Two significant gatherings we want you to know about: 350.org and Living in the Fire of Change.
by CATALYST Staff
Conference on sacred activism and social transformation
CATALYST covered the World Futures Conference held in Salt Lake in the early 1980s where the keynotes were Barbara Marx Hubbard and Jean Houston. This December 11-12, Hubbard reprises her visit, sharing her philosophical journey since then. The septuagenarian, president of the Foundation for Conscious Evolution, will be joined by former Amnesty International President and US representative to the UN James O’Dea; scholar, author and founder of the Institute for Sacred Activism Andrew Harvey; president, former Green Beret and Native American Elder and wisdom keeper Sequoyah Trueblood; and local leaders exemplifying cutting-edge work in their communities and world with eye on sustainable and conscious practices.
The event, “Living in the Fire of Change,” is a conference and community forum on sacred activism and social transformation. The purpose is a hefty one: to examine parameters for understanding the core issues of our time and taking viable action as individuals, community, and as a whole.
Organizer Mali Leach invites us to take part in a solid and inspiring discussion, where we can pose questions to leaders globally known in their fields.
It’s in December; why are we telling you about this now? Because also highlighted will be local leaders and nonprofits. Leach lives in Boise, where a similar conference was held this past summer. She is currently accepting ideas for local panelists and organizations.
CATALYST is a supporter of the event and we think this conference holds the potential of being a real, well, catalyst. We wanted to get this onto your radar. The nonsectarian event will occur Dec. 11-12 at All Saints Episcopal Church on Foothill Dr., where study groups are already forming that pertain to the subject of the conference.
To recommend a local leader for participation, visit the conference website at www.sacredactivismconference.com or contact Mali at mali@malirowanpresents.com.
350.org: A global day of action for climate justice
On October 24, in 1,500 cities around the world, people are planning simultaneous gatherings with the intention of delivering what may look to the uninitiated as mysterious code: “350.”
350.org is the communication tool conveying the mechanics of making “350” a household word. That is the number that leading scientists say is the safe upper limit for carbon dioxide, measured in parts per million in our atmosphere. 350 ppm. This past July, Earth’s atmospheric CO2 was 387.81.
350 is “the number humanity needs to get back to as soon as possible to avoid runaway climate change,” according to Bill McKibbon, who began the effort.
Local organizers call on creative people in various artistic disciplines -visual artists, poets, dancers-to come up with expressive ways to convey the urgency about climate crisis and/or the need to bring carbon levels back down to 350 ppm. This is a participatory event for the general public. A large group gathering is also planned, location TBA.
Call for artists’ participation: Contact Jessi Carrier, jesscarrier@hotmail.com. -and specificially 350slc.org-