The New School at Commonweal

Eric Karpeles The Last Threshold: Artists and Mortality Bolinas painter and writer Eric Karpeles will talk about the role that artists have played in helping to imaginatively frame and comprehend the idea of how we cease to be. How is it that artists, engaged in the most willful need to express their very beings, seem to overcome the fear of the loss of self? Focusing on three distinct art forms—painting, poetry and music—and three supreme practitioners—Mark Rothko, Emily Dickinson and Gustav Mahler—Karpeles will attempt to create an awareness of how, in their struggle to give voice, artists make use of their accumulated subjective experience to look and listen and learn with acute attention and focus, navigating between the physical world and the life of the mind. The boundary between what we know and what we cannot know is a minefield of stimulation for artists, who help teach us by example how to meaningfully embrace the end that awaits us all. Erik Karpeles Commonweal Board Member Eric Karpeles is a painter and writer. Born and raised in New York, he has also lived in India and in France, settling in Bolinas in 2007. His painting career has been shaped by the quest for a spiritual presence in art, and by a negative response to the elitism of the contemporary marketplace. The Rockefeller Chapel is a room-sized painting he completed in 1996, a permanent installation at the HealthCare Chaplaincy in New York City. Karpeles writes about painting and the intersection of literature and visual aesthetics; his book, Paintings in Proust, translated into several languages, was a “book of the year” in the NY Times, the Times of London, and The Wall Street Journal. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Cam Trowbridge West Marin County and Marconi's Dream Around-the-World Wireless Network This presentation—followed by a conversation with The New School’s Kyra Epstein—held at the Point Reyes National Seashore’s Red Barn, focused on Guglielmo Marconi’s construction and operation of two wireless radio stations in Bolinas and Marshall between 1912 and 1919. Marconi’s ambitions and business acumen, the topic of his 2010 book, will be explained in relation to the sites near Bolinas and Marshall that could connect wirelessly with Hawaii. In 1916, service to Hawaii opened, and, through Hawaii, to Japan. In World War I, the U.S. Navy took over operation of stations owned by American Marconi, a subsidiary of British Marconi. In 1919, after World War I, the United States government, led by the U.S. Navy, forced British Marconi to sell American Marconi to General Electric and its subsidiary, the Radio Corporation of America, thereby ending Marconi’s participation in the California stations. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Rebecca Katz and Jeanne Wallace, PhD The Cancer-Fighting Kitchen A cancer diagnosis is shocking, disorienting, and capable of scrambling anybody’s mental GPS—not to mention their culinary compass. To find a stabilizing force, a grounding activity such as cooking and eating well can provide more than nourishment; it can offer a huge psychological boost. Join Rebecca, Jeanne, and Michael Lerner for a presentation and discussion about the healing power of food. When you get a cancer diagnosis, suddenly you become a very powerless person. A nutritional plan can give a sense of empowerment. So many common foods—everything from broccoli to blueberries—have multiple cancer-fighting properties, including everyday herbs and spices ranging from ginger to cinnamon to turmeric. In addition to supporting you nutritionally, they can help quell side effects ranging from nausea to fatigue. Download Jeanne’s presentation here. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Robert Hass, Eric Karpeles, and Others Community Reading of Walt Whitman's 'Song of Myself' In 1855, Whitman published 795 copies of his book Leaves of Grass, paying for publication himself. “Song of Myself,” as it came to be known, was the first experiment in long, free-verse poetry—a poem that former U.S. poet laureate and Whitman scholar Robert Hass calls, “the most unprecedented poem in the English language.” The poem is Whitman’s “song” about democracy and imagination, life and death. With an introduction by Robert Haas, local volunteers read the 52 numbered sections of the 1891 “Deathbed” edition of Walt Whitman’s Song of Myself in its entirety. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

David Spangler Apprenticed to Spirit Michael Lerner talks with David Spangler about his life and his recent book, Apprenticed to Spirit. Apprenticed is a memoir of David’s journey to understanding how we can learn to lead lives of greater blessing and to be sources of blessing and service for the world as a whole. In the book, David documents his encounter in 1965 with an extraordinary presence, which he named “John,” and which over the next quarter-century would be his colleague and mentor, assisting him in exploring the “inner worlds” of the spirit. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Richard Heinberg The End of Growth: Adapting to Our New Economic Reality ~Co-presented with Post Carbon Institute, Point Reyes Books, the Regenerative Design Institute, Transition West Marin, and the Mainstreet Moms~ Economics has failed us . . . but there is life after growth! Economists insist that recovery is at hand, yet unemployment remains high, real estate values continue to sink, and governments stagger under record deficits. Richard Heinberg’s latest book, The End of Growth, proposes a startling diagnosis: humanity has reached a fundamental turning point in its economic history. The expansionary trajectory of industrial civilization is colliding with non-negotiable natural limits. In conversation with Michael Lerner, Richard explores the ongoing financial crisis—explaining how and why it occurred; what we must do to avert the worst potential outcomes; and what policy makers, communities, and families can do to build a new economy that operates within Earth’s budget of energy and resources. Richard Heinberg Richard Heinberg is the author of ten books—including The Party’s Over, Peak Everything, and The End of Growth—and a senior fellow-in-residence at Post Carbon Institute. He is widely regarded as one of the world’s most effective communicators of the urgent need to transition away from fossil fuels. With a wry, unflinching approach based on facts and realism, Richard exposes the tenuousness of our current way of life and offers a vision for a truly sustainable future. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Ted Shettler, MD, and Sharyle Patton The Ecological Paradigm of Health Ted Schettler, M.D., is unquestionably one of the most eminent science educators in the field of environmental health and justice. Dr. Schettler talked with Commonweal Biomonitoring Resource Center Director Sharyle Patton and Michael Lerner about the ecological paradigm of health, a truly “holistic” science-based way of thinking about how the environment affects our health integrating factors including socioeconomic status, nutrition, stress, chemical exposures, and much more. Most studies of these factors isolate them, but the truth is we all swim in a soup of mixtures with unknown biological consequences. Dr. Schettler is Science Director at the Science and Environmental Health Network and at the Collaborative for Health and the Environment. Ted Schettler, M.D., M.P.H. Ted is an authority on environmental links to reproductive and developmental disorders, neurotoxicity, and other public health problems. He is the science director of the Science and Environmental Health Network, and science advisor to Health Care Without Harm, an international campaign in support of environmentally responsible health care. His books Generations at Risk: Reproductive Health and the Environment (MIT Press, 1999) and In Harm’s Way: Toxic Threats to Child Development (Greater Boston Physicians for Social Responsibility, 2000) describe what scientists know and suspect about environmental causes for a host of disorders from learning disabilities to cancer. They also describe the great uncertainties and the limits of science in establishing links between cause and effect. Sharyle Patton Sharyle is director of the Commonweal Health and Environment Program and directs the Commonweal Biomonitoring Resource Center, a program that helps geographical and non-geographical communities learn more about the tool of biomonitoring. She also is director of special projects for the Collaborative on Health and Environment, a Commonweal-sponsored network that seeks to raise the level of awareness about possible linkages between environmental threat and health outcomes. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Arjun Makhijani Carbon-Free and Nuclear Free: A Design for U.S. Energy Policy Join Michael Lerner in a conversation with environmental researcher Arjun Makhijani about his new book: Carbon-Free and Nuclear Free—A Roadmap for U.S. Energy Policy and Ecology and Genetics: An Essay on the Nature of Life and the Problem of Genetic Engineering. Carbon-Free and Nuclear-Free Arjun Makhijani Carbon-Free and Nuclear Free: A Design for U.S. Energy Policy Join Michael Lerner in a conversation with environmental researcher Arjun Makhijani about his new book: Carbon-Free and Nuclear Free—A Roadmap for U.S. Energy Policy and Ecology and Genetics: An Essay on the Nature of Life and the Problem of Genetic Engineering. Arjun Makhijani Arjun is an eminent researcher on energy, nuclear weapons, and environmental issues. His work is strongly endorsed by Helen Caldicott, M.D., among many others. He is president of the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research, and author of Carbon-Free and Nuclear Free—A Roadmap for U.S. Energy Policy and Ecology and Genetics: An Essay on the Nature of Life and the Problem of Genetic Engineering, among other books and pamplets. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Orland Bishop Spiritual Biography In this remarkable series of four interconnected conversations, we trace Bishop’s spiritual biography from his childhood in Guyana to his teen years in Brooklyn, his college years in California, and the subsequent conscious emergence of his shamanic journey. These conversations with Michael Lerner took place in the presence of a small group of friends at The New School at Commonweal. Orland Bishop combines an extensive study of medicine, naturopathy, psychology and indigenous cosmologies with a deep dedication to human rights advocacy and cultural renewal. He was a research fellow at the Center for the Study of Violence at Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science in Los Angeles and has consulted for many human development organizations in the United States and internationally. Orland is co-founder and Executive Director of ShadeTree Multicultural Foundation in Los Angeles, California, a unique organization devoted to the mentoring of young people and the creation of communities to support them. Through ShadeTree, Orland has pioneered approaches to urban truces and working with at-risk youth that combine indigenous wisdom and practices with contemporary methodologies designed to mentor the human potential and create intentional communities. He has developed processes that support people to come into deeper inner and collective agreements in order to heal violence and social exclusion. Orland is currently focusing on understanding the deeper meaning money as a pathway to designing new economic forms that support healthy community life. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Orland Bishop Spiritual Biography In this remarkable series of four interconnected conversations, we trace Bishop’s spiritual biography from his childhood in Guyana to his teen years in Brooklyn, his college years in California, and the subsequent conscious emergence of his shamanic journey. These conversations with Michael Lerner took place in the presence of a small group of friends at The New School at Commonweal. Orland Bishop combines an extensive study of medicine, naturopathy, psychology and indigenous cosmologies with a deep dedication to human rights advocacy and cultural renewal. He was a research fellow at the Center for the Study of Violence at Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science in Los Angeles and has consulted for many human development organizations in the United States and internationally. Orland is co-founder and Executive Director of ShadeTree Multicultural Foundation in Los Angeles, California, a unique organization devoted to the mentoring of young people and the creation of communities to support them. Through ShadeTree, Orland has pioneered approaches to urban truces and working with at-risk youth that combine indigenous wisdom and practices with contemporary methodologies designed to mentor the human potential and create intentional communities. He has developed processes that support people to come into deeper inner and collective agreements in order to heal violence and social exclusion. Orland is currently focusing on understanding the deeper meaning money as a pathway to designing new economic forms that support healthy community life. Orland Bishop Orland Bishop is the founder and director of ShadeTree Multicultural Foundation in Los Angeles, where he has pioneered approaches to urban truces and mentors at-risk youth that combine new ideas with traditional ways of knowledge. ShadeTree serves as an intentional community of mentors, elders, teachers, artists, healers, and advocates for the healthy development of children and youth. Orland’s work in healing and human development is framed by an extensive study of medicine, naturopathy, psychology and indigenous cosmologies, primarily those of South and West Africa. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Orland Bishop Spiritual Biography In this remarkable series of four interconnected conversations, we trace Bishop’s spiritual biography from his childhood in Guyana to his teen years in Brooklyn, his college years in California, and the subsequent conscious emergence of his shamanic journey. These conversations with Michael Lerner took place in the presence of a small group of friends at The New School at Commonweal. Orland Bishop combines an extensive study of medicine, naturopathy, psychology and indigenous cosmologies with a deep dedication to human rights advocacy and cultural renewal. He was a research fellow at the Center for the Study of Violence at Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science in Los Angeles and has consulted for many human development organizations in the United States and internationally. Orland is co-founder and Executive Director of ShadeTree Multicultural Foundation in Los Angeles, California, a unique organization devoted to the mentoring of young people and the creation of communities to support them. Through ShadeTree, Orland has pioneered approaches to urban truces and working with at-risk youth that combine indigenous wisdom and practices with contemporary methodologies designed to mentor the human potential and create intentional communities. He has developed processes that support people to come into deeper inner and collective agreements in order to heal violence and social exclusion. Orland is currently focusing on understanding the deeper meaning money as a pathway to designing new economic forms that support healthy community life. Orland Bishop Orland Bishop is the founder and director of ShadeTree Multicultural Foundation in Los Angeles, where he has pioneered approaches to urban truces and mentors at-risk youth that combine new ideas with traditional ways of knowledge. ShadeTree serves as an intentional community of mentors, elders, teachers, artists, healers, and advocates for the healthy development of children and youth. Orland’s work in healing and human development is framed by an extensive study of medicine, naturopathy, psychology and indigenous cosmologies, primarily those of South and West Africa. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Orland Bishop Spiritual Biography In this remarkable series of four interconnected conversations, we trace Bishop’s spiritual biography from his childhood in Guyana to his teen years in Brooklyn, his college years in California, and the subsequent conscious emergence of his shamanic journey. These conversations with Michael Lerner took place in the presence of a small group of friends at The New School at Commonweal. Orland Bishop combines an extensive study of medicine, naturopathy, psychology and indigenous cosmologies with a deep dedication to human rights advocacy and cultural renewal. He was a research fellow at the Center for the Study of Violence at Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science in Los Angeles and has consulted for many human development organizations in the United States and internationally. Orland is co-founder and Executive Director of ShadeTree Multicultural Foundation in Los Angeles, California, a unique organization devoted to the mentoring of young people and the creation of communities to support them. Through ShadeTree, Orland has pioneered approaches to urban truces and working with at-risk youth that combine indigenous wisdom and practices with contemporary methodologies designed to mentor the human potential and create intentional communities. He has developed processes that support people to come into deeper inner and collective agreements in order to heal violence and social exclusion. Orland is currently focusing on understanding the deeper meaning money as a pathway to designing new economic forms that support healthy community life. Orland Bishop Orland Bishop is the founder and director of ShadeTree Multicultural Foundation in Los Angeles, where he has pioneered approaches to urban truces and mentors at-risk youth that combine new ideas with traditional ways of knowledge. ShadeTree serves as an intentional community of mentors, elders, teachers, artists, healers, and advocates for the healthy development of children and youth. Orland’s work in healing and human development is framed by an extensive study of medicine, naturopathy, psychology and indigenous cosmologies, primarily those of South and West Africa. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Kate Levinson Emotional Currency: A Women's Guide to Building A Healthy Releationship with Money The emotional connection that we all have with money is undeniable. Whether we feel comfortable with it and understand how it works in the world or ignore our finances completely, there is a strong psychological dimension to our personal dealings with money. But there is also a strong taboo about discussing personal details around money—what we earn, what we save, and what we spend—that has contributed to women, in particular, feeling financially isolated and vulnerable. Through her own experiences and her longtime work as a psychotherapist, Kate Levinson talks with Commonweal’s Susan Braun about the ways that money and emotions are intricately entwined. Watch the video of this conversation on Point Reyes Book’s website. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Leslie Medine, John Esterle, and Ellen Schneider Creating Bi-Cultural Youth-Led Change in Napa, CA Join Michael Lerner in this conversation with three thought partners in social change talking about what it takes to make a difference. Leslie Medine Leslie is one of Northern California’s most respected public sector leaders. She has created youth-led innovative schools and community programs for young people. Now she is organizing the first Democracy Zone in the country located in Napa where Latino and Anglo young people are making decisions and taking action on behalf of 2000 children and youth in their neighborhood. Find out more about her work on her website. John Esterle John is the executive director of The Whitman Institute, a San Francisco Foundation that supports Leslie’s work and is the only foundation in America with a pure focus on dialogue, critical thinking, and civic engagement. In 2004 he led TWI’s transition from an operating to a grantmaking foundation. John is a board member of Philanthropy for Active Civic Engagement, which he chaired from 2008-2010, as well as The Germanacos Foundation. Ellen Schneider Ellen created Active Voice, an organization that tackles social issues through the creative use of film. She founded the organization in 2001 and was its first executive director. As of July 2012 she is heading up the Active Voice Lab for Story & Strategy (AVLab), the organization’s incubator for new models for “engaged storytelling.” Ellen was the executive producer of P.O.V., PBS’s longest running independent documentary series. She lectures widely about the role of story in public life, and has served on juries ranging from the Sundance Film Festival to the RioCine Festival in Brazil. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Anna Deavere Smith Listening between the Lines Observation is one of the most exacting skills every artist must cultivate. For a writer, listening is critical to the process of transmuting observed reality into art. Playwright and performer Anna Deavere Smith has shaped a singular career mining the riches of both spoken and unspoken language. Honoring her sources, she has developed an idiosyncratic theatrical form that is composed exclusively of verbatim texts hobbled together from years of interviews with both ordinary and extraordinary people. Her journey has led her through riot-torn streets and up academic ivory towers, encountering a dazzling cross-section of American individuals. Commonweal Board Member Eric Karpeles talks with Anna about her production, “Let Me Down Easy,” which is centered on the drama of the human body and its rough handling in the hands of the medical-industrial complex. Anna Deavere Smith Anna a poet, teacher, actor, and playwright. Her explosive theater works about race in America—Fires in the Mirror and Twilight: Los Angeles 1992—garnered considerable acclaim. Television and film credits include Nurse Jackie, The West Wing, The American President and The Human Stain. A professor at NYU, Smith is founder of The Institute on the Arts and Civic Dialogue and has taught at Harvard and Stanford. She was named a MacArthur Fellow in 1996. Find out more about her work on her website. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Jean Shinoda Bolen, MD, and Kristina Flanagan Goddess Archetypes in the Ring Cycle and in Us: Psychological, Political, and Spiritual Parallels ~Co-presented with Point Reyes Books~ Join Jean Shinoda Bolen, MD, and Kristina Flanagan in a lively discussion with Michael Lerner for lovers of archetype, myth, opera, and Jung. This year’s SF Opera presents a powerful interpretation of Die Walkure, showing Brunhilde’s evolution from an archetypal Athena into a “true hero,” a woman with courage and compassion, free of being an extension of her father. Fricka and Freya have qualities that connect them to a diminished Hera and Aphrodite. There are strong parallels between patriarchy’s effect on the planet, and the end of the World Ash Tree and Erda’s wisdom. Wagner’s genius is in the multiple levels of meaning. Jean Shinoda Bolen, MD Jean is a Jungian analyst , psychiatrist, and author. Her book, Ring of Power: Love vs. Power in the Ring Cycle and in Us, connects archetypal psychology, dysfunctional family psychology, and patriarchy. The archetypes she described in Goddesses in Everywoman and Gods in Everyman—based on Greek myths—transfer readily from Zeus on Olympus to Wotan and Valhalla. The symbol of the World Ash and the deeper significance of it is in her new book, Like a Tree: How Trees, Women, and Tree People Can Save the Planet. Find out more at her website. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Frank Ostaseski Being A Compassionate Companion ~Co-presented with the Coastal Health Alliance~ Caring for people who are dying can be an intense, intimate, and deeply alive experience. It often challenges our most basic beliefs. It is a journey of continuous discovery, requiring courage and flexibility. We learn to open, take risks, and forgive constantly. Taken as a practice of awareness, it can reveal both our deep clinging and our capacity to embrace another person’s suffering as our own. This conversation with Michael Lerner aims at supporting professionals or those caring for family members or friends facing life-threatening illness. Frank Ostaseski In 1987, Frank helped form the Zen Hospice Project, the first Buddhist hospice in America. In 2004, he created Metta Institute to broaden this work and seed the culture with innovative approaches to end-of-life care that reaffirm the spiritual dimensions of dying. A primary project of Metta Institute is the End-of-Life Care Practitioner Program that Frank leads with faculty members Ram Dass, Rachel Naomi Remen, MD, and many others. His website has more information. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Sarah Hobson Working with Women in Sub-Sahran Africa When Sarah Hobson travels in the developing world and sees green hills, she wants to walk into them. She is drawn to peasant villages untouched by modern life. In the 1970s Sarah disguised herself as a boy and traveled through Iran alone. She wrote a book about it. As a documentarian, writer, and foundation director, Sarah has devoted herself to women in peasant communities around the world. Now executive director of the New Field Foundation, she is supporting village women in Sub-Saharan Africa in their quest for sustainable livelihoods. In this interview at The New School at Commonweal, Sarah talks with Michael Lerner about her adventures, her philanthropic strategy, and her efforts to balance family and work. Sarah Hobson Sarah is a writer, documentary film-maker, and foundation director. A West Marin resident, Hobson is author of Through Iran in Disguise and executive director of New Field Foundation, which supports rural women creating change in sub-Saharan Africa. Hobson previously served as executive director of International Development Exchange (IDEX), partnering with community organizations in Asia, Africa, and Latin America on grassroots economic development. She is founder and trustee of Open Channels, a British nonprofit working with indigenous peoples in Africa to define their lands, resources, and rights. Hobson is author, contributor and editor of eight books and producer of many documentaries for television. She is a mother and grandmother, with a strong sense of the critical issues facing the world today. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Steve Heilig The Modern Evolution of Death ~Co-presented with the Coastal Health Alliance~ For the past century or so, more humans than ever before have lived in a historical bubble of relative affluence, medical sophistication, philosophical discussion, and unprecedented longevity. Modern times have had significant impacts on how we think and feel about death, and what we try to do about it. The limits of our lives and our technologies have raised many questions, most still unanswered. You won’t get many, if any, of those answers from this discussion, but in this conversation, Steve Heilig talks with Commonweal’s Susan Braun to shed some light on the ways sophisticated, modern people confront death and dying in our times. Steve Heilig Steve is director of Public Health and Education for the San Francisco Medical Society and the Collaborative on Health and the Environment at Commonweal, co-editor of the Cambridge Quarterly of Healthcare Ethics, and a clinical ethicist at California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco. He is also a trained hospice worker and former volunteer and director of the Zen Hospice Project. A longtime book critic for the San Francisco Chronicle and other publications, he has authored more than 400 pieces on a wide range of medical, public health, ecological, literary, and other topics. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Gregory Orr The Blessing: Poetry as Survival Join Michael Lerner in conversation with Gregory Orr, considered by many to be a master of short, lyric free verse. Much of his early work is concerned with seminal events from his childhood, including a hunting accident when he was twelve in which he accidentally shot and killed his younger brother, followed shortly by his mother’s unexpected death, and his father’s later addiction to amphetamines. WARNING: Because of the subject matter, listeners should be prepared for what is, to some, emotionally difficult content. Gregory Orr Gregory was born in 1947 in Albany, New York, and grew up in the rural Hudson Valley. He is the author of nine collections of poetry, including How Beautiful the Beloved (Copper Canyon Press, 2009); Concerning the Book that is the Body of the Beloved (2005); The Caged Owl: New and Selected Poems (2002); Orpheus and Eurydice (2001); Burning the Empty Nests (1997); City of Salt (1995), which was a finalist for the L.A. Times Poetry Prize; and Gathering the Bones Together (1975). He is also the author of a memoir, The Blessing (Council Oak Books, 2002), which was chosen by Publisher’s Weekly as one of the fifty best non-fiction books the year, and three books of essays, including Poetry As Survival (2002) and Stanley Kunitz: An Introduction to the Poetry (1985). Read more about Gregory Orr on Poets.org. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Gregory Orr The Blessing: Poetry as Survival Join Michael Lerner in conversation with Gregory Orr, considered by many to be a master of short, lyric free verse. Much of his early work is concerned with seminal events from his childhood, including a hunting accident when he was twelve in which he accidentally shot and killed his younger brother, followed shortly by his mother’s unexpected death, and his father’s later addiction to amphetamines. WARNING: Because of the subject matter, listeners should be prepared for what is, to some, emotionally difficult content. Gregory Orr Gregory was born in 1947 in Albany, New York, and grew up in the rural Hudson Valley. He is the author of nine collections of poetry, including How Beautiful the Beloved (Copper Canyon Press, 2009); Concerning the Book that is the Body of the Beloved (2005); The Caged Owl: New and Selected Poems (2002); Orpheus and Eurydice (2001); Burning the Empty Nests (1997); City of Salt (1995), which was a finalist for the L.A. Times Poetry Prize; and Gathering the Bones Together (1975). He is also the author of a memoir, The Blessing (Council Oak Books, 2002), which was chosen by Publisher’s Weekly as one of the fifty best non-fiction books the year, and three books of essays, including Poetry As Survival (2002) and Stanley Kunitz: An Introduction to the Poetry (1985). Read more about Gregory Orr on Poets.org. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Margaret Kripke, PhD Reducing Environmental Cancer Risk ~Co-presented with the Breast Cancer Fund~ Margaret L. Kripke, Ph.D., recently co-authored a pioneering Report on Cancer and the Environment as a member of the President’s Cancer Panel. This report has reverberated through the global public health community as the first authoritative science-based report to recognize the contribution of environmental factors in cancer. Join Jeanne Rizzo (president of the Breast Cancer Fund), Susan Braun (then executive director of Commonweal), and Michael Lerner (co-founder of Commonweal), in this conversation with Margaret that took place shortly before she spoke to a large audience at Fort Mason in San Francisco about her experience on the President’s Cancer Panel. Margaret L. Kripke, Ph.D. Margaret is a professor of immunology and executive vice president and chief academic officer of the University of Texas Anderson Medical Center. She was appointed to the President’s Cancer Panel by President George W. Bush and is currently serving her second term. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Stuart Lord, PhD East-West Contemplative Education at Naropa University Dr. Lord, president of Naropa University, talks with Michael Lerner about his journey from being a foster child to leading America’s foremost center of contemplative education. Dr. Lord previously led civic education, community service and religious and spiritual life programs at both Dartmouth College and DePauw University, where he guided relief efforts in New Hampshire’s Upper Valley, the Mississippi Delta and the areas ravaged by Hurricane Katrina. He has also worked in Bangladesh, Nicaragua, the Philippines and Sierra Leone. Dr. Lord brings a unique voice to the contemplative community with a strong focus on reaching out to serve low income communities and communities of color. Dr Stuart C Lord Stuart, a nationally recognized expert in service learning, multicultural and spiritual education, and leadership and ethics, became the fifth president of Naropa University on July 1, 2009. At Dartmouth College and DePaww University, he served as an administrator and managed civic education, community service and religious and spiritual life programs. Stuart served as executive director of the 1997 President’s Summit for America’s Future, working under General Colin Powell during the Clinton administration. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Peter Kingsley The Great Taboo: A Story Waiting to Happen Michael Lerner talks with Peter Kinsgley, an internationally recognized writer and lecturer, about his groundbreaking work on the origins of western spirituality, philosophy and culture. Through his writings as well as lectures he speaks straight to the heart and has helped to transform many people’s understanding not only of the past, but of who they are. Peter Kingsley, PhD Peter is the author of four books which, in the space of only a few years, have exerted the profoundest and most far-reaching influence outside as well as inside academia. His new book, about the forgotten connections between Mongolia, Tibet and the origins of western civilization, became available in November 2010. After graduating with honors from the University of Lancaster, England, in 1975, Peter Kingsley went on to receive the degree of Master of Letters from King’s College Cambridge before being awarded a PhD by the University of London. He has worked together with many of the most prominent figures in the fields of classics and anthropology, philosophy and religious studies, ancient civilizations and the history of both healing and science. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Kai Lee Compass and Gyroscope: Integrating Science and Politics for the Environment Kai Lee, Ph.D., has written a beautiful book called The Gyroscope and the Compass: Integrating Science and Policy for the Environment about real-world work toward sustainability. “I have come to think of science and democracy as compass and gyroscope—navigation aids in the quest for sustainability,” he writes. Join Michael Lerner for a conversation that explores the interface of science, policy and large-scale philanthropy. Dr Kai Lee Dr. Kai Lee joined the David & Lucile Packard Foundation in June 2007 as program officer with the Conservation and Science program, where he is responsible for the science subprogram. Before joining the foundation, Kai taught at Williams College from 1991 through 2007, and he is now the Rosenburg Professor of Environmental Studies, emeritus. He directed the Center for Environmental Studies at Williams from 1991–1998 and 2001–2002. Lee also taught from 1973 to 1991 at the University of Washington in Seattle. He holds a Ph.D. in physics from Princeton University and an A.B., magna cum laude, in physics, from Columbia University. He is the author of Compass and Gyroscope (1993) and coauthor of the National Research Council study, Our Common Journey (1999). He is a National Associate of the National Research Council. He is a member of the National Academies Roundtable on Science and Technology for a Sustainability Transition, and served most recently as vice-chair of the National Academies panel that wrote Informing Decisions in a Changing Climate (2009). Earlier, Lee had been a White House Fellow and represented the state of Washington as a member