New England SOS - Recently Updated Pages

NEXT STEPS!

Anonymous — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 13:54:58 CST

This is a space for people to add their own next steps -- let's put all the wonderful ideas and energy from this conference into action!

Frank Deitle
•
•
•

Bill Pfeiffer
•
•
•

Diane Brandon
• read more at the NESOS website, to learn about the work of those I met, and connect more with it
• host a sustainability study circle in our house this spring
• invite our grandkids (Council, Paolo, Vigil) and their parents (River & Heather) to visit Sirius on an open house Sunday (maybe with Chuck and Lynn?)
• share information about NextGEN and Living Routes with our daughter Oceana in Utah, and others

Ethan Roland
• Type up minutes from PERMACULTURE DESIGN session and post here
• Post photos of 'The Movement' Graphic that we all contributed to
• Work with NextGEN and other folks to build a comprehensive sustainability database
• Continue growing the permaculture community through all of the great folks I met this weekend

Stephen Brandon
Tom Sullivan
charles uchu
Greg Norris
Lucinda Ramsey
Paige Bridgens
Nancy Lee Wood
Sal Peabody
Tina Clarke

Jennifer Hartley

Digest all that I heard and learned over the weekend
Offer mentoring to NextGen and other youth I come into contact with
Work on a Sustainability Library
Continue my work to promote things like permaculture in western Mass., alternative experiential education in ecovillages, the importance of buying local food and supporting the local economy, and strategizing about peak oil
Give birth in April!

Catherine Miller
Barb Chalfonte
Christine Robbins
Ian
Lierre Keith
Lynn Lidz
Chuck Lidz
Mashara Newman
Richard Kerver
John Alcheman
Sean Roulan
Maya Aplfebaum
Jim Vogt
Megan Mills
Jess Conzo
Jazu Stine
Alison Rosenblatt
Marci Linker
Jonathan Mark
Caitlin McKee
Hank Allan
Owen Schaffer
Justin Wright
Maya Winfrey
Shauna Lynn

ALisa Starkweather
*meet with Jane B about writing
*offer my skills and eldering to NextGen
*learn more about restorative justice training
* asks on Sunny Miller's inspiration for us all to call 202 224 3121 and let Washington know we don't want escalation with Iran and to call regularly on various things each week.

Alyssa McKim
Larry Buell
Frances Crowe
Suzanna Stephan
Julian Gordon
Blake Mills
Caitlin Herlihy

REGISTRATION

Anonymous — Thu, 07 May 2009 23:19:48 CDT

On this page you can self-register by clicking the "Easy Edit" button above and adding your name, organization, and contact information to the bottom of the list. If you highlight your name and click "Link" in the EasyEdit Toolbar you can create a bio page for yourself so we can learn more about our community for the event.

Remember attendance at event is free, but we welcome your donations.

Meals registration deadline has passed, if you are just now registering for the event please call Charles to touch base about food 617-320-8409.

After you register, go to the event organizers page to sign up for a coordinator or team positition. Our intention is to have every participant also be an event organizer. This is a community organized event!

If you need help registering or using the "wiki" technology on this site, email newenglandsos@gmail.com or phone Frank Deitle @ 415-992-2555.

Note: 90 person limit at this time. Reserve your space now!

NAME	ORGANIZATION	EMAIL and LOCATION	PHONE
Frank Deitle	Earthlands	commoikos@gmail.com Location: Petersham, MA	415-992-2555
Bill Pfeiffer	Sacred Earth Network	bill@sacredearthnetwork.org Location: Petersham, MA	978-724-0120
Diane Brandon	Kitchen Table Consulting	diane@kitchentableconsulting.net Location: Eliot, Maine	207-438-9110
Ethan Roland	AppleSeed Permaculture	eroland@gmail.com	518-610-1375
Stephen Brandon	Artist & Maker	stephenb19@verizon.net Location: Eliot, Maine	207-438-9110
Tom Sullivan	Dream Tile	dreamtile@comcast.net Location: Turner Falls, MA	413-863-9110
charles uchu	GAIA Host ,VAWC, ECWD Sirius Community	uchu@gaiaweavers.org Location: Shutesbury, MA	413-253-9404
Greg Norris	New Earth , Earthster	gnorris@hsph.harvard.edu Location: North Berwick, ME	207-676-7640
Lucinda Ramsey	Earthlands.org	Petersham, MA	415 992 2555
Paige Bridgens	Montview Neighborhood Farm	paigeleh@yahoo.com Northampton, MA	413-584-5153
Nancy Lee Wood	Bristol Community College	nleewood@netzero.net Location: Taunton and Fall River, MA	508-828-1857
Sal Peabody	Salamander Farm	shptreeshadows@yahoo.com Location: Plainfield MA	413-634-8088
Tina Clarke	Clean Water Action	tclarke@cleanwater.org Location: Amherst, MA	413-549-6834
Jennifer Hartley	Living Routes Rocky Hill Cohousing Western Mass Permaculture Guild	hartley_jennifer@yahoo.com Florence, MA	413-387-8486
Catherine Miller	Pioneer Valley Planning Commission	cmiller@pvpc.org	413-781-6045
		duramater27@yahoo.com
Christine Robins		crobins76@hotmail.com
Ian		theworld4free@hotmail.com
Lierre Keith	http://www.inthewake.org/keith1.html	lierrekeith@yahoo.com	413-586-3192
Lynn Lidz		lblidz@truefitservices.com Sutton, MA
Chuck Lidz		chuck.lidz@umassmed.edu Sutton, MA
Mashara Newman	Rocky Hill Cohousing	masharanewman@yahoo.com Location: Florence, MA	413-586-3684

