State of Emergence

Philosopher, pro-activist and author Jeremy Lent joins Terry in a deep and vulnerable exploration of where we are right now as a species, the underlying nature of our ecological and civilizational crises and how we frame our work to catalyze emerging potential for a rapid collective transformation toward a sustainable future. They consider how a greater understanding of the interconnectedness and wholeness of life — both its evolutionary history and the always-active physical, biological, noetic and cultural patterns animating our reality — can inspire us into a new level of devotion to life itself, and its flourishing. They then explore how such devotion involves trusting and treasuring the difficult passages of our lives — personally and collectively. In fact, Jeremy points out that he's come to treasure them especially — as they often become the gateways of transformation and new possibility.  Here are some of the questions that Jeremy and Terry explore in the episode: What are the differences between “deep adaptation” and “deep transformation”, and what role could each play in responding to our ecological crisis? How can we “trust, let go, and welcome each moment as a sacred treasure, especially the difficult ones?” How can we practice identifying with the flourishing of Life — with the processes and potentials animating all forms — and be catalyzed by Life's evolutionary will to live? How does the practice of “beginner's mind” benefit our collective project of re-envisioning culture and systems — and how can we practice it in our own lives? What kinds of relationships, communications, and social experiments can enable us, and many millions of others, to become more firmly grounded in our inherent love of life? Jeremy Lent is an author and speaker whose work investigates the underlying causes of our civilization's existential crisis, and explores pathways toward a life-affirming culture. His award-winning book, The Patterning Instinct, traced the patterns of thought and deep historical foundations that have led human civilization to the current dominant worldviews and crises of sustainability. Now his new book, The Web of Meaning: Integrating Science and Traditional Wisdom to Find Our Place in the Universe, offers a very rich and solid foundation for an integrative worldview that could be the basis for a sustainable, flourishing future. For more information on Jeremy Lent and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Jeremy Lent's new book, The Web of Meaning: Integrating Science and Traditional Wisdom to Find Our Place in the Univers Jeremy's previous book, The Patterning Instinct: A Cultural History of Humanity's Search for Meaning Jeremy's website Our podcast website, stateofemergence.org Terry Patten's nonprofit, A New Republic of the Heart Terry Patten's personal website Would you consider making a donation to State of Emergence? The State of Emergence podcast is made possible by listeners' contributions, through the nonprofit A New Republic of the Heart. If you appreciate our work, we would love for you to join us as a Friend of State of Emergence and help the podcast become financially sustainable through a monthly or one-time donation of any size. Also, we explore each episode in greater depth during our State of Emergence live Q&A events and our monthly supporters are always invited to join. A caring community is making it all possible and we'd love for you to be part of it! Register by clicking “Join the Conversation” at stateofemergence.org.

Poet, teacher and interfaith chaplain Fred LaMotte joins Terry to listen, notice, honor and share the mysterious depth that emerges between them, among them and beyond them. Terry begins by reading one of Fred's poems, and later Fred shares a couple of his favorite poems with Terry. They explore the inner processes and revelations from which luminous poetry, writing and art arises and how Fred practices in relation to his writing. Their shared inquiry continues to find its way back to a place beyond poetry, words, beliefs and ideas as they stay in touch with the “infinitely delicate jolt” of connecting (and reconnecting) with presence and dwelling in the tender receptivity of the miracle of each moment. Alfred K. LaMotte is the author of three books of poetry. A graduate of Yale University and Princeton Theological Seminary, he has been director of Religious Studies and Community Service at America's oldest Quaker school, a college instructor in World Religions, an interfaith college chaplain, and a meditation teacher.  Here are a couple of additional questions they explore in the episode: How can we care about the outcomes of our lives and our work, while also being released from the karma of identifying with good or not-so-good outcomes? How can the practice of “beholding what is” become a service to life itself and the evolutionary process of life knowing itself at an unprecedented depth? For more information on Fred LaMotte and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Fred's website, yourradiance.blogspot.com Fred's book, Wounded Bud Fred's book, Savor Eternity One Moment at a Time Fred's book, The Fire of Darkness Our podcast website, stateofemergence.org Terry Patten's nonprofit, A New Republic of the Heart Terry Patten's personal website Would you like to support the podcast? State of Emergence is made possible by listeners' contributions, through the nonprofit A New Republic of the Heart. If you appreciate our work, we'd love to invite you to support it through a monthly or one-time donation of any size. Also, we explore each episode in greater depth during our State of Emergence live Q&A events and our monthly supporters are always invited to join. If you haven't already joined as a supporter, please consider becoming a Friend of State of Emergence and help the podcast become financially sustainable. A caring community is making it all possible and we'd love for you to be part of it! Go to stateofemergence.com and click Join the Conversation.

Futurist, teacher, and author Peter Russell joins Terry in person at his home to connect more intimately and explore several profound considerations about this human miracle and our current predicament. In a previous podcast episode (February 2020), their conversation focused on an essay Peter had written called Blind Spot, in which he explores how human creativity builds on itself, leading to an exponential acceleration of complexity that he believes inevitably exceeds our capacities as a species. Then, he suggested we might be best served by a radical letting-go of our efforts to counteract that destiny. In this new episode, they venture deeper into the how of this letting-go, and how it can open into an uncomplicated relationship to what is right now, dissolving whatever gets in the way of us showing up fully, sanely, and gratefully. Peter and Terry consider together how wonder releases tension in the mind, how gratitude releases tension in the heart, and how a radical practice of letting go, releases the whole being into its true nature — beneath and beyond even our humanity.  Peter Russell is a leading thinker and writer on consciousness and contemporary spirituality. He is on the faculty of the Institute of Noetic Sciences, and a fellow of The World Business Academy and The Findhorn Foundation, and an Honorary Member of The Club of Budapest. In the 1980's, Peter coined the term "global brain" with his bestseller of the same name, in which he predicted the Internet and the impact it would have on humanity. Peter has studied theoretical physics, experimental psychology, and computer science at the University of Cambridge, and meditation and Eastern Philosophy in India. He also pioneered the introduction of personal growth programs to corporations, running courses for senior management on creativity, stress management and sustainable development. We appreciated Peter's work to distill the essence of the world's spiritual wisdom and to present it in ways that speak to people in current terms. He is the author of ten books, including Waking Up in Time and From Science to God. His beautiful new book, Letting Go of Nothing: Relax Your Mind and Discover the Wonder of Your True Nature, will be published in August of 2021. Here are some of the questions that Peter and Terry explore in the episode: What is it to let go? And what exactly are we letting go of?  Can waking up to the existential severity of our civilizational predicament serve as an initiatory force, drawing us into fuller presence with ourselves, each other, and reality? If we let go of the energy in us that's opposing our societal predicament, what emerges in its place? If we accept Peter's thesis that humanity's creative impulse is contributing to our inevitable collapse, how can we relate in new ways to creativity as it arises within us? How might our doing of good works in the world evolve in the future as we become more rested in Being and trusting of our inherent nature? How can we practice accepting that our conditional perspectives will inevitably keep arising but that their context is unconditional, radiant, vast, beautiful, and more primary? Would you like to support the podcast? State of Emergence is made possible by listeners' contributions, through the nonprofit A New Republic of the Heart. If you appreciate our work, we'd love to invite you to support it through a monthly or one-time donation of any size. Also, we explore each episode in greater depth during our State of Emergence live Q&A events and our monthly supporters are always invited to join. If you haven't already joined as a supporter, please consider becoming a Friend of State of Emergence and help the podcast become financially sustainable. A caring community is making it all possible and we'd love for you to be part of it! Sign up here. For more information on Peter Russell and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Peter Russell's new book, Letting Go of Nothing (forward by Eckhart Tolle) Peter's other books and multimedia offerings Peter's website, peterrussell.com Our podcast website, stateofemergence.org Terry Patten's nonprofit, A New Republic of the Heart Terry Patten's personal website Join us as a Friend of State of Emergence We will be exploring this episode in greater depth during our next State of Emergence live Q&A (date and time to be announced soon). If you haven't already joined us, we invite you to become a Friend of State of Emergence and join these monthly Q&A sessions with me and other listeners episodes, as well as help the podcast become financially sustainable. A vibrant, intelligent, and caring community is already gathering around State of Emergence and we'd love for you to be part of it. Sign up here.

  Social psychotherapist, political theorist & entrepreneur and community organizer Indra Adnan joins Terry to explore the politics and power dynamics of “waking up” to the “meta-crisis” and to one another. Indra is in contact with the raw nerve of possibility. While many thinkers look at our civilizational predicament with increasing pessimism, she is both brilliantly theorizing about our potential for agency and proactively applying her influence in embodied, practical, and experimental ways, both locally (in the UK) and globally through “community agency networks” (sometimes called by others “collective action networks”.)  Indra and Terry consider how our societal challenges provide an opportunity for “mutually waking up” through deep conversation and relating with those who do not share their worldviews and frameworks. Indra reflects on how her personal practice nurtures her agency and creativity, and she also shares many practical tactics and examples of how the organization and political platform she co-founded, The Alternative UK, is laying the groundwork for a “future politics that is both global and intensely local.”  Their conversation then moves on to how we can shift our collective attention from narratives of trauma, disconnection and collapse into the “miracle of our connection” and a radical, embodied certainty that our solutions are available.  Indra Adnan has been writing, consulting and network-building on the themes of future politics, soft power, conflict transformation, the role of the arts, and integral consciousness. She is Founder and Co-initiator of The Alternative UK political platform, which publishes The Daily Alternative, convenes new system actors and builds “cosmolocal community agency networks.” Indra is concurrently a psychosocial therapist, journalist and author. Through her work on international relations and soft power she has consulted to the World Economic Forum, Indian and Danish governments, NATO, the Scottish Executive and the Institute of Contemporary Arts amongst others. She is Co-Lead in the social enterprise network Bounce Beyond working to cohere the next global economies. Indra's new book from Perspectiva Press is titled The Politics of Waking Up: Power & Possibility In The Fractal Age. For more information on Indra Adnan and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Indra Adnan's Website (indraadnan.global) Indra's new book, The Politics of Waking Up (for pre-order) The Alternative UK (thealternative.org.uk) Indra's Writing on “Soft Power” Terry's organization, A New Republic of the Heart Terry Patten's personal website Join us as a Friend of State of Emergence We will be exploring this episode in greater depth during our next State of Emergence live Q&A (date and time to be announced soon). If you haven't already joined us, we invite you to become a Friend of State of Emergence and join these monthly Q&A sessions with me and other listeners, as well as help the podcast become financially sustainable. A vibrant, intelligent, and caring community is already gathering around State of Emergence and we'd love for you to be part of it. Sign up at stateofemergence.org.

This episode of State of Emergence, features an additional conversation with last week's featured guest, the evolutionary biologist and important social theorist David Sloan Wilson.  If you haven't already listened to last week's episode with David — episode 069, titled “A Human Superorganism — The Higher Potentials of Cooperation” — we encourage you to begin there for a more concise and concentrated overview of his ideas. In this separate unedited conversation (which took place beforehand) David and Terry go into the practical application of his ideas at greater length and explored many nuanced distinctions, principles, and practices — it gives us valuable insight into some of the design principles and practices that can enable social experiments and cooperative communities to succeed and grow.  They consider the virtues and exploitations of competition, multiple layers of competition, genetic vs. cultural steams of evolution, the role of symbols in evolving our cultural narratives, and the Nobel laureate and political economist Elinor Ostrom's eight principles for “managing a commons.”) If you belong to and participate in a community of any kind, we hope this deep dive into the dynamics of cooperation serves you and inspires a new level of practice and efficacy in your group's efforts. For more information on David Sloan Wilson and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: David's new novel, Atlas Hugged is gifted, not sold, for whatever the reader wishes to give in return, with all proceeds going to Prosocial World. For this reason, it is available only on its website: www.AtlasHugged.world. David's nonprofit organization, Prosocial World David's book, This View of Life: Completing the Darwinian Revolution David's book, Does Altruism Exist?: Culture, Genes and the Welfare of Others David's book, Darwin's Cathedral: Evolution, Religion and the Nature of Society Terry Patten's nonprofit, A New Republic of the Heart Terry Patten's personal website Join us as a Friend of State of Emergence We will be exploring this episode in greater depth during our next State of Emergence live Q&A (date and time to be announced soon). If you haven't already joined us, we invite you to become a Friend of State of Emergence and join these monthly Q&A sessions with me and other listeners episodes, as well as help the podcast become financially sustainable. A vibrant, intelligent, and caring community is already gathering around State of Emergence and we'd love for you to be part of it. Sign up here.

Brilliant evolutionary biologist and important social theorist David Sloan Wilson joins Terry to clarify the real implications of what we know about evolution, focusing on how “multi-level selection,” interpersonal cooperation and altruism are no less central to evolution than is competition. Groups of “prosocial” individuals, under the right conditions, robustly outcompete groups of self-interested individuals.   David shares important concrete principles that can be applied by small and medium-sized groups who are attempting prosocial experiments of their own. He gets specific about which special conditions and shared agreements are required to nurture prosocial behaviors — and, very importantly, protect them. We ask: Is rapid social transformation possible? What kinds of behavior would qualify human beings as a “superorganism” that prioritizes the wellbeing of the whole and responds collectively and effectively to its existential crises? In the coming week, we will release a second “bonus” conversation I had with David. In it, he goes into much greater detail about the core design principles that enable prosocial cooperation to succeed, and the practices of acceptance and commitment that make them possible. David Sloan Wilson is a "hard" evolutionary scientist who also champions Conscious Evolution. He is the author of books such as Darwin's Cathedral, Does Altruism Exist? and This View of Life: Completing the Darwinian Revolution. His new book is a novel: Atlas Hugged: The Autobiography of John Galt III — a critique of Ayn Rand’s philosophy of Objectivism and its impact on the world. In addition to his writing and university teaching, David is President of the nonprofit organization Prosocial World, whose mission is to accomplish rapid positive multilevel cultural evolution in the real world. Here are some of the questions we explore in the episode: How is the latest evolutionary science now contradicting past misunderstandings, and actually validating spiritual and evolutionary perspectives? How do groups of altruistic or “prosocial” individuals outcompete groups of self-interested individuals? What makes individuals & groups “prosocial?” How can groups of prosocial individuals protect their cultures and ways of cooperating from selfish or predatory individuals and groups? Can groups reach a critical level of efficacy or creativity that catalyzes rapid transformation? What agreements, design principles & mechanisms are required? For more information on David Sloan Wilson and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: David’s new novel, Atlas Hugged is gifted, not sold, for whatever the reader wishes to give in return, with all proceeds going to Prosocial World. For this reason, it is available only on its website: www.AtlasHugged.world. David’s nonprofit organization, Prosocial World David’s book, This View of Life: Completing the Darwinian Revolution David’s book, Does Altruism Exist?: Culture, Genes and the Welfare of Others David’s book, Darwin’s Cathedral: Evolution, Religion and the Nature of Society Terry Patten’s nonprofit, A New Republic of the Heart Terry Patten’s personal website Join us as a Friend of State of Emergence We will be exploring this episode in greater depth during our next State of Emergence live Q&A (date and time to be announced soon). If you haven’t already joined us, we invite you to become a Friend of State of Emergence and join these monthly Q&A sessions with me and other listeners episodes, as well as help the podcast become financially sustainable. A vibrant, intelligent, and caring community is already gathering around State of Emergence and we’d love for you to be part of it. Sign up here.

