Conscious Business (emphasizing conscious business, economics, and policy), The family of publications began with specialty publications from their media as well as interspiritual, and social activist partnerships initiated with VoiceAmerica and Unity Earth. Johnson was the host for The Convergence, a 13-episode radio series in 2016-17 through VoiceAmerica; the emphasis was on sacred activism. VoiceAmerica Talk Radio Network identifies itself as "the leading producer, distributor, and online broadcaster of original live and on-demand talk radio, programming worldwide... They deliver hundreds of original programs weekly through five branded channels: VoiceAmerica Variety, VoiceAmerica Empowerment, VoiceAmerica Health & Wellness, VoiceAmerica Business, and VoiceAmerica INFLUENCERS." A partner in UNITY EARTH, Kurt is ordained, or certified, in five religious traditions. He has a Ph.D. in Evolution and Ecology and is the author of over 200 scientific articles and seven technical books. UNITY EARTH is "a global network on a mission to accelerate the realization of unity and peace on Earth. Inspired by the world’s wisdom traditions and born out of the desire to meet global-sized challenges with global-sized solutions, the network is built to amplify the reach and impact of peace-aligned organizations and individuals. UNITY EARTH’s programs and activities focus on the intersection of spirituality, science, technology, transformative practices, and the arts, to engage people across cultures, generations, and geographical boundaries. UNITY EARTH grows community by sharing stories and experiences to create a new story for humanity." A former monastic, Kurt Johnson is a founder of the Evolutionary Leaders, which includes the Evolutionary Leaders Synergy Circle, the Association of Transformational Leaders, and the Transformational Leadership Council. The TLC was originally convened in 2004 by Jack Canfield when he called colleagues together who were engaged in doing transformational work on the planet.

Gopal D. Patel was the only faith voice on climate change at the TED Countdown Summit 2023 held July 11-14, 2023 in Detroit, MI. His presentation (in the YouTube video above) was "to draw lessons from religion and spirituality that could support stronger environmental action."... He suggests there are unique characteristics of spiritual groups that can support the broader environmental movement, things like community, rituals, and purposeful action in the world." Gopal Patel submits that the Bagavita offers a Theory of Change. “Religious and spiritual communities are some of the most enduring social movements in the history of the world. They have adapted to many crises throughout human history and bring a unique voice to this particular challenge,”~ Gopal Patel. Biography Gopal D. Patel (Gopal Lila das) has been a faith-based environmental activist, campaigner, and consultant for over 10 years, working in India, East Africa, Europe, and North America. He mobilizes faith communities for environmental advocacy and action around the world. He is an adviser to the Center for Earth Ethics at Union Theological Seminary Center and offers a Hindu perspective in addressing the global environmental crisis; Karenna Gore is the founder and executive director of the Center. He has advised a number of interfaith and environmental initiatives over the last decade and currently co-chairs the United Nations Multi-faith Advisory Council and sits on the advisory board for the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, helping to align stakeholders with the implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework, which consists of global targets to be achieved by 2030 and beyond to safeguard and sustainably use biodiversity." Patel is the Co-Founder and Director of Bhumi Global, a nonprofit organization that works to educate and mobilize Hindu communities globally for environmental action. Working with the Hindu community internationally, the Bhumi project aims to raise awareness and address the environmental challenges facing our planet. Mr. Gopal has served in this capacity since 2010 and has helped Bhumi become a leading voice on environmental issues for the global Hindu community. Born and raised in England, Patel currently lives in the New York City Metro Area. Institute for Science and Spirituality Trust (ISS) is the scientific study wing of ISKCON Delhi. They are a team of well-established scientists and scholars. Since its inception in 2011, ISS Delhi has organized several international conferences, has offered various courses on Indian Knowledge System (IKS), and has been engaged in cutting-edge research. They have a mission to advance Vedic science and philosophy in a modern scientific context. ISS is working with the main objective of rekindling interest in spirituality within the scientific community whereby the latter evolves a spiritual, anti-material perspective; while at the same time helping spirituality develop a scientific and dogma-free outlook that is already built into its structure. "We started our journey in 2011. Since then, we have been conducting several seminars, workshops, dialogues, and conferences to harmonize two great pillars of our existence." You can follow ISS on Facebook.

