Evolving + Emerging Economies Jam 2015
Evolving + Emerging Economies JAM
When?
Dates: October 13-18, 2015
Where?
Location: Philo and San Rafael, CA – first at the River’s Bend Retreat Center and then at the 26th annual Bioneers conference, a gathering of over 500 leaders, activists, thinkers, doers and mover-shakers in the fields of ecology, economy, education, arts and culture and more.
Why you?
Because you are invested in and working towards shifting economies in some way; because you crave community and support in this journey; because you are passionate and want to bring your whole self into your contribution/work/movement; because you want to share in a collective vision; because of all of these things! (and/or something else altogether).
Why now?
Because the time is ripe for living the change you want to see; because everyone is wiser than any one; because connecting the dots is a way to get the whole picture and to make life and work more effective and fulfilling; because now is all we’ve got!
How?
Priority Applications due: July 31, 2015
Final Applications due: September 15, 2015
The FULL Invitation
What does it take to build thriving, just and sustainable economies?
Intertwining economic, social, ecological, and spiritual crises have created an unprecedented opportunity to nurture new ways of thinking, being, and working together to transform our economies. Never has there been such a critical moment to bring together emerging leaders to deconstruct and rebuild, unlearn and co-create, and seed the relationships of a more regenerative world.
As a change-maker, how can you thrive, grow, heal and sustain? How can you deepen your interpersonal skills to transform the relationships that underlie communities and economies? What does “the new economy” mean to you, for the many kinds of economic movements and forms of right livelihood that already exist? How can we amplify our collective impact by weaving our respective work into a supportive network? These are some of the questions that will bring together 30 diverse visionaries, social entrepreneurs, community organizers, and new economy leaders for a week of personal inquiry, resource-sharing, community-connecting, and movement-building.
Combining three days of co-creation in the hills of Mendocino with three days of exploration at the Bioneers National Conference in San Rafael, CA, the 2015 Evolving + Emerging Economies Jam is a unique opportunity to live new economies into being!
“Thank you for a wonderful week! Fulfilling, delicious, inspiring, motivating and gratifying! I am a larger person after the Jam in ways I didn’t even know I needed. Spectacular people, beautiful children and a deeply supportive environment.”
– Devin McIntire, 26, founder, RealGoodFood.org, San Francisco, CA
What is a Jam?
The Jam is a gathering for three different levels of change: the internal (self), the interpersonal (relationships) and the systemic (the whole). It is NOT a conference, seminar or a typical meeting. On the internal level, it is a place for participants to share and reflect on our life journeys and what makes us who we are today. It is an opportunity to grow in self-knowledge, to ask meaningful questions, to unlearn our fears and blocks, access our hearts, and open our minds to move more boldly in the world. It is a time to recharge and renew and to experience self- and community-care and personal sustainability.
On the interpersonal level, we come together to share our cultures, our stories and our struggles, to deepen in our understanding of each other and of ourselves. The Jam values diversity and seeks to bring together as diverse a group of people as possible. During the week, we hope to discover our commonalities and celebrate our differences. We take an honest, courageous and loving look at the identities that define and often separate us – race, class, gender, sexuality, age, religion, etc., – and seek to have authentic conversations to heal these divides. The Jam provides a unique container, where continuous inquiry and intimacy create the alchemy to have these conversations in a focused, safe and loving way — on levels we don’t ‘normally’ engage in.
On the systemic level, through the Jam, we become clearer about our vision and work in the world. We get a chance to link issues that aren’t commonly linked, to notice crucial intersection points, and get a clearer picture of the whole. We have a chance to share tools and ideas to support one another. In turn, we hope this helps us to generate a body of collective wisdom for our work and a collective vision for the world we want. We also hope it will enable each participant to feel deepened in their capacity to affect meaningful positive change and carry their dreams forward.
“This is the most I have felt ‘myself’ in a group setting, as the flow allowed me to open and be vulnerable. When you allow yourself to be open, you are more aware and honest about yourself…I have learned that as the leader of my organization, it is up to me to refine our mission/vision and to restructure our goals and processes. I feel I have a renewed perspective and sense of purpose with both life and work.”
– Ron Cariño, 32, co-founder and Executive Director, Soulciety, Hayward, CA
Who is being invited to the Evolving + Emerging Economies Jam?
As mentioned above, we seek to bring together as diverse a group of people as possible. This means we are looking for a range in:
– leadership (from ‘person on the ground’ to ‘director and founder’);
– years of experience (from ‘just starting out’ to ‘been at it for a while’);
– scope and scale (from ‘local’/micro to ‘global’/macro);
– economy work-focus (for example, time banking, local investing, worker-ownership, social entrepreneurship, solidarity organizing, gross national happiness, transition initiatives, social and economic justice, gift economy, sacred economics, local currencies, sharing economies, etc.);
– identity and world-view (class, ethnicity, race, religion, sexuality, age, etc.);
When, where and how is the E + E Economies Jam being organized?
The Jam will begin on Tuesday, October 13th, at the River’s Bend Retreat Center in Philo, CA, and end on Sunday, October 18th, at the Bioneers: Revolution at the Heart of Nature National Conference closing in San Rafael, CA. Our intention is to spend the first three days learning about one another, deepening in our understanding of self and each other, co-creating a shared vision — and exploring each of our roles in making that vision a reality, finding common ground and synergies through our diversity. On October 16th, we will wrap up in Philo and make our way to San Rafael to join the opening ceremonies at Bioneers. The Bioneers conference has been happening for more than 25 years and features prominent thinkers and doers who are paving new ways forward in the fields of ecology, social justice, economies, education, arts and culture and more. We will spend the next few days participating in the sessions and workshops of Bioneers, while still having time each day to continue Jamming — learning and reflecting with each other. We will wrap up the Jam on October 18th and celebrate with Bioneers in their closing party.
