use or advocate for violence, especially as a means for self-defense. As an advocate for nonviolence, I have learned a great deal from the likes of the Black Panther Party, the Zapatistas, the Deacons for Defense and the anarchists in the Spanish Civil War, among others. Their struggles and sacrifices should never be discounted, nor should we ignore the many lessons from their movements. We should also never judge those who have used violence for self-defense in interpersonal relationships — abusive relationships, robberies, assaults, etc. If people felt like that was their only means of protecting themselves, I only pray that they were okay. Finally, we need to a... posted on Jan 15 2018 (15,021 reads)

entrepreneured the development of some key building block organizations for civil society in the new South Africa. He then founded and now runs an international nonprofit dedicated to bringing constituent feedback to social change practice. He had an unexpected invitation to speak with Nelson Mandela, who reinforced that development aid and philanthropy run aground because those on the receiving end have no say in it, and that "in social change, as in our personal and social lives, it is relationships that determine outcomes. What follows are selected wisdom nuggets from an Awakin Call with David Bonbright Centrality of relationships for meaningful social change efforts:&... posted on Dec 8 2020 (3,672 reads)

is so important. I’m so glad you underscored it because it is different from fixing. In order to heal — to me, healing is about making whole. And to be a healer, you have to be able to listen, to learn, and to love. And I saw those three forces at work in my parents and how they cared for their patients. So that’s what got me interested in the process of healing. But I also saw that when you help people heal, as my parents did, you also build these beautiful relationships with them. And I saw my parents who, as two immigrants, who came to this country not knowing anyone, not really having any connections or supports, they built a community through their s... posted on Apr 14 2023 (3,847 reads)

that follows participants over the course of a lifetime, and the study in which Camille participated—known as the Grant Study, because it was originally funded by entrepreneur and philanthropist William T. Grant—is now the longest longitudinal study of biosocial human development ever undertaken, and is still on-going. Through reviews of Camille’s and his Harvard peers’ medical records, coupled with periodic interviews and questionnaires exploring their careers, relationships, and mental well-being, the study’s goal was to identify the key factors to a happy and healthy life. I arrived at the Grant Study in 1966. I became its director in 1972, a posi... posted on Oct 23 2013 (66,429 reads)

a study that follows participants over the course of a lifetime, and the study in which Camille participated—known as the Grant Study, because it was originally funded by entrepreneur and philanthropist William T. Grant—is now the longest longitudinal study of biosocial human development ever undertaken, and is still on-going. Through reviews of Camille’s and his Harvard peers’ medical records, coupled with periodic interviews and questionnaires exploring their careers, relationships, and mental well-being, the study’s goal was to identify the key factors to a happy and healthy life. I arrived at the Grant Study in 1966. I became its director in 1972, a posi... posted on Oct 25 2015 (29,247 reads)

interrelatedness and kinship—and I had seen many examples of how to be caring and supportive. I was also very fortunate to begin working with a Navajo community leader, Thomas Walker, who had been raised by generations of Peacemakers, and he brought that training to his work with the school. Traditional Peacemaking is a system of resolving conflicts that Navajos used long before contact with Europeans. It is built upon K’e, and the fundamental idea is to restore relationships and harmony rather than to assign guilt and punishment. Even though the Peacemaking system of justice and healing is foreign to mainstream American culture and the antagonistic nature of... posted on Feb 11 2017 (19,098 reads)

pasture in fresh air and sunshine with freedom to move around. I think of our goat herder, Douggie Newbold, who says that when she kisses her goats' ears, it makes the cheese better, and I think that's true! I also think about the bakers coming in to the White Dog and putting into the oven the rolls and pies and cakes that the customers will enjoy that day. And I think about the Zapatistas in Chiapas, Mexico, who grow the coffee for the cup I'll have that morning. Business is about relationships with all the people we work with and buy from and sell to. My business is the way I express my love for the world, and that is what makes it a thing of beauty. Over the past twenty-on... posted on Apr 17 2018 (7,481 reads)

that river, pulling out tires, shopping carts, microwaves. We’d get to know the local organization and learn about the history of the neighborhood. There’d be three hundred volunteers in the same yellow t-shirt. Then later that evening there'd be a huge celebration where each of the buses would share stories of what they learned, what they saw, their impact, and what they were going to do about it. The mission of the organization was to reveal leadership through service, relationships, and action. We served others in the community, and built relationships with one another; but then we challenged ourselves to apply what we learned and make a positive impact. Pre... posted on Jan 2 2019 (3,193 reads)

a certain way, and maybe the person behind me is doing it in a different way for me. So it’s not that I gave this much and I expect this much back. I’m receiving and I’m paying forward with gratitude. If we let go of that transaction in a one-to-one way, what we get is a circle. It’s a shift from direct reciprocity, which is, “I gave you this so you give me this in return,” to indirect reciprocity. And when we engage in indirect reciprocity what we gain are relationships. That’s becomes a gift ecology – a field of myriad relationships of generosity. In such a field, everyone behaves differently, and our shared experiences lead to entirely dif... posted on Jul 5 2019 (7,848 reads)

tell us so much more about who and how similar we are. Tell me you're from France, and I see what, a set of clichés? Adichie's dangerous single story, the myth of the nation of France? Tell me you're a local of Fez and Paris, better yet, Goutte d'Or, and I see a set of experiences. Our experience is where we're from. So, where are you a local? I propose a three-step test. I call these the three "R’s": rituals, relationships, restrictions. First, think of your daily rituals, whatever they may be: making your coffee, driving to work, harvesting your crops, saying your prayers. What kind of r... posted on Feb 2 2019 (9,453 reads)