Couldn't attend the TED Countdown Summit 2023 in person that took place in mid-July in Detroit Michigan? Here's a link to the TED Countdown website. Below are some hyperlinks and very brief summaries of the 7 closed sessions. Compass: Notes from Session 1 - July 11, 2023 Simon Stiell, who leads the UNFCCC (the UN’s entity supporting the global response to climate change) outlined "why climate action is set up to transition from a linear to exponential pace — so long as each of us applies our particular skill sets to push the world towards its “green tipping points.” Julio Friedmann, a carbon removal expert, said "There are three key ingredients to cooking up a bright, clean future for everyone: Infrastructure (transmission lines, roads, and seaports) to make energy accessible Globally aligned and affordable) innovation, like turning electricity into fuel More systemic, multi-tiered investment strategies on a global level " Asmeret Asefaw Berhe, a soil scientist who heads a team at the U. S. Department of Energy working to employ new technologies, is "inspired by organic carbon capture, to sequester carbon from the atmosphere." Changhua Wu, a policy analyst, said that "China is today undergoing a green revolution - accelerated electric vehicle adoption, increased usage of solar and other renewables (to produce one kilowatt of solar energy per capita by 2030), and is promoting a circular economy that recycles raw materials to enable sustainable growth." Paul Hawken said "Industrial agriculture (aka the fossil food industry) is the world’s biggest culprit in environmental degradation. Modern factory farms reduce the nutritional content of the soil, encourage erosion, ooze toxic runoff, and kill off microbial fungi that naturally sequester carbon." Anika Goss said, "Financial stability is critical for Detroit’s survival in the face of the mounting climate crisis, and that the city must rebuild resilience in order to protect its citizens, who are overwhelmingly people of color already facing social inequity." Al Gore showed "data proving that the greed of fossil fuel executives has thwarted their attempts to support climate action. He revealed two obstacles to lowering global emissions — namely, how oil and gas companies deliberately slow down global efforts to move capital away from fossil fuels, and the ineffectiveness of carbon capture technology — and reminded everyone that “the will to act is itself a renewable resource.” Maxim Timchenko, a Ukrainian energy executive, shared on video "how DTEK, Ukraine’s largest private energy company, has diversified the country’s power structures to survive Russian attacks, highlighting the resilience of renewable energy (such as wind turbines, which are a smaller, more difficult target for bombers). Lessons: Notes from Session 2 - July 12, 2023 Jonathan Foley, executive director of Project Drawdown, used "a science-based framework to outline a plan for investing with maximum impact." Emma Nehrenheim, a battery recycler, "outlined the environmentally intensive impact of battery production — particularly from the extraction of minerals for lithium-ion batteries, which provide energy for electric vehicles and other key aspects of life — and proposes a shift towards a circular battery economy that uses and reuses already existing materials, vastly reducing the industry’s carbon footprint and need for mineral extraction.," Cedrik Neike explained how “digital twin technology” (think simulated giga factories that are one-for-one digital copies of real ones) can help solve real-world problems more efficiently by providing a digital space to test solutions, without pollution." Susan Lozier, an oceanographer, dove into "the importance of the ocean’s natural circulation, which overturns water in a way that naturally captures carbon and regulates global temperatures." Morten Bo Christiansen, a leader of the decarbonization team for A.P. Moller-Maersk, drew "an organizational roadmap to net zero that could help transform the global shipping industry." Bo Cerup-Simonsen, CEO of the Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller Center for Zero Carbon Shipping, discussed "the essential role of their center in orchestrating systemic, global collaboration to tackle large-scale environmental challenges." Mike Duggan, serving his third term as mayor of Detroit said, "He’s dead set on building the city’s climate responsiveness." Laprisha Berry Daniels, is a public health social worker who for inspiration, "mines the survival strategies her grandparents learned after leaving the Jim Crow South to settle in Detroit." Dilemmas: Notes from Session 3 - July 12, 2023 Nili Gilbert and David Blood are sustainable investment experts who provided "both macro and on-the-ground perspectives on the kinds of finance flowing to climate solutions." Avinash Persaud, an economist, said that after Hurricane Maria decimated Dominica in 2017, the country declared its intention to become the first climate-resilient nation in the world. But as they sought to organize their response to future climate disasters they quickly realized that the only real solution was to halt climate change entirely." Tombo Banda is an energy access innovator who said that "when electricity arrived in Zomba, Malawi in 1994 it brought her village significant changes to the health, comfort, and happiness of its residents, but the reality is that 500 million people still lack access to electricity in Sub-Saharan Africa, relying on highly polluting materials like diesel and firewood." Steve Presley Nestlé North America CEO discussed how one of the world’s largest food companies aims to reach net zero by 2050. Amy Powney