Richard Kerver	Sustainable Worcester	rkerver@gmail.com Worcester, MA
John Alcheman	Montague, MA	shiva777@gmail.com
Jane Bernstein	Conway, MA until March, then... Wakefield RI	happymediums@gmail.com
Sean Roulan	Conway School of Landscape Design	roulan07@csld.edu Montague, MA	518 225 8034
Maya Aplfebaum	Greenfield, MA		413-774-7322
Jim Vogt		nhcd@metrocast.net Gilmanton, NH	866-837-8867
Megan Mills	Apeiron Institute of Sustainable Living- Assistant Educator for children and young adults -RI	meganfaces@aol.com	401-724-3633
Jess Conzo	NextGEN	jessiconz@gmail.com Northampton, MA	508.330.3954
Jazu Stine	NextGEN	jazstine@gmail.com Northampton, MA	845.216.7928
Alison Rosenblatt	NextGEN	alirosenblatt gmail.com Weston, CT
Marci Linker	Rocky Hill Cohousing River Valley Market	linklet@gmail.com	413-584-8817
Jonathan Mark	ReGen Power Systems, Ltd & www.FlybyNews.com	flyby@mtdata.com P.O. Box 1999 Wendell Depot, MA 01380
Caitlin McKee	www.yourenergyoptions.com	cmckee@art.umass.edu Northampton, MA 01060
Kemper Carlsen		Leverett, MA
Hank Allan	www.siriuscommunity.org	Shutesbury, MA hankallan@yahoo.com	413.256.2118
Justin Wright		justin.wright@sostenica.org	203.436.0270
Maya Winfrey	www.cooppower.coop	maya@cooppower.coop	413-772-8898
Shauna Lynn		shauna@montaguema.net	413~367~7570
ALisa Starkweather	Women in Power Program www.womeninpowerprogram.com Daughters of the Earth Gatherings Women's Belly and Womb Conferences Priestess Path http://members.aol.com/alisastar	alisastar@aol.com Location: Central Massachusetts	Prefer email contact
Alyssa McKim	Co-op Power	alyssa@cooppower.coop Greenfield MA	413-320-6652
Larry Buell	Earthlands	larrybuell@earthlands.org
Frances Crowe
Suzanna Stephan
Caitlin Herlihy
Blake Mills	Custom House Productions	customhousepro@aol.com	207-691-9111
Julian Gordon	Kabbalist	jewelsofthought@gmail.com Gloucester, MA

Lyn de la Motte	Shaman	lyn.edgewalker@gmail.com Cape Town, South Africa

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF RESISTANCE AND CHANGE + CHANGING OUR WORLD VIEWS TO GLOBAL ECOLOGICAL CITIZENSHIP

Anonymous — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 18:34:41 CST

Non-session participants can post their feedback on this topic below by clicking the "Comments" at the bottom of this page.
Conveners and session participants click the "EasyEdit" button above to edit this page.

Convener: Dagen & Larry
Session Participants: Maya Winfrey, Frances Crowe, Mac Newman, Lynn Lidz, Catherine Miller, Tina Clarke, Lyn de la Motto, Barb Chalfonte, Christine Robins, Jennifer Hartley, Janice, Paige Bridgens, ALisa Starkweather, Alyssa McKim, Suzanna Stephen, Kathy Bonnett, Sal Peabody, Laura Massa, Julian Gordon
Time: 11:00 am - 12:30 pm
Place: A

Session Notes:
-Initial duality: Do we need to change ourselves or change others?

-Need to link the big ideas to concrete actions

-Backgrounds & interests of the group include clean water, energy conservation, urban planning, understanding resistance, systems thinking, psychology (start within & move out)

-Resistance = holding back, change = moving forward

-Resistance can involved keeping out of the "colonized mind"

-Media are hugely to blame for material culture

-Where does change start?
1) everywhere ---> group energy
A person can change by putting them in new "energy bubble" (kids are in touch with a huge "consumer bubble" in spite of other efforts)
"Hundreth Monkey Theory" states that things often happen at or near same time because of "group mind" effect (bestearth.org is website that looks at best time to meditate to concentrate group mind effect).

2) expectation of others
Does everyone need to change and contribute in same way?
Leaders & others need to "go internal" occasionally to reflect and regenerate.
We need to learn to deal with feelings about people who consume excessively or who have different values from ours

Group Mind is a powerful, essential core.

Do we hold leaders responsible with love or anger; paradox is to hold them accountable but with compassion.

What we don't like in George Bush is what we don't like in ourselves.

If we focus on our addictions, we feed them.

In creating change, focus on the positive mind rather than the negative mind.

The challenge is to live in minimal comfort in American society, while living within the culture. Some folks, tax resisters and others, actually manage to live on $5000-$10000/year.

Group mind vs the individual is really intertwined. Can't put energy into deciding what comes first.

How to be hopeful rather than tired & depressed?

Need to recognize the play between history/baggage and dealing with the current reality. Both play a role.

Group mind is most powerful in moments of danger, hunger, etc. Universal forces move us to say yes or no.

Values are critical to examine. Millions in the world would do anything to have what we have; we have malaise of heaven.

What are examples of change models? 12 Step Program, ? ?

Hard to really listen and hear without trying to figure out the right answer in a situation.

To be grounded together in intention is better; each acts according to his or her own principles. There is really a breathing out and breathing in that links an individual to a group. There is always a tension between the individual's principles and the need to belong to the group.

Judgment of others immediately creates resistance in them. They sense it regardless of whether it is stated or not. One needs to have an open heart as one approaches others.

What "nuggets" brought us to this gathering? How can we reach out to continue to bring change to others?

One member encouraged the group to form a standing circle which helped transform the group into an example of group mind that was joyful, nurturing and memorable. It ended with singing along with another group.

EVENT ORGANIZERS

Anonymous — Fri, 27 Apr 2007 12:50:15 CDT

Have fun making a difference. Be an event organizer!

This is a grassroots, participant driven, democracy-in-action like you've never seen it before kind of an event. You will be blown away by how people (like yourself!) step up to leadership roles to get the things done that they are most passionate about with a newfound freedom and joy exploring those roles.

This event will be what we as a community make it.
How will you contribute?

Sign up below (click on the "EasyEdit" button above), create a team, and get into action! You can even sign up for more than one team and get to know more people. (If you'd like to create your own unique coordinator position, go right ahead.)