of the Northwest Power Planning Council. He was appointed in 2009 to the Science Advisory Board of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Scott Eberle, MD, and Rob Feraru The Final Crossing: Learning to Die in Order to Live Join Commonweal’s Susan Braun and Commonweal Cancer Help Program alumnus Rob Feraru in a conversation with Scott Eberle, MD—a physician specializing in end-of-life care, who helped School of Lost Borders Founder Steven Foster at the end of his life in 2003 and is the author of The Final Crossing. As he has written in the book: “So now I am a physician who specializes in supporting life transitions. I am a hospice doctor who sits with the dying in their homes, and I am a rite-of-passage guide who sits with ‘the dying’ out in the desert.” Scott Eberle, MD Scott serves as medical director for Hospice of Petaluma in his hometown of Petaluma, California. Having first learned the science of medicine at U.C. San Francisco medical school, he then learned the art of medicine from countless people living and dying with AIDS in the 1980s and 1990s. He survived this difficult time by regularly seeking sanctuary, either in monasteries or in the natural world, completing over 150 retreats during a 15-year period. He recently ended a 16-year career as an an AIDS specialist so he could focus his energies on hospice work and “The Practice of Living and Dying” work he does with Meredith Little, co-founder of the School of Lost Borders. Rob Feraru Rob is an 11-year survivor of metastatic kidney cancer. Before taking early retirement in 2004, he worked for 25 years for the State of California, (7 years for the State Senate and 18 for the California Public Utilities Commission). He attended the Commonweal Cancer Help Program (in 2005) and the Practice of Living and Dying at the School of Lost Borders (in 2008). He lives in Berkeley. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Mike Witte, MD Fighting 'till the End? People with life-threatening illnesses often face the difficult decision of whether or not to continue active therapy. For some, the decision is, “Let’s fight till the end,” and they work with their doctors to receive treatment within days, or even hours, of their death. Others decide to put their effort toward the best possible quality of life, minimizing pain and suffering. But is this always a conscious decision? Without explicit instructions and/or an informed and caring dialog between patient and physician, patient and loved ones, and family and health professionals, the individual’s end-of-life wishes about medical care may go unknown or unheeded. Commonweal’s Susan Braun will explore this divide with Mike, creating a public space where questions of death and dying can be explored in safety and without judgment. Stories from the audience will be welcomed. Mike Witte, MD Mike has worked at the Coastal Health Alliance (CHA) since its beginnings in 1981, and is now medical director of the three sites in West Marin County. He has proudly watched CHA grow and develop into an exceptional center for family health care in West Marin. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Nick Yiangou History, Readings, and the Beshara School Michael Lerner talks with Nick Yiangou about Ibn ‘Arabi and about his work with the Beshara School of Intensive Esoteric Education in Scotland. The Beshara School grew out of the timeless wisdom tradition that includes the universal teachings of great visionaries such as Ibn Arabi and Rumi. Nick Yiangou Nick is president of the United States branch of the Ibn Arabi Society, which promotes the teachings and translations of this great spiritual teacher. He has been engaged with the Beshara School of Intensive Esoteric Education in Scotland for over thirty years in the transformative work based on the principles and teachings of the way of oneness and unification, and previously served on the board of the Beshara Foundation in the United States for twenty years. He currently works in the software industry and holds a master’s degree in Transpersonal Psychology. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Rev. Lennox Yearwood, Jr. The Hip Hop Caucus Join Michael Lerner in conversation with the Reverend Lennox Yearwood, Jr.—minister, community activist, and a national leader in Hip Hop social advocacy. He is president of the Hip Hop Caucus in Washington, D.C. The Hip Hop Caucus engages young people in urban communities in elections, policy making and service projects. Rev. Yearwood co-created the 2004 campaign “Vote or Die” with Sean “Diddy” Combs and was the Political and Grassroots Director for Russell Simmons’ Hip Hop Summit Action Network in 2003 and 2004. In 2008, he created the “Respect My Vote!” a voter registration and engagement campaign with T.I. and Keyshia Cole. His vision is to forge a more just and sustainable world by engaging more people, particularly young people and people of color in the civic and policy making process. Rev. Lennox Yearwood, Jr. Rev. Yearwood is a minister, community activist, and one of the most influential people in Hip Hop political life. He currently serves as president of the Hip Hop Caucus in Washington, D.C. The Hip Hop Caucus is a national, nonprofit, nonpartisan, organization that engages young people in urban communities in elections, policy making and service projects. Their vision is to create a more just and sustainable world by engaging more people, particularly young people and people of color in the civic and policy making process. Rev. Yearwood has appeared on CNN, BET Tonight, Al Jazeera, PBS, Fox, MTV, BBC, C-Span, and Hardball with Chris Mathews and featured in the Washington Post, The New York Times and VIBE. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Rabbi Jonathan Omer-Man A Jewish Perspective on Ibn 'Arabi Join Michael Lerner in conversation with Rabbi Jonathan Omer-Man, now retired and living in Berkeley, about his continuing explorations into Jewish mysticism and studies of “sober” Sufism, classical Arabic, and Akbarian thought. Jonathan Omer-Man For 26 years Jonathan lived in Israel, where he worked as a farmer, until he contracted polio, and subsequently embarked on a career in publishing. He served as deputy chief editor of the Israel Program for Scientific Translations, revising editor at the Encyclopaedia Judaica, chief editor of Israel Universities Press, and editor of the Shefa Quarterly. In 1981 he moved to Los Angeles, where he founded Metivta: a center for contemplative Judaism, an academy dedicated to the renewal of the Jewish wisdom tradition and to the deepening of personal religious quest. He has lectured at universities, colleges, seminaries and monasteries throughout the United States. His publications include numerous essays, some short fiction and verse. In 1990 he visited the Dalai Lama in India, a journey that was described in Rodger Kamenetz’ The Jew in the Lotus. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

James Morris Two Conversations about Ibn 'Arabi Join Michael Lerner in conversation with Islamic and religious studies scholar James Morris in The New School at Commonweal’s ongoing series on the great Sufi poet Ibn ‘Arabi. James Morris, PhD James is currently professor of Theology at Boston College, and has previously taught Islamic and religious studies at the University of Exeter, Princeton, Oberlin, the Sorbonne (EPHE), and the Institute of Ismaili Studies in Paris and London. His field research and exploration of living spiritual traditions have taken him to Iran, Afghanistan, Morocco, Egypt, Turkey, and Southeast Asia. Professor Morris has published widely on many areas of religious thought and practice, including the Islamic humanities (poetry and music), Islamic philosophy, Sufism, the Qur’an, Shiite thought, and the use of cinema in spiritual teaching. His most recent books include The Master and the Disciple (2001); Orientations: Islamic Thought in a World Civilisation (2004); The Reflective Heart: Discovering Spiritual Intelligence in Ibn ‘Arabi’s ‘Meccan Illuminations’ (2005); Ostad Elahi’s Knowing the Spirit (SUNY, 2007); and Openings: From the Qur’an to the Islamic Humanities (forthcoming). Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

