The Cynic and the Boatbuilder

Charles Eisenstein — Tue, 21 May 2013 11:43:37 -0700

Charles Eisenstein will be joined by David Abram for the upcoming Evolver Learning Lab webinar, "What's the Matter with Matter (and Does it Matter)?" This live, interactive video dialogue will take place on Wednesday, May 22 at 8pm EST/5pm PCT.

Civilization Class

Michael Muhammad Knight — Fri, 10 May 2013 06:39:42 -0700

The following is excerpted from Tripping with Allah: Islam, Drugs, and Writing.

Empowering Public Wisdom: Chapter 6

Tom Atlee — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 06:24:53 -0700

The following is the second installment of Empowering Public Wisdom: A Practical Vision of Citizen-Led Politics, available from EVOLVER EDITIONS/North Atlantic Books. You can visit the Empowering Public Wisdom homepage here.

How Net Parties Are Changing the Rules of the Political Game

Bernardo Gutierrez — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 12:13:52 -0700

The emergence of new Net parties suggest a new era in politics. Net (Internet) parties incorporate the open, horizontal and leaderless processes associated with free software and social movements such as 15M.

Keep Harmful Chemicals out of Household Products

Reality Sandwich — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 06:14:57 -0700

[Action Alert] • The California EPA has proposed listing the toxic chemical bisphenol A (BPA) as a chemical known to cause reproductive harm – which would require products with BPA to carry a warning label. But the chemical industry is suing the state, claiming that there is no science showing BPA is harmful.

The Bitcoin Revolution

Alex Robertson — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 03:03:50 -0700

Satoshi Nakamoto is a pioneer, a mystery, and a potential saviour. Having created what many would consider to be one of the most significant advancements in the evolution of currency, Satoshi has now receded back into the depths of internet anonymity from whence he came.

An Economy of Caring and Sharing

Louis G. Herman — Wed, 03 Apr 2013 07:39:42 -0700

The following is an excerpt from Future Primal: How Our Wilderness Origins Show Us the Way Forward, recently published by New World Library.

"War on Consciousness" Webinar

Evolver Learning Lab — Mon, 01 Apr 2013 14:16:44 -0700

Recently Graham Hancock discovered that his TEDx Whitechapel presentation, "The War on Consciousness," was censored by the TED leadership -- removed from the TED YouTube page and criticized for reasons which TED later admitted to be unfounded. An outraged grassroots campaign led to TED reposting the video, though on an obscure blog page rather than on their popular YouTube site.

From the Middle Class to the Mutual Class

Paul Glover — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 07:01:24 -0700

Wisdom 2.0 and the Protection of the Spiritual Commons

Darrin Drda — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 05:48:22 -0700

Over the last weekend in February, executives from tech companies like Google, Cisco, Zynga, and Twitter shared a stage in Silicon Valley with spiritual luminaries such as Eckhart Tolle, Jack Kornfield, Marianne Williamson, and Joan Halifax for the fourth annual Wisdom 2.0 conference. In presentations, interviews, panel discussions, and breakout sessions, the role of spirituality in business and society was explored from every angle—almost. One question that hung heavily in the ether above the privileged participants was this: Is Wisdom 2.0 really an upgrade?

Toxic-Free Fire Safety

Reality Sandwich — Fri, 08 Mar 2013 09:37:32 -0800

[Action Alert] • If you’re like 90% of Americans, every day you sit on a couch that contains a pound or more of toxic flame-retardant chemicals. These flame retardants have been linked with devastating health problems including cancer, reduced IQ, fertility, obesity, and more. And to make matters worse, these flame retardant chemicals don’t even protect you from fires.

Priya Mohan and The Convergence Network Core Council: At the Cutting Edge of Intentional Community

Tamra Lucid — Wed, 27 Feb 2013 02:53:39 -0800

YouTube Censors Billy Reverend

Faye Sakellaridis — Tue, 26 Feb 2013 09:36:41 -0800

Apocalypse of the Mountain Tops

Reverend Billy — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 02:23:14 -0800

The following is excerpted from The End of the World, published by OR Books.

Gift Currency

John X — Mon, 18 Feb 2013 11:45:17 -0800

A new project called datti is offering a way to build gift economies on a community level by witnessing and memorializing gift transactions using beautiful, pewter coins. Inspired in part by the work of Charles Eisenstein, the creators of the datti have designed a special pewter coin that functions like “money in reverse,” or as a pay-it-forward token, inspiring future gifts to flow in all directions.

Move Forward on Climate

Reality Sandwich — Tue, 12 Feb 2013 09:10:32 -0800

[Action Alert] • Tens of thousands of Americans are making plans to converge in DC on February 17th to demand President Obama move forward on climate action and reject the Keystone XL tar sands pipeline. We're on our way to making this the biggest action against climate change in American history.