designs fashions for sustainability first. As creative director for Mother of Pearl, she "ensures all aspects of the clothing are environmentally friendly and ethically produced." Payton Wilkins is a union leader and environmental justice advocate who said "The multi-generational, multi-ethnic, and multi-gender trade union movement could become a formidable force in the fight against climate change." Xiaojun “Tom” Wang told about "the devastating impacts of coal mining in China — accidents in coal mines, massive landslides, damage to cultural sites — and called for Beijing to ease the pressure on Shanxi’s coal industry." Magnitude: Notes from Session 4 - July 13, 2023 Olivia Breese "imagined a “love story” between green electrons and water molecules, the result of which is a molecule that can store and release energy without emitting carbon dioxide — a flexible and vastly more sustainable alternative to fossil fuels." Jim Snabe "serves as Vision Council chair for the TED Future Forum (TFF), a new initiative focused on the role of business in advancing solutions to the climate crisis. He outlined TFF’s plans to be a catalyst and community for companies committed to stepping up with greater climate ambition, issuing an invitation for anyone interested in joining the massive, collaborative effort to transform the global economy." John O’Donnell's company, Rondo, produces 'heat batteries' consisting of thousands of bricks stacked in a grid, heated with renewable energy. Isabella Kirkland "paints species that once lived along the Hudson River in her work “Palisades,” showcasing the profound beauty and rarity of the diverse life that once inhabited our planet — and advocating for the conservation of that which is still here." Marcelo Mena, a biochemical engineer said "Time is running out and this harmful gas needs to be cut in half by 2050 in order to effectively combat global warming." Jim Whitaker and his daughter Jessica Whitaker Allen are seeking to grow sustainability awareness within the agricultural communities where they live in southeast Arkansas. Rice is the world’s most consumed food source — and it accounts for 10 percent of the world’s methane emissions." Tao Zhang "sees swaying Chinese eaters towards these new proteins as a climate-positive business opportunity." Renewal: Notes from Session 5 - July 13, 2023 Al Roker known as “America’s weatherman," said: that "extreme weather is increasing in frequency and severity, and the consequences will be devastating." Cynthia Williams‘s family has long worked in the auto industry and is seeing the electric vehicle revolution. Neil Vora exposed "three crucial ways deforestation impacts human health: (1) Animals living alongside humans are more likely to carry germs that can infect us; (2) When people move into deforested areas, there is more exposure to new viruses; (3) And animals are more likely to spread illness when their homes are threatened." Ludmila Rattis revealed "the surprisingly fruitful benefits of letting nature take care of business, sharing how the digestive habits of tapirs in Amazonia spread seeds throughout the region, regenerating the forest." Louise Mabulo works in restorative agroforestry, and through her initiative, The Cacao Project, which works to build sustainable and climate-resilient livelihoods for farmers, Justin J. Pearson, a Tennessee state representative, and British MP David Lammy discussed "the pressing issue of climate justice and the nuances of leadership within the movement emphasizing the significance of empowering the most affected communities and acknowledging the interconnectedness of different social issues." Community: Notes from Session 6 - July 14, 2023 Josephine Phillips, a sustainable fashion designer said "We need to buy less and value more the clothes we already own." Aruna Rangachar Pohl talked about "one of India’s most beloved snacks: biscuits — revealing how the production of these treats and other highly processed goods that rely on industrial farming are hurting the planet and our health." Oral McGuire, a fire practitioner and member of the Mangarda Balladong Nyungar First Nations in southwestern Australia shared "the importance of applying the right kind of fire in a sacred practice known as “kaarl-ngariny,” to maintain the health and balance of the land." Donnel Baird of BlocPower described how he "aims to solve the upgrade problem of powering the United States’s 125 million buildings (which account for 30 percent of the country’s greenhouse gas emissions) by moving buildings off of fossil fuels and onto renewably sourced electric power." Gopal D. Patel, as co-chair of the United Nations Multi-faith Advisory Council, mobilizes faith communities for environmental advocacy and action around the world Momentum: Notes from Session 7 - July 14, 2023 Kala Constantino, director of the ecology advocacy group Tara Climate Foundation introduces us to a cross-section of the actors working to build a grid for cheap and clean renewable power throughout Asia. Rebecca Collyer, executive director of 2023 Audacious Project grantee ReNew2030, a global coalition to scale the use of wind and solar energy explores how to ensure the transition to renewable energy is fast and fair — a crucial task, as the power sector produces more carbon emissions than any other sector in the world Rich Powell talked about "the true barrier to immediate implementation of clean energy projects BANANA-ism: “Build Absolutely Nothing Anywhere Near Anything.” Zainab Usman, a political economist said "The solution lies with policymakers, business leaders, and activists." Amir Nizar Zuabi, a theater director and playwright shared "the journey