And in the spirit of Open Space Technology, if you get tired of your position, or if you have so much fun that you want to give someone else the opportunity... pass the torch! Leadership = Passion + Responsibility.

Event coordinator

Event coordinator support team

Frank Deitle	commoikos@gmail.com	415-992-2555
charles uchu
Catherine Miller	cmiller@pvpc.org	413-781-6045

Regional coordinators

Greeter coordinator

charles uchu

Greeter team

your name here	email	phone number
Tina Clarke	tclarke@cleanwater.org	413-549-6834
Jim Vogt	nhcd@metrocast.net	866-837-8867

Publicity and promotions coordinator

your name here

phone number

Publicity and promotions team

Jane Bernstein	happymediums@earthlink.com	phone number
Diane Brandon	diane@kitchentableconsulting.net	207-438-9110

Fund raising coordinator

your name here

phone number

Fund raising team

your name here	email	phone number

Poster coordinator

your name here

phone number

Poster Team

your name here	email	phone number
Hank Allan	hankallan@yahoo.com	413.256.2118

Nametag coordinator

Jennifer Hartley

hartley_jennifer@yahoo.com

413-387-8486

Nametag team

your name here	email	phone number

Newsroom coordinator

your name here

phone number

Newsroom team

your name here	email	phone number
Tina Clarke	tclarke@cleanwater.org	413-549-6834

Venue coordinator

your name here

phone number

Venue team

your name here	email	phone number

Finance coordinator

your name here

phone number

Finance team

your name here	email	phone number

Registration coordinator

your name here

phone number

Registration team

your name here	email	phone number

Diversity coordinator

your name here

phone number

Diversity team

your name here	email	phone number

Boston-Area Ride coordinator
Ian theworld4free@hotmail.com

Northampton-Area Ride coordinator
Paige paigeleh@yahoo.com 413-584-5153

Cleanup coordinator

your name here

phone number

Cleanup team

your name here	email	phone number

Event setup coordinator

your name here

phone number

Event setup team

your name here	email	phone number

Celebration coordinator

your name here

phone number

Celebration team

your name here	email	phone number
ALisa Starkweather	alisastar@aol.com

Materials and supplies coordinator

your name here

phone number

Materials and supplies team

your name here	email	phone number

Create your own table for other event positions including but not limited to:
Art and decorations coordinator
Eco-accountability coordinator
Business development coordinator
Carpooling coordinator
Lodging coordinator
Meals coordinator
Refreshments coordinator
Web coordinator
Sponsorship coordinator

Supplies Needed

Sign up here to donate or loan supplies to the event.
THE MATERIALS AND SUPPLIES SECTION HAS MOVED TO ITS OWN PAGE.

Next event organizational meeting:

Time:
6:30pm - 8:30pm
Tuesday, January 23rd

Location:
Sirius Community
Shutesbury, MA

This will be a potluck style, eat while you work meeting. Please call or email Frank to confirm your attendance. Contact Frank Deitle to be part of the team: 415.992.2555 commoikos@gmail.com

OST: RULES OF THE GAME

Anonymous — Wed, 11 Apr 2007 22:07:25 CDT

Open Space Technology operates on four basic principles and one law:

Whoever comes is the right people.

Don't waste time worrying about who could have been there or who should have been there. Whoever has enough passion to show up is the "right people" to get the job done (even if it's just you!).

Whatever happens is the only thing that could have.

Don't waste time worrying about what could have happened or what should have happened. It is often the case at Open Space events that our agendas and expectations are shattered as we make space for something new.

Whenever it starts is the right time.

Creativity doesn't happen by the clock. As soon as one person joins you, get to work!

When it's over, it's over.

If your session is over or your issue is resolved in five minutes, move on. You don't have to keep mulling things over just because you thought it should take an hour. And if you've reached the end of your allotted time and your group still has energy and momentum for the topic, keep it going. Creativity doesn't happen by the clock. (Just be considerate if another group has reserved your breakout space and move your conversation somewhere else.)

and...

The Law of Two Feet (or the Law of Motion and Responsibility).

This means if you do not feel you are learning or contributing to the discussion or activities at hand, you are needed elsewhere. Use your two feet to take you there.

Which inspires two additional roles one can play...

Butterflies

Butterflies are those people who don't seem to be participating but are just enjoying some quiet time to themselves, taking a walk, stretching or resting. They remind us that there is space for whatever anyone needs to do to take care of themselves. It is often in these moments where we find the genesis of inspiration.

Bumblebees

Bumblebees flit about from conversation to conversation pollinating ideas and helping people reiterate what they've been saying in new ways which could lead to the next great idea!

and certainly don't forget to...

PREPARE TO BE SURPRISED!

If you leave knowing not much more than you came with, you will have wasted your time.

Home

Anonymous — Tue, 20 Feb 2007 14:28:37 CST

VISIT THIS SITE REGULARLY FOR UPDATES!

NEW ENGLAND SOS

a sustainability open space

WAS A PHENOMENAL SUCCESS!!!

February 3~4, 2007
@ Sirus Community
www.siriuscommunity.org
Shutesbury, MA

See the Invitation
Go to the Proceedings
Visit our sister event in Porland, OR: RecentChangesCamp
Post event Participant Comments
Post event Finance Report

See the official invitation here!
Read the press release.

See what people are saying about our event on our feedback page.

Register online today!

Look "Behind the Scenes" of NE SOS.

Visit our Sponsors page.

Make a donation to this one-of-a-kind sustainability effort!

Be an event organizer!
Donate or loan materials and supplies to our event.

Find out more about our event format here.

Why are we doing this?

Contact:
Frank Deitle
commoikos@gmail.com
415-992-2555

DIRECT ACTION AND RESISTANCE: TAKING THE OFFENSE FOR SUSTAINABILITY

Anonymous — Tue, 06 Feb 2007 16:31:36 CST

Non-session participants can post their feedback on this topic below by clicking the "Comments" at the bottom of this page.
Conveners and session participants click the "EasyEdit" button above to edit this page.

