[Catalyst 18 – September 3, 2017] 11 Days of Global Unity & California Vision 2020

By Stephen Dinan, founder and CEO of The Shift Network

From all of us at The Shift Network, we want to extend our heartfelt prayers and support to the people affected by flooding in Texas and South Asia. In addition to the historic Hurricane Harvey that devastated the coast of Texas, the rains from the seasonal monsoons in India, Bangladesh and Nepal, which are at an unusually high level, have impacted an estimated 41 million people and caused over 1,200 deaths.

While it’s heartbreaking to see how people are being so adversely affected by such severe weather, it’s tremendously inspiring to see responses from people around the world who are so ready and willing to help in times of crisis. I am especially touched that the Mexican government is sending aid to the people of Texas. (See this beautiful article and video.)

The flooding in Texas and South Asia also point to the fact that these huge storms are potential signs of larger climate trends. Humanity can no longer afford to be in denial about climate change and its potential impact on life on Earth.

Yet, climate change is only one of the many large-scale social issues facing humanity, including the extreme polarization around politics, race and religion taking place in many forms in many cities and countries around the world.

Like you, these larger social problems are personal. My beloved wife, Devaa, and I want our young daughter, Sienna Rose, to inherit a beautiful, peaceful and thriving world.

It’s because of our shared love for humanity and commitment to a world that works for all that we are delighted to announce two initiatives: the free annual 11 Days of Global Unity Summit and the new California Vision 2020, which launches with a live event in Sacramento, California on September 21–23.

The 11 Days of Global Unity Summit is a part of the Summer of Peace. It kicks off on September 11 and culminates on the International Day of Peace on September 21. Each day of the 11 Days of Global Unity Summit features inspiring talks on a different theme — unity, interdependence, environment, economic justice, health, children and youth, women, human rights, freedom, disarmament and peace.

We want to thank our friend and summit host Rick Ulfik, founder of We, the World, for pulling together an amazing lineup of speakers, including Deepak Chopra, Marianne Williamson, Ralph Nader, Michael Bernard Beckwith, Karenna Gore, H.H. Sheikh Abdul Aziz bin Ali Al Nuaimi and many more! (To register free for the 11 Days of Global Unity Summit, click here.)

We also are incredibly excited to invite you to participate in California Vision 2020 — a co-creation of The Shift Network and several friends, including The California Endowment, United Nations Association Sacramento Chapter, Compassionate California, SALAM (Sacramento Area League of Associated Muslims), and many more…

With our national politics bitterly divided, it’s become clear that California is the state where some of the most necessary and boldest changes can unfold in the coming years.

California’s role has always been to forge America’s future (and in many ways the world’s future), and this creative leadership is needed now more than ever as our collective crises grow. California has already set the pace for technology, entertainment and innovation, as well as the greening of the economy.

The goal of California Vision 2020 is to harness the best solutions from around the world for everything from healthcare to education to criminal justice, ensuring that we’ll continue to be a living laboratory for the future.

We invite you to join us for a live, in-person 3-day event in Sacramento on September 21–23 that will feature Dolores Huerta, Dr. Shariff M. Abdullah, Jennifer Siebel Newsom, Marianne Williamson, Joan Blades, Andrew Harvey and many more social, spiritual and business thought leaders. Click here to find out more.

It’s time for us to scale up our influence and impact and make new possibilities as attractive, successful and imitation-worthy as possible.

Meanwhile, we hope you enjoyed the Inspiring Positive Social Change Summit and its free 8-week curriculum on how to embody and cultivate peace in yourself, your family, your community and the world. This week, Inspiring Positive Social Change will finish up with a look at Subtle Activism: The Power of Prayer and Meditation for Personal and Social Transformation, with inspiring talks by David T. Nicol, Joanna Macy, Sean Kelly and Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee.

What can you as an individual do? One of our (very creative and resourceful) members sent us this email: "I give out 'World Peace Begins at Home' bumper stickers. I have them made by Vistaprint. It’s just an idea I would like to spread out there for people who are interested in promoting peace publicly in an easy way."

If you’re like me, you’ll find great comfort in knowing that scientific research is showing that our collective prayers and meditations can indeed lead to personal and planetary transformation.