Spontaneous poet, culture activist, and shamanic bard Stephen Jenkinson joins Terry to explore the totally disarming ordeal of bearing witness to death up close — both our individual mortality and our collective mortality. They also drop into felt contact with Terry’s present, uncertain situation — recently on his 70th birthday, Terry was suddenly informed that there was probably metastatic cancer in his lungs and he spent five nights in the hospital undergoing a series of tests. Now, almost a month later, there is still no clarifying diagnosis, prognosis, or treatment plan, so he’s learning to be in radical not-knowing, returning to the miracle of this moment, and this breath.  Stephen meets Terry in his characteristic uncompromising way, with tenderness, unflinching clarity, and humor. They wonder together about the overwhelming nature of beauty, and the vividness that dying well can bring to the living. Ultimately, they both confess that after decades and careers of practice, neither of them claim to be fully prepared for their own dying process. Its nature is to break us open. Even so, they both deepen in grief and gratitude, and learn to open unconditionally. As Stephen says, we can “get better at missing it” before life is gone. Stephen Jenkinson is an activist, teacher, author, farmer and performing poet. He is the founder of the Orphan Wisdom School in Tramore, Canada and the author of four books, including Die Wise and Come of Age: The Case of Elderhood in a Time of Trouble. He’s also the subject of a documentary film Griefwalker. In 2015, Stephen created Nights of Grief & Mystery with Canadian singer-songwriter Gregory Hoskins. With a 5-piece band, they have mounted international tours and released three albums, most recently DARK ROADS and ROUGH GODS. They hope to begin performing again in June — make contact on his website to see if you might be able to attend. Most recently, a four-part livestream speaking series, A Generation’s Worth, was presented in Winter 2020.  For more information on Stephen Jenkinson and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Stephen’s two new records, DARK ROADS and ROUGH GODS Nights of Grief and Mystery World Tour Stephen’s teaching school, Orphan Wisdom Stephen’s recording partner Gregory Hoskins Stephen’s Upcoming Events Stephen’s books, Die Wise, Come of Age, How It All Could Be, and Money and the Soul’s Desires State of Emergence podcast website Terry Patten’s nonprofit, A New Republic of the Heart Terry Patten’s personal website Join Us as a “Friend of State of Emergence” We hope you appreciate this week’s episode with Stephen Jenkinson. If you would like to support our podcast, we invite you to become a “Friend of State of Emergence” by making a small monthly donation. As a supporter, you will also receive invitations to our monthly Q&A events, when we explore recent episodes in greater depth. If you’d like to help the podcast continue and become sustainable, simply register as a Friend of State of Emergence on our website. A vibrant community is gathering and we’d love for you to be part of it.

This week, we are featuring one of our favorite past episodes — a tender, intimate, and deeply grounding conversation with the psychotherapist and soul-activist Francis Weller.  We recorded this conversation almost a year ago, however, it’s feeling very alive and timely to us now. Francis’ transmissive presence and his “soul obligation to register the rips and tears of the world” — remains powerful medicine. He and Terry first turn to one another in the initiatory power of the pandemic (which was front of mind at the time). Then, as they intimately share their own griefs about our civilizational crises, they arrive in a fierceness and grit to protect all they love, as well their gratitude for the depth and grandeur of this precious life. Francis Weller has worked for thirty-five years as a practitioner of soul-centered psychotherapy. He has synthesized insights from psychology, anthropology, mythology, alchemy, indigenous cultures and the poetic imagination in healing rituals and guidance for groups and individuals working with shame, judgment, and grief. He is the author of The Wild Edge of Sorrow and The Threshold Between Loss and Revelation and he is currently completing his third book, A Trail on the Ground: The Geography of Soul.  A few of the questions they explore in the episode are: In what ways does our culture tend to react to loss with “amnesia and anesthesia?” Can we embrace our sorrow as a core faculty of being human — not just an emotion — so it deepens our depths and expands our capacities for joy and gratitude? How can grieving break through an inner barrier, and open access to the deep life of our soul? For more information on Francis Weller or Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Francis Weller's Website: https://www.francisweller.net/ Francis' books, The Wild Edge of Sorrow and The Threshold Between Loss and Revelation, and In the Absence of the Ordinary: https://www.francisweller.net/books.html Terry Patten's website: https://www.terrypatten.com/ To support the podcast and receive invitations to Q&A events with Terry, click: Become a Friend of State of Emergence To explore the work we are doing, visit: A New Republic of the Heart website: http://newrepublicoftheheart.org/ State of Emergence podcast website: http://stateofemergence.org/ 

Chess Grandmaster, philosopher, author, and social entrepreneur Jonathan Rowson joins Terry to explore our global, civilizational predicament from new angles — inspired by his recent brilliant essay “Tasting the Pickle: Ten Flavors of Meta-Crisis and the Appetite for a New Civilization.” They go beyond its more recognized features such as COVID, the climate emergency, and our economic and political crises to consider it as a crisis of civilizational purpose, a lack of a meaningful global ‘We’, and its various socio-emotional, epistemic, and spiritual features. Then, Terry and Jonathan explore a more personal and intimate relationship to the meta-crisis. What does it feel like for each of us to live amidst its various energies and aesthetics? How can we learn to “taste” ideas, practices, and possibilities for their beauty and transformative power? What’s it like to interact with different worldviews in more playful and paradoxical ways? And lastly, we discover inspiration in considering the larger cultural project of building viable “we’s” that are meaningful, coherent, and effective in serving the whole. Jonathan Rowson is a philosopher, author, chess Grandmaster, sensemaking entrepreneur and the Director of Perspectiva, a research institute based in London seeking to highlight the important connections between systems, souls, and society amidst our complex crises. Jonathan previously Directed the Social Brain Centre at RSA, the Royal Society of Arts, Manufacture & Commerce. He is an applied philosopher with degrees from Oxford, Harvard and Bristol Universities. Jonathan is the author of multiple books including Spiritualise: Cultivating Spiritual Sensibility to Address 21st Century Challenges (2017) and The Moves that Matter – A Grandmaster on the Game of Life (2019). As mentioned above, Jonathan also very recently published a brilliant essay providing an overview of our civilizational predicament called "Tasting the Pickle: Ten flavors of meta-crisis and the appetite for a new civilization,” which you can find on our episode page on stateofemergence.org. Here are some additional questions explored in the episode: How does our use of language in describing our meta-crisis shape our experience and response? How does Jonathan’s humorous use of “pickle” invite a different experience? As we attempt to understand our predicament, how can we “go meta” with our sensemaking in a way that also grounds us in direct experience and relationship? Which emotional, cognitive, and relational capacities can enable us to navigate the cultural dissonance of our time? How can we build more sophisticated and effective “we’s” at scale, and how might such work begin to impact our systems?  For more information on Jonathan Rowson and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Jonathan’s recent essay, “Tasting the Pickle: Ten Flavours of Meta Crisis and the Appetite for a New Civilisation” Perspectiva, which Jonathan co-founded in 2016 with Tomas Björkman Jonathan’s book, The Moves that Matter Jonathan’s book, Spiritualise Jonathan’s 2020 essay, “An Open Letter to the Human Rights Movement” Jonathan’s 2019 essay, “Buildung in the 21st Century: Why Sustainable Prosperity Depends on Reimagining Education” Jonathan’s Aeon magazine article on Concentration State of Emergence podcast website Terry Patten’s nonprofit, A New Republic of the Heart Terry Patten’s personal website Join Us for the Next Podcast Q&A EventWe will be exploring this episode with Jonathan Rowson in greater depth during our next live State of Emergence live Q&A on Tuesday, April 13, 2021 at 12 noon Pacific. If you haven’t already joined us, simply register as a Friend of State of Emergence and you’ll receive access to our monthly Q&A sessions with Terry and other listeners. You’ll also help the podcast become financially sustainable. A vibrant community is gathering and we’d love for you to be part of it. Sign up and we’ll see you soon.

Integral scholar and Exostudies pioneer Sean Esbjörn-Hargens joins Terry to explore an integral approach to conspiracy theories and “exo realities” — including the anomalous phenomena that challenge our current models of reality. Sean begins by sharing an illuminating series of wise guidelines for navigating our post-truth conspiracy-theory-filled culture. Then, he and Terry  build upon our recent episode with Jeffrey Kripal by considering the strange territory of anomalous phenomena in greater detail — what’s “real” about them, what makes it possible to experience them, how they require our scientific frameworks to evolve, and how increasing public awareness might serve as a catalyst for moving society into wiser structures of consciousness. As committed spiritual practitioners, they also consider the potential risks of becoming fixated on fascinating phenomena, and how we might integrate them without letting them distract us from the nondual heart and ground of Being.  Sean Esbjörn-Hargens is a leader in the application of integrative thinking to leader development and organizational design, and has made significant contributions to the fields of integral ecology, integral business, integral education, and integral research. Sean created and hosted the four Integral Theory Conferences and founded MetaIntegral — a social impact network that supports change leaders around the world in applying integrative principles. Most recently, in 2018, he founded the Exo Studies Institute, pioneering an integral approach to anomalous phenomena including UFOs/ETs. Sean has been a long-term practitioner of Tibetan Buddhism, A. H. Almaas' Diamond Heart, and Celtic Christianity. He has published and edited numerous articles and books, and his recent article on non-human intelligences is titled Our Wild Kosmos! Currently, Sean is the Dean of Integral Education at the California Institute for Human Science where he also serves as Program Director for two integral PhD programs. Here are some of the questions Sean and Terry explore in this episode: What are Sean’s 16 ways of practicing wise responses to conspiracy theories and those who believe them?  What emotional and cognitive capacities does it take to “hang out in the unknown” instead of jumping to conclusions? What exactly are “exo studies?” Why are they important? Can they catalyze a major shift in human consciousness and the practice of science? Which 10 recent events — from New York Times bombshell articles to Pentagon admissions — have led to a new widespread legitimization of UFO and ET studies?  What are the 3 major “ontological realms” of anomalous phenomena? Can they be experienced and understood in our ordinary waking state of consciousness, or do we have to open to different modes of knowing in order to experience them fully? Can spiritual practitioners explore and integrate exo realities without becoming fascinated and distracted from the conscious divine reality from which they arise? Sean’s 16 Guidelines for Practicing with Conspiracy Theories REALIZE THAT WE ALL ARE CONSPIRACY THEORISTS: Keep in mind that we are all are conspiracy theorists of one strip or another – we have strong biological, cognitive, and social-cultural tendencies that predispose us towards conspiracy thinking. No one is really is immune. We are all in this together. It is psychologically commonplace – though it gets magnified or distorted under certain circumstances.  CLAIM YOUR SOVEREIGNTY: Stay in our own sovereignty and energy management around the content. – it can be intense and disorienting. DON’T BELITTLE CTs or CTers: Avoid belittling them and encourage others not to – as it encourages an environment that is not conducive to engaging them. DETERMINE WHAT KIND OF CT IS IT? Determine if it is a rational or irrational CT (or an evidence-based CT vs a speculative CT) – how much evidence and what kinds does it have supporting it.  DIFFERENTIATE BETWEEN GOOD DATA POINTS vs NARRATIVE: Keep in mind that CTs often are based on good data points and insights and are pointing to “gaps” we ignore at our own peril. Differentiate the data points from the narrative. Acknowledge the “facts” (if they are solid/verifiable) but don’t blindly accept the “links”.  ACKNOWLEDGE THE “DEEP MEMETIC FRAME” INVOLVED: Identify the deep memetic frame being presented and connect with that w/o affirming the content of the CT. CTs tend to resonate with our deepest sense of how the world is (i.e., our worldview). HANGOUT IN THE GAP: Acknowledge that the official story doesn’t add up but refrain from committing to a CT – allow for multiple possible non-official stories to contain potential explanations. Allow yourself to “reject” the official story but holdback from identifying with a single CT narrative. TALK ABOUT CTs & SEEK CT PERSPECTIVES: Talk with people about all of this - Seek the perspectives of the CT believer. Chances are they have some good points and reasons for their position.  AVOID HAVING A CT ABOUT CTers: Avoid falling into us-them dynamics and simple explanations for complex scenarios esp. ones that have some concerning data points supporting them. LOOK TO SEE IF CTs ARE FEAR OR GROWTH BASED: Look to see if the CT actually moves us toward a better society – evolves systems or consciousness by exposing hard truths, demanding transparency, accountability, etc. or does it attempt to better society by instilling fear, racism, separation, division. Be wary of any version of a CT that dehumanizes people. EXPAND YOUR MEDIA DIET & AVOID DIGITAL ECHO CHAMBERS: Expand your media diet to avoid digital echo chambers – engage in a diverse source of information – avoid algorithm selections for you. AVOID DEMONIZING BIG Xs: Be cautious when you demonize Mainstream (Big) Media, Big Pharma, the USG (Big government) and instead strive to point out the aspects of those “others” you find problematic – be as specific as possible.  UPDATE AND REFINE YOUR PERSPECTIVE: Keep updating and refining your own perspective even when it contradicts earlier positions you had. Don’t stay static in your own thinking – try and add to it vs replace it with some other position. Lean into doubleness, “good “contradictions, and complexity. PRACTICE & PROMOTE EPISTEMIC REFLEXIVITY & HUMILITY: Practice epistemic reflexivity (reflecting on your own thinking) and epistemic humility (reflecting on your own biases, tendencies, limitations, projections). The more metacognition we can develop the better. Unhelpful CTs often involve simplistic non-reflective modes of thinking and analysis. Encourage others to do these types of thinking practices and look for them in our information leaders. HELP REBUILD OUR INSTITUTIONS: CTs are thriving because we have lost trust in science, government, and journalism – for some very good reasons I might add – all of these institutions have been found to have taken advantage of our trust in them. How do we rebuild those institutions – what are the checks and balances that can create a healthy knowledge and information ecosystem.  BE COMPASSIONATE WITH EACH OTHER WE ARE ALL IN A SENSE-MAKING CRISIS: Individually and collective we are facing a crisis of sense-making and meaning – we need to be compassionate to ourselves and those around us as we all try and figure out how to navigate this terrain. For more information on Sean Esbjörn-Hargens and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: For more information on Sean, check out the following resources: Sean’s “Exo Studies” Institute Sean’s recent paper, “Our Wild Kosmos!: An Exo Studies Exploration of the Ontological Status of Non-Human Intelligences” What’s Up With UFOs? website MetaIntegral website Book edited by Sean in 2015, Metatheory for the Twenty-First Century Book edited by Sean in 2019, Dancing with Sophia: Integral Philosophy on the Verge  State of Emergence podcast website Terry Patten’s nonprofit, A New Republic of the Heart Terry Patten’s personal website Join Our Upcoming Podcast Q&AWe will be exploring this episode in greater depth during our next State of Emergence live Q&A. If you haven’t already joined us, I want to officially invite you to become a Friend of State of Emergence and join these monthly Q&A sessions with me and other listeners episodes, as well as help the podcast become financially sustainable. A vibrant, intelligent, and caring community is already gathering around State of Emergence and we’d love for you to be part of it. Our next Q&A event will be on Tuesday, April 13th at 12 PM noon PST (recording will be available). Go to stateofemergence.org and click “Join the Conversation.”