Convener: Ian
Session Participants: 10
Time: 3:30-5 pm
Place: upstairs, A

Session Notes: Anyone who attended this session, please feel free to add notes or thoughts, as we did not take formal notes.

HOUSING

mayawinfrey — Tue, 06 Feb 2007 13:05:56 CST

Non-session participants can post their feedback on this topic below by clicking the "Comments" at the bottom of this page.
Conveners and session participants click the "EasyEdit" button above to edit this page.

Convener: Charles
Session Participants: Maya, Barb
Time:
Place:

Session Notes: Charles talked about the superinsulated house he built Maine. They used only 2 1/2 cords of wood per year in their woodstove to provide heating for this home. We discussed the issue of keeping fresh air in a superinsulated home and how a good heat exchanger can retain 80% of the heat while maintaining acceptable air flow.

Since single family rural homes are only one facet of housing that needs to be tackled with regard to sustainability, we brainstormed and briefly discussed some of the other issues at the intersection of housing and sustainability that included:

Affordable home heating options
Affordable home construction and rehab options
Good building practices
Healthy Buildings
Rental Properties
Temporary Housing
Community Living
Community Planning
Transportation
Allocating space for farms that grow food
Urban Housing (open windows and clanging radiators)
Seattle project doing rehab on existing buildings

Resource Page for Mentoring Young People and Sharing our Gifts

Anonymous — Tue, 06 Feb 2007 10:30:19 CST

Justin had this idea to connect people together within a 25 mile radius or more where young people can learn things from us in mentorship. We passed a list in our group and began to write down possibilities as allies. We offered this to the larger group as well. If you want to add please do. I am thinking that we did not do area on the page so perhaps town/city or zip would be helpful to the 25 mile radius idea. NextGen has the original copy of this. Edit this your self if I am not reading correctly what you wrote.

Frank Deitle commoikos@gmail.com
I offer possiblities for:
*Open Space Facilitation for groups of young people wanting to organize
* Earthlands programs
*Introductions to Landmark Education (living life powerfully and living a life you love)
*Earthlands INTERNSHIPS

Jen Hartley hartley_jennifer@yahoo.com
Florence, MA
I live at Rocky Hill Cohousing and have a bunch of insights into building community, etc.
I work at Living Routes www.livingroutes.org (study abroad in ecovillages)
I am a librarian and love to connect people with the world of knowledge and ideas. One of my dreams is to start a Sustainability Library. Areas of knowledge: psychology, gender studies, health, research, consensus decision making, Italian language, and culture, bridging the gaps between mainstream education and alternative experiential education, have done a lot of research on peak oil and local solutions to it, some knowledge of permaculture and sustainable agriculture.

Mac Newman masharanewman@yahoo.com
Florence, MA
Psychic inituition encouragement/ making applesauce, gender issues, cohousing, settlers of ?

Jane Bernstein happymediums@gmail.com
Rhode Island
gardening, creative writing, hiking, Italian, cooking, green living, "artistic salon (fades on my copy), joy"

Maya Apfelbaum mayafireart@aol.com
Greenfield, Ma
Planning meetings and facilitation
masks and large puppet making
simple choreography and general development of performance/educational pieces
animals, habitat, protection, elephants
waterways

Lucinda Ramsey lucinda.ramsey@earthlands.org
Petersham, Ma Earthlands
yoga
opportunities to develop scholarships to events
interactions in/with nature
friend

Larry Buell larrybuell@earthlands.org
Alternative Higher Education

Tina Clarke tclarke@cleanwater.org
413 549 6834
skills that I can share:
budgeting, bean recipes and cooking, consensus facilitation, political skills, citizen lobbying, living without a car (still learning and much more to learn), public speaking, strategies for social change ( a workshop), reducing your exposure to toxins, visit a passive solarhouse

ALisa Starkweather alisastar@aol.com
Central Massachusetts and can travel. We do have a 24 foot yurt for circles, a passive solar house, and a beautiful organic garden. I am about 25 minutes from Earthlands too.
Breathwork in groups as large as 100, empowerment, circlework, council, sharing rites of passage ceremonies with adults that care about you, community building (25 years) and all the skills that come along with that, communication and conflict resolution skills, healing skills of multiple modalities, ShadowWork facilitation www.shadowwork.com mythical, ritual and ceremonial worlds, drumming, singing, chanting, alchemical fire circle experiences, herbal knowledge (come walking with me), storytelling, alternative health and whole foods cooking. My life is devoted to the empowerment of women and I can offer scholarships or reduced rates into my programs of Daughters of the Earth Gathering and the Women's Belly and Womb Conferences. My last child moved out this autumn and I am missing children here at home so come on by!

PARTICIPANT COMMENTS

Anonymous — Tue, 06 Feb 2007 02:45:34 CST

Give us a sentance, a paragraph, a poem, or more about what your experience was like at the New England SOS event.

POST EVENT FINANCE REPORT

Anonymous — Tue, 06 Feb 2007 02:38:29 CST

INCOME
Sponsorships: $200.00
Donations: $105.00
Total: $305.00

EXPENSES
Venue @ Sirius: $300.00

BALANCE $5.00

The balance will be seed money for the next event and will be transfered to whoever steps up to organize it.

Contact Frank Deitle: commoikos@gmail.com for more information.

DEVELOPING A CULTURE THAT SUSTAINS, EDUCATES, AND PROTECTS OUR YOUNG PEOPLE'S ENGAGEMENT...

Anonymous — Mon, 05 Feb 2007 07:51:23 CST

Non-session participants can post their feedback on this topic below by clicking the "Comments" at the bottom of this page.
Conveners and session participants click the "EasyEdit" button above to edit this page.