In this edition of The Catalyst, we have featured articles from Rick Ulfik on the 11 Days of Global Unity Summit which he so graciously agreed to host; Frank Thacker on how one person’s actions can bring peace to an entire community; and William Grace Frost, who shares details about the Sustainability Innovation Summit — plus an inside look at the Compassion Games.

Our Featured Media section begins with a riveting video of Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee presenting at a gathering of mystics and scientists in Silicon Valley that was sponsored by the Global Peace Initiative of Women. Llewellyn shares profound insights about the intersection of spirituality and technology that are deeply relevant to humanity’s ability to address critical issues such as climate change.

This section also includes a TED Talk by Shift Summit speaker Ashton Applewhite on ending ageism; and deeply engaging Inspiring Positive Social Change interviews with Dena Merriam and Chief Phil Lane, Jr speaking on the inner dimensions of climate change; and Michael Nagler and Stephanie Van Hook speaking on six things everyone should know about nonviolence.

In Movement News, be sure to check out Yoga and Self Mastery: Cultivating the Deeper Dimensions of Practice, a free online summit from September 13–19, produced by our good friends at Hanuman Academy. We greatly value our friendship and partnership with Hanuman Academy on the recent Yoga Day Summit and we highly respect their commitment to sharing the deeper wisdom of yoga.

Our Member Profile was written by Phil Borges, Producer and Director of the documentary CRAZYWISE, which asks the question, What can we learn from those who have turned their psychological crisis into a positive transformative experience?

For Shift Philanthropy in this edition, we are continuing to highlight the Black Hills Unity Concert, which will take place in Piedmont, South Dakota, on September 8–10. We strongly encourage you to support our Indigenous brothers and sisters in this powerful initiative.

Our Featured Artist is Peter May, whose album of native Colorado wildflower songs was recorded in and near the mountains of central and southern Colorado.

Finally, we would love to hear your answer to the question, What gives you hope and inspiration that global unity is inevitable?” To share your thoughts in our Facebook Page community, click here.

Mystics and Scientists: The Convergence of Science and Spirituality
With Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee

We're honored to present this video of Sufi teacher and author Llewellyn Vaughan-Lee, which was recorded at the Technology, Consciousness & the Future gathering in March 2015 that was hosted by the Contemplative Alliance, a program of the Global Peace Initiative of Women.

Llewellyn opened this dialogue by sharing insights from his experience of the inner dimension "Plane of the Self" — a state of consciousness in which everything is connected by light and everything is made of pure light. On this plane, there is no time... no past and no future… everything is present. While in this state, Llewellyn saw how the internet has the ability to come alive as a network of human consciousness that enables people to experience the Plane of the Self without spending years in meditation. The internet has not reached this state yet, because in order to access these technologies, people must have the right consciousness. Click here to watch the video.

Featured Summer of Peace — Inspiring Positive Social Change Recordings — FREE!

The Summer of Peace is our commitment to peace in the world. This free event provides tangible skills you can apply in your daily life. Here are three recent sessions from this year’s Summer of Peace Summit, Inspiring Positive Social Change.

Michael Nagler & Stephanie Van Hook
Chief Phil Lane Jr. & Dena Merriam
Dena Merriam

Let’s End Ageism
TED Talk by Shift Summit speaker Ashton Applewhite

It's not the passage of time that makes it so hard to get older. It's ageism, a prejudice that pits us against our future selves — and each other. Ashton Applewhite urges us to dismantle the dread and mobilize against the last socially acceptable prejudice. "Aging is not a problem to be fixed or a disease to be cured," she says. "It is a natural, powerful, lifelong process that unites us all." To watch Ashton’s TED talk, click here.

Global Shift Meditation
Free Event on the First of Every Month

Join The Shift Network, The Gaiafield Project and people around the world for Global Shift Meditations on the first of each month. On September 1, we featured Katherine Woodward Thomas, a New York Times bestselling author, licensed therapist, and teacher. Click here to listen to the free recording and to register to receive future free recordings.

Your Voice

We want to know: What gives you hope and inspiration that global unity is inevitable? To share your thoughts in our Facebook Page community, click here.