Author and professor Jeffrey Kripal joins Terry to explore the multidimensional, psychophysical nature of reality, as well as the potential of new kinds of agency, cooperation, and co-creativity. They begin by noticing the stranglehold that materialism still seems to have on our popular imagination, and also acknowledge the recent emergence of what Jeff calls “the flip” — a paradigm shift from imagining consciousness as an accidental epiphenomenon to recognizing that it is quite likely more fundamental than matter to the nature of reality. Then, they consider how popular acceptance of the reality of paranormal phenomena, UFOs, NDEs, and other “impossible” experiences may serve as an essential pivot in the larger cultural project of transitioning to a new story — especially as we’re reaching the dead-end of the old materialist story. Already it is beginning to open the collective mind and clearing space for new voices, new stories, and new ways of being together.  Jeffrey Kripal holds the J. Newton Rayzor Chair in Philosophy and Religious Thought at Rice University where he also chairs the department. He has also long served on the Board of Trustees of the Esalen Institute in Big Sur, California. Jeff is the author of eight influential books, where he has freely ranged across religious, spiritual, cultural, and paranormal realities — from Eros (passion) to Gnosis (esoteric understanding) to Nous (discernment) to Theosis (the divinization of the human) including, most recently, the wonderful short book, The Flip: Who You Really Are and Why It Matters. If you’ve read his books you are grateful for the kind of scholarly wisdom that makes his books such a pleasure to read. He writes as simply and comprehensibly as possible, emphasizing the meaning, significance, and relevance of ideas, key thinkers and mystics, and their history.  Here are some of the questions Jeff and Terry explore in the episode: How can our popular discourse about reality expand beyond highly-credentialed intellectuals and academia to include the countless extraordinary experiences of ordinary people? What evidence suggests that people are making “the flip” to a new understanding of consciousness?  As we recognize the limits of materialism, which new stories are emerging? (Dr. Kripal helps us understand panpsychism, dual-aspect monism and evolutionary panentheism.) Is there a philosophical and scientific basis for “flipped” individuals to “dream a new dream?” What about groups “co-creating” from transpersonal consciousnesses? For more information on Jeffrey Kripal and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Jeffrey Kripal’s website Jeff’s recent book, The Flip: Epiphanies of Mind and the Future of Knowledge State of Emergence podcast website Terry Patten’s nonprofit, A New Republic of the Heart Terry Patten’s personal website Would you like to join the conversation? If you haven’t already joined us, I want to officially invite you to become a Friend of State of Emergence. You’ll receive access to live discussions and Q&A with me every month about our podcast episodes and you’ll also help our podcast become financially sustainable. A vibrant, intelligent, and caring community is already gathering around State of Emergence and we’d love for you to join us as we explore these conversations in greater depth. Our next Q&A event will be on Tuesday, April 13th at 12 PM noon PST (recording will be available). Sign up here.

Prophetic teacher, psychologist, author and poet, Bayo Akomolafe joins Terry to explore the “cracks in the world” that are opening to swallow everything we’ve been taught to believe and sense into the voices, adventures, and new worlds that are poised to emerge.  With vivid original imagination and a ruthless deep kindness, Bayo names the limits of modern Western “solutionism” and invites us to make “fugitive breaks” away from familiar ways of knowing — to become consciously “lost” or “exiled” from our patterns of “proliferating the old.” He encourages us to meet our realities as if for the very first time and to embrace risks, strangeness, and unusual experimentation in our ways of being, relating, parenting, and creating. As we concluded our conversation, Bayo invited us to face our apocalyptic time as both a world-ending event and a world-creating event, mandating not just deep grief but also resilient curiosity and playfulness. Bayo Akomolafe is a celebrated international speaker, teacher, public intellectual, and author, as well as (in his words) a “fugitive neo-materialist post-activist, and Yoruba poet.” Bayo was born into a Christian home and to Yoruba parents in western Nigeria. He was teaching at Covenant University, Nigeria before becoming Special Envoy of the International Alliance for Localization, a project of Ancient Futures (USA). He went on to teach throughout the U.S. at Middlebury College, Sonoma State University, Simon Fraser University, Schumacher College — among other universities around the world — on his own formulated concepts of ‘transraciality’ and postactivism. He currently lives between India and the United States lecturing at Pacifica Graduate Institute, California and University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont, sitting on the Board of many organizations including Science and Nonduality, and serves as Chief Curator of The Emergence Network. He is also the author of two books, These Wilds Beyond our Fences: Letters to My Daughter on Humanity’s Search for Home and We Will Tell our Own Story: The Lions of Africa Speak.  For more information on Bayo Akomolafe and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Bayo Akomolafe’s website The Emergence Network Bayo’s book, These Wilds Beyond Our Fences: Letter to My Daughter on Humanity’s Search for Home Bayo’s book, We Will Tell Our Own Story: The Lions of Africa Speak Terry’s nonprofit website A New Republic of the Heart Terry Patten’s website If you haven’t already joined us, we want to officially invite you to become a Friend of State of Emergence — a new way to engage with the podcast conversation and access new live discussions and Q&A with me every month. Our next session will be on March 9, 2021. The requested contribution is $10/month, but if you cannot afford that and you want to participate, just contact us. Everyone is welcome. Additionally, you’re invited to be part of our vibrant, growing, international community at A New Republic of the Heart in other new ways — check out the options here on our website. We hope you’ll join us!

Philosopher and author Tim Freke joins Terry to explore the personal, cultural, and global implications of an integration of our best rational and spiritual understandings of reality. Tim Freke is an English philosopher and author of 35 books, including a Sunday Times bestseller and Daily Telegraph 'Book of the Year'. He is the founder of ‘Unividualism’, which combines evolutionary science and deep spirituality to offer a visionary new understanding of the nature of reality and the purpose of life.  Tim and Terry begin by revisiting fundamental philosophical questions of eros, entropy, telos, and consciousness itself. Then, they examine our current existential crisis in the context of history — considering the nature of “chaos” and the tendency for each generation to imagine it’s living in the “worst of times.” Tim especially points to how our personal awakenings draw us into a care and benevolence for everyone and everything, and how this may be our biggest evolutionary advantage.  They then explore the implications of “paralogical” (both/and) thinking, Tim’s concept of “unividualism,” and how joy and grief coexist at the knife-edge of emergence, knowing that everything we love might be both collapsing and evolving and emerging into sublimity. Ultimately, Tim suggests that the whole point is the miraculous process of evolutionary emergence, where something that has never existed before is birthed into being — again and again. If emergence is the nature of the Divine, then what is emerging is… God! For more information on Tim Freke and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Tim Freke’s Website Tim’s overview of Unividualism Books by Tim Freke Terry’s nonprofit website A New Republic of the Heart Terry’s book, A New Republic of the Heart: An Ethos for Revolutionaries Terry Patten’s website

Terry Patten explores the delusion, anxiety, loneliness, and fear experienced across our culture as well as the potential for sacred, next-stage friendship to be a key leverage point for healing the madness. Terry also invites members of the New Republic of the Heart practice community to share their experiences participating in a daring social experiment in transformational relating and co-creativity. Ultimately, Terry and others extend a special invitation to listeners. Here are some of the questions he explores: How can we best understand the wildly challenging collective madness that is gripping so many people around the world?  How do we “go sane” amidst the madness?  How can we find deep “spiritual friends” — people who are humble and open, and who can meet us at the heart amidst whatever craziness arises? Which experimental practices and ways of relating can catalyze the wisdom, coherence and heart allies that our predicament requires? How can we keep growing our capacities to reassert our relationships and heal our cultural divisions — even to the point of healing people falling into collective delusions? It's one thing to talk about these things — and it's an entirely different thing to actually live them. For that we need friends. We each need a tribe of like-minded and like-hearted souls — our spiritual friends amidst this cultural madness. If you are a practitioner, if you have gifts to share, and/or if you want to join hands with other serious practitioners, this session is the event where we are extending you a wholehearted invitation. We are a co-creative practice community of practitioners and change agents from 20+ countries, and we welcome you.  BeingofBenefit.com — Learn More and Join Our Social Experiment For more information on Terry Patten and A New Republic of the Heart, check out the following resources: A New Republic of the Heart – Social Experiment Community A New Republic of the Heart – All Membership Categories Terry’s book, A New Republic of the Heart: An Ethos for Revolutionaries Terry Patten’s website

Purpose guide and psychotherapist Jonathan Gustin joins Terry to explore the vital processes of discovering and actualizing our soul’s purpose, in clear and practical terms, to benefit our world in crisis. Jonathan builds upon our recent episode with Bill Plotkin by offering important distinctions between purpose, vocation, and pleasure. He also describes what he calls integral awakening, using his “three worlds” model of consciousness, in which the “lower world” represents our descent to soul, our discovery of our true name and place beneath personality, and our ongoing process of becoming a unique gift to whole.  Jonathan is a purpose guide, psychotherapist, and teacher. He is the founder and lead teacher of the Purpose Guides Institute, which guides people to embody their purpose as a gift to life and trains purpose guides to facilitate the transformation of humanity to a “soul-embodied species.” Jonathan serves as adjunct faculty at John F. Kennedy University in the Consciousness and Transformation Studies program and he has taught meditation in a variety of environments, from universities and prisons to corporate businesses and hospital systems. Jonathan has also co-taught alongside Joanna Macy, George Leonard, and Bill Plotkin. Here are some additional questions we explore:  How can the “three worlds” model of consciousness (lower world, middle world and upper world) clarify a lifetime of maturation? How is our unique purpose both an expression of and a gift to the whole?  How does the “imaginal matrix” function as the “spiritual soil” for our soul growth? Is our deepest fulfillment really found in “giving ourselves away” and being “thoroughly used by life?” Do friendships, communities, or even species have collective purposes? How does collective purpose evolve amidst crises? For more information on Jonathan Gustin and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Intro to Purpose Discovery - A Free 90 minute Live Mini-Workshop with Jonathan Gustin  Purpose Guides Institute website The Purpose Octagon Terry’s nonprofit website A New Republic of the Heart Terry’s book, A New Republic of the Heart: An Ethos for Revolutionaries Terry Patten’s website Also:  You’re invited to a major online teaching event on Wednesday, Feb 3 at 12 Noon PST: "Spiritual Friends Amidst Cultural Madness: The Power of Our Grateful Generosity." Terry will share new insights about navigating our fragmenting world and how a key leverage point for making a real difference is our capacity for generosity and friendship. He will also be joined by the co-creators of our "social experiment" community at A New Republic of the Heart — and together we will offer a glimpse into the ways we are experimenting at the leading-edge of spiritual friendship. Click here to register or receive the recording. 

In light of the inauguration of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, host Terry Patten shares spontaneous reflections on endings, new beginnings, hope, despair, the spiritual tasks of this time, and how we can refuse to put anyone out of our hearts. We hope that you appreciate this episode, and, most importantly, that you are finding your own way to a renewed and inspired civic engagement during the current transition. Also:  We invite you to join become a Friend of State of Emergence on our website (if you haven’t already) by making a monthly contribution to help the podcast thrive. You will then receive access links to our future live Q&A events every month with Terry and others. We hope you’ll join us! For more information on Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Terry’s nonprofit website A New Republic of the Heart Terry’s book, A New Republic of the Heart: An Ethos for Revolutionaries Terry Patten’s website

Ecopsychologist, wilderness guide and author Bill Plotkin joins Terry to consider the human crisis as essentially a crisis of immaturity — that true human adults and human elders are both extraordinarily rare today. Bill speaks to what is truly required for us — as individuals, and collectively — to grow from our extended adolescence into mature human adulthood. He describes the challenging, and sometimes hazardous, spiritual process of “soul initiation,” which demands the dissolution of our current identities and metamorphosis of our egos into mature co-creators, each of us born to serve a unique niche in our ecological, psychological and social worlds.  Bill explains in rich detail the key understandings, models, and processes that guide his facilitation of soul work in his Animas community. He also shares new insights from Carl Jung’s The Red Book about the “feminine” aspects of the psyche, the difference between “soul” and “muse,” and experimental dreamwork. Ultimately, he points to a profound basis for hope — the living Earth has already provided what the world needs by creating us. He says we who are here now are the medicine the earth needs, if only we undergo the transformation it takes to deliver it. Bill Plotkin is an eco-depth psychologist, wilderness guide, and agent of cultural regeneration. As founder of southwest Colorado’s Animas Valley Institute, he has, since 1980, guided thousands of women and men on the journey of soul initiation. His previous books are Soulcraft: Crossing into the Mysteries of Nature and Psyche, Nature and the Human Soul: Cultivating Wholeness and Community in a Fragmented World, and Wild Mind: A Field Guide to the Human Psyche. His new book, The Journey of Soul Initiation is a field guide, based on the experiences of thousands of people, describing the principles and evokes the varied lived experiences of the riveting and sometimes hazardous odyssey of soul initiation, using many vivid stories and an in-depth exploration of Carl Jung’s Red Book. Here are some additional questions Bill and Terry explore:  What is the “descent to soul”, and how does it relate to the journey of soul initiation?  What are the necessary stages of the “soul initiation” process? What becomes of our consciousness and societal and ecological roles as the process is fulfilled? Might we be more effective in evolving culture by aiming for “human maturity” instead of “consciousness development?”  What is our soul’s purpose, and why is that necessarily poetic or metaphorical?  Why is the common idea that our purpose is our vocation a misconception?   What is it to create a delivery mechanism for our soul’s purpose? What is the nature of the much deeper maturity that lies beyond all that? For more information on Bill Plotkin and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Bill Plotkin’s organization, Animas Valley Institute Bill’s new book, The Journey of Soul Initiation: A Field Guide for Visionaries, Revolutionaries, and Evolutionaries Bill’s book, Soulcraft: Crossing Into the Mysteries of Nature and Psyche Bill’s book, Nature and the Human Soul: Cultivating Wholeness and Community in a Fragmented World Bill’s book, Wild Mind: A Field Guide to the Human Psyche Terry’s nonprofit website A New Republic of the Heart Terry’s book, A New Republic of the Heart: An Ethos for Revolutionaries Terry Patten’s website Also:  We invite you to join Terry and other listeners of State of Emergence for a live Q&A and conversation and Saturday, January 23rd at 10 AM Pacific. To participate, simply become a Friend of State of Emergence on our website (if you haven’t already) by making a monthly contribution to the podcast. Then, you’ll receive access links to next Saturday’s session and our future Q&A events every month. Our first session (in December) was lively, deep, and inspiring, and we hope you’ll join us next time!