Convener: ALisa Starkweather
Creating a Culture that Protects, Sustains, and Engages our Young People in Our Present Dilemmas
We also have a resource page to visit that accompanies this page so visit there as well and contribute your skills to young people!
Session Participants: Megan, Larry, Lucinda, Jaclyn, Maya, Jane, Ali, Justin, Jennifer, Mac, Diane, Owen, Suzanna, Frank, ALisa, and others not on our paper but for some moments in our presence.
Time: 2-3:30pm
Place: Upstairs/Octagon

Session Notes: Take note that as the convener, I forgot to designate a notetaker. Fortunately I was scribbling random things down and so we have some documentation but not what we might have. Open Space Technology is so great. "Whatever happens is the only thing that could have."

Overview with ALisa of what was in her heart in convening this session.

We began with a story I told in my own words of Daughters of the Earth Gathering where in the women's council the young women asked to speak first and told us that they were waiting for us to show up and share our skills with them especially as they will be needing to deal with the difficulties that their generation will face. They also warned us of not marginalizing them by seeing them as peripheral teens but to see them as women prepared to engage with us and ready for us to recognize them for the women that they are.

I spoke of what a culture might need to support young people and that some of these things I had seen and been a part of my own experiences. This is what I listed and went briefly over:
~ rites of passage and initiation work to bring people to a new stage with both men and women present in community to honor new responsibilities given to them
(not to ask them what they want but to guide them into what we know)

~Engaging young people in circlework of many different areas. (councils, restorative justice, circles, heartshares .....)

~ teaching them forms of conflict resolution and engaging them in peer leadership and mediation

~ inviting them in with projects, thinking, design, leadership

~Mentoring

~ knowing them since birth or childhood and tracking them with a commitment that can later reflect to them who you have seen in their growing up.

~ spending time with young people

~ bringing into their lives spiritual meaning, archetypes, rituals, ceremonies and ways to be closer to the earth and their spirit

~ skill building

~ STOP DRUGGING OUR CHILDREN for things that do not need medication

~ Being attentive to what they are dealing with in their own bodies with toxic food and water disrupting their hormones and endocrine systems. Filtered water, organic food as support to their healthy growth.

~ Bring them into some magical spaces with adults to give them a sense of challenge and excitement to be part of the adult tribe. (drum, stories, song, dance, fire, earth)

~ Educate them with values that support who they were born to be and the gifts that will help them and us.

~ Giving them the joy of community that embraces all ages and stimulates creativity and relationship in harmony with earth.

Our Collective Discussion Ensues (a bit jumbled from here but there is poetry flowing):

Mentoring a child as our own. Know the magic, teach the magic of what the planet is. Teach the children what the rhythms of the earth are with sun and moon cycles, wheel of the year.
Help them to be in touch with enthusiasm and joy.
Communicate our passion.
What we give in service, comes back to us as a gift.
Nurturing spirit. Be examples of how we live our life.

Larry brings to our attention a most important book, The Last Child in the Woods. Children are not out iceskating or playing in the fields. They are so immersed with technology that they are not finding a connection to the wild.

What would be COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT?
What builds a culture for them to flourish from?

Waldorf schools were mentioned as a way for children to be educated while also fostering their character and spirits but they are expensive. Charter schools that are similar to Waldorf but have Massachusetts funding. There is money for more charter schools. Boys brought through entire years spent in Waldorf often are displaying a difference of being more wide open. Who would boys be outside of public school systems where they are sometimes forced into being tougher? Building a school culture that fosters each child to grow into who they are.

Adults often seem disconnected to young people. They want to find engagement but there is no one responding. Distracted, disinterested, out of touch.

How do we bring adults attention back to a culture that cares about young people's wellbeing and remind them?

What needs to heal?

Young people have wild imaginations. Living in this culture sucks. Even other young people are so far into a more material culture that is difficult to make contact and relationship with one's own peer group because of being taught to be disengaged.

This leaves young people who are passionate about social change work or caring of the earth feeling unsupported by both adults and people their own age.

How do we build a source of community?

Justin from NextGen says here is what we need:
~ we need to know how to do it
~ resources
~ and people who will tell us that we are not crazy

It was so great to have Justin and Ali with us from NextGen and also Jaclyn who is a young women soon to go to Ecuador and interested in communities and sustainability. Here is what we learned about NextGen and those reading if you know more or I am not getting this right you can fill it in. Okay, forget that, I am checking on line so it is more accurate.There is GEN (Global Ecovillage Network) that is over ten years old and NextGen (the future generation of that vision). There was an international conference at Findhorn in Scotland in Oct 2005 that was the birth of Next Gen.
Their mission statement: Our mission is to ignite in all youth a passionate desire to change the world and to provide the support to channel this passion into action that will meet the needs of the human community while restoring the natural world.
Their Wiki page: http://ecovillage.wikia.com/wiki/Nextgen
There are the Fellows that Ali and Justin are a part of. I noticed that there were actually more of this group in our larger group too. The Fellows are core to keep it going and then there are members that they support. They have monthly phone conferences and implement Dynamic Self Governance. There was another international conference in Mexico and they are planning another one in 2007. The northeast is ready for action here and are looking for support for their vision.

Hey, this goes right along with our topic and here they are! How great is this. We can do it right now.

ALisa asks poses the challenge. So if we are a part of a culture that supports certain values how are we doing in regards to young people? Are we remembering them? Are we considering involving them? What can we commit to right now in exploring ways to further deepen our commitment to them?

Mac says I can invite young people over to my home and invite them to do something as simple as repot a plant with me.

This sparks Justin.
Justin suggests MENTORSHIPS that you just cannot get in college or school like how to make that old time applesauce.

He says I want to do something and who is a resource in a 25 mile radius that can teach me? Can we create a resource list of what is available skills that can be mentored to young people (gardening, canning, ... the sky is the limit here in our imagination). He shares about being a Quaker and while traveling he can contact any Quaker in the world if he arrives to a village and be welcomed in their home. He reminds us to THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX. (Wow, I didn't learn that until my late twenties. You are already advanced thinking people).

We begin to pass a paper with our names, emails and what skills, things we could offer. We bring this to the larger circle on our first day's closing if others want to join. It is STILL an open question and we now have begun a resource page devoted to this topic if you look under RESOURCE PAGE FOR MENTORING YOUNG PEOPLE AND SHARING OUR GIFTS. You can find it under our session title under proceedings.