11 Days of Global Unity — September 11–21
Join the Worldwide Wave of Inspiration, Collaboration & Action!
By Rick Ulfik, Founder of We, The World and the WE Campaign at WE.net

At this perilous moment in our world, I am on a mission. And if you are reading this, we may be fellow travelers! My mission is the same as that of my organization We, The World: to maximize social change globally — until we have a world that works for all.

To support this mission, I invite you and your friends to take part in 11 Days of Global Unity — a powerful and inspiring platform for collective awareness and action that promotes "WE Thinking" and prioritizes the Common Good, the wellbeing of all people, and the entire interdependent web of life.

To read more, click here.

Actions of One Can Bring Peace to Community
By Frank Thacker, first published in TheWesterlySun.com

Recently my 12-year-old, seventh-grade grandson was asked by his teacher what would he like to be when he grew up. He responded by saying that he would like to be someone who made the world a better place for all. “Well, yes, that’s a good goal, but what do you want to have for a job,” his teacher asked. His reply: “I’m not sure what I want to do for a job, but whatever I do I still want to contribute to creating a better world for all.”

The point here is no matter what your situation is you can contribute to the process of creating a culture of peace. As Gandhi challenged us, “Be the change you want to see.”

To read more, click here.

Time Out. We Can Do So Much Better!

The path away from fear and hate moves us towards love and compassion — for ourselves, each other, and all life on Earth. As we pull back from organized hate, we stand for equality, inclusion and love. Turning from fear to love requires action that forgives, awakens and remembers our caring for each other and our planet. In the process, we discover and reveal win-win solutions that build bridges connecting peace, prosperity and a healthy planet. Compassion is the bridge that connects and unifies humanity.

The World Peace and Global Unity campaign was launched on June 21, 2017 by Unify, Compassion Games International, and many others. Its purpose is to catalyze and quantify the shared impact of globally synchronized activities, and events focused on peace through compassionate action and community service. The campaign is an opportunity to collaborate across divides, synchronize our shared intentions, and gamify our compassionate action globally.

To read more, click here.

Take a Stand for People & Planet at the Sustainability Innovation Summit
By William Grace Frost

On November 14–16 in beautiful Sonoma Valley, California, the heartland of sustainability, creativity and biodynamic vineyards, we’ll be convening 50 motivated individuals at the Sustainability Innovation Summit to immerse ourselves in a powerfully creative design-thinking process and its application to the sustainability issues that you care most about. And you can be one of them!

To read more, click here.

Rethinking Madness
By Phil Borges

The just released documentary film, CRAZYWISE, actually began 24 years ago in Dharamsala, India while I was working on a human rights story about Tibet.

By coincidence I was invited to watch a young monk, known as a Kuten, go into trance and “channel” the protector spirit of the Tibetan people. It was unlike anything I had ever witnessed. As he entered the trance the monk’s eyes rolled back and he began speaking in an unusual voice. This continued for three or four minutes until he collapsed and had to be carried from the room.

To read more, click here.

11 Days of Global Unity: Moving from Vision to Action

The 11 Days of Global Unity Summit, taking place September 11–21, features prominent and iconic speakers like Deepak Chopra, Marianne WIlliamson, Michael Bernard Beckwith and Ralph Nader. This free online event connects and promotes change agents who are working within each of the identified “themes” — such as Environment, Health, Human Rights and Peace — to create a comprehensive blueprint for global transformation. This powerful summit, produced by The Shift Network in partnership with We, The World, has become a worldwide platform, linking changemakers and their awareness and action campaigns to an inspiring global movement for the promotion of peace, justice, sustainability and transformation. Click here to register for FREE.

FREE Yoga + Self Mastery Summit — September 13–19, 2017

Join 30+ master yoga teachers, consciousness leaders and wisdom keepers to explore the deeper roots of yoga...WHY it is that we practice, and HOW we can embody and live yoga to activate the changes in ourselves and our world we so urgently need. Tune in for inspiring teachings from Gurmukh, Seane Corn, Rod Stryker, Shiva Rea, Richard Freeman, Anand Mehrotra, Swami Chitanand Saraswati and so many other leaders in the field of yoga and awakening consciousness as we elevate the discussion of yoga back to the heart of the practice. To register free, click here.