Evolutionary leader, thinker, and founder of The Shift Network Stephen Dinan joins Terry to explore how conspiracy thinking and new paradigm ideas are sometimes merging in a phenomenon some call “Conspirituality” — which he articulated, with clarity and courage, in a Medium essay some months ago titled, “Anatomy of Delusion: How Otherwise Conscious People Descended into the Darkness.” Although this episode was recorded a couple weeks before the recent rioting and insurrection at the U.S. capitol, it’s more relevant than ever now. Stephen and Terry consider the psycho-social implications of the self-delusion and self-radicalization that is taking place in our online, algorithm-driven “preference bubbles” and which conscious efforts might nurture sanity, coherence, and trust. They explore the social artistry of raising our voices of wholeness and humility to counterbalance extremism and also sensing when our listening, curiosity, and depth of presence is even more valuable than speaking up. Stephen Dinan is the founder and CEO of The Shift Network, which has served over 3 million people worldwide, with customers in 150 countries. It delivers virtual summits, courses, and trainings in spirituality, peace, holistic health, psychology, parenting, enlightened business, shamanism, indigenous wisdom, and sustainability. Stephen is a member of the Transformational Leadership Council and Evolutionary Leaders, he helped create the Esalen Institute’s Center for Theory & Research and he led a number of noteworthy programs for the Institute of Noetic Sciences. Stephen has been a featured speaker at the World Cultural Forum in China, the Alliance for a New Humanity in Costa Rica, Renovemos Mexico in Mexico City, and the University of Cuenca in Ecuador, as well as many US events and summits. He is the author of Sacred America, Sacred World: Fulfilling Our Mission in Service to All and Radical Spirit.  Here are some additional questions Stephen and Terry explore:  How does “new paradigm thinking” in the consciousness movement sometimes lead to a countercultural distrust of mainstream information and an embrace of false narratives? In which ways might we enable people to have positive defenses from false truths and disastrous narratives while remaining open to emergent possibilities? How do our online echo chambers become self-radicalizing and contribute to collective manic episodes on a social level? Can voices of wholeness and humility grow “louder” to counterbalance the totalizing and radicalizing forces in our media ecosystem? How can our depth of presence and curiosity add a valuable buffer against toxic and totalizing narratives? When is listening even more valuable than saying something? For more information on Stephen Dinan and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Stephen Dinan’s website The Shift Network Stephen’s Medium essay, Anatomy of Delusion: How Otherwise Conscious People Descended into Darkness Stephen’s book, Sacred America, Sacred World: Fulfilling Our Mission of Service to All Stephen’s book, Radical Spirit: Spiritual Writings from the Voices of Tomorrow Terry’s nonprofit website A New Republic of the Heart Terry Patten’s website Also:  If you haven’t already joined us, we want to officially invite you to become a Friend of State of Emergence — a new way to engage with the podcast conversation and access new live discussions and Q&A with me every month. Our next session will be on January 23rd, 2021. The requested contribution is $10/month, but if you cannot afford that and you want to participate, just contact us. Everyone is welcome. Additionally, you’re invited to be part of our vibrant, growing, international community at A New Republic of the Heart in other new ways — check out the options here on our website. We hope you’ll join us!

Remarkable mystic and teacher Thomas Hübl joins Terry to discuss his new book Healing Collective Trauma, and they take the exploration into some new deep places. Every human being is born into and affected by, either directly or indirectly, the collective wounds of human history — epigenetically, energetically, and systemically. This is why Thomas says that we are all “shareholders of our collective unconscious.” Intergenerational and cultural traumas become “frozen hostages stuck in time.” In the conversation, Thomas describes how we can honor the intelligent functions of these hostages, our traumas, and make them our allies. We can harvest their evolutionary life intelligence and energy by consciously allowing the inherent self-healing mechanisms of our own bodies and minds. They explore what is revealed by this exquisitely subtle understanding. It shines new light on what is emerging now in the collective field of human consciousness during this intense and dramatic time on planet Earth. Thomas Hübl is a highly original mystic and teacher, and the founder of the Academy of Inner Science. His teachings integrate new discoveries from contemporary science with his direct mystical knowledge, resonant with ancient wisdom traditions. I first met him over a decade ago, and we became good friends, & in the time since I’ve had the honor to help introduce Thomas to the English-speaking world. Now, Thomas has worked with more than 100,000 people worldwide through workshops, multi-year training programs and online courses. He has guided large-scale healing events that have brought together thousands of Germans and Israelis to acknowledge, face and heal the cultural shadow left by the Holocaust. He is also the founder of the nonprofit Pocket Project, which aims to increase awareness and understanding of collective trauma and reduce its effects. He also founded the annual Celebrate Life Festival that gathers conscious people in Germany and America. His important new book is Healing Collective Trauma: A Process for Integrating our Intergenerational and Cultural Wounds. Here are a few additional questions Thomas and Terry explore:  How are our ancestors’ trauma and frozen structures tending to reenact themselves in our present-day relationships? How can we cooperate with the intelligence of our trauma process, allowing a natural process of self-healing? Thomas’s concept of “retro-causality” suggests that the whole karmic pattern of intergenerational trauma can be healed in the light of open awareness.  What is it like to be so exquisitely present, here and now, that we catalyze such radical healing of the past, present and future? Thomas talks about “cultural presencing,” the social artistry of honoring and healing collective trauma. What are the practices we do in this present moment to allow that to begin? For more information on Thomas Hübl and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Thomas Hübl's website Thomas’ new book Healing Collective Trauma: A Process for Integrating our Intergenerational and Cultural Wounds Thomas' organization The Academy of Inner Science Thomas’ nonprofit organization The Pocket Project Celebrate Life Festival Terry Patten's website A New Republic of the Heart If you are appreciating this podcast, we want to officially invite you to become a Friend of State of Emergence — a new way to support and engage with this podcast and access new live discussions and Q&A with me every month. Just click here to learn more and register. We hope you’ll join us — and for those of you already supporting, thank you so much!

Author of Wake Up Grateful and the Executive Director of A Network for Grateful Living, Kristi Nelson joins Terry to explore the elusively obvious gift of this very breath and moment and the transformational practice of living with grateful generosity at this moment in our human journey. Kristi illuminates the differences between gratitude and gratefulness, and how the uncaused and unconditional nature of gratefulness enables us to stay open-hearted, in all of the ordeal and the ordinariness of this life. Kristi Nelson has spent most of her adult life in non-profit leadership, fundraising, and organizational development — leading, funding, and strengthening organizations committed to progressive social and spiritual change. In 2001, she founded a values-based consulting and leadership coaching business and worked with organizations such as the Institute for Jewish Spirituality, Buddhist Peace Fellowship, Spirit in Action, Wisdom 2.0, and The Center for Contemplative Mind in Society. She was also Founding Director of the Soul of Money Institute with Lynne Twist, Director of Development at Kripalu Center for Yoga and Health, and Director of Development and Community Relations for the Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care, and Society. Kristi is a stage IV cancer survivor who feels blessed to be sharing the gifts of gratefulness with people around the world in a vibrant, loving community. Now, she is the author of a wonderful new book, Wake Up Grateful: The Transformative Practice of Taking Nothing for Granted. Also:  We want to officially invite you to become a Friend of State of Emergence — a new way to engage with the podcast conversation and access new live discussions and Q&A with me every month. Our first session will be at 12 Noon PDT on December 29th 2020. Additionally, you’re invited to be part of our vibrant, growing, international community at A New Republic of the Heart in other new ways — check out the options here on our website. We hope you’ll join us! For more information on Kristi Nelson and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Kristi’s new book, Wake Up Grateful: The Transformational Practice of Not Taking Anything for Granted A Network for Grateful Living: Gratefulness.org State of Emergence podcast website A New Republic of the Heart website

Leadership development expert Barrett Brown joins Terry to explore the most advanced levels of leadership, especially as they apply in the US as a new Biden administration begins to navigate simultaneous, interpenetrating fast-moving crises. Barrett shares which leadership capacities are most essential for “leading in the unknown” amidst hypercomplex adaptive systems, heightened polarization, and a damaged information ecosystem. Many insights emerge, principally starting where we are: integrating the many capacities that are already present, in ourselves and one another, and trusting the creative potential of teams that are cooperating with intuitive heart intelligence.  Dr. Barrett Brown is a global expert on how to develop leaders to successfully navigate hypercomplex challenges and transformation. He is also a longtime personal friend and colleague. Barrett is the Managing Director of Apheno Advisory, and works across six continents with C-suite executives and teams from Fortune 500 companies and international non-profits, regularly advising a trillion-dollar tech company and the largest environmental NGO in the world. He holds a PhD in Human and Organizational Systems and his award-winning research on the future of leadership is used in executive education programs worldwide. He’s also on the selection committee of the Katerva Awards - considered the Nobel Prize for sustainability - and has held consultancy status to the United Nations.  Here are some additional questions Barrett and Terry explore:  How might leadership experts anticipate Biden failing or succeeding, based on what we know about advanced “late-stage” leadership?  How do late-stage leaders “lead from behind” by empowering teams and harvesting the collective intuition and intelligence of the whole? To what extent do we already have all the capacities we need — in one another and in the system?  If so, how do we cultivate conditions for trust, collaboration and co-creativity? How can you and I relate best to the complex challenges and opportunities we’ll likely face in the next four years?  For more information on Barrett Brown and Terry Patten, check out the following links: Barrett’s website, apheno.com The Future of Leadership for Conscious Capitalism Sane Leadership in a Crazy World: Essentials of Complexity Leadership Full Spectrum Leadership: How to Communicate to Different Developmental Stages Overview of the Strategist, Alchemist and Ironist Action Logics (Later Stages of Ego Development) A New Republic of the Heart Terry Patten's website Also:  We’re officially inviting you into the State of Emergence conversation in the form of new live discussions and Q&A with me and others every month, during which we’ll dive deeper into that month’s episodes. Our first session will be at 12 Noon PDT on December 29th 2020. To participate, simply become a “Friend of State of Emergence” on our website by contributing $10/month or more. If you’re already contributing at that level, you’ll automatically be invited to join. If you cannot afford that contribution and you want to participate, just contact us. Everyone is welcome.

Environmental philosopher and activist Rupert Read joins Terry to explore the current state of our ecological emergency, its philosophical implications, and our human responses. They probe into what kinds of understanding, spiritual growth, truth-telling, and nonviolent direct action are appropriate now. They also consider the kinds of communication and action that can coincide with rapid transformation, particularly the primal, and still-untapped power of parents’ love for our children. Rupert Read teaches Philosophy at the University of East Anglia, alongside leading environmental scientists, and he is the author of eight books, including This Civilisation is Finished: Conversations on the End of the Empire and What Lies Beyond. Rupert is a former chair of Green House think tank, a former Green Party of England and Wales councilor, a European parliamentary candidate, and a national parliamentary candidate. He was a national UK spokesperson for Extinction Rebellion and is a frequent guest on a range of national UK television and radio programs. For more information on Rupert Read and Terry Patten, check out the following links: Rupert Read's website Rupert’s upcoming course at Schumacher College, Coming from the Heart in this Ecospiritual Moment Rupert’s next book, ‘Parents for a future’, out in January 2021  Download Rupert’s ‘This Civilisation Is Finished’ on a ‘gift economy’ basis Rupert on Twitter @GreenRupertRead Download Rupert’s ‘XR: Insights from the inside’ on a ‘gift economy’ basis Green House’s ‘Facing up to climate reality’ - the free sample chapter available here is Rupert’s, on why geoengineering is reckless A Film-Philosophy of Ecology and Enlightenment – Rupert’s work on Avatar Rupert’s work on Wittgenstein as a liberatory philosopher  Rupert writes with Helena Norberg-Hodge here on ‘Post-growth localization A New Republic of the Heart Terry Patten's website     We hope you appreciate this conversation with Rupert Read. If you feel these conversations have value and you’d like to help them reach a wider audience, please join us as a “Friend of State of Emergence and receive special access and benefits. Thank you so much for your support.

