In Search of Societal Altruism

We live in a time of great uncertainty, with the triple threat of increasingly volatile climate change, political polarization, and income inequality. It feels like the political, economic, and governance systems of our civilization are not only unequal to these challenges, but being fractured by them. In times of great uncertainty, people tend to grasp at leaders with views they…

How to Make Cities Greener for All

Think about your local walk to the park. You head down that shady street, turn left at the corner store, cut up that little alleyway, and – voila! – you are surrounded by bounding dogs, trees, and giggling children. Or maybe not. Maybe you have to navigate an urban obstacle course littered with poorly thought out street crossings, concrete corridors,…

Paul Hawken’s Drawdown

During this illuminating talk and slideshow at ABC Home in New York City, Paul Hawken circles back with us 18 months after the launch of Project Drawdown, a living research effort to reduce and sequester carbon as outlined in his book, Drawdown: The Most Comprehensive Plan Ever Proposed to Reverse Global Warming. What has the response to his extensive research been from…

Art as Spiritual Practice

Meredith Monk opened the 2015 Artist and Buddhist Contemplatives gathering with a group vocalization of “AH.” This first sound of the gathering arose out of the silence and moved through all the participants together in a circle in the main hall at Garrison. And it proved a beautiful inspiration for Robert Thurman’s impromptu exposition on “A” during his talk that…