Rise for Syria

Rarely is humanity confronted with such a powerful moment of crisis as we are now in Syria. But with crisis comes opportunity — the opportunity for humanity to unify around our common principles of compassion, love, peace and service to others.

This is an opportunity for our a global community to rise up and heal the wounds of war within ourselves, and collectively focus on healing the wounds of war in Syria. Join us in global synchronized prayer and meditation followed by high-impact, practical action campaigns to help those who need it most.

Rise for Syria is a collaboration between Unify.org, Uplift, United Religions Initiative, and all of you who believe in Uniting humanity for global movements of good. We provide vital financial and human capital and have been organizing collective impact campaigns since 2012. We’ve organized +20 campaigns in over 15,000 cities uniting in prayer and meditation, creating healing as a global community.

Click here to watch a video and to sign up to get access to the Live Broadcast (on International Peace Day on September 24) and updates from inside Syria.

A new documentary, CRAZYWISE, invites us to re-examine how “mental illness” is perceived and approached in Western culture. Through interviews with renowned mental health professionals, professors, scientists, and healers, including Shift faculty Sandra Ingerman — and by following two young Americans diagnosed with mental illness — the film explores the growing severity of the mental health crisis in America. The filmmakers discover a growing movement of professionals and psychiatric survivors who demand alternative treatments that focus on recovery, nurturing social connections, and finding meaning.

CRAZYWISE asks us to look more closely at how indigenous peoples’ acceptance of non-ordinary states of consciousness, along with rituals and metaphors that form deep connections to nature, each other and our ancestors, is something we can learn from. The film gives a voice to the growing conversation that believes a psychological crisis can be an opportunity for growth and potentially transformational, not a disease with no cure. Click here to watch the trailer for CRAZYWISE.

Films for the Planet invites you to join the World Peace & Global Unity Streaming Film Series from September 9–24. Films include Rooted in Peace, Planetary, One Day on Earth, A Quest for Meaning, A Voice4Peace, and World Peace and Other 4th Grade Achievements. Ignite a film conversation in your community! Sign up here to access select films for FREE or starting at $.99 in support of the filmmaker. For more information, click here.

The Unity Concert for the Black Hills

Join us from September 8–10 in Piedmont, South Dakota, to celebrate the fourth and final Black Hills Unity Concert. It’s free to the public, and native youth from the surrounding areas will be invited to attend a special program of traditional teachings just for them. Given today’s political environment and the challenges in the Black Hills, this coming together promises to be like no other.

There is no shortage of statistics and heartbreaking stories within native communities. However, the strength and determination of our youth became apparent for all the world to see during the months-long prayer at Standing Rock. They have decided to fight for the future of our communities and for Grandmother Earth. This year's celebration is a thank you to them, acknowledgement of the commitments made, and a prayer for the future.

Click here to watch Lyla June explain the Indigenous Rights issues behind the Black Hills Unity Concert. To support this free event with your donation, click here.

A Simple Solution for Our Disconnected World
Thursday, September 7, at 5:30pm Pacific

This global webinar educates adults in the Connection Practice®, an efficient, scientifically-based social-emotional skill for creating a world that works for everyone. Attend this free hour-long webinar, A Simple Solution for Our Disconnected World, and learn about this powerful antidote to violence that is enriching lives around the globe. For more information, click here.

Sun, Moon and Earth
Authored by Mas Vidal

Sun, Moon and Earth tells the story of the “twin sciences” of yoga and Ayurveda. Weaving in the author’s long professional and personal experience as a yoga teacher and Ayurveda practitioner, it explores how these traditions can be integrated into our lives as a practical means for balanced living and spiritual evolution. It is written for the growing audience of hatha yogis interested both in asana or postural yoga and a more conscious, Ayurvedic lifestyle.