Systems change strategist and facilitator Tuesday Ryan-Hart explores the trauma, care, tenderness, and sacredness that are underneath our discussions of equity and systemic injustice. She and Terry consider which mindsets, skills, and relational practices can enable us to stay in the complexity of difficult conversations and collective healing without losing sight of our common humanity and dignity. They imagine how an ethos of grace can guide this deep, challenging, and beautiful interpersonal work together, in a way that honors both our inherent wholeness and multiplicity. Tuesday is a strategic consultant who leads large-scale systems change in diverse organizations and communities, helping them reframe persistent issues, illuminate unhelpful assumptions, and enter into new mindsets. Tuesday’s passion for social justice and her expertise in gender & racial equity enables her to excel at helping organizations and groups enhance awareness and understanding, build alliances, and take effective action together. She is trained as a psychotherapist and is an Art of Hosting global practice community steward, and she is a co-founder and partner of The Outside, an organization facilitating systemic change with equity at the center. Tuesday’s work is also featured in the book Walk Out Walk On by Margaret Wheatley and Deborah Frieze. Here are some additional questions that Tuesday and Terry explore:  How can we “be the medicine” for one another and our beautiful broken world?  Can we build our capacity to listen to and talk with one another without trying to change minds or reach an agreement, but simply to “set our gaze in the same direction?” How can we bring grace into our relations across divisions — allowing ourselves and others to make mistakes and be human?  Is grace a gift we can simply give to and receive from one another — even if it’s not something anyone can expect from us? In collective healing work, how can we simultaneously honor our common humanity and our very different lineages, pasts, presents, and futures? For more information on Tuesday Ryan-Hart and Terry Patten, check out the following links: The Outside Art of Hosting Walk, Out Walk On by Margaret Wheatley and Deborah Frieze A New Republic of the Heart Terry Patten's website We hope you appreciate this conversation with Tuesday Ryan-Hart. If you feel these conversations have value and you’d like to help them reach a wider audience, please join us as an official supporter and select a monthly contribution. Thank you so much for your support.

Cosmologist, futurist, and mystic Jude Currivan describes her understanding of the quantum nature of reality, which has profound implications for our planetary crises, and the potentials for creative emergence. In the process, she points to several recent scientific discoveries that reveal a holographic, nonlocal, and conscious universe, and describes the implications for our social and natural world. Ultimately, her and Terry relax into a radical trust of this already unified reality and its inherent nature. From the complex comes the most simple: love. In love our hearts recognize ourselves in one another. Jude Currivan is a cosmologist, a futurist, a senior businessperson, a holistic activist, and a playful, joyful inspirational force of nature. Her work integrates some of the most revolutionary implications of 21st-century physics and consciousness research with the most essential understandings of humanity’s wisdom teachings in the form of what she calls the “whole-world-view.” Jude holds a Masters Degree in Physics from Oxford University specializing in cosmology and quantum physics and a PhD in Archaeology from the University of Reading in the UK researching ancient cosmologies. She has authored six non-fiction books including Cosmos, which she co-authored with Ervin Laszlo. Her latest is The Cosmic Hologram- In-formation at the Center of Creation. Jude is a mystic, but she also has extensive experience and knowledge of world events, international politics and global economic and financial systems and has spoken on transformational reforms in the UK, US, Europe, Japan and South Korea.  Here are some additional questions Jude and Terry explore:  Are time, space, and materiality all emergent phenomena, expressing a deeper, unified conscious cosmos? Which recent scientific discoveries further advance that understanding? What are the relationships between scientific knowledge and direct mystical awareness? In what ways can we free ourselves from the now-disproven perception of a separate physical universe “out there” and the mind of separation it spawns? As we relax, trust, and embody the inherent wholeness of a conscious universe, what do we learn about love itself? For more information on Jude Currivan and Terry Patten, check out the following links: Jude Currivan’s Website WholeWorld-View Community Jude’s latest book, The Cosmic Hologram: In-formation at the Center of the Universe Terry Patten's website A New Republic of the Heart website We hope you appreciate this conversation with Jude Currivan. If you feel these conversations have value and you’d like to see them reach a wider audience, please join us as an official supporter and select a monthly contribution. Thank you so much for your support!

Diane Musho Hamilton (award-winning mediator and Zen Roshi) and Jeff Salzman (integral political commentator and host of The Daily Evolver) join Terry to react, reflect, and take to heart this week’s historic, record-breaking, and, in many ways disturbing U.S. election. In true 2020 fashion, the election insisted on being an ordeal, and it will of course continue to challenge our collective patience, sensemaking, compassion, and resilience for weeks (perhaps even months) to come.  On Tuesday November 8, 2016 Diane, Jeff, and Terry gathered in Boulder to celebrate Hillary Clinton’s victory together (Ha ha!). The next day they recorded “The Trump Era: Day 1: Three integrally-informed friends attempt to face reality” on his Daily Evolver podcast.  In this week’s episode, almost exactly 4 years later, they reunite, react, reflect and take to heart the implications of the 2020 election results, including Trump’s unprecedented but unsurprising response — from three diverse integrally-informed perspectives.  Diane Musho Hamilton is an award-winning professional mediator and a compassionate, funny, dazzling facilitator. She is a Zen lineage holder, a trainer of Integral Facilitation, and the Executive Director of Two Arrows Zen in Utah. Diane has authored three books: Everything Is Workable, The Zen of You and Me, and her new book, co-authored with Gabriel Menegale Wilson and Kimberly Myosai Loh, Compassionate Conversations. Jeff Salzman is the creator and host of The Daily Evolver podcast, which looks at current events in politics and culture through the lens of integral theory. Jeff helmed Integral Institute Seminars from 2004-2007, where he, Diane, and Terry worked closely with Ken Wilber to co-create Integral Life Practice. After that, he founded the Boulder Integral Center, the first bricks-and-mortar center dedicated to the integral study and practice of human evolution.  For more information on Diane Musho Hamilton, Jeff Salzman or Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Diane's Website: https://www.dianemushohamilton.com/ Jeff's podcast The Daily Evolver: https://www.dailyevolver.com/ Diane's new book, Compassionate Conversations – How to Speak and Listen from the Heart: https://www.dianemushohamilton.com/books/ Two Arrows Zen: https://www.twoarrowszen.org/ Terry Patten's website: https://www.terrypatten.com/ A New Republic of the Heart: https://newrepublicoftheheart.org/ “Processing the 2020 Election, So Far” is a co-production of State of Emergence and The Daily Evolver. We hope you appreciate the conversation. If you feel these conversations have value and you’d like to see them reach a wider audience, please join us as an official supporter and select a monthly contribution. Thank you so much for your support.

Filmmaker, social observer, and humorist Neal Rogin joins Terry to explore the kinds of communications that can break through the cultural narratives that are tending to bind the human imagination. A cross between Yoda and Forrest Gump, Neal Rogin’s playful humor startles and liberates us into self-compassionate capital-H Humor. His unique brand of brilliance is tender and vividly in service of the heart. Ultimately, he and Terry make their way to a new level of levity, clarity, and joy in contemplating death and committing, as he says, to “leaving the party better than we found it.” Neal Rogin award-winning writer, filmmaker, communications consultant, and social observer whose work has inspired millions of people around the world and moved them into action. He was there at the inception of culture-transforming projects as Werner Erhard’s est, the Landmark Forum, The Hunger Project, LiveAid, The State of the World Forum, and the Pachamama Alliance, with which he’s still a founding board member. As a writer, producer and filmmaker, he worked with Sting to create the Oscar-nominated film, Burning Down Tomorrow, the Emmy award winning Spaceship Earth, the PBS documentary special, A New American Revolution and the UN film commemorating its 50th anniversary, A Place to Stand. Neal is also the author of Delightenment: Escaping the Solitary Confinement of Your Prisonality, a remarkable collection of short eloquent gems of spiritual wisdom, which display the compassionate awake humor that is the unique signature of Neal’s beautiful Heart-Mind. Here are some additional questions they explore: In today’s “hyper-addictive reality show”, how can we better navigate the high winds of conflicting opinions and passions & live in the “eye of the hurricane?” What does it mean to live as “modern yet indigenous” people? How can our discerning minds be in service of our caring, creative, holistic hearts? When Neal jokes, “I’m going to die if it’s the last thing I do”, he opens a question about reimagining our personal and cultural relationships with death. How can it help us live way more joyfully and deeply? Do beliefs like “our society is flawed and we need to fix it” serve as obstacles to fully embracing reality and its opportunities? In this wild time, how can our childlike curiosity re-energize our ability to dream big, love this beautiful world, and actualize our fierce desire to help? For more information on Neal Rogin and Terry Patten, check out the following links:   Neal Rogin’s book Delightenment: Escaping the Solitary Confinement of Your Prisonality Pachamama Alliance Neal Rogin on IMDB Neal Rogin videos on Vimeo State of the World Forum The Hunger Project Landmark Terry Patten's website A New Republic of the Heart website         We hope you appreciate this conversation with Neal Rogin. If you feel these conversations have value and you’d like to see them reach a wider audience, please join us as an official supporter and select a monthly contribution. Thank you so much for your support.

Psychotherapist, professor, and author Carolyn Baker joins Terry for a sober, deep, and instructive conversation to consider our planetary predicament as a sacred rite of passage that necessitates a “collective descent into the darkness,” the possibility of our collective “sacred demise”, and the possibility of a collective rebirth or “radical regeneration.” They explore which types of leadership and leaders we will need to midwife our human journey through a great transition, perhaps the collapse of our current culture, and Carolyn points to specific actions we can take now — and over the coming years — to become reliable forces of sanity, strength, and generosity to those around us. Carolyn Baker’s mission is to create islands of sanity amidst global chaos and prepare others for the potential consequences of civilizational collapse and abrupt climate change through the development of emotional tools and spiritual transformation. Carolyn was a psychotherapist for 17 years and a professor of psychology and history for 10 years. She is the author of 13 books including Navigating The Coming Chaos, Sacred Demise, and 4 books co-authored with the luminous mystic Andrew Harvey, including Savage Grace, and the forthcoming book Radical Regeneration: Birthing the New Human in the Age of Extinction. For nearly a decade, Carolyn has published a subscription-based Daily News Digest. Additionally, she leads webinars and live workshops, writes articles, and offers life coaching — in the process helping thousands of people navigate the unprecedented challenges of our time.  Here are some additional questions we explore: What does it mean to be of service during a “sacred demise” of our current culture, and what would a “radical regeneration” look like and require from us? Like in individual rites of passage, how can cultures and nations also “descend into darkness” and emerge with a transformed identity and way of being? What are the “10 things you can do now” that Carolyn and Andrew Harvey outline in their new book Radical Regeneration? Who will be needed during a period of collapse? What kinds of leadership will we need to serve a “soft landing” on the other side of societal breakdown? Even while much of our world is stuck in old patterns, how can profound spiritual practice be the key “innovation” on behalf of humanity’s ongoing evolution? Here are the “Ten Things We Can Do,” which Carolyn refers to in the episode: Stay Safe: Wear masks when you are outside, continue social distancing as much as possible, and listen carefully to the scientists who are telling us we are in the middle of a second wave of the pandemic. Shun all large gatherings and rallies and find other ways to protest which can be just as effective. Take special care of your health and keep your body vibrant with exercise and good nutrition. The psychological and emotional demands of the unfolding crises will be far more effectively sustained with a healthy body. Whatever your spiritual practice, plunge more deeply than ever into it. It is essential to pursue realization of your true Self with more faith and intensity in these exploding times than ever before. Fill your life with inspiration and beauty. Inspiration will keep your heart buoyant and alive, and beauty will remind you of the magnificence of life and fill you with the energy to want to safeguard it. If you can, spend 20 minutes or more in nature per day, experiencing your oneness with it and drinking in through every pore its steadiness and radiance. Allow yourself to become intimate with the Earth. Stay aware of how the pandemic and economic and environmental crises are evolving. There is no security in denial or ignorance. Learn, however, to pace yourself because the ferocious information you will be taking in can become overwhelming. Take time to grieve. No one will escape heartbreak in a time such as this, and not attending to the suffering of the heart that inevitably rises in the face of so much destruction will lead to severe depression or a kind of inner deadness that makes it impossible to respond creatively. Get support from others who are also grieving. No one should grieve alone, and there is no need to be alone in a crisis that is now global. Renew old friendships and relish and deepen the ones you have because everything now depends on the sanity and joy that only deep friendship and relationship can provide. Take special care and lavish special love on your animal companions, and they will reward you with their tender and miraculous love. Despite being mostly in lockdown, make an effort to practice Sacred Activism by giving wisely to those in need. Food banks need support as do healthcare workers and the homeless who are afraid of going to shelters because they are Petri dishes for the virus. If you are able to assist those in prison by standing up for their rights, or by encouraging them in any way, do so. Take seriously your right to vote, for everything depends throughout the world on turning back the tide of dark money-financed authoritarianism. Use this book as a way of training your inner eyes to see and celebrate the signs of the Birth of a new humanity that are rising everywhere amidst the obviously apocalyptic death. Note the heroism of extraordinary/ordinary people globally who are turning up to serve the sick and dying. Note the heroism of protestors of every color who risk their lives to demand racial justice after the horrific death of George Floyd. Read great evolutionary philosophers and mystics like Sri Aurobindo, Teilhard de Chardin, Bede Griffiths, Satprem, Teresa of Avila, Hildegard of Bingen, and Julian of Norwich, and those who speak of the global dark night, giving birth potentially to an embodied divine humanity. For more information on Carolyn Baker and Terry Patten, check out the following links: Carolyn’s Amazon Book Pageahead of the release of her new book with Andrew Harvey, Radical Regeneration: Birthing the New Human in the Age of Extinction Carolyn’s website Carolyn’s book, Sacred Demise Carolyn’s book, Navigating the Coming Chaos: A Handbook for Inner Transition Carolyn’s direct email: carolyn@carolynbaker.net Terry Patten's website A New Republic of the Heart website We hope you appreciate this week’s episode with Carolyn Baker on State of Emergence. If you believe these conversations are important and want to support them, please join us as a monthly contributor and become part of our community of listeners. Thank you so much!

Science writer, evolutionary educator, and more-than-human ‘grassroots’ climate activist, Connie Barlow joins Terry to reflect on the heartbreaking journey of accepting our ecological predicament, what it means to be a good ancestor, and how "life stages" open possibilities for a more sacred relationship to climate grief, to death, and to transformation. Ultimately, they fortify each other in their commitments to give more, require less, and be a generous sacrifice to the younger generations who are arriving in a strange world and will need us. Connie Barlow and her husband Michael Dowd were once full-time itinerant travelers in North America, spreading the good news of inspiring “Great Story” of evolution. Connie is known not just as his mission-partner, but also as a science writer, specializing in evolutionary ecology. Her first two books were published by MIT Press and her final one, The Ghosts of Evolution, led her directly to founding Torreya Guardians, the citizen group that has been moving the Florida Torreya north, an more dedicated work helping native trees move north in advance of the rapidly shifting climate. A new book published this year titled The Journeys of Trees made Connie a major character in its drama because of her rogue leadership in helping the Florida Torreya tree.  Here are some of the questions they explore: How can we become ancestors that future generations will appreciate, and how might we help others in our generation to do so too? Young people have always had dreams, but climate chaos may be curtailing the dreams of young people — what are the implications of this?   At later stages of the cycle of life, do we see important new ways to relate to climate grief and transformation? How can elders hold wise ground for those younger?  In what ways is societal collapse — or a “deep reset” as Connie says — already underway, not just abstractly, but in our own experience? What is it to recognize the sacredness of death? Can we be grateful for what death makes room for? For more information on Connie Barlow and Terry Patten, check out the following resources:   Connie’s website TheGreatStory.org Writings of Connie Barlow Connie’s husband Michael Dowd’s website “Post Doom” Conversations State of Emergence Podcast Website A New Republic of the Heart website Terry Patten's personal website   We hope you appreciate this week’s episode with Connie Barlow on State of Emergence. If you believe these conversations are important and want to support them, please join us as a monthly contributor and become part of our community of listeners. Thank you so much.