of Little Amal — a 10-year-old refugee girl (who is actually a 13-foot puppet) that went on an epic, 5,000-mile migration across eight countries in a globe-trotting art piece called “The Walk.” Sims Witherspoon an applied AI scientist wants to use artificial intelligence to tackle climate change and build a sustainable future. She believes AI can help us better understand the impact of climate change on Earth’s ecosystems, accelerate the breakthrough science we need to create a carbon-free energy supply and speed up the transition to renewable energy sources. Ramón Méndez Galain, a former particle physicist charted Uruguay’s transition to renewables as head of the country’s National Energy Agency. Here are links to some videos that are now available from the TED Countdown Summit 2023: How to Be a Leader for Climate Justice with David Lammy and Justin J. Pearson Detroit's Climate Crisis and How to Build a Resilient Future Everywhere with Anika Goss The Renewable Energy Revolution Happening in Ukraine with Maxim Timchenko

SOU President Rick Bailey tells Becs Walker "The University anticipates generating 100 percent of its own electricity by 2033. "Southern Oregon University is taking big strides toward becoming the first public university in the U.S. to produce all of the daytime electricity used on its campus, with a $1.56 million contract signed this month to install new solar arrays and a battery storage facility, and on-site construction work set to begin this winter. The new installations on Lithia Motors Pavilion and The Hawk Dining Commons will increase SOU’s photovoltaic output by 86 percent – from the current 455 kilowatts to a total of 848 kilowatts. The Lithia Motors Pavilion solar array is expected to be completed in early 2024, and the more complex solar array and battery storage project at The Hawk Dining Commons is scheduled for completion by the fall of 2024. The two new solar facilities, combined with nine existing arrays, will enable the university to generate just over 12 percent of the electricity it uses. The contract with Ashland’s True South Solar also includes a battery storage bank that will be built adjacent to The Hawk, enabling SOU to support community resilience by providing power in The Hawk, if needed, in the event of an emergency. “This is truly a monumental step toward our goal of energy self-sufficiency. We have spent much of the past year working with state and federal lawmakers to identify and secure funding for these projects – and that work will continue. But now we will begin to enjoy some of the fruits of our labors." ~ SOU President Rick Bailey “These projects not only demonstrate our commitment to sustainability, but our eventual energy independence will save us at least $750,000 per year in utility costs. Each new array that we bring online will immediately start reducing that overall energy bill.” The university anticipates generating 100 percent of its electricity by 2033 and is already planning subsequent rounds of solar expansion. Another project whose contract has not yet been awarded – the first of several SOU arrays that will be built on parking lot structures – will add 340 kilowatts of generating capacity and bring the university to nearly 17 percent of its overall electricity usage. SOU has been awarded $1 million in each of the past two years from the Oregon Department of Energy’s Community Renewable Energy Grant Program and received a $2 million appropriation from Congress last December. That total of $4 million in state and federal funding will pay for the lion’s share of work under the current contract and for the initial parking lot array. The Student “Green Tag Fee” – an assessment of $13 per student each term, approved in a student vote several years ago – is also contributing $51,000 toward the cost of the current project, demonstrating student support for SOU’s generation of renewable energy. “The campus-wide support for sustainability initiatives – in particular, our conversion to solar power – has been overwhelming,” SOU Sustainability Director Becs Walker said. “Students, faculty, and staff are helping in whatever ways they can as we ramp up our efforts and transition to renewable energy. “This entire process is valuable, with many learning opportunities for those who choose to become directly involved.” Solar energy production is one of the initiatives that SOU is currently pursuing in its effort to be more entrepreneurial in its approach to revenue generation. Achieving the energy independence goal will also contribute to a reduction in SOU’s greenhouse gas emissions. SOU currently has nine solar arrays on campus, plus an array at the Higher Education Center in Medford and a pole-mounted array installed last year by a nonprofit on land leased from the university. SOU has added five arrays over the past three years, with funding from private investors, grants, the student government, and university administration. SOU will continue to implement energy conservation and energy efficiency measures as it increases its solar power production. For instance, The Hawk Dining Commons and McLoughlin Residence Hall each have solar hot water systems installed to augment their natural gas domestic water heating, and the campus has three net-zero buildings – they create as much or more energy than they use. The university is also a partner in the U.S. Department of Energy’s Better Climate Challenge, which supports SOU’s 2033 goals to reduce Scope 1 and Scope 2 greenhouse gas emissions by 50 percent from a 2018 baseline and to reduce energy intensity by 25 percent from a 2022 baseline. This blog post is from a September 8, 2023, SOU Press Release.