are one part, but only one, of the forest's mind." Can you explain what you mean by that?  David: Yes, so what we have learned over the last few decades from ecological, evolutionary, and plant physiology studies is that when we walk into a forest we're not walking into a place that is full of separate interacting individuals.That was the old view of ecology. Instead, we now know that we're walking into a living network, a place where every creature exists only through relationships with others. For example, a tree is not just one species or one individual but a living community. Every leaf on a tree has hundreds of species of bacteria and fungi living on it. Withou... posted on Mar 22 2019 (4,917 reads)

are both set in childhood. Does that mean we’re stuck with ourselves? No, suggest two studies published this year. When caregivers are available to respond to children’s needs, attachment theory says, children develop a secure attachment style: They trust others and feel comfortable relying on loved ones. However, when caregivers fail to meet children’s needs, they can develop insecure attachment—which makes it harder to sustain relationships in adulthood. However, a study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology suggests that people can actually start to change their atta... posted on Jun 21 2018 (18,618 reads)

from Elegant Simplicity by Satish Kumar, New Society Publishers, 2019 Elegant simplicity can only be built on the firm foun­dation of right relationships. Our crises-mental, personal, social, economic, environmental, political, cultural, and re­ligious -- have their origin in disconnection and separation. The moment we see that all things are connected, that we are all related, that everything depends on everything else, we start to see solutions. Why do we have crises between Palestine and Israel, between Sunni and Shia, between America and Russia, India and Pakistan, Christians and Muslims? Because we see ourselves as being separate from others. When all our inter... posted on Apr 4 2019 (7,371 reads)

all belong to the world in concentric circles of relationship — some more distant and others close, some with people different from us and others with people more similar. Living within this web of connectedness can bring us the greatest of joys and the deepest of challenges. The preferences, patterns, and habits we have learned can both build relational bridges and create great divides. Much of how we operate in our relationships can be unconscious and beneath our awareness, and so we go through life feeling perpetually “at the effect of” others, rather than intentional and effectual. Our lives and our relationships are well-served when we can lift our unconscious pa... posted on Aug 2 2019 (8,386 reads)

profound way, even though the physical makeup of the “thing” has not changed. A wooly knit hat that you purchase at the store will keep you warm regardless of its origin, but if it was hand knit by your favorite auntie, then you are in relationship to that “thing” in a very different way: you are responsible for it, and your gratitude has motive force in the world. You’re likely to take much better care of the gift hat than the commodity hat, because it is knit of relationships. This is the power of gift thinking. I imagine if we acknowledged that everything we consume is the gift of Mother Earth, we would take better care of what we are given. Mistreating a gi... posted on Jan 19 2021 (10,468 reads)

documented the havoc that loneliness wreaks on individuals, showing that lonely and isolated people have poorer immune function, experience higher levels of inflammation, and are at greater risk for heart disease, cancer and diabetes. While everybody’s vulnerability to loneliness and social isolation differs, we all need social connection. (Shutterstock) Perhaps just as importantly, Harvard research from the longest-running cohort study ever conducted suggests that warm social relationships are the most important predictor of happiness across the life course. In other words, people who are disconnected lead sicker, sadder and shorter lives. Public health guidelines ... posted on Jun 29 2023 (4,543 reads)

its sounds were telling me about how people and trees were interconnected. … So what we have learned over the last few decades from ecological science and evolutionary science and studies of the physiology of plants, is that when we walk into a forest, we're not walking into a place that is full of separate interacting individuals.That was the old view of of ecology. Instead we now know that we're walking into a living network, a place where every creature exists only through relationships with others. And so for example, a tree is not just one species, one individual, but a tree is a living community. Every leaf on a tree has hundreds of species of bacteria and fungi livi... posted on Jan 7 2024 (4,712 reads)

movement in education to foster social and emotional learning. And it cultivates the knowledge, empathy, and action required for practicing sustainable living. To help educators foster socially and emotionally engaged ecoliteracy, we have identified the following five practices. These are, of course, not the only ways to do so. But we believe that educators who cultivate these practices offer a strong foundation for becoming ecoliterate, helping themselves and their students build healthier relationships with other people and the planet. Each can be nurtured in age-appropriate ways for students, ranging from pre-kindergarten through adulthood, and help promote the cognitive and affective... posted on Sep 26 2013 (30,537 reads)

mind exist?” asks neuroscientist Daniel Siegel, as he opens a two-day conference on his favorite subject, interpersonal neurobiology. Siegel is on a mission to tell the world that by working to make changes in your mind you can reorganize the neural pathways in your brain. He insists that if you work at it, you can spend more time in “Beginner’s Mind” and improve your personal relationships. Unsatisfied by the old scientific definition that the mind is what the brain does, he says that “such a view essentially reduces the mind to an MRI.” As he sketches an upside-down triangle with mind and brain at the top two corners and relationships at the ... posted on Dec 10 2015 (25,277 reads)

world of complex systems and turbulence is no place for disabling and dispiriting mechanistic thinking. We are confronted daily by events and outcomes that shock us and for which we have no answers. The complexity of modern systems cannot be understood by our old ways of separating problems, or scapegoating individuals, or rearranging the boxes on an org chart. In a complex system, it is impossible to find simple causes that explain our problems, or to know who to blame. A messy tangle of relationships has given rise to these unending crises. To understand this new world of continuous change and intimately connected systems, we need new ways of understanding. Fortunately, life and its ... posted on Feb 26 2018 (11,724 reads)