Demand Investigation into Prosecution of Aaron Swartz

Reality Sandwich — Tue, 05 Feb 2013 08:54:19 -0800

[Action Alert] • On January 11, 2013, facing trumped up felony charges and potentially decades in prison, Aaron Swartz made the tragic choice to end his life. He was only 26.

Evolver Spores: The Return of the Divine Masculine

The Evolver Network — Mon, 04 Feb 2013 09:50:29 -0800

Evolver Spores: The Return of the Divine Masculine

Wednesday, February 20

Please Don't Frack My Mother

Reality Sandwich — Sat, 02 Feb 2013 16:20:13 -0800

As many of you may know, Governor Cuomo is announcing his decision on whether or not to lift the moratorium on fracking in New York State on or before Feb 27th.. This means we have to turn up the heat in the next few weeks (while turning down the gas of course).

Shamanism Official in Norway

Matt Toussaint — Thu, 31 Jan 2013 08:18:34 -0800

The Shamanic Association of Tromso is now a new Norwegian religious denomination. It is the first time shamanism has been officially recognized in Norway. Norway is encompassed by the traditional Sami people's homeland, who are classically known as reindeer herders and carry on a prolific shamanic tradition.

This development evokes both victories and ironies.

Take Control of Money: Print Your Own

Paul Glover — Fri, 25 Jan 2013 03:36:45 -0800

Revival of local currencies during the past 25 years proves that communities can issue money to create green jobs, fund local nonprofits and farms, make interest-free loans, and connect residents as fellow workers.

The Ithaca HOURS money that I started in 1991, for example, has traded millions of dollars value among thousands of residents and 500 businesses. Each colorful HOUR, depicting local children, trolleys, waterfalls and bugs, is valued at one hour of common labor or $10.00, which doubled the 1991 minimum wage.

Artists Against Fracking

Reality Sandwich — Wed, 23 Jan 2013 18:40:31 -0800

[Action Alert] • Please take a moment to oppose hydrofracking in New York State by signing this petition: http://artistsagainstfracking.com/take-action/

Empowering Public Wisdom: Chapter 5

Tom Atlee — Mon, 21 Jan 2013 05:55:50 -0800

The following is the fifth installment of Empowering Public Wisdom: A Practical Vision of Citizen-Led Politics, available from EVOLVER EDITIONS/North Atlantic Books. You can visit the Empowering Public Wisdom homepage here.

CHAPTER 5: Citizenship and the Random Selection of Ad Hoc Mini-Publics

Evolver Spores: Collective Cooperation

The Evolver Network — Thu, 10 Jan 2013 07:22:13 -0800

Evolver Convergences: Collective Cooperation - Wednesday, January 16

Right to Nature

Faye Sakellaridis — Tue, 08 Jan 2013 09:37:55 -0800

[Action Alert] • Stop the Swedish Government's persecution of shamanic healer Jungle Svonni and the supression of natural plant medicines.

After spending six years in the Amazon rainforest studying Shamanism and natural healing Jungle Svonni returned to his home country only to face a possible prison sentence for possesing San Pedro, a sacred cactus with thousands of years of use as a medicine.

San Francisco Launches Sharing Community

David Wilder — Mon, 07 Jan 2013 16:15:28 -0800

A new sharing community named yerdle was launched in San Francisco that will attempt to make the retail industry more environmentally friendly by connecting unused goods with people who can use them.

The company's FAQ section of its website explains that the word yerdle, which is both a proper noun and verb, means "to get the things you need from your friends."

The Wild Fire of Idle No More

Morgan Maher — Mon, 31 Dec 2012 03:42:56 -0800

Sitting in pre-Apocalypse, pre-Christmas crush and stress, I caught sight of smoke signals. Maybe even heard the drums, growing louder, moving closer. As the darkest day approached and enveloped us all, as scintillating Solstice prophesy and declarations swirled, I clicked on through, and opened this.

Car Use Down, Public Transportation Use Up

Andrew Cameron — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 12:25:40 -0800

Obama wasn't the only winner this past November. Proponents of public transportation gained significant wins at the ballot box.

There were wins in almost 80% of public transportation ballot measures. According to the Center for Transportation Excellence, 2012 has seen more transit related ballot initiatives than any other year in the past decade.

P2P Currency

John X — Wed, 19 Dec 2012 12:45:24 -0800

An alternative digital currency system called “Bitcoin” has been developed as a community-driven open source project. Allowing instant payments to anyone, anywhere in the world, Bitcoin operates with no central authority. Instead, managing transactions and issuing money are carried out collectively by the network using cryptography to control the creation and transfer of money.

Shooters

Steven Taylor — Tue, 18 Dec 2012 12:10:00 -0800

Several writers of my acquaintance, such as Allen Ginsberg and Ed Sanders, developed the habit of keeping extensive files of press clippings on stories of personal interest. Noam Chomsky, we're told, does the same thing. An individual news report may mention something in passing that may seem secondary to the main narrative, but when multiple stories collected over time repeat the same seemingly secondary data, important patterns can become apparent.