Many decades ago I studied geography (regional, physical, human, economic, historical, political, and urban) because a spatial understanding gave me a grounding for history and a focus on our relationship with our natural environment. This was before ecology as a multidisciplinary approach and quantitative analysis (we were still using IBM punch cards.) However, I learned that political boundaries frequently disregard natural bioregions and watersheds. As a result, regions that functionally should belong together because of their commonalities, are often fragmented in how they are governed or otherwise managed. Political boundaries may be fought over and frequently change over time, in part because they don't make sense from a bioregional worldview perspective. Oregon's Rogue Valley is part of what some call "Cascadia" - a bioregion whose southern boundary runs from the Eel River drainage in the North Coast Ranges up to Mt. Shasta and then along the Modoc Plateau in northern California. Two defining characteristics in addition to biological systems are the volcanic Cascade mountain range and the Cascadia subduction zone that lies off the coast. David McCloskey coined the term ‘Cascadia bioregion’ in 1981, and has assembled several maps. McCloskey, a former Seattle University Professor, is the Director of the Cascadia Institute. Click here for an interesting Bioregional Reading List. Michael Vincent McGinnis suggests that bioregional identity be focused on watershed, biome, and ecosystem to optimize sustainability and cooperation to preserve the commons. "Bioregionalism’s emphasis on place and community radically changes the way we confront human and ecological issues." Joshua Lockyer and James R. Veteto propose that there are three prominent environmental social movements which are somewhat interrelated: Bioregionalism - a worldview and political ecology that grounds environmental action and experience Permaculture - a design science for putting the bioregional vision into action Ecovillages - the ever-dynamic settings for creating sustainable local cultures Learning to have a global, evolutionary worldview as well as a bioregional local focus is important for sustainability as the world continues to urbanize and become less connected to the land. Mythical State of Jefferson A 2013 book by Jack Sutton and Jefferson Public Radio's PRS program "As It Was" both refer to the "mythical state of Jefferson." History can be fun, but some political conservatives would like to create a separate new State of Jefferson, carved out from counties in northern California and southern Oregon - in my opinion, this state should remain mythical. Note: The U.S. Forest Service identifies the Rogue Valley as part of M261 ecosystem province.. Image Credit: Moscato, Derek. (2020). Reporting on Cascadia: The Evolution of a Cross-Border Media Ecosystem Ecosystem. #BioRegional #PermaCulture #EcoVillages

The 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly commences September 5, 2023 and a high-level Sustainable Development Goals Summit will take place September 18-20, 2023. The SDSN’s flagship conference, the 11th annual International Conference on Sustainable Development (ICSD) will be a hybrid event with the theme: “The Midpoint of the SDGs: Global and Local Progress & Challenges”. Register Here. Sustainable Development Goals "In 2015, 193 world leaders agreed on a game plan to end poverty, reduce inequalities, and tackle climate change by 2030: the Sustainable Development Goals or SDGs. In 2023, we’re at the halfway mark on the Goals and the score isn’t good - only about 12% of them are on track. We’re down at halftime. The triple threat of COVID-19, conflict, and the climate crisis have reversed years of hard-earned progress. Humanitarian needs are greater than ever, inequalities have grown deeper and a continuing war on nature has catapulted us towards climate catastrophe." Sustainable Development Solutions Network The United Nations SDSN "works under the auspices of the UN Secretary-General to mobilize the world’s universities, think tanks, and national laboratories for action on the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the Paris Agreement on Climate Change; empower societies through free online education; and translate scientific evidence and ideas into solutions and accountability." "At a time of great uncertainty, the SDGs – a blueprint for ending poverty, tackling the climate crisis, and boosting the economy – show the way forward to a better future for all on a safe and healthy planet. To scale up action on the SDGs would require transformational change with regard to current policies, governance arrangements, and economic systems. International Conference on Sustainable Development The ICSD provides a forum for academia, government, civil society, UN agencies, and the private sector to come together to share practical solutions to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). SDG Thought Leaders Synergy Circle Members of SDG Thought Leaders Synergy Circle and Evolutionary Leaders Circle have drafted a Unitive Narrative that provides "an emergent cosmological, planetary, interspiritual and societal foundation to serve and support the conscious evolution of humanity and heal our collective worldview from separation to a perspective of unity in diversity." Click here for the Unitive Narrative full text. Among the many participants are: David Sloan Wilson, Kurt Johnson, Ken Wilbur, Paul Atkins, Robert Atkinson, Deepak Chopra, Stephen Dinan, Riane Eisler, Duane Elgin, Steve Farrell, Jim Garrison, David Gershon, Jean Houston, and Bill Keepin. The 2020 book Our Moment of Choice: Evolutionary Visions and Hope for the Future from the Source of Synergy Foundation with contributions from 43 members of the Evolutionary Leaders Circle, is "a window into the transformative vision of which the objectives of the Sustainable Development Goals are such a vital part." #UnitedNations #UNGA #ICSD #SDG #SustainableDevelopementGoals #SDGThoughtLeadersCircle #EvolutionaryLeadersCircle