Jane shares the quote from Howard Thurman, an assistant to MLK.

"Don’t ask what the world needs. Ask what makes you come alive, and go do it. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive."

What makes you come alive? What makes young people come alive? Invite them in.

Some commitments pour forth.
Lucinda says maybe Earthlands can ask facilitators if they would give a scholarship 1-2 scholarships to young people (ages 16-25) and then EL would give free room and board always opening a space for a young person to be a part of things.

We are reminded to involve teens in the planning of events. Bring them into leadership and have them own the power of bringing visions forward. Train them to be active leaders by example and invitation.

Larry offers to videotape parents, grandparents and Foxfire skills.

Frank is juiced about sharing Open Space Technology with them. He offers something he heard before that mentoring is like putting a knife in your heart that turns it.
Owen, another young person who came to our circle later and names himself anarchist, shares that he sees what Frank said through the lens of a Guide who is able to give us more options, more direction and increases our freedom versus a Ruler who rules from deception, manipulation and coercion.

Maya reminds us about Jane Goodall's book, Roots and Shoots and her good work with children around the environment and ethics. She also says the Five River Council that she is involved with is going to be working with integrating children into the space. She also spoke of how animals (from her former work with children and animals in the Boston zoo) are natural intermediaries with children connecting them immediately with the natural world and the spirit of who they are.

This is long for not having taken notes huh? Remember that we have another page for resources. NextGen left with the original copy. On this page YOU TOO can contribute skills to young people. Here is where others can join up too. Look here under proceedings and this session: RESOURCE PAGE FOR MENTORING YOUNG PEOPLE AND SHARING OUR GIFTS for immediate action steps today for our youth!

We closed with another story. First of my daughter's rites of passage ceremony that took place in this very same room years ago. It was in the men's circle where Jacob had told Chenoa essentially that he was finding adults pretty boring and if she was going to be one, not to be a boring adult. The way to be close to our young people is to be cool.
I shared a short memory of a book, The Toe Bone and the Tooth by Martin Prechtel where he speaks about the Mayan elders in Santiago Atitlán where when the young people no longer showed up or cared or knew about the ancient rites of passage rituals that were held for centuries before them, on the eve during the time of the year that they would have normally been arriving on the shores in their foliage headwreaths in long canoes after their ordeal, the elders still went to the beach and spoke to them as if they were still there, (I am home now so I will get it write from the book and back up so you can receive it from the author's words), Page xiv,

" Marching with the old folks again we arrived at the lake edge where I expected to see the initiate youth of this huge Mayan town, their mentors, their chiefs, their branches and their long, loaded, hand-carved log canoes beached on the soggy shore; but none were to be seen, nor would they be.
No one expected them for there were no longer any initiations. But the old people with their headcloths over their shoulders, their hands outstretched into the night toward the Mother Waters and her mother, the Grandmother Moon, commenced to speak the exact old words of ritual remembrance as if the initiate boys had actually been standing there.

"It's good to see your faces again.
It's good to feel your breath again.
We the eight hundred shimmering
Forgetters, the big trees and the big vines
Do not forget you, our new
Fruit, whose seeds will
Be our remembrance planted in the
Deep humus of our passing.
We do not forget you,
We do not abandon you.
Yesterday and the day before,
When we saw....."

For those who'd been inside these old-time initiations it was easy to imagine the tired boys standing there with the branches strapped on their back, dancing to our words under their loads, swinging in the lake breeze. Now the village did ritual after ritual to what couldn't reply or be seen by those that had never seen it before.
After that only on half of the rituals could be done, but these were carried out so assiduously that the following generations assumed by gong through the motions they were doing the whole thing. Fifty percent of what was holy and necessary was missing. Those dedicated old beauties were the last generation to know the difference." Martin Prechtel

May we remember our young people. We do not forget you. May we not ever abandon our young fruit. We closed in circle arm in arm, knowing that we all want to belong to a circle of family that includes all of us ~ the children, the teens, the growing olders, the elders. We belong together and we yearn to belong.

DEVELOPING YOUR LOCAL ECONOMY

Anonymous — Sun, 04 Feb 2007 23:10:47 CST

Non-session participants can post their feedback on this topic below by clicking the "Comments" at the bottom of this page.
Conveners and session participants click the "EasyEdit" button above to edit this page.

Convener: Lucinda
Session Participants:ALisa, Sandra, Richard, Catherine, Greg, Alyssa & Lucinda
Time: 3:30
Place: B

Session Notes:
sustainable projects
zip cars: short term rental of hybrids, 2 are now in Northampton.
The Natural Step: Create local study groups
Relocalize now: Post carbon Institute
ASPO-USA.com Association for the study of peak oil
respectable energy protocol that can be adopted by congress
Post peak oil may be the fastest leveling of our class society we've ever seen.
the upper classes will outlast others by about 5 years.
Post Peak
We may not be able to see people at distances.
We may not be able to work
Everything slows down
$s are valueless
Plastic goes

What we have to discover is how little we need.
We are simply going to join the rest of the world.
What is the most significant gift this has to offer.
We want to dream ourselves into the reality of Peak Oil

What is our predator self thinking as we face this crisis?
What do we do when people roam the country for food?
Need to take steps for safe drinking water.

We need to move into intentional community as a strategy for survival.
We can live with those who values and who we want to share our beans with.

Economist Chris Martinson this Saturday at Four Corners School
9:30- 4:30
The End of Money: Why our money is broken.

Communities Involved with Sustaining Agriculture CISA
Started in Pioneer Valley with a grant from Ford Foundation
"Be a Local Hero" campaign
They have moved local food to the 1st isle in the supermarket
This is something people should learn about and replicate
Community support of local agriculture has taken off in the last 2-3 years
The CISA has connected schools and elder services to local food sources.

In the 1930's 60% people were involved in agriculture; now it is at about 5%

The Kinsale Energy Descent Action Plan
available on Internet: plan for the town to become self sufficient with food and goods.