The book’s historical sections look at the current reunion of these wrongly separated traditions and introduce readers to popular themes pertinent to the modern urban lifestyle, such as detoxification, individualized diet, and essential practices for healing mind-body fragmentation. Overall, the book presents yoga and Ayurveda as balanced solutions to the current global health epidemic and basic human dilemma of longing for spiritual purpose or dharma. Sun, Moon, and Earth contends that, if you practice yoga dharma and embrace the lifestyle wisdom of Ayurveda, improving the mind-body relationship, the Divine will take care of the rest. To order your copy, click here.

Campaign Nonviolence
Take Action September 16–24

Campaign Nonviolence is a long-term grassroots movement for a culture of peace and nonviolence free from war, poverty, racism, environmental destruction and the epidemic of violence.

We invite people and organizations in the U.S. and worldwide to take action during CNV Action Week around the International Day of Peace, September 21. Together we will join our voices from around the planet to support a global nonviolent shift!

During this year’s Campaign Nonviolence Week, September 16–24, 2017 our goal is 1000+ marches, vigils, rallies and more for a culture of peace and nonviolence in cities and towns in all 50 states and in nations around the world. Together we will march against violence and for a world of peace, justice and sustainability.

For more information, click here.

A Nation of Saints (A Portrait of Native American Spirituality)

This documentary about Native Americans by Amira El-Adawy portrays a nation of people, who through their pure innate nature, recognized that there is but one God, with whom they maintained a strong connection in all aspects of their life. Their conduct is based on high moral and ethical values. Reverence for nature, animals and all of God’s creation is at the core of their culture. Click here to watch A Nation of Saints.

Coming into Balance: A Guide for Activating Your True Potential (Audiobook)
By Dr. Jane Ely

This book of spiritual healing practices is based upon the timeless universal wisdom of the Medicine Wheel. We learn to activate the insightful healer within to free ourselves from the old story that keeps us stuck in the past; we are led into self-discovery and a keener sense of awakened consciousness. Written in workbook/journal style, Coming Into Balance is alive with creative graphics and practices to engage each of us as we move through positive change toward awakened freedom. To order your copy, click here.

The Global Indigenous Wisdom Library is a collection of audio and video interviews featuring Indigenous leaders from around the world sharing prayers, sacred songs, prophecies, spiritual teachings and pathways to healing, as well as concrete examples for birthing a new era — one in which all members of the human family are treated with respect, understanding, compassion and justice. This sacred wisdom is important medicine for us all. The production of The Global Indigenous Wisdom Library is a gift from The Shift Network, designed to inspire, inform and involve you by highlighting the voices and important messages of Indigenous leaders from around the world. We thank all the speakers who have contributed to this body of knowledge! To learn more, click here.

Book by Stephen Dinan: Sacred America, Sacred World. Infused with visionary power, Sacred America, Sacred World is a manifesto for our country’s evolution that is both political and deeply spiritual. It offers profound hope that America can grow beyond our current challenges and manifest our noblest destiny, which the book shows is rooted in sacred principles that transcend left or right political views. To order your copy, click here.

World Peace Library. Designed for the layperson and professional peacebuilder alike, the World Peace Library has over 425 audio and video interviews with some of the most remarkable, inspiring peacebuilders in the world available to you at NO COST. You’ll find hundreds of hours of inspirational, peacebuilding, compassion-spreading talks and trainings at your fingertips with this FREE global resource. There’s no way you can’t come away from the World Peace Library deeply inspired, transformed — and part of the solution. Click here to find out how to take peace to the next level — and help co-create a global culture of peace that leaves a legacy of good for our children, our children’s children and all of humanity and life on earth.

If you would like to submit something to The Catalyst, please see the submission guidelines: click here.

2017 Catalyst:
(#18, 9/3) (#17, 8/20) (#16, 8/6) (#15, 7/23) (#14, 7/9) (#13, 6/25) (#12, 6/11) (#11, 5/28) (#10, 5/14) (#9, 4/30) (#8, 4/16) (#7, 4/2) (#6, 3/19) (#5, 3/5) (#4, 2/19) (#3, 2/5) (#2, 1/22) (#1, 1/8)

2016 Catalyst:
(#21, 12/11)
(#20, 11/27) (#19, 11/13) (#18, 10/23) (#17, 10/2)
(#16, 9/11) (#15, 8/28) (#14, 8/14) (#13, 7/31) (#12, 7/17)
(#11, 7/3) (#10, 6/12) (#9, 5/29) (#8, 5/1) (#7, 4/17)
(#6, 4/3) (#5, 3/13) (#4, 2/28) (#3, 2/14) (#2, 1/31) (#1, 1/17)

  

2017 Issue 18 • Sep 3

The Shift Catalyst is a bi-weekly ezine for conscious change, powered by The Shift Network.