The Whitehead & Teilhard: Convergences, Divergences, and Integration Conference will take place at Villanova University with programs a these times: September 21 @ 1;45 p.m. - 4 p.m. PDT September 22 @ 6 a.m. - 1;15 p.m. PDT September 23 @ 6 a.m. - 9:30 a.m. PDT "This conference draws together Whitehead and Teilhard scholars to advance the possibilities and relevance of process philosophy and theology through an integrative encounter between these two foundational figures." From the conference website: "The respective work of Alfred North Whitehead (1861-1947) and Pierre Teilhard De Chardin (1881-1955) continue to inspire distinctive trajectories in modern process philosophy and theology. Although contemporaries for a time, both men were unable to benefit from each other’s vast visions of reality. Yet a shared indebtedness to Henri Bergson’s temporal metaphysics and a commitment to incorporate new advances in the sciences—evolutionary biology and quantum and relativity theory in particular—would stimulate deeply resonant vectors in their thought." "Whitehead and Teilhard continue to be mainly studied independently of each other’s contributions. The time has come to fill this scholarly lacuna with deliberate efforts aimed at creative mutual transformation. What results when Whitehead and Teilhard meet? What do they each offer the other such that a mutual deepening might take place? "This conference draws together Whitehead and Teilhard scholars to advance the possibilities and relevance of process philosophy and theology through an integrative encounter between these two foundational figures." The Center for Process Studies (CPS) is "driven by the principle of relationality and commitment to the common good." Center for Process Studies "works on cutting-edge discourse across disciplines to promote the exploration of interconnection, change, and intrinsic value as core features of our world." The Center for Christogenesis "seeks to deepen Pierre Teilhard de Chardin’s integration of science and spirituality by providing insights and practices to enkindle awareness of love at the heart of reality." "Religion has not kept pace with the rapid rise of technology and the impact of technology on human personhood and society." ~ Ilia Delio

"The world is in a climate emergency – a code red for humanity”~ UN Secretary-General "The concentration of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in the atmosphere is wreaking havoc across the world and threatening lives, economies, health and food. The world is far from securing a global temperature rise to below 2°C as promised in the Paris Agreement. The Emissions Gap Report (EGR) 2020 finds that, despite a brief dip in carbon dioxide emissions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the world is still heading for a temperature rise of over 3°C this century. The good news is we have solutions now. According to the UNEP is: "It is possible to stay below 2°C aiming for 1.5°C temperature rise as set out in the Paris Agreement using existing solutions. They include renewable energy, green hydrogen, and modern bioenergy — and government subsidies and support could be directed to push towards low-carbon and green policies. Scaling up green transition efforts and reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions fivefold is critical." UNEP's Six-sector solutions are: Energy Industry Transport Nature-based Buildings & Cities Food & Agriculture Explore the interactive website UNEP Six-sector solution to a carbon-free future. Read about the UNEP Programme of Work and Budget for 2022-2023 United Nations Work With Faith Communities United Nations Environmental Program's (UNEP) Faith for Earth Initiative is "committed to inspiring and empowering faith organizations and their leaders to advocate for protecting the environment, working alongside dedicated strategic partners to green faith-based organizations’ investments and assets and provide faith organizations with the knowledge and networks to effectively communicate with decision-makers and the public. The Faith for Earth Coalition strategically addresses local, regional, and global climate and environment-related issues with faith leaders, communities, and organizations towards enhanced environmental stewardship. While focusing on the three overarching goals: Strengthen partnership with faith-based organizations’ leadership for policy impact Green faith-based organizations’ investments, operations, and assets Establish an accessible knowledge-based support system. United Nations Interagency Task Force on Religion and Sustainable Development (UN-IATF) - In 2010 the United Nations created UN-IATF, which today includes more than 20 UN agencies. Its purpose is to provide policy guidance around engagement with faith-based actors, deepen UN system staff’s understanding of the intersections of religion and the UN pillars of development, human rights, peace, and security, as well as provide strategic policy guidance. United Nations Multi-faith Advisory Council (MFAC) - In 2018 the UN IATF established MFAC, an informal and voluntary entity that consists of 45 religious leaders and heads of faith-based organizations (FBOs). The composition reflects the diversity of religions, regions, and nations; they cover different thematic areas that mirror the UN’s mandate.