Business Alliance for local living economy, director Annie Cheatham, Pioneer valley chapter

Energy Independence is the solution.
Less wars
more freedom of income
It comes from both the community and the individual

LOCAL RESPONSES TO PEAK OIL

Anonymous — Sun, 04 Feb 2007 22:51:24 CST

Non-session participants can post their feedback on this topic below by clicking the "Comments" at the bottom of this page.
Conveners and session participants click the "EasyEdit" button above to edit this page.

Convener: Jen Hartley
Session Participants: Ian Trefethen, Justin Wright, Diane Brandon
Time: Sunday, Feb 4. around 10-11:30am
Place:

Session Notes:

We had a great conversation about what we've been doing about peak oil on a very personal and local level. I (Jen) didn't take very detailed notes because I was listening hard and talking, but I did take notes about websites and resources that were mentioned during our conversation. Some major themes that emerged were the importance of community building as a keystone for learning and support; the overwhelming sense of urgency, need to arrange for personal survival, and use of peak oil as a motivating force; and economic forces at work in relocalization and globalization. We also talked about the psychological effects of learning about peak oil and how to cope.

Please check out the following websites!

Energy Bulletin: one of the premier sources of news about peak oil on the web.

Peak Oil Blues: Are you 'coping' or 'freaking out' about peak oil? Check out this website for stories and support.

Bridging Peak Oil and Climate Change Activism: an essay by Richard Heinberg. Fantastic analysis about the similarities and differences between the movements and how they can work better in tandem. Speaks brilliantly about peak oil as a motivating force.

The Community Solution: dedicated to the development, growth and enhancement of small local communities. They envision a country where the population is distributed in small communities that are sustainable, diverse and culturally sophisticated.

The Relocalization Network: a project of the Post Carbon Institute. Guides and networks for communities striving to relocalize.

The Theory of Anyway: an essay by Sharon Astyk. Why we should change our lives anyway, regardless of whether predicted oil and climate crises come to pass.

Precautionary Principle: in a nutshell as presented by Wikipedia.

Transition Culture: a terrific, optimistic blog by Rob Hopkins of Totnes, England. Rob is one of the originators of the concept of energy descent (or powerdown) plans at the local, town level. He is currently involved in a project called "Transition Town Totnes." Previously he helped guide the development of an energy descent action plan for the town of Kinsale in Ireland. Please visit his website for more information and background on these amazing initiatives.

PERMACULTURE DESIGN

Anonymous — Sun, 04 Feb 2007 19:21:41 CST

Non-session participants can post their feedback on this topic below by clicking the "Comments" at the bottom of this page.
Conveners and session participants click the "EasyEdit" button above to edit this page.

Convener: Ethan Roland
Session Participants: Many! Ethan, Maya, Lynn, Sandra, Frank, Jono, Richard, Jess, Jazu, Ian, Owen, ???, ???, ???, ???
Time: 2:00-3:30
Place: Downstairs on the couches where the kids play

Session Notes:
(Ethan facilitating)

Opened with a quick introduction + definition of Permaculture:

• A Vision - for a dynamic, equitable global society that int
• A Design System - for replicable
• A Network - all over the world, students, teachers, practitioners, researchers, farmers, activists, and more. YOU are part of the global network.

Collaborative Exercise!
Ethan passed out pieces of paper, with the topics that everyone posted in the marketplace written on them. The group was asked to split into groups of two and discuss how the two topics merge.

Action Items - Direct Steps + Design Directives
<Indigenous Perspectives + Animals/Livestock>
•Maintain plant and animal diversity
•Live and work with animals, not "livestock".

<Alternative Currencies + Communities ?!? >
• The dollar has collapsed... now what? Imagine your support and make a plan

<Live Simply+ Renewable Energy>
• Recognize and embrace connection between "renewable energy and simple living.
• Grow your own food.
• Use less! Live with Less!

<Conservation + Community Gardens>
Grow foods in community gardens to conserve biodiversity, energy, health and nature especially in urban environments.
Conserve collective energy.
Use small scale intensive agriculture system.

<Community Living + Transportation>
Design communities to incorporate human and bike transportation.
Create community "nodes" connected be transportation corridors.
Ensure good public infrastructure for bikes.

<Direct Action and Resistance + Financing Sustainability>
Take part in and encourage a "gift economy"

MEASURING SUSTAINABILITY (BENCHMARKS??)

Anonymous — Sun, 04 Feb 2007 14:53:36 CST

Non-session participants can post their feedback on this topic below by clicking the "Comments" at the bottom of this page.
Conveners and session participants click the "EasyEdit" button above to edit this page.

Convener: Catherine Miller
Session Participants:Megan Mills, Jennifer Hartley, Charles Uchu, Mac Newman, Lynn Lidz, Larry Buell, Lynn and Julian from South Africa, Jono Neiger, Frank Deidle
Time: 12:30-2
Place: B

Session Notes: Hard to talk/think about metric or ways to measure sustainability until we agree on what sustainability is. So we spent some time thinking about that. There are 4 worlds of sustainability: physical, emotional, mental, spiritual. How does one measure an amoeba? You feel it.
We talked about the need to be wary of choosing a measure just because it is measurable--b/c then it might take over. You don't want the measurements to produce behavior. (or do you???)
What is the goal for spiritual sustainability? Everyone loved this question.
Perhaps what we want to know is, are we achieving our intentions?
Be wary of behavior taking over vision.
Isn't measuring a teasing of the mind?
We may have to accept doing this incrementally. i.e. for now bio fuels make sense--but they are an interim solution. not THE solution.
We need "gap solutions".
Be careful--we do NOT want to sustain what is.
Differentiate between sustain and sustainability.
What do we want to sustain? Joy in our communities.
ID people we can trust and who know how to measure things and ask them!