Prominent eco-theologian and “post-gloom collapsologist” Michael Dowd shines the light of evolutionary and ecological wisdom on this time of plagues, fires, floods, corruption, and collapse. He and Terry explore the psychological and relational journey into accepting our sobering predicament, living with accountability to the future, and even discovering lightheartedness amidst their heartbreak. They also consider how to balance certainty with epistemic humility (knowing we don’t know) in a way that keeps us realistic while still open to emergent possibilities. Ultimately, they each share their commitment to live at a depth that is never post-grief or post-gratitude — positively alive to the agony and the ecstasy of our moment in evolutionary time. Michael Dowd is a teacher, speaker, and bestselling author, whose book, Thank God for Evolution, was endorsed by many Nobel Laureates, science luminaries, skeptics, and religious leaders across the spectrum. He is also a prominent speaker and teacher, having delivered programs for TEDx, the United Nations, and Caltech, as well as three acclaimed online conversation series: “The Advent of Evolutionary Christianity” (2011), “The Future Is Calling Us to Greatness” (2015) and his current project, “Post-doom: Regenerative Conversations Exploring Overshoot Grief, Grounding, and Gratitude” (2020).  Here are some of the questions he and Terry explore in the episode: Which evolutionary, historical and, ecological patterns can help us understand our civilizational challenges? How might we ground ourselves in appropriate certainty of what we know about our predicament — and live with a sense of possibility that inspires us to be of benefit? How can we live with our individual and collective mortality as a close advisor?  How can embracing some gallows humor release us into gratitude for this very moment of life and breath? Why have “post-doom” conversations like this? Can they give us belonging and healing? Can they even prepare us to hold others amidst our looming mass mental health crisis?  How might we use the “denser energies” of societal disruption to serve gentler transitions (“softer landings”) into sustainable relationships to the body of life? For more information on Michael Dowd and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: PostDoom.com – Michael Dowd’s Work Michael’s book, Thank God for Evolution MichaelDowd.org TheGreatStory.org Writings of Connie Barlow (Michael’s wife) State of Emergence Podcast Website A New Republic of the Heart website Terry Patten's personal website   We hope you appreciate this week’s episode with Michael Dowd on State of Emergence. If you believe these conversations are important and want to support them, please join us as a monthly contributor and become part of our community of listeners. Thank you so much.

Author of The Quantum Revelation, Paul Levy joins Terry to explore the radical, mind-bending implications of quantum physics and how they can transform our relationship to good and evil. For starters, Paul asks us to face the fact that there’s no “independently existing world out there” — we are co-dreaming it all into being. We consider how the way we observe our lives, culture and society tangibly influences them — like in a dream — and how unconscious feedback loops within consciousness can lead to a collective psychosis or possession by a “mind virus.” Ultimately, we recognize that encoded within this “mind virus” is also the information and medicine that can help us wake up from the nightmare into a much more powerful and creative way of being — especially when it’s needed during these apocalyptic-seeming times.    Paul Levy is an author, speaker, and facilitator who describes himself as “a wounded healer in private practice, assisting others who are also awakening to the dreamlike nature of reality.” Paul’s writings and talks brilliantly synthesize wisdom streams from quantum physics, Carl Jung, Buddhism, alchemy, shamanism, Kabbalah, mystical Christianity, and the work of science fiction author Philip K. Dick. He has been a Tibetan Buddhist practitioner for over 35 years and was the coordinator for the Portland Padmasambhava Buddhist Center for over twenty years. He also works actively in the field of spiritual emergence as the founder of the “Awakening in the Dream Community” in Portland, Oregon. Paul’s books include The Quantum Revelation: A Radical Synthesis of Science and Spirituality and Dispelling Wetiko: Breaking the Curse of Evil. Here are some questions they explore in the episode: If both quantum physics and Tibetan Buddhism suggest a similar nondual, non-local, and co-creative view of reality, how can we inhabit our roles in it? How humanity’s collective self-hypnosis traps us in a dead world and prevents us from opening into the magical dimensions of reality? What exactly is the Native American concept of “wetiko” and how might such a “mind virus” manifest, spread, and express itself in our collective consciousness? How can seemingly “evil” forces contain revelations — mirrors of our own nature and supernormal potentials? Could our collective unconscious be dreaming our current nightmares of social, cultural, ecological, and existential crisis in order for us to awaken into a far greater agency? For more information on Paul Levy and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Paul Levy’s Website  Paul’s book, The Quantum Revelation: A Radical Synthesis of Science and Spirituality Paul’s book, Dispelling Wetiko: Breaking the Curse of Evil Terry Patten's website A New Republic of the Heart website We hope you appreciate this week’s episode with Paul Levy on State of Emergence. If you’re appreciating these conversations and feel called to support them, please join us as a monthly contributor and become part of our community of listeners. Thank you so much.

Modern-day mystic, Episcopal priest, and scholar Cynthia Bourgeault joins Terry to explore what it is to live and imagine from the “eye of the heart” in a seemingly apocalyptic world. They reflect on how each of them is relating to death and also discovering new strength and guidance by keeping the company of saints, sages, and our courageous ancestors — one of the most important spiritual fruits of awakening into the “imaginal realm.” Cynthia suggests we aspire to “live the laws of the next world”, like those who began building great cathedrals they knew they wouldn’t live to see completed.  Cynthia Bourgeault has been a way-shower for many thousands of people around the world, sharing the riches of Christian, Sufi, and Gurdjieffian contemplative practices, as well as serving as a fierce constructive critic. She is a long-time teacher of the meditative practice of Centering Prayer, having worked closely with Thomas Keating, Bruno Barnhart, and Richard Rohr, and many other contemplative teachers and leaders, as well as a core faculty member of the Center for Action & Contemplation. She is also a member of the Global Peace Initiative for Women Contemplative Council and a founding Director of both The Contemplative Society and the Aspen Wisdom School. Cynthia is the author of many books including The Heart of Centering Prayer, The Wisdom Jesus, The Wisdom Way of Knowing, and Love is Stronger than Death. Her newest book, Eye of the Heart, is a spiritual journey into the “Imaginal Realm” — an energetic realm well known to the mystical traditions and associated with the world of dreams, prophecy, and a higher vision of our human purpose that is both evolutionary and collective.  Here are some additional questions they explore: Can we become so intimate with our inevitable death, that we become impartial, courageous, and more profoundly alive? How can we “keep the good company” of the great contemplatives and our now-deceased mentors during times of darkness? How can we “live the laws of the next world” and become the “strange attractors” of wisdom to which others can gravitate? What is the imaginal realm according to Christian mysticism? How might we learn to see with “the eye of the heart”? For more information on Cynthia Bourgeault and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Cynthia’s New Book – Eye of the Heart: A Spiritual Journey Into the Imaginal Realm Cynthia Bourgeault’s Website Center for Action and Contemplation The Contemplative Society Wisdom Way of Knowing Northeast Wisdom Terry Patten's website A New Republic of the Heart website I hope you appreciate this week’s episode with Cynthia Bourgeault on State of Emergence. If you believe these conversations are important and want to support them, please join us as a monthly contributor and become part of our community of listeners. Thank you so much!

Social entrepreneur, technologist, and policy analyst Vinay Gupta joins Terry to reflect on the complexity and planetary scale of our existential risks. Given the urgency of our predicament, how can humanity best deploy our limited capacities? How might each of us more strategically prioritize our efforts to make a difference? What are the “hard” trade-offs? Vinay’s uncompromising clarity and passion can be unsettling and transformative. They work to dispel lofty aspirations, help us to become even more serious about the stakes at play, and prioritize the work that might really have the best shot of serving our future.  Vinay’s early life focused on meditation from the ages of 14-26, culminating in what he describes as enlightenment and a calling to be of service amidst existential risk to humanity on a planetary scale. Since then, he’s focused on environmental and infrastructure risk, energy policy, and disaster management leading in the blockchain space, inventing the Hexayurt — a public domain disaster relief shelter designed to be built from commonly-available non-patented and open-source materials — and founding Mattereum, a financial technology company using legally-enforceable smart contracts to enable the sale, lease, and transfer of physical property and other legal rights. Here are some additional questions we explore:  Given our important, large-scale predicament, how much of our energy should we allocate toward:  (a) healing the traumas and karmas of ancestral debts and injustices,  (b) fixing the fragile future, and  (c) showing up for & enjoying the reality of the present? If, as Vinay claims, large-scale awakening is unrealistic, is inner transformation irrelevant to the human future?  Is it most strategic to focus our energy on developing crisis-critical technologies? How about a mass movement, involving hundreds of millions committed to active tithing and volunteering? What sensible level of lifestyle change and sacrifice is manageable for ordinary people?  For more information on Vinay Gupta and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Vinay’s company Mattereum Hexayurt MyHopeForThe.World  Vinay Gupta on Twitter Vinay Gupta on LinkedIn Terry Patten's website A New Republic of the Heart website             If you believe these conversations are important and want to support them, please join us as a monthly contributor and become part of our community of listeners. Thank you so much!

Deep thinkers and community innovators Dougald Hine & Anna Björkman (who also happen to be life partners and co-parents) join Terry to reflect on the nature of sanity, evil, community, and the crafting of a “living culture.” First, we delve underneath the surface of what’s happening here in the U.S., intuiting archetypal energies. Is this the time of the “Trickster”? Or are we seeing a shadow version of the Trickster sitting on the throne? Might it instead be the time of the “wild woman” archetype? How might we work consciously with these archetypal energies in ourselves and our world? Our conversation imagines how we can nurture wholeness in ourselves and our relations by cultivating a living culture of invitation, hospitality, humility, and humor. Here are some of the questions we explore:  What might we learn from viewing our chaotic cultural moment as a resurgence of “trickster” archetypal energy? Can humor and humility keep grounding our sensemaking and our commitment to our ideas? How can each of us craft a “living culture” with those closest to us by remembering the value of invitation, hospitality, and “kitchen-table conversations”? (Even if they’re virtual!) How can we begin coming together in new ways — not because we’ve been paid to or told to by the logic of the market, but because we want to? Dougald Hine is a speaker, writer, and the founder of the Dark Mountain Project, Spacemakers and the School of Everything. Last year, he turned his focus to writing – and a joint project with his partner Anna Bjørkman, A School Called HOME — a gathering place and a learning community for those who are drawn to the regrowing a living culture.  Dougald’s writing and speaking includes Uncivilisation: The Dark Mountain Manifesto (with Paul Kingsnorth), The Crossing of Two Lines, Notes From Underground and Clarity for Teachers. Anna Björkman is the other half of A School called Home. Anna has led projects connecting cultural foundations around Europe, setting up children’s libraries across the Middle East and supporting grassroots women’s organizations in Israel and Palestine. She also runs workshops on security and self-care for activists, or teaching methods for building meaningful projects.  If you recognize that these conversations are important and want to support them, please join us as a monthly contributor and become part of our community of listeners. Thank you so much! For more information on Dougald Hine, Anna Björkman, and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: A School Called HOME The Great Humbling with Dougald Hine and Ed Gillespie Dougald's Notes From Underground Essay Series for Bella Caledonia The Dark Mountain Project School of Everything Spacemakers Dougald’s Essays Terry Patten's website A New Republic of the Heart website  

Insightful author, speaker, and consultant Carter Phipps joins Terry to explore our intensifying political, economic, and cultural crises in the U.S. Carter begins by reflecting on his previous home — the San Francisco Bay Area — and how, in many ways, today’s progressive cities do not resemble the healthy and sustainable future societies he envisions. He and Terry consider how progressives might more effectively care for and criticize their own tribe, while also integrating innovative conservative solutions.  Here are some of the questions they discuss:  How have some progressive attitudes formed in the ’70s and ’80s become suppressive and counterproductive in 2020?  What can we learn from the socio-economic successes and failures of the San Francisco Bay Area?  How can we operate outside our “official” cultural narratives and constructively criticize our own tribal habits? Can we reduce polarization within ourselves by embracing and integrating the partial truths of the “other” side? Can that make us more effective transpartisans? Carter is the co-author (with Whole Foods founder John Mackey and philosopher Steve McIntosh) of the upcoming book Conscious Leadership. He also authored the important bestseller, Evolutionaries — and he was previously the executive editor of What Is Enlightenment? magazine from 2005-2010. With McIntosh, he co-founded the social policy think tank, the Institute for Cultural Evolution. He has most recently been writing, speaking, and consulting at the intersection of business, politics, and culture. Most of all, Carter is an insightful observer of deep and mostly unnoticed cultural emergents, currents and dynamics, “Thinking Ahead” with clarity and balance. We hope you appreciate this episode with Carter Phipps on State of Emergence. If you believe these conversations are important and want to support them, please join us as a monthly contributor and become part of our community of listeners. Thank you so much! For more information on Carter Phipps and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Carter’s new book, Conscious Leadership Institute for Cultural Evolution Carter’s book, Evolutionaries Terry Patten's website A New Republic of the Heart website  

Lifetime social and political activist Jim Garrison joins Terry to reflect on both the extreme state of our world and the subtle forces driving the collective consciousness. They reinterpret our collective madness in light of the wisdom of the natural world, and the archetypes of apocalyptic stories. Ultimately, they imagine what it means to proactively and radically collaborate with one another — at a level we’ve never needed to before. Here are some of the questions we discuss:  Which archetypes and mythic stories can help us come to grips with the mass hallucinations and collective madness that are intensifying across whole societies? How might we listen in new ways to the natural world and to the human and more-than-human collective — and how might that shift our relations with one another? How might the extremity of our situation require and inspire radical collaboration and generosity? In times of chaos, how do we find coherence? How can we practice coherence from the heart — in ourselves and all our relations? Jim Garrison has had a lifetime of social and political activism beginning in the 1960s with the anti-war, anti-nuclear, citizen diplomacy and environmental movements. He received his BA in History from the University of Santa Clara, an MA in History of Religion from Harvard, and a PhD in Philosophical Theology from the University of Cambridge. Jim then spent his professional life in executive leadership, including as co-founder and president of the Gorbachev Foundation and State of the World Forum with Mikhail Gorbachev serving as convening chairman. Later, Jim founded Ubiquity University having served as President of Wisdom University from 2005 – 2012 which was acquired by Ubiquity in 2013. Since the beginning of the pandemic, he has been convening conversations that matter called “Humanity Rising.” Jim has also written numerous books, including Citizen Diplomats, Civilization and The Transformation of Power, and America as Empire.  For more information on Jim Garrison and Terry Patten, check out the following resources:   Ubiquity University Humanity Rising Terry Patten's website A New Republic of the Heart website         We hope you appreciate this episode with Jim Garrison on State of Emergence. If you believe these conversations are important and want to support them, please join us as a monthly contributor and become part of our community of listeners. Thank you so much!