Blessed Tomorrow will join partners of many faiths in support of the campaign launching October 4, 2023. One Home One Future is a multi-faith campaign to strengthen vitality, relevance, and community connection across generations in local congregations nationwide. Join faith communities across the nation to empower youth and other leaders, and deepen your commitment to care for creation and our shared home. You can view the recording from the August 9, 2023 Informational webinar and register here for the national launch. The One Home One Future resource hub holds 100+ resources to help you, your congregation, and your community to care for creation. Each of the below actions has all of the resources you need to get inspired

Here is a list of some summer activities in Rogue Valley and online that may be of interest to climate concerns and spiritual communities. September 5, 12, and 19, 2023 - Water Action Community events at the Bellview Grange. September 7, 2023 - IRAS will present a webinar Taking Nature to Heart: The Religious Naturalist Orientation with Ursula Goodenough. She will discuss this orientation in her new book, The Sacred Depths of Nature: How Life Emerged and Evolved, and describe the Religious Naturalist Association, which seeks to introduce this orientation to others. Register here. September 9, 2023, from 6 – 8 p.m. PDT - SOCAN is having a kickoff gathering: Reaching a New Level of Climate Action outdoors at the home of SOCAN activists in Medford. A light meal and beverages will be provided at no cost, They will discuss planning for SOCAN’s new level of climate action. This is "a major fundraising campaign to enhance the capacity of their organization and allow us to meet the continuing and increasing need for action. Through our efforts, we intend to hire our first Executive Director, which will allow us to expand our fundraising efforts and our impact across populations in Oregon." Since space is limited, we would like to know how many will join us. If you plan to attend, please reply by September 2 to Isabella Lee Tibbetts at Isabella@socan.eco indicating how many will be in your party. September 12, 2023, 8 a.m. - 11 a.m. PDT - Institute For The Future is offering a free, online, and immersive session where IFTF researchers and invited experts will explore perspectives on AI's future development. They will also be providing an exclusive first peek at IFTF’s ten-year technology forecasts outlining AI's potential long-term impacts on human abilities, jobs, and organizations. Additionally, there will be an interactive and not-to-be-missed AI “digital twin” simulation, with IFTF Distinguished Fellow Bob Johansen, that will give participants a first-hand experience of a variety of alternative AI futures. Register here. September 13, 2023, 2 p.m. PDT - Ashland Youth for Electrification is having a Rally for Climate Justice and Clean Air at 51 Winburn Way, Ashland, Oregon (meet across from Skout restaurant at Lithia Park. RSVP at this link September 16, 2023, from 10 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. PT - Citizens Climate Lobby is having a one-day online inclusion conference: “Building Community Beyond Barriers,” Register here. September 21-23, 2023 - The Center for Process Studies, Center for Christogenesis, and Villanova University in Pennsylvania are presenting a conference on Whitehead & Teilhard: Convergences, Divergences, Integrations. "This conference draws together Whitehead and Teilhard scholars to advance the possibilities and relevance of process philosophy and theology through an integrative encounter between these two foundational figures." A virtual-only registration ticket is $100, which grants virtual, simulcast access to the conference and edited recordings. Register here. September 21-23, 2023, in person and online - Buckminister College in Brussels is having an educator's open workshop on Teaching and Learning in the Noosphere. The workshop is sponsored by Human Energy, an international project focused on the scientific exploration of the concept of the noosphere and its worldwide popularisation. Register here. September 26 to October 4, 2023 - Thomas Hubl hosts Collective Trauma Summit 2023: Creating a Global Healing Movement. Learn how to address individual, ancestral, and collective trauma from 60+ speakers, artists, and visionaries. Register here. September 28-29, 2023 - BTS Center is hosting Convocation 2023: Kinship: Re-Weaving the Great Web of Belonging. The gathering will be held in person at Hallowell, Maine with a hybrid, hosted, live-stream option for some of the Convocation sessions. Presenters will include: Victoria Loorz, author and co-founder of the Wild Church Network: John Bear Mitchell, musician; and storyteller; and Rev. Liz Fulmer, a queer pastor and musical storyteller ritual; Register here. September 20, 2023 - Deeptime Leadership & Wellbeing (nine-month) Program: Life and Leadership that Start with an Evolving Universe starts Sept. 20, 2023. Presenters included: Stephan Martin, Brian Thomas Swimme, Mary Evelyn Tucker, Jennifer Morgan, Matthew Fox, and adjunct faculty. An installment program in three modules is offered. More information here. September 21, 2023, from 4:30 to 6 p.m. PDT - SOCAN Central Point Climate Action Team is having a planning and organizational meeting at the library, 116 South 3rd Street, Central Point, OR. September 26, 2023, at 6 p.m. PDT - SOCAN Monthly meeting at Medford Public Library. The program will be: What’s Happening to our Douglas firs? Additional Activities in Coming Months October 4, 2023, at 4 p.m. is the online national launch of Blessed Americas's One Home One Future movement. October 10, 2023 - OLLI at SOU is having a 3-session, weekly, online class taught by Anita Dygert Gearheart on Making Sense of the Climate Crisis. Registration for unlimited OLLI classes for the next three semesters is $150 October, 2023, - IRAS will present a webinar with Bradley S. Artson, Sinai, Stars, & Synapses: Science and Judaism As Partners In Wonder November, 2023, IRAS will present a webinar with Frank Schaeffer, artist & theologian, TBD 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. Interactive formats that prioritize discussion and application are welcomed. Early-bird Registration deadline is October 7th.