Resources: sustainlane website U.S. that has sustainability metrics for cities. www.keysregion.org, Dreamweaver, Spencer Phillips, Elizabeth Kline-Tufts, What the Bleep? and Down the Rabbit Hole, Human Design

Metrics: imported energy; avg. miles that fod travels; # farmer's markets; CSA subscribers in a region; distributed energy v. grid;

THE NATURAL STEP FOR COMMUNITIES

Anonymous — Sun, 04 Feb 2007 13:07:47 CST

Non-session participants can post their feedback on this topic below by clicking the "Comments" at the bottom of this page.
Conveners and session participants click the "EasyEdit" button above to edit this page.

Convener: Diane Brandon
Session Participants: Ali, Jess, Justin, Megan, Sal
Time: 9:45-10:15 or so
Place: sunny windows upstairs

Session Notes:

In Portsmouth NH there is a city government sustainability committee. There is also an independent citizen group doing the Portsmouth (or Piscataqua) Sustainability Initiative, which has initiated study circles using the book The Natural Step for Communities: How Cities and Towns Can Change to Sustainable Practices, by Sarah James and Torbjorn Lahti.

One 8-session study circle series (one evening per week) was organized for the fall of 2006, and then two of the young men in that study circle have started another one. Each study circle session is currently 7:30-9pm, in the home of one of the facilitators.

There is a facilitator’s guide and a separate study circle guide, both developed by Sustain Dane (Dane County, Wisconsin http://www.sustaindane.org/ ). The Portsmouth group has adapted the study circle guide to include local examples. As soon as I can figure out how to link a pdf document to this site, I'll link the study circle guide here, but in the meanwhile you can email me for it: diane@kitchentableconsulting.net
Sustain Dane also works with Northwest Earth Institute courses, done using study circles.

Basically anyone who has gone through the series can be a faciltiator if they have basic group facilitation skills. The study circle could happen anywhere – in a café or library, etc. Those in the second round plan to start a few study circles in nearby towns as a third round. Stephen and I plan to host one in our home and already have some friends and neighbors who are interested.

The study guide will tell you all you need to know about the content of each session.

In the group today, we talked about how others could use the book and study circles in their towns, or adapt the process to their own needs, and study other books.

PROCEEDINGS

Anonymous — Sun, 04 Feb 2007 09:38:13 CST

This is where all proceedings from our event will be posted - live - as they are being generated during the SOS. We have a wireless connection at Sirius so it will be outrageously simple to upload our session notes from the Newsroom during the event. No more waiting weeks for groups to get their notes sent in!

INSTRUCTIONS

Saturday Sessions

"The conversations I engaged in today touched on many more topics than I thought sustainabilty covered" - (??? at evening news)

Example Topic with You

11AM - 12:30PM
The Psychology of Resistance and Change + Changing our Worldviews to Global Ecological Citizenship with Dagen and Larry

Indigenous Perspectives on Sustainability (NE focus) with Bill

Global Livestock Methane Increasing Planet Temperatures with Tom

12:30PM - 2:00PM
Housing with Chuck

Social Entrepreneurship with Jaclyn

USA Foreign Policy with Jim

Permaculture Design with Ethan

2:00PM - 3:30PM
Developing a Culture that Sustains, Educates, and Protects our Young People's Engagement in Our Present Dilemmas with ALisa

Networking and Outreach - Ideas and Stratagies with Christine

Intersection of Housing and Community with Barb

Measuring Sustainability (Benchmarks??) with Catherine

Transportation with Sal

3:30PM - 5:00PM
Direct Action and Resistance: Taking the Offense for Sustainability with Ian

Developing Your Local Economy with Lucinda

How Do You Finance Sustainablity with Mac

Community and Cooperative Gardening with Christine

Simple Living with Jim

Sunday Sessions

8:30AM - 9:30AM
Networking and Outreach - Ideas and Stratagies with Christine

9:30AM - 11:00AM
Local Responses to Peak Oil with Jen

Carbon Sequestration for Global Climate Change with Ethan

Corporate and Community Partnerships with Suzanna

The Natural Step for Communities (study circles) with Dianne

Community and Cooperative Gardening with Christine

Teaching (Sharing) Sustainability with Children with Megan

Action Planning and Next Steps

TEACHING (SHARING) SUSTAINABILITY WITH CHILDREN

Anonymous — Sun, 04 Feb 2007 09:37:10 CST

New England SOS - Recently Updated Pages

NEXT STEPS!

REGISTRATION

THE PSYCHOLOGY OF RESISTANCE AND CHANGE + CHANGING OUR WORLD VIEWS TO GLOBAL ECOLOGICAL CITIZENSHIP

EVENT ORGANIZERS

Event coordinator support team

Greeter team

Publicity and promotions team

Fund raising team

Poster Team

Nametag team

Newsroom team

Venue team

Finance team

Registration team

Diversity team

Cleanup coordinator

Cleanup team

Event setup coordinator

Event setup team

Celebration coordinator

Celebration team

Materials and supplies coordinator

Materials and supplies team

Supplies Needed

Next event organizational meeting:

OST: RULES OF THE GAME

Home

NEW ENGLAND SOS

DIRECT ACTION AND RESISTANCE: TAKING THE OFFENSE FOR SUSTAINABILITY

HOUSING

Resource Page for Mentoring Young People and Sharing our Gifts

PARTICIPANT COMMENTS

POST EVENT FINANCE REPORT

DEVELOPING A CULTURE THAT SUSTAINS, EDUCATES, AND PROTECTS OUR YOUNG PEOPLE'S ENGAGEMENT...

DEVELOPING YOUR LOCAL ECONOMY

LOCAL RESPONSES TO PEAK OIL

PERMACULTURE DESIGN

MEASURING SUSTAINABILITY (BENCHMARKS??)

THE NATURAL STEP FOR COMMUNITIES

SPONSORS

Would your organization like to sponsor this one-of-a-kind sustainability event?

New England SOS Sponsors

Happy Mediums

Priestess Path

PROCEEDINGS

Saturday Sessions

Sunday Sessions

Action Planning and Next Steps

TEACHING (SHARING) SUSTAINABILITY WITH CHILDREN