Monastic, community leader, and host of the Emerge podcast Daniel Thorson joins Terry for a tender, open-hearted, and spacious inquiry into what really matters in this vulnerable and sacred collective moment.  Recently, Daniel became an overnight focus of media attention during the beginning of the pandemic after he emerged from a long silent retreat and tweeted, “I'm back from 75 days in silence. Did I miss anything?” His unique experience and insights were featured by the New York Times and many other media outlets from around the world. Interestingly, his retreat intensified his discernment and sensitivity. He became acutely aware that this newfound fame was a double-edged sword. So we discussed what was arising — especially how we often suffer intensified public attention (in spite of our cultural preoccupation with fame and status). So this is a conversation on the threshold — Daniel was recognizing that a 2-3 year journey into intellectual sensemaking on his Emerge podcast had “crystalized”, and his inquiry had led him to more dedicated monastic practice and curiosity about how to love and care for the people around him. Daniel Thorson lives and works at the Monastic Academy in Vermont, which trains and cultivates wise, powerful, and loving leaders for social and environmental peace. When working at the influential podcast Buddhist Geeks he became fascinated by how public conversations can catalyze cultural transformation. Later, he created and became host of the podcast Emerge: Making Sense of What’s Next. In previous incarnations, Daniel was an organizer with Occupy Wall Street (in NYC); helped start Boulder Flood Relief in 2013; and founded a mindfulness education company.  Here are some of the questions we discuss in this episode:  What did 75 days in silence during a global pandemic illuminate for Daniel about his — and our collective — way forward? How can grief and acceptance open us to a life of service and creativity? Is it possible to discover a way of being that inadvertently heals our world? Are there shifts so essential and diffuse that they suddenly “solve everything at once?” In a world awash in so much information, how can we serve clarity, adding only what’s most essential? What are our essential conversations? For more information on Daniel Thorson and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Emerge – Making Sense of What’s Next podcast Monastic Academy Daniel Thorson on Twitter Terry Patten's website A New Republic of the Heart website Join the State of Emergence community of Supporters If you haven’t yet, we welcome you to join us as a monthly contributor here and become part of our community of listeners dedicated to uplifting our public discourse.

Inspiring master facilitator and social impact consultant Gibrán Rivera joins Terry to explore how our very way of being together might be our most meaningful response to this choice point in human history. They discuss how our social justice work might evolve to serve the flourishing of life in ourselves and one another, and how we can move beyond relating as individuals, and instead cultivate a new “we”, in the aliveness between us. Gibrán Rivera is an internationally renowned master facilitator and consultant committed to transforming organizations into more “networks of collaborative leadership” by shifting dynamics of power, equity and inclusion, and building beloved community. Gibrán has devoted much of his work life to the idea of democracy and to the work of emancipatory politics in urban communities. He led community engagement work at Roxbury’s La Alianza Hispana, served as Executive Director of Iniciativa – the Massachusetts Education Initiative for Latino Students, was the founding board chair of MassVOTE, a director on the Board of the Schott Foundation for Public Education, and President of the Board of the Center for Nonprofits and Voting. Gibrán is also spearheading a number of online communities and conversations. He leads Collective Consciousness Meditations with other spiritual teachers and medicine people every Wednesday, is the creator of the Better Men Project, a community and course on conscious masculinity, as well as a new conversation series on race called What Should White People Do?, for white people who want to learn, take responsibility and take action. Here are some of the questions Gibrán and Terry discuss in the episode:  What happens when we regard belonging and community as the first steps in our journey toward individual and collective healing?  How can we go beyond the fundamentalism sometimes found in “woke” culture? In what ways have we deprived ourselves of our ancestors’ legacies at the times when we need them most? How can we reclaim ritual, story, and dance? For more information on Gibrán Rivera and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Gibrán Rivera's website The Better Men Project Collective Consciousness Meditations Evolutionary Leadership Workshop Evolve Mastermind Terry Patten's website Join the State of Emergence community of Supporters If you haven’t yet, we welcome you to join us as a monthly contributor here and become part of our community of listeners dedicated to uplifting our public discourse.

The original, caring, and influential thinker Charles Eisenstein joins Terry to explore what’s really happening in this disorienting, liminal ordeal we find ourselves in — what he calls the “space between stories.” We confront the pattern of dehumanization we’re seeing across human culture, especially amidst our converging crises, and we consider what is required to support a pattern of sacralization — that continuously restores the sacredness of one another and the natural world through our listening, sensemaking, generosity, and relationships. Ultimately, we endeavor to expand our curiosity and play in a larger reality — with our minds and hearts more open to unknown forces and new possibilities considered “off limits” by dominant narratives. Charles Eisenstein's work focuses on themes of human culture, identity, systems change, and personal growth. He transmits profound clarity, disarming openmindedness, and deep care for the human future and that of the more-than- human world. Charles is the author of several books, including Sacred Economics, The More Beautiful World our Hearts Know is Possible, and his newest book, Climate: A New Story. Two of his most recent & noteworthy essays are The Coronation and The Conspiracy Myth. Here are some of the questions we discuss in the episode: Does our real security come from what we have, or what we give away? Among all that’s considered “off limits” in culture, can we discover essential stories and information? How does the pervasive tendency to “find the enemy” tend to reduce the natural world to commodities and profit? How can each conversation we have be a sacred opportunity to restore one another’s humanity? For more information on Charles Eisenstein and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Charles Eisenstein's website Charles' recent essay, The Coronation Charles' recent essay, The Conspiracy Myth Charles' latest book, Climate: A New Story Terry Patten's website Learn more and join our social experiment at A New Republic of the Heart, visit BeingofBenefit.com. Visit BeingofBenefit.com Join Our Community of Listeners and Supporters If you haven’t yet, we welcome you to join us as a monthly contributor here and become part of our community of listeners dedicated to uplifting our public discourse.

Gracious meditation teacher, author, shamanic practitioner, and community leader Spring Washam joins Terry to offers compassionate guidance and insight for how all of us can be authentic allies to people of color and the more-than-human world. She encourages everyone to be guided by our conscious heart intelligence and she effortlessly expresses a spacious generosity of heart even while firmly calling us into the urgent and challenging work of standing in the truth, however uncomfortable.   Spring Washam is a meditation teacher, author, and pioneer in bringing mindfulness-based healing practices to diverse communities. She is one of the founders and core teachers at the East Bay Meditation Center, located in Oakland, CA and the founder of Lotus Vine Journeys, an organization that blends indigenous healing practices with Buddhist wisdom. Spring received extensive training from Jack Kornfield, is a member of the teacher’s council at Spirit Rock Meditation Center in northern California, and has practiced and studied Buddhist philosophy in both the Theravada and Tibetan schools of Buddhism for the last 20 years. In addition to being a teacher, she is also a shamanic practitioner and has studied indigenous healing practices for over a decade. She travels and teaches meditation retreats, workshops and classes worldwide, and is the author of A Fierce Heart: Finding Strength, Courage and Wisdom in Any Moment. Spring is currently offering an online teaching series called The Dharma of Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad. Here are some of the questions we discuss in the episode:  Who is watching and learning from us when we stay silent?  Might our most challenging conversations with our family members and neighbors also be our most significant opportunities to be of benefit? How can Harriet Tubman’s strength and commitment be a source of strength to us in the work ahead? What arises if you speak the words “Black Lives Matter” aloud, in an authentic, embodied feeling way? For more information on Spring Washam and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Spring Washam's website Spring's Book, A Fierce Heart Lotus Vine Journeys East Bay Meditation Center Spring's current course, The Dharma of Harriet Tubman and the Underground Railroad Terry Patten's website Learn more and join our social experiment at A New Republic of the Heart, visit BeingofBenefit.com. Visit BeingofBenefit.com Join Our Community of Listeners and Supporters If you haven’t yet, we welcome you to join us as a monthly contributor here and become part of our community of listeners dedicated to uplifting our public discourse.  

In this episode, we offer recent remarks Terry Patten gave on the topic of "holistic antiracism" to a mostly white community of caring spiritual practitioners. Afterward, several people mentioned that these reflections were useful and requested that Terry share them with others. So, we offer Terry's reflections in this week's episode. Below is a message from Terry about the episode: "Like so many other caring white people, I’ve been engaged in deep self-examination, I’ve been coming to grips at a whole new level with the enormous suffering inflicted on millions of people over centuries by white supremacy and systemic racism. And I’ve been listening deeply to Black voices, and considering how to be a fuller and more effective ally of people of color.  On one level, I’ve been overjoyed that, finally, millions of white people are really getting that Black Lives Really Matter. There’s a sense of hope that things might really change now. I was raised in an interracial intentional community outside Chicago, and in some sense I’ve been hoping for this shift my whole life.  On the other hand, I want to participate in a genuine cultural transformation of racism, not to blame or shame it into hiding. Our social wounds require honest conversation and truly restorative justice. That begins with candor and courage.  I know I’m very much still in process, still educating myself, still learning, not perfected, not anywhere near the end of this journey yet. Because, like most of my white friends, I’m a little scared of critique, and I know this is a far-from-perfected communication.     But, after reflection, I decided my most caring and courageous way forward is to lay it on the line, in hopes that it will help others who are also on the path. We are all still educating ourselves, still growing. That’s a beginning."   For more information on Terry Patten and A New Republic of the Heart, check out the following resources: Our Social Experiment Community: https://newrepublicoftheheart.org/community-spring2020/ A New Republic of the Heart website: http://newrepublicoftheheart.org/ State of Emergence podcast website: http://stateofemergence.org/    Join Our Community of Listeners and Supporters If you haven’t yet, we welcome you to join us as a monthly contributor here and become part of our community of listeners dedicated to uplifting our public discourse.

Writer, thinker, podcaster, community convenor and Stoic Peter Limberg joins Terry to consider how we can navigate our fast-changing cultural and digital landscapes amidst the meta-crisis in a way that brings tribes and ideologies into conversation with one another and fosters authenticity, wholeness, and right relationship to reality. Peter was convening in-person events in Toronto exploring how to awaken and live Stoic virtues, and working as an Adjunct Researcher at the University of Toronto’s Consciousness & Wisdom Studies Lab, when the pandemic sent everyone to our rooms. Almost immediately, he began blogging and convening a series of online meetings he calls The Stoa. Peter co-authored the insightful and influential Medium essay, Memetic Tribes and Culture War 2.0 in 2018. Now, at The Stoa, he is joining with others in actively exploring and practicing personal transformation, authentic relating, collective presencing, sensemaking, and much more. For more information on Peter Limberg and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: The Stoa website: https://www.thestoa.ca/ Peter on Twitter: https://twitter.com/peternlimberg Peter's essay, The Memetic Tribes of the Culture War: https://medium.com/s/world-wide-wtf/memetic-tribes-and-culture-war-2-0-14705c43f6bb Terry Patten's website: https://www.terrypatten.com/   Learn more and join our social experiment at A New Republic of the Heart, visit BeingofBenefit.com. Visit BeingofBenefit.com   Join Our Community of Listeners and Supporters If you haven’t yet, we welcome you to join us as a monthly contributor here and become part of our community of listeners dedicated to uplifting our public discourse.

Social entrepreneur and community innovator Richard D. Bartlett joins Terry to explore the dynamics, challenges and potentials of conscious communities, and the possibility for small-scale social experiments of “micro-solidarity” to scale in a way that meets our global challenges. Richard D. Bartlett is on a mission to help catalyze a more compassionate, intelligent, more co-creative way of working together. In 2012, he co-founded Loomio, a digital tool for deliberation and decision-making in groups, and in 2016, he co-founded The Hum, which advises organizations without managers. Rich is also a Director and longstanding member of Enspiral — a network of people supporting each other for doing meaningful work — and his most recent project is called Microsolidarity, a mutual aid community of peer-to-peer support for people working on personal development. He also writes about how we work together, at any scale, from relationships to organizations to social change. You can follow his insights on Twitter, read his articles on Medium, and access his first book Patterns for Decentralised Organising online (though it’s not finished). Here are some of the questions Richard and Terry discuss in the episode: How might “collective intelligence” or “democracy” processes pervade societies, so that small conversations can more easily become beneficial initiatives? Which community processes and dynamics are most effective in fostering mutual support, shared understanding, and practical action?  How might traditional institutions evolve from dominator relationships to partnership relationships? Can our innovative prototypes scale and influence global organizations? For more information on Richard D. Bartlett and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Rich's new project Microsolidarity: https://microsolidarity.cc/ Rich's book, Patterns for Decentralized Organizing: https://leanpub.com/patterns-for-decentralised-organising/ Enspiral: http://enspiral.com/ Loomio: http://loomio.org/ The Hum: http://thehum.org/  Rich on Twitter: http://twitter.com/richdecibels  Rich on Medium: https://medium.com/@richdecibels  Terry Patten's website: https://www.terrypatten.com/   Learn more and join our social experiment at A New Republic of the Heart, visit BeingofBenefit.com. Visit BeingofBenefit.com   Join Our Community of Listeners and Supporters If you haven’t yet, we welcome you to join us as a monthly contributor here and become part of our community of listeners dedicated to uplifting our public discourse.