James Morris Two Conversations about Ibn 'Arabi Join Michael Lerner in conversation with Islamic and religious studies scholar James Morris in The New School at Commonweal’s ongoing series on the great Sufi poet Ibn ‘Arabi. James Morris, PhD James is currently professor of Theology at Boston College, and has previously taught Islamic and religious studies at the University of Exeter, Princeton, Oberlin, the Sorbonne (EPHE), and the Institute of Ismaili Studies in Paris and London. His field research and exploration of living spiritual traditions have taken him to Iran, Afghanistan, Morocco, Egypt, Turkey, and Southeast Asia. Professor Morris has published widely on many areas of religious thought and practice, including the Islamic humanities (poetry and music), Islamic philosophy, Sufism, the Qur’an, Shiite thought, and the use of cinema in spiritual teaching. His most recent books include The Master and the Disciple (2001); Orientations: Islamic Thought in a World Civilisation (2004); The Reflective Heart: Discovering Spiritual Intelligence in Ibn ‘Arabi’s ‘Meccan Illuminations’ (2005); Ostad Elahi’s Knowing the Spirit (SUNY, 2007); and Openings: From the Qur’an to the Islamic Humanities (forthcoming). Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Michael Lerner, PhD Death and Dying: Lessons from the Commonweal Cancer Help Program ~Co-presented with the Coastal Health Alliance~ Over the past 26 years, Commonweal has offered more than 150 week-long retreats for people with cancer though the Commonweal Cancer Help Program. Many participants find the experience transformative. Conversations about death and dying are a core part of the retreats. The basic premise is that talking about death and dying in circles of trust can bring more vitality to living—and improve the likelihood of a better death for all concerned. Michael has found these conversations and stories to be central to his work and life as the co-leader of the Commonweal Cancer Help Program for the past 26 years. Join Michael, and special musical guests Tim Weed and Debbie Daly, as he shares his insights from the program—an interactive dialogue with him as well as some of the friends, staff and alumni of the program. Michael Lerner, PhD Michael is the president and co-founder of Commonweal and of Smith Farm Center for Healing and the Arts in Washington, D.C. His principle work at Commonweal is with the Cancer Help Program, the Collaborative on Health and the Environment, and The New School at Commonweal. He is author of Choices in Healing: Integrating the Best of Conventional and Complementary Therapies (MIT Press). His core interest is in the ways of being and doing that make us whole and preserve this beautiful earth that is our inheritance. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Sim Van der Ryn Ecological Design Sim Van der Ryn is a visionary pioneer in ecological design. For more than 40 years, Sim has been at the forefront of integrating ecological principles into the built environment, creating multi-scale solutions driven by nature’s intelligence. He has served as California’s first energy-conscious State Architect, authored seven influential books, and won numerous honors and awards for his leadership and innovation in architecture and planning. A recent New York Times profile writes, “Long before sustainability became the buzzword du jour, there was Sim Van der Ryn, the intrepid pioneer on the eco-frontier.” Join Michael Lerner in this conversation about Sim’s collaborative approach to ecological design that help show the way to an evolving planetary era that values both the integrity of ecological systems and the quality of life. Sim Van der Ryn Sim is a visionary, author, educator, public leader, and internationally distinguished pioneer in ecological design. For more than 40 years, Sim has been at the forefront of integrating ecological principles into the built environment, creating multi-scale solutions driven by nature’s intelligence. He has served as California’s first energy-conscious State Architect, authored seven influential books, and won numerous honors and awards for his leadership and innovation in architecture and planning. Sim’s collaborative approach and meta-disciplinary accomplishments help show the way to an evolving planetary era that values both the integrity of ecological systems and the quality of life. Find out more on his website. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Rachel Naomi Remen, MD Stories and Poems at the End of Life Join Rachel Naomi Remen, MD—one of the earliest pioneers in the mind/body holistic health movement and the first to recognize the role of the spirit in health and the recovery from illness—in a time for stories that open discussion about the “edge of life.” As a master story-teller and public speaker, she has spoken to thousands of people throughout the country, reminding them of the power of their humanity and the ability to use their lives to make a difference. Dr. Remen has a 57-year personal history of Crohn’s disease and her work is a unique blend of the viewpoint of physician and patient. Rachel Naomi Remen, MD Rachel is co-founder and medical director of the Commonweal Cancer Help Program featured in the Bill Moyers PBS series, Healing and the Mind, and has cared for people with cancer and their families for almost 30 years. She is also a nationally recognized medical reformer and educator who sees the practice of medicine as a spiritual path. In recognition of her work she has received several honorary degrees and has been invited to teach in medical schools and hospitals throughout the country. Her groundbreaking holistic curricula enable physicians at all levels of training to remember their calling and strengthen their commitment to serve life. She is the author of the New York Times bestseller Kitchen Table Wisdom: Stories That Heal, Riverhead Books, 1996. Her newest book, My Grandfather’s Blessings: Stories of Strength, Refuge and Belonging, Riverhead Books, 2000, is a national bestseller. Her books have been translated into 21 languages. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Josiah Tink Thompson Gumshoe: Sleaze or Existential Hero? Private detective Tink Thompson was a Haverford philosophy professor who taught Nietzsche and Kierkegaard before he became a sleuth. He has worked on the Kennedy assassination, the Oklahoma bombing, and the Patty Hearst kidnapping. He is a big fan of Dashell Hammett, and he believes you can trace noir detective fiction back to the cultural cataclysm of World War I in Europe and the consequent emergence of European existentialists like Husserl, Sartre and Camus. Join Michael Lerner in a conversation with Bolinas’s own Tink Thompson about his book, Gumshoe: Sleaze or Existential Hero?, which chronicles his life as a private-eye, and his highly acclaimed book, Six Seconds in Dallas, which analyzed the JFK assassination. Josiah "Tink" Thompson Tink took degrees in Philosophy from Yale, with two years in between as a Navy frogman working on underwater explosives. After finishing his PhD at Yale, Tink became Professor Thompson of Haverford College for several decades. But for the last thirty years, he has made his living as an investigator. His cases run the gamut from auto accidents to high-visibility criminal prosecutions—from a $100m arson case in France, to a $100m coffee fraud in Colombia. The work has included hundreds of murder cases, including several that garnered national news (e.g., proving the innocence of Chol Soo Lee; investigations on the retrial of the Billionaire Boys Club; and defense of William and Emily Harris on charges of kidnapping Patty Hearst). Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Pia Infante The Impeded Stream Is the One That Sings When we no longer know what to do, we have come to our real work. And when we no longer know which way to go, we have begun our real journey. The mind that is not baffled is not employed. The impeded stream is the one that sings. Wendell Berry Michael Lerner interviewed Pia Infante as part of a spontaneous evolution of a whole series of interviews with people involved with The Whitman Institute, a San Francisco-based foundation with a focus on dialogue, critical thinking and civic engagement. Pia came with a series of questions about what to do next in her life that she wanted to explore. Pia Infante Pia works with Executive Director John Esterle on the staff of The Whitman Institute. She is also an organization development consultant and coach whose mission is to support engaged and alive social justice work. She contributes regularly to the Institute’s thought leadership via its blog. Pia is also a member of the Movement Strategy Center’s Organizational Development Practitioners for Social Change cohort and part of the Kellogg Foundation’s Coach Training Pilot Project. She has a Master’s Degree from The New School for Social Research in Education, a Bachelor’s Degree from the University of California at Berkeley in Rhetoric, an executive coaching credential from The Academy for Coaching Excellence, and a secondary teaching credential from the State of New York. Pia describes herself as “a cultivator of luminosity who loves her family, the divinity of nature, everyone’s grandmother, and (in true Filipina form) karaoke.” Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