I recently watched the 1997 movie Contact, which I thoroughly enjoyed for the third time. The movie has a subplot about an evolving relationship between two characters and their perspectives - Dr. Ellie Arroway (science) and Father Palmer Joss (religion). Jodie Foster's character represented the persistent pursuit of truth solely through reason, measurable evidence, and data, while Matthew McConaughey's character also valued profound, personal, subjective experiences that could not be put into words. Ultimately these different approaches came together as Ellie expresses in awe: "They should have sent a poet... I had no idea.!" Palmer Joss later asks Ellie: Do you love your father? Can you prove it? Fundamentalists, whether scientific, religious, or political, are sure of their perspectives - they are certain, fixed, and dogmatic in their static beliefs and can be combative in their attitudes if someone disagrees. They are not open to a healthy evolution in a new understanding. If their identity is tightly bound to their beliefs they become defensive, and unable to appreciate another's experience. It is my hope that science and spirituality (if not individual religions) can come together in a new third story if both are understood as "evolutionary" - open to change and transformation. Optimally science is constantly changing with new information, but it has little to say about kindness, compassion, tenderness, forgiveness, consolation, inspiration, patience, friendship, humor, beauty, art, and creativity, which are more in the domains of spirituality or religion. To come together, science needs to accept the validity of certain personal spiritual experiences of the ineffable rather than dismiss them as misguided delusions. On the other hand, much of the problem with science accepting what is unprovable or unexplainable is the insistence by some religious believers on magical, mythical, or supernatural explanations of subjective phenomena. Religious institutions too must evolve and embrace truths supported by evolving scientific evidence. 100 years ago Pierre Teilhard de Chardin coined the term the Noosphere. This evolving planetary mind is due to technological improvements in communication and higher levels of consciousness. We are in the midst of a Major Evolutionary Transformation (MET), as profound as abiogenesis, eukaryogenesis, sexual reproduction, multicellularity, and consciousness itself. Technology is augmenting our bodies into cyborgs and hybrid-humans. Ilia Delio sees humanity evolving to hyper-personal, "posthumans" that are gender fluid, racially neutral, and interspiritual - second axial conscious persons who are at home with networked relationships, horizontal vision, and virtual reality (Re-Enchanting the Earth, p.218-9). "We are becoming increasingly wired together and in the not too distant future, our electronically embedded lives will be integrated circuits of seamless connections, the singularity predicted by Kurtzweil." Is it possible to have an evolution of religion with a new understanding of "God" more as an activity or process (a verb), a becoming, the energy of love, an integral reality rather than an ontologically distinct "other" (a proper noun)? And as Ilia Delio asks: "Can we envision a new type of religion in a hyper-connected world without institution?" "Christianity was originally a new religious sensibility centered on being a person in community, a religion without institution." ~ Ilia Delio .In her August 13, 2023 Rebirthing Religion blog post Ilia Delio writes: "Teilhard de Chardin clearly saw the problem of religion in relation to science over a hundred years ago. He turned religion on its head by seeing religion as the inside story of the universe, that is, as a natural and essential aspect of evolution. Religion is as important to the flow of evolution as are the mechanisms of Darwinian evolution. Matter is bifacial and religion and science are two aspects of the same whole grounded in an irresistible power of love."

The film 2040:The Regeneration is "an innovative feature documentary that looks to the future while focusing on what is happening now." The film, which is available to rent or buy on Apple TV, Vudu or Amazon Prime Video, looks at the effects of climate change over the next 20 years and what technologies that exist today can reverse the effects. "Film Director Damon Gameau embarks on a journey to explore what the future could look like by the year 2040 if we simply embrace the best solutions already available to us to improve our planet and shift them into the mainstream. Structured as a visual letter to his 4-year-old daughter, Damon blends traditional documentary with dramatized sequences and high-end visual effects to create a vision board of how these solutions could regenerate the world for future generations." What is Regneration? This 5-minute YouTube film below is "a rousing call to action to join a global movement of Regenerators who are working to heal our ecosystems. The film features climate action leaders like Jeff Bridges, Paul Hawken, Christiana Figueres, Kate Raworth, Damon Gameau, Juma Xipaia, and other Regenerators from around the world." What does the concept of regeneration mean to you? What stands out when you envision a regenerative future? Lush green cityscapes, powered by community-driven renewable energy? Revitalized biodiversity, harmonizing with ancestral wisdom? Or perhaps igniting local renewable energy initiatives? Restoring our planet's vibrant web of life?

Photo: Unsplash/Sandie Peters The World Water Week Conference 2023 is currently being held in Stockholm, Sweden, and online August 20-24, 2023. The theme is Seeds of Change: Innovative Solutions for a Water-Wise World. "If water solutions are to be sustainable, it’s crucial that all voices are heard and valued. A more inclusive World Water Week is better placed to capture the bigger picture and provide a wider range of thoughts, reflections, and ideas." In 2023, online participation is free. Register here.