If you received this Catalyst from a friend, click here to subscribe (scroll all the way down to the bottom right corner of the site to sign up).

• Shift Network Update
• Featured Media
• Featured Articles
• Profiles
• Movement News
• Action of the Week
• Shift Spotlight
• Shift Philanthropy
• Partner Spotlight
• Featured Artist
• Allies of the Shift
• Back Issues

Like Us. Collaborate!

Send prayers to all the people affected by flooding in Texas and South Asia. And if you are able, please contribute financial support to the Red Cross, Americares, World Vision and/or other relief organizations, many of which are listed on PayPal.

Tapping Your Way to Optimal Health: Science-based EFT Techniques to Heal Your Body, Reduce Stress & Boost Energy — A Free Virtual Event With the Author of The Genie in Your Genes Dawson Church, PhD. Discover the power of science-based EFT to eliminate anxiety, alleviate physical pain, and activate healing at a cellular level. Wednesday, September 6, 2017 at 5:30pm Pacific

The Power of Voice Dialogue: Advanced Techniques to Dissolve Limiting Beliefs, Transform the Psyche & Unlock the Deeper Potential Within You and Others — A Free Online Event With Renowned Global Change Agent Tim Kelley. Discover how to stop self-sabotage and bring ALL the parts within your psyche into alignment — unleashing greater creativity, fulfillment and success (for you and your clients). Saturday, September 9, 2017 at 10:00am Pacific

Discover the Secrets to Accelerating Your Evolution: 3 Radical Methods to Dissolve Your Blocks to Spiritual Fulfillment, Loving Relationships & Financial Flow — A Free Virtual Event With Leading Spiritual Teacher, Coach & Martial Artist Satyen Raja. Dissolve the polarities within you and discover the keys to living in equanimity, freedom, love and joy. Wednesday, September 13, 2017 at 5:30pm Pacific

Clearing the Seven Windows to the Soul: Applying the Psychology of the Chakra System for Healing & Awakening — With the #1 Bestselling Author & Expert on the Chakra System Anodea Judith. Experience the full spectrum of your energy and power — bringing your body, emotions, relationships and creativity into alignment with your soul. New 7-week Live Video Training Starts Tuesday, September 5, 2017

The Way of the Spiritual Warrior: Activating the Sacred Masculine & Divine Feminine for Awakening, Empowerment & Social Change — With Internationally Acclaimed Spiritual Theologian, Episcopal Priest & Activist Matthew Fox. Liberate the Spiritual Warrior within you to experience authentic relationships, be an effective catalyst for change, and fulfill your life’s purpose. New 7-week Live Audio & Video Training Starts Thursday, September 7, 2017

Becoming a Shining One: A Shamanic Initiation Into the Ancestral Energy Healing Practices of Peru — With Peruvian Curandero, Psychologist and Author don Oscar Miro-Quesada. Discover ancient shamanic practices to activate your light body for healing, vitality and spiritual awakening. New 7-week Live Video & Audio Training Starts Tuesday, September 5, 2017

Visionary Activist Astrology: Cultivating the Language of Astrology to Access Your Unique Gifts & Increase Serendipitous Synchronicity — With Renowned Visionary Activist Astrologer & Author Caroline Casey. Access the transformational intelligence hidden in the sun, moon & 7 planets to fulfill your destiny & help evolve our world at this “Time of Dire Beauty.” New
7-week Live Video Training Starts Tuesday, September 12, 2017

The Heart & Soul of True Intimacy: Reclaiming Your Core Gifts & Building a Life of Love — With Renowned Psychotherapist & Bestselling Author of Deeper Dating Ken Page, LCSW. Rediscover the spark and deep joy you once had or –– better yet –– cultivate deeper intimacy and romantic passion to bring soul-filling, authentic love into your life. New 7-week Live Video Training Starts Thursday, September 14, 2017