John Esterle Two Conversations The Whitman Institute is a unique foundation in San Francisco that focuses its grants on organizations and projects engaged with dialogue, critical thinking, and civic engagement. The Institute is a supporter of The New School at Commonweal—and has also supported a remarkable number of the thought leaders we have interviewed at The New School. John Esterle is the executive director who has shaped the Institute since taking over from its founder. In these two conversations, Michael Lerner explores the thinking that has led John to make The Whitman Institute the only foundation in the country focused solely on these process questions of dialogue, critical thinking and citizen engagement. John Esterle John is the executive director of The Whitman Institute, a San Francisco Foundation that is the only foundation in America with a pure focus on dialogue, critical thinking, and civic engagement. In 2004 he led TWI’s transition from an operating to a grantmaking foundation. John is a board member of Philanthropy for Active Civic Engagement, which he chaired from 2008-2010, as well as The Germanacos Foundation. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

John Esterle Two Conversations The Whitman Institute is a unique foundation in San Francisco that focuses its grants on organizations and projects engaged with dialogue, critical thinking, and civic engagement. The Institute is a supporter of The New School at Commonweal—and has also supported a remarkable number of the thought leaders we have interviewed at The New School. John Esterle is the executive director who has shaped the Institute since taking over from its founder. In these two conversations, Michael Lerner explores the thinking that has led John to make The Whitman Institute the only foundation in the country focused solely on these process questions of dialogue, critical thinking and citizen engagement. John Esterle John is the executive director of The Whitman Institute, a San Francisco Foundation that is the only foundation in America with a pure focus on dialogue, critical thinking, and civic engagement. In 2004 he led TWI’s transition from an operating to a grantmaking foundation. John is a board member of Philanthropy for Active Civic Engagement, which he chaired from 2008-2010, as well as The Germanacos Foundation. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

John Wick and Peggy Rathmann Marin Carbon Project ~Co-presented with Mainstreet Moms: Organize or Bust, Transition West Marin and the Marin Agricultural Land Trust~ Reducing greenhouse gas emissions is not enough to reverse global warming: we must also reduce the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Join Michael Lerner in this conversation about The Marin Carbon Project, which is investigating the potential for specific land management practices to enhance sequestration of atmospheric carbon dioxide as organic matter in rangeland and agricultural soils in California. John Wick John, Marin Carbon Project director and steering committee member, is co-owner with his wife, Peggy Rathmann, of the Nicasio Native Grass Ranch. His background is in construction project management. As Director of the Marin Carbon Project, Mr. Wick’s role is to help launch the Marin Carbon Project and to plan, execute, and finalize projects according to deadlines and within budget. This includes acquiring resources and coordinating the efforts of Steering Committee members, member organizations, volunteers, contractors, and consultants in order to deliver projects according to plan. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Rachel Naomi Remen, MD, and Christina Puchalski, MD Spiritual Dimensions of End of Life Join Rachel Naomi Remen and Christina Puchalski—two pioneers in the discussion of spirituality in healthcare—in conversation about the spiritual dimensions of the end of life. Christina Puchalski, MD Christina Puchalski, MD, MS, is the executive director of the George Washington Institute for Spirituality and Health, Washington, DC, and a professor of Medicine and Health Sciences at The George Washington University School of Medicine, where she has pioneered novel and effective educational and clinical strategies to address the spiritual concerns common in patients facing illness. She has authored numerous chapters in books and edited and authored a book published by Oxford University Press entitled Time for Listening and Caring: Spirituality and the Care of the Seriously Ill and Dying with a forward by His Holiness, The Dalai Lama. Her work has been featured on numerous print and television media including Good Morning America, ABC World News Tonight, NBC Nightly News, The Washington Post, The New York Times, and the Washington Times. Rachel Naomi Remen, MD Dr. Remen is clinical professor of Family and Community Medicine at the UCSF School of Medicine, a co-founder of the Commonweal Cancer Help Program, and the founder and director of the Institute for the Study of Health and Illness at Commonweal, a post-graduate and undergraduate program for physicians who wish to reclaim their calling and integrate Hippocratic values into their work. She is the author of the New York Times bestseller Kitchen Table Wisdom and the national bestseller My Grandfather’s Blessings. Dr. Remen was recently was recognized with the Bravewell Award as one of the earliest Pioneers of Holistic and Integrative Medicine. She has a 56-year personal history of chronic illness and her work is a unique blend of the perspectives of physician and patient. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Richard Grossman The Tao of Ralph Waldo Emerson Richard Grossman is a Commonweal friend of 25 years. As a respected medical educator in “the other medicines,” (the title of another of his books), Grossman participated as a guest staff member in one of the early Commonweal Cancer Help Programs in the 1980s. He then started his own Cancer Help Program at Wainwright House in Rye, New York. He now teaches in the Smith Farm Cancer Help Program outside Washington, D.C. Grossman is a preternaturally youthful 88-year-old, married to the novelist Ann Arenberg. They live in Salisbury, Connecticut. Join Michael Lerner in this conversation about Richard’s studies and thoughts about Ralph Waldo Emerson—philosopher, essayist, poet, lecturer, and journal-keeper. Richard Grossman Richard is an essayist, psychotherapist, medical educator, and former book publisher. The six books he has written include The Tao of Emerson and A Year with Emerson, which won the Umhoefer Prize for achievement in the humanities, awarded by the Arts and Humanities Foundation. He has read Emerson daily for over 50 years. Richard’s website has Emerson’s complete journals and the bulk of his other writings on-line. Grossman considers Emerson a precursor of contemporary humanistic and transpersonal psychology. In 1970 Michael Murphy of Esalen Institute told Grossman about Roberto Assagioli, the Italian psychologist and founder of the transpersonal psychology called Psychosynthesis. Grossman published Assagioli’s books Psychosynthesis and The Act of Will in America. Grossman also discovered fundamental resonances between Emerson and Lao Tse, the mysterious Chinese Taoist and author of the Tao Te Ching. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Colin Greer A Discussion on Spinoza and the World Today Join Michael Lerner in conversation with Colin Greer about the philosophy of Jewish-Dutch philosopher Baruch Spinoza and how they apply to philanthropy, social justice, and the world today. Colin Greer Dr. Colin Greer has been the President of The New World Foundation since 1985. Formerly, he was a Professor at Brooklyn College, CUNY. He is the author (with Herbert Kohl) of The Plain Truth of Things and A Call to Character. Other books include: What Nixon is doing to Us; The Solution is Part of the Problem; After Reagan What?; and The Divided Society. He is best known for The Great School Legend and Choosing Equality: The Case for Democratic Schooling (which won the American Library Association’s Eli M. Oboler Intellectual Freedom Award). He was a founding editor of Change Magazine and Social Policy Magazine. He is a contributing editor to Parade Magazine. Colin Greer also writes poetry, plays and non-fiction, and now also writes a blog on this website. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Thomas Kirsch, MD The Red Book: Reflections on Jung and the Jungians Join Michael Lerner in a conversation with Thomas Kirsch about The Red Book, Carl Jung’s richly illustrated record of his descent into his inner world, created in a period of personal crisis following his break with Sigmund Freud. Published in 2009 for the first time, The Red Book has been a surprise best seller and reviewed in major periodicals around the world. Thomas Kirsch has a deep knowledge of Jung and the Jungian movement. Born to two first generation Jungian analysts, Kirsch knew Jung as a child. He has served as president of the C.G. Jung Institute of San Francisco and the International Association of Analytical Psychology. He taught Jungian psychology in the Department of Psychiatry at Stanford Medical Center for many years, and is the author of an acclaimed study of the Jungian movement, The Jungians. Thomas Kirsch, MD Thomas is the son of two first generation Jungian analysts, James and Hilde Kirsch, who began their analytic work with Jung in 1929. Through his family he met many of the first generation of Jungian analysts. He is a graduate of Yale Medical School (1961) and completed his psychiatric residency at Stanford Medical Center in 1965. A graduate of the C.G. Jung Institute of San Francisco, he has served there in many capacities, including being president from 1976 – 1978. Author of many papers on dreams, history of analytical psychology, and the analytic relationship, and editor of Jungian sections in encyclopedias and psychoanalytic dictionaries, he has now written a book on the history of analytical psychology. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Robert Bray Healing Traumatic Stress Disorders with Thought Field Therapy Traumatic and developmental stress disorders in their many forms are epidemic condition of our time. Mainstream psychology has a very limited array of tools to help people with these conditions. Robert Bray is a psychotherapist based in San Diego who works primarily with clients with post-traumatic stress disorders. Michael Lerner talks with Robert about the issues of post-traumatic stress, following other New School interview with David Servan-Schreiber, M.D., James Gordon, M.D., Therese Poulsen (a yoga teacher) and others. Robert has written a book called Heal Traumatic Stress NOW-Complete Recovery with Thought Field Therapy, No Open Wounds. Bray’s work with Roger Callahan’s Thought Field Therapy (TFT) has certain similarities to EMDR, a rapid eye-movement approach to PTSD that Servan-Schreiber teaches and endorses. Robert Bray Robert is a psychologist with a private practice working with people suffering from post traumatic stress and other trauma. He is an adjunct faculty member at San Diego State University, School of Social Work. He is also founder of the Thought Field Therapy Center of San Diego. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Edd Conboy Healing People, Healing Organizations Edd is not your typical therapist. He combines his training and real world business experience in his effort to help clients get unstuck and create new pathways in their lives. Edd also works with individuals whose normal stress has advanced into a state of distress, including trauma and post traumatic stress syndrome, supporting them as they move into effective action, and begin to sustain joy in their lives as they strive to attain their life goals. He uses many modalities including EMDR and hypnotherapy. In 2006 Edd was designated a Fellow with The Whitman Institute in San Francisco, California. Join Michael Lerner in a conversation with Edd about his work as a psychotherapist treating people with trauma and stress. Edd Conboy Edd is a seasoned therapist with more than twenty years experience in the field. He has worked as a coach and consultant to bring the skills, knowledge, and expertise of the psychotherapeutic community into non-traditional settings in addition to his work as a private practitioner. While working with people from all walks of life, from business, community and non-profit leaders to inner-city youth, he is particularly effective working with a wide range of individuals facing unique stresses like those of world-class professional and amateur athletes, survivors of trauma, as well as couples with chronically ill children. Edd has also designed and implemented leadership development programs for young emerging leaders in public-benefit organizations, as well as social-emotional intelligence and compassionate listening trainings. Edd completed his undergraduate studies in philosophy at Loyola College in Baltimore, Maryland, and completed his graduate work in counseling psychology with a dual emphasis in family therapy and school counseling at San Francisco State University. His training also included a year of post-master’s studies in family therapy at the California School of Professional Psychology in Berkeley, California. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

David Servan Schrieber The Instinct to Heal: Treating Depression, Anxiety, and Cancer without Drugs or Talk Therapy Join Michael Lerner in a conversation with psychiatrist, best-selling author, and 20-year cancer survivor David Servan Schrieber. Their conversation touches on his work with patients under stress and trauma using healing modalities such as EMDR. David died in 2011, two years after this interview. He was 50 years old. David Servan Schrieber Dr. David Servan-Schreiber was a psychiatrist and best-selling author whose cancer diagnosis at the age of 31 compelled him to explore and then popularize the use of natural and holistic methods in dealing with cancer and depression. Servan-Schreiber was co-founder and then director of the Center for Integrative Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Following his volunteer activity as physician in Iraq in 1991, he was one of the founders of the U.S. branch of Médecins Sans Frontières, the international organization that was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1999. He is the author of Healing Without Freud or Prozac (translated in 29 languages, 1.3 million copies sold), and Anticancer: A New Way of Life (translated in 35 languages, New York Times best-seller, 1 million copies in print) in which he discloses his own diagnosis with a malignant brain tumor at the age of 31 and the treatment program that he put together to help himself beyond his surgery, chemotherapy, and radiotherapy. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Bill Niman and Nicolette Hahn Niman Righteous Chops on the Family Farm Join Michael Lerner in this conversation with Commonweal neighbors Bill Niman and Nicolette Hahn Niman about their compassionate ranching practices on Niman Ranch and about Nicolette’s new book, Righteous Porkchop: Finding a Life and Good Food Beyond Factory Farms. Nicolette Hahn Niman Nicolette is a rancher, attorney, and writer. Much of her time is spent speaking and writing about the problems of industrialized livestock production, including the book Righteous Porkchop: Finding a Life and Good Food Beyond Factory Farms (HarperCollins, 2009) and three essays she has written on the subject for the New York Times. Bill Niman Bill Niman is a cattle rancher in Northern California, proprietor of BN Ranch, and Founder of the natural meat company Niman Ranch, Inc. He was a member of the Pew Foundation’s National Commission on Industrial Farm Animal Production, which released recommendations for reform of the nation’s livestock industry in April 2008. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Fritjof Capra Science for Sustainable Living To understand how nature sustains life, we need to move from biology to ecology, because sustained life is a property of an ecosystem rather than a single organism or species. Over billions of years of evolution, the Earth’s ecosystems have evolved certain principles of organization to sustain the web of life. Knowledge of these principles of organization, or principles of ecology, is what we mean by “ecological literacy.” Join Michael Lerner in conversation with physicist and systems theorist Fritjof Capra about ecological literacy and the science of sustainable living. Fritjof Capra Fritjof, physicist and systems theorist, is a founding director of the Center for Ecoliteracy in Berkeley, California, which is dedicated to promoting ecology and systems thinking in primary and secondary education. He is on the faculty of Schumacher College, an international center for ecological studies in the United Kingdom. Dr. Capra is the author of several international bestsellers, including The Tao of Physics , The Web of Life, and The Hidden Connections: A Science for Sustainable Living. His most recent book, The Science of Leonardo, was published in paperback by Anchor Books in December 2008. Find out more on his website. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.

Eric Karpeles It's About Lyme: Film Screening A two-part community awareness program for the town of Bolinas, this was a community discussion, film screening of Under Our Skin, and conversation with film producer Andy Abrahams Wilson to learn more about one of the fast growing epidemics in our world today. How does one contract Lyme? What is the protocol once one is infected? What is the long range prognosis for recovery? What is the nature of chronic Lyme disease? These are among the issues to be raised and discussed, in a context of information presented and treatments explored. Join artist and Commonweal Board Member Eric Karpeles as he facilitates this community forum about Lyme Disease. Eric Karpeles Commonweal Board Member Eric Karpeles is a painter and writer. Born and raised in New York, he has also lived in India and in France, settling in Bolinas in 2007. His painting career has been shaped by the quest for a spiritual presence in art, and by a negative response to the elitism of the contemporary marketplace. The Rockefeller Chapel is a room-sized painting he completed in 1996, a permanent installation at the HealthCare Chaplaincy in New York City. Karpeles writes about painting and the intersection of literature and visual aesthetics; his book, Paintings in Proust, translated into several languages, was a “book of the year” in the NY Times, the Times of London, and The Wall Street Journal. Find out more about The New School at tns.commonweal.org.