Social entrepreneur Emanuel Kuntzelman joins Terry to explore what is required to unify local and international projects dedicated to cultural and social transformation. Emanuel beautifully and intimately shares his personal story of childhood spiritual inspiration, living internationally and falling in love with the larger human family, and how that led to founding Greenheart International and several other cross-cultural impact organizations. Ultimately, him and Terry reflect on the value of being driven by purpose and toward legacy, both individually and collectively, in terms of humanity’s long-term contribution to the evolution of consciousness. Emanuel also invites listeners to an inspiring, global online event spearheaded by the Global Purpose Movement and Unity Earth called Purpose Earth on June 21, from 12:00 - 3:00 pm EDT.  The event is a cross-cultural, multigenerational live experience of ceremony, song, dance, and thoughtful discussion to joyfully champion humanity and planet Earth. Purpose Earth will proudly launch World UNITY Week, which will continue for eight days. This event is free, with donations welcome, going toward the new PURPOSE EARTH FUND, which supports innovative, grassroots organizations finding creative solutions to our social and ecological challenges. You can register here, mark your calendar and consider attending PURPOSE EARTH live.  For more information on Emanuel Kuntzelman and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: PURPOSE EARTH – A Free Global Online Event on June 21: https://www.globalpurposemovement.org/ Emanuel Kuntzelman's website: https://emanuelkuntzelman.com/ Global Purpose Movement: https://www.globalpurposemovement.org/ Greenheart International: https://greenheart.org/ Terry Patten's website: https://www.terrypatten.com/   Learn more and join our social experiment at A New Republic of the Heart, visit BeingofBenefit.com. Visit BeingofBenefit.com   Join Our Community of Listeners and Supporters If you haven’t yet, we welcome you to join us as a monthly contributor here and become part of our community of listeners dedicated to uplifting our public discourse.

Can we “go sane” together, even amidst so much turmoil? Can this dark and disorienting process that billions of us are experiencing become a sacred, global right of passage that transforms us into new human beings? Who will we choose to be? In this bonus episode, Terry Patten addresses the collective shock wave is rippling through our world, our reptilian and mammalian nervous systems, our friends, our families, our livelihoods, our communities and all our social systems. It is stirring up forgotten forces at the very depths of our being. He shares insights that translate into practices you can do to activate life-affirming patterns in your life, as well as innovative findings from vibrant communities and social experiments that are catalyzing new ways of being human. Questions Terry addresses include: What is at stake for humanity — and for each of us — in this “sacred global rite of passage?” Why is there so much hidden frozen emotion right now — grief, fear, and outrage — not just in those who seem angry, but affecting the whole human collective? Which of our ways of being no longer serve us? How can we co-create new human patterns that will ripple across culture? Does a "new republic of the heart” already tacitly exist, and how much power does it have to navigate the challenges to come? Learn more about the Social Experiment that Terry describes in this episode at BeingofBenefit.com. Visit BeingofBenefit.com

The fierce and wise physician, epidemiologist, author, and leader for sustainable and equitable change Monica Sharma joins Terry to reflect on her years of experience with UN public health initiatives and help us see the current pandemic in a cross-cultural, historical, and more humanizing context. Monica speaks to the challenges and tremendous courage of migrant workers, health professionals, children, and so many living in poverty navigating several crises at once. Ultimately, Monica clarifies that can we stand up with a “strong spine” in principled rage and a “soft belly” in forgiveness and compassion, asserting that we must learn to do both in order to defend those who need us. Monica worked at the UN for more than 20 years, and she continues to engage worldwide as an international expert and practitioner on leadership development, working with the UN, universities, management institutions, government, business, media and civil society organizations. She’s the Tata Chair Professor at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences in Mumbai and her book Radical Transformational Leadership is a tremendously important and valuable book. For more information on Monica Sharma and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Monica Sharma's Radical Transformational Leadership website: https://www.radicallytransform.org/ Terry Patten's website: https://www.terrypatten.com/ To learn more about the work we are doing, please visit: New Republic of the Heart website: https://www.newrepublicoftheheart.org/  State of Emergence podcast website: http://stateofemergence.org/  Join Our Community of Listeners and Supporters If you haven’t yet, we welcome you to join us as a monthly contributor here and become part of our community of listeners dedicated to uplifting our public discourse.

Psychotherapist and soul-activist Francis Weller joins Terry for a tender inquiry into the profound sorrow and initiatory power of this collective moment. They each share their present griefs and honor the importance of ritual in times of collective loss. As they accompany each other in “registering the rips and tears of the world,” they rediscover fierceness and grit to protect all we love, as well as gratitude for the depth and grandeur of this precious life. For thirty-five years Francis has worked as a practitioner of soul-centered psychotherapy. He has synthesized insights from psychology, anthropology, mythology, alchemy, indigenous cultures and the poetic imagination in healing rituals and guidance for groups and individuals working with shame, judgment, and grief. He is the author of The Wild Edge of Sorrow and The Threshold Between Loss and Revelation and he is currently completing his third book, A Trail on the Ground: The Geography of Soul.  A few of the questions they explore in the episode are: In what ways does our culture tend to react to loss with “amnesia and anesthesia?” Can we embrace our sorrow as a core faculty of being human — not just an emotion — so it deepens our depths and expands our capacities for joy and gratitude? How can grieving break through an inner barrier, and open access to the deep life of our soul? For more information on Francis Weller or Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Francis Weller's Website: https://www.francisweller.net/ Francis' books, The Wild Edge of Sorrow and The Threshold Between Loss and Revelation, and In the Absence of the Ordinary: https://www.francisweller.net/books.html Terry Patten's website: https://www.terrypatten.com/ To learn more about the work we are doing, visit: A New Republic of the Heart website: http://newrepublicoftheheart.org/ State of Emergence podcast website: http://stateofemergence.org/  Join Our Community of Listeners and Supporters If you haven’t yet, we welcome you to join us as a monthly contributor here and become part of our community of listeners dedicated to uplifting our public discourse.

Zen Roshi, professional mediator, and author Diane Musho Hamilton joins Terry to explore the deep human crisis of relationship and communication that underlies so many of our current challenges by emphasizing our divisions and disabling our ability to work together or make intelligent collective choices. Diane identifies key insights and practices that can transform our participation in any conversation. She spoke to our most difficult conversations about crisis, race, religion, gender, politics, and other societal challenges, and how they present opportunities for compassion and healing. Ultimately, she celebrated the courage and toughness that we all have as humans, and she transmitted an absolute ground for trusting every moment in this mysterious human life. Diane Musho Hamilton is an award-winning professional mediator and a compassionate, funny, dazzling facilitator. She is a Zen lineage holder and the Executive Director of Two Arrows Zen in Utah, a trainer of Integral Facilitation. Diane has authored three books: Everything Is Workable, The Zen of You and Me, and her new book Compassionate Conversations is now available. Compassionate Conversations – How to Speak and Listen from the Heart Diane’s new book, Compassionate Conversations, co-authored with Gabriel Menegale Wilson and Kimberly Myosai Loh, explores the dynamics of uncomfortable and often contentious topics of race, religion, gender, sexuality, and politics. Diane and her co-authors empower us to transform these conversations into opportunities to bridge divides and mend relationships by providing the basic set of conflict resolution skills we need to be successful, including listening, reframing, and dealing with strong emotions. It addresses the long history of injury and pain for marginalized groups and contains practices and reflection questions to help readers feel more prepared to talk through polarizing issues, listen to others more effectively, and become more intimate with expressing our truths. Learn more and order the book here. For more information on Diane Musho Hamilton or Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Diane's Website: https://www.dianemushohamilton.com/ Diane's new book, Compassionate Conversations – How to Speak and Listen from the Heart: https://www.dianemushohamilton.com/books/ Two Arrows Zen: https://www.twoarrowszen.org/ Terry Patten's website: https://www.terrypatten.com/ To learn more about the work we are doing, visit: A New Republic of the Heart website: http://newrepublicoftheheart.org/ State of Emergence podcast website: http://stateofemergence.org/  Join Our Community of Listeners and Supporters If you haven’t yet, we welcome you to join us as a monthly contributor here and become part of our community of listeners dedicated to uplifting our public discourse.

Internationally known author and expert on leadership, Meg Wheatley joins Terry to consider the global unraveling that’s occurring across cultures and societies. She shares her perspectives on hope and fear and how an unconditional and open-ended commitment to be of service might ultimately be more effective, sustainable and joyful than “hope.”  A few of the questions she and Terry explore are: How can we best relate to the discouragement that arises when hard-earned progress meets setbacks or cherished projects fall apart? What does it mean to be a “Warrior for the Human Spirit?” What is the “Warrior’s Vow” and how might it benefit today’s change agents facing impossible challenges? What can emerge when we do our work for its “present-moment rightness” rather than the belief that we will succeed? Meg has worked globally for decades as a consultant and speaker, and she is now Co-founder and President of The Berkana Institute, where she trains Warriors for the Human Spirit — leaders who learn as a community, training with discipline and dedication to develop a stable mind and skillful ways of being. She is a best-selling author of nine books applying wisdom drawn from new science, history, and spiritual traditions to the challenges of organizational leadership and community, including “Leadership and the New Science” and “Turning to One Another.” Her most recent book is “Who Do I Choose to Be?” Her own warriorship is grounded in the lineage of Chögyam Trungpa and her teacher Pema Chödrön. For more information on Meg Wheatley or Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Meg Wheatley's Website: https://margaretwheatley.com/ A Songline – A Journey Guided by Voice and Sound: https://margaretwheatley.com/the-warriors-songline/ Meg's most recent book, Who Do We Choose To Be?: https://margaretwheatley.com/books-products/books/who-do-we-choose-to-be/ Warriors for the Human Spirit: https://margaretwheatley.com/2020-europe-warriors-for-the-human-spirit-training/ Terry Patten's website: https://www.terrypatten.com/ To learn more about the work we are doing, visit: A New Republic of the Heart website: http://newrepublicoftheheart.org/ State of Emergence podcast website: http://stateofemergence.org/  Join Our Community of Listeners and Supporters If you haven’t yet, we welcome you to join us as a monthly contributor here and become part of our community of listeners dedicated to uplifting our public discourse.

International development and climate change geographer Gail Hochachka examines similarities and differences between the COVID-19 pandemic and our more existential crisis of climate change. She and Terry discuss how the pandemic might be training institutions, leaders, scientists, and citizens to manage the climate crisis more effectively going forward. They also explore which new stories are needed in order for climate change to resonate across cultures and developmental stages.  Gail has over 20 years of experience bridging research and practice in sustainable development in Africa, Latin America, and North America. She is Co-Founder of the non-profit organization Integral Without Borders Institute and has taught at John F. Kennedy University and the University of Oslo. Currently, Gail is a doctoral fellow at the Department of Sociology and Human Geography at the University of Oslo, Norway, where her PhD research focuses on how to integrate the human dimensions of climate change adaptation and transformations to sustainability. Deepening Questions  What does CoVID-19 mean to me? What does climate change mean to me? How do I enact luminosity when I am scared?  How do I enact luminosity when I don't know what's around the corner? For more information on Gail Hochachka or Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Gail's Nonprofit, Integral Without Borders: https://integralwithoutborders.org/ Gail podcast episode, "Climate Changes at Every Stage" on the The Daily Evolver: https://www.dailyevolver.com/2019/11/climate-changes-at-every-stage/ Terry Patten's website: https://www.terrypatten.com/ To learn more about the work we are doing, visit: A New Republic of the Heart website: http://newrepublicoftheheart.org/ State of Emergence podcast website: http://stateofemergence.org/  Join Our Community of Listeners and Supporters If you haven’t yet, we welcome you to join us as a monthly contributor here and become part of our community of listeners dedicated to uplifting our public discourse.

To celebrate the fiftieth Earth Day, Terry carried a drum, a tripod and some recording equipment as he climbed to the top of a nearby hill and offered a prayer. Earth Day 2020 arrives at a time when our world has finally mobilized, but not to save the Living Earth — to save ourselves, as if we were separate from the larger body of Life. So it is a time for humble prayer, and reflection. We hope this week's special episode helps your heart breathe and allows you to embrace this wild, tender moment, this time for both grief and gratitude, and for wonder, Grace, and tremendous grit. For more information on Terry Patten and A New Republic of the Heart, check out the following resources: Watch the Video Recording of the Event: https://vimeo.com/410838691/eb2ba81fea A New Republic of the Heart website: http://newrepublicoftheheart.org/ State of Emergence podcast website: http://stateofemergence.org/   

Physician, scholar, researcher, transpersonal psychologist, professor, and Buddhist lama, Roger Walsh joins Terry to discuss how they each can be of the best benefit at a time when our societies are shutting down and experiencing unprecedented stress. Roger had been on silent retreat for over a month before he emerged to have this conversation about our suddenly disrupted human moment. He also turned the tables on Terry and drew out some intimate and vulnerable personal reflections from our host, as the conversation took a more personal turn.  Roger Walsh MD., Ph.D. DHL is widely respected for his extremely clear discernment and insight as an author and a professor of psychiatry, philosophy, and anthropology at the University of California at Irvine. He holds degrees in psychology, physiology, neuroscience, and medicine, and is also a researcher and teacher of meditation and yoga. Among his many published books are Paths Beyond Ego, The World of Shamanism, and Essential Spirituality: The Seven Central Practices. Roger is currently working on a major book (or two) on the nature of Wisdom.  Here are some of the questions you’ll hear him and Terry explore in this episode: How do koans and other “wisdom questions” take us deeper into ourselves over time and help us optimize our work in the world? How can each of us become aware of our most unique and strategic contribution? Can a “beginner’s mind” practice in times of crisis enable us to challenge our unconscious assumptions and be redirected into new forms of service? How can we practice an embodied, felt response to crisis, instead of contracting into a mental mode of problem-solving? Does responding this way allow others to do so too? To what extent will the current pandemic catalyze societies to recognize other existential threats on our horizon? For more information on Dr. Roger Walsh and Terry Patten, check out the following resources: Roger Walsh's Website: http://www.drrogerwalsh.com  Roger's book, Paths Beyond Ego: https://drrogerwalsh.com/books/paths-beyond-ego/ Roger's book, The World of Shamanism: https://drrogerwalsh.com/books/the-world-of-shamanism/ Roger's book, Essential Spirituality: https://drrogerwalsh.com/books/essential-spirituality/ Terry Patten's website: https://www.terrypatten.com/ To learn more about the work we are doing, visit: A New Republic of the Heart website: http://newrepublicoftheheart.org/ State of Emergence podcast website: http://stateofemergence.org/  Join Our Community of Listeners and Supporters If you haven’t yet, we welcome you to join us as a monthly contributor here and become part of our community of listeners dedicated to uplifting our public discourse.