More Upcoming Events: (all subject to change)

September
• Miranda Macpherson 6-month program
• Dawson Church 7-week course
• Tim Kelley 6-month program

October
• Stan Grof & Rick Tarnas 8-week course
• Satyen Raja 7-week course
• Suzanne Scurlock-Durana 7-week course
• Burt Goldman 7-week course
• Gardening & Homesteading Skills Summit
• Andrew Harvey & Caroline Myss 7-week course
• Lynne McTaggart 7-week course
• Robert Moss 13-week course
• Anodea Judith 7-week course

November
• David Crow 4-month program
• Holly Tse 7-week course
• Sara Crow 7-week course

The overarching goal of the Black Hills Unity Concert, which will take place in Piedmont, South Dakota, on September 8–10, is to return the guardianship of the Black Hills to its original caretakers, the Indigenous Peoples of the Plains.

The Black Hills Unity Concert is also a powerful networking hub and social engine that also addresses the most pressing issues of our time in addition to the Black Hills issue: language extinction, uranium contamination, water protection, youth suicide, sustainable economic development, self-sufficiency and self-determination, racial division, the protection of Indigenous women and others.

To help make this free concert available to all and support this work, please visit their crowdfunding site by clicking here.

Pachamama Alliance

With roots deep in the Amazon rainforest, Pachamama Alliance’s programs integrate indigenous wisdom with modern knowledge to support personal and collective transformation that is the catalyst to bringing forth an environmentally sustainable, spiritually fulfilling, socially just human presence on this planet. Click here to watch a 10-minute video on the origin and mission of Pachamama Alliance (and discover the pivotal role played by popular Shift faculty John Perkins).

Pachamama Alliance is working to generate the critical mass of conscious commitment that can preserve the Amazon rainforest and create a positive future. Click here to donate to this urgent and worthwhile cause.

11 Days of Global Unity

Launched in 2004 by We, The World and global partners, “11 Days of Global Unity — 11 Ways to Transform Your World” is a worldwide platform for the promotion of peace, justice, sustainability and transformation that annually includes as many as 700 associated events in over 60 countries around the world. It culminates on September 21, the U.N. International Day of Peace, which itself is celebrated annually by as many as 3,500 organizations in over 120 countries. “11 Days of Global Unity” highlights “11 Campaigns For Change” which call forth the values, spirit and service needed to move us towards a culture of peace and a world that works for all. For more information, click here.

The stated mission of the Metta Center for Nonviolence is, “We encourage people in all walks of life to discover their innate capacity for nonviolence and to use its power strategically for the long-term transformation of themselves and the world, focusing on the root causes of injustice, competition, and violence. We aim to make the logic, history and yet-unexplored potential of nonviolence more accessible to activists and agents of cultural change (which ultimately includes all of us).” To find out more about and to support the Metta Center for Nonviolence and their extensive resources, click here.

Peter May: Spreading Like Wildflowers

Peter May, a multi-realmed alchemist, partners with Nature to support healing, balance and peace. This album of native Colorado wildflower songs was recorded in and near the mountains of central and southern Colorado. It includes songs of native birds, other native animals, and other ambient sounds of the environment.

Embodying the love of plants and music throughout his life, Peter began distilling essential oils in 2006. That same year, he began playing on and co-producing the Grammy award-winning album Crestone with Paul Winter. Peter creates acoustically-tuned plant and mineral alchemies with essential oils, and offers them in his journeys to support increased awareness and healing on the levels of body, energy, and mind. His Nature Fusion band, The Sonic Apothecary, is composed of human and plant musicians, and offers Healing Journey concerts around the country.

Solar Action Alliance

Peace Through Commerce

Evolutionary Leaders

The Foundation for Conscious Evolution

The Shift Movie

Humanity's Team

Green America

The National Peace Academy

Sacred Centers

Center for Sacred Studies

International Cities of Peace

Agape International Spiritual Center

Gaiafield Project

Click here to apply for inclusion above.