Logistics, Travel and Cost
The Jam will be held in two parts. First, on Tuesday, October 13th, we will convene at the River’s Bend Retreat Center in Philo, CA. There, people will be housed in shared rooms of 2-3, and we will be served a primarily local, seasonal, organic, delicious plant-based diet, with a few sustainable meat/fish/dairy options.
Second, on October 16th, we will head down to San Rafael, CA, for the evening start of the Bioneers conference. We will be staying at local homes in the Bay Area and commuting to Bioneers daily (though, if anyone wants to get a hotel room locally, that is an additional option and extra cost).
We are asking people to cover their own travel costs. There will be a welcome packet to help you with arranging your travel, to arrive by 12 pm on October 13th and depart any time on October 19th.
Full tuition for the Evolving + Emerging Economies Jam is $1200, of which $275 covers food and lodging for the time in Philo, $325 covers our specially-discounted Bioneers registration fees, while $600 covers YES! program expenses (organizing time, facilitation honorarium, materials, childcare).
A number of partial scholarships are available upon request, on an as-needed basis, as are work trades. In fact, we work with each participant to set up the specific combo of scholarship, work trade and monetary payment that works for them. YES! also offers a monthly payment plan to help each person figure out a payment schedule that is best for them. We will support you in fundraising efforts with ideas, inspiration, letters and documentation, as needed, and also encourage you to seek out support from networks, organizations, etc., that you may involved in.
We ask that applicants consider a minimum of $600 (of the total of $1200) for their tuition. We never want money to be a barrier in participating in a Jam, so we will do everything we can to make it work for you to attend.
Additional donations above the event price are also welcome and help us to provide scholarships to enable the diversity upon which this event thrives (they are also tax-deductible).
“The space, the connections and collective resources… It’s a family where everything in our lives and movement is held. It was an honor to share brainstorming sessions with such beautiful activisionary spice. Breakthroughs present so we can show up and have fluid movement in our work. Knowing that there are many paths to connect and show up in the creation of a new economy. It was solid.”
– Angelique Arroyo, 36, co-founder, Lucid Legacy Community, Lancaster, PA
Have you heard enough?
Who is hosting the Evolving + Emerging Economies Jam?
Maya Hackett is an unschooled, urban*steading, home-birthing mom of four, publisher, stylist and Legacy Architect. She moves towards life, beauty, magic; collects minute bits of grace and spins it out as community caramel. With an eye towards social justice, cultural preservation and environmental initiatives, she’s helped raise $40 million+ and designs values-infused, inspired giving plans for those with extreme wealth ($14 B). Maya has been co-founding conscious-creative movements for 22 years, most recently Waldorfish.com, the Moon Storm community, and the print field guide, Amulet. She runs Empress Tides Publishing House, Resource Studio + Gatherings, as well as Calibration Institute, a collective of world-class doctors, healers and coaches that Clear | Create | Calibrate families to their intentions at the cell level. Thru live sessions, courses, clinic visits and retreats, CI provides Compass Work to distinguish your innate legacy, based on the body’s wisdom, innate gesture and soul topography. Catch Maya’s TEDx talk, pics on instagram and twitter @urbanorganica. With the blessed help of thousands, On Purpose.
Julian Caspari is the Co-founder of Schools Without Borders(SWB), a Canadian charity committed to changing the face of education. With over a decade of leadership experience working with communities as a strategist, facilitator/educator and organizer, he has led initiatives ranging from corporate and community engagement, to youth employment and health & wellness projects in local and global contexts. Julian brings collective leadership, design thinking, and multi-sectoral partnership expertise to his work. He is committed to establishing partnerships between corporate, government and community sectors in an effort to build “equity” for people, communities and society at large. Julian was a 2011 DiverseCity Fellow and is currently an Associate with Making Good, Ambassador with Pave, Board Member at SWB and YES! and consultant to the Numi Foundation’s Action Oakland Project.
Julia Kious-Zabell wants to live in a world where business is a Force for Good…Where individuals own their Power and live their Truth…And where everyone has Enough. Her work and “Do Awesome by Doing Good re:Treats” are rooted in her 4xP Approach (Prosperity=People+Planet+Purpose), which pushes the boundaries for socially conscious, change making entrepreneurs around the world to not only address their own Prosperity, but also to grow their business by making a difference. (A Personal Growth meets Business for Good kinda thang.) When she’s not gently catapulting do gooders into their big vision, Prosperity Path, and inner wisdom sources, you can find her gallivanting in nature, reading copious amounts on the couch, playing with her hubby and new baby, or daydreaming about her next trip to far flung corners of the world…or the new restaurant around the corner. Her most recent party- A Conscious Consortium on Business for Good- deeply explored the opportunities for business to be done differently as well as to examine and practice the new paradigm principles of Emergence, Transparency, Collaboration, Accessing the Circle, and Leader as Host. The recordings are still available free of charge at http://beinvigorated.com/programs/aconsciousconsortium Explore how to grow a business with soul and be a force for good at www.beinvigorated.com.
Aumatma is a Naturopathic Doctor, healer, and serial entrepreneur. She founded an experiment in gift-economy healthcare called Karma Clinic in 2008. After 4 years of experimentation, she decided to dive into the business world and experiment with that in a variety of ways. She currently practices her healing work in the Silicon Valley and East Bay and is grateful to help couples who are having Fertility challenges to be able to conceive naturally. Currently, she is also helping her beloved launch a Juice & Cleanse Business called Soma Naturals. Aumatma is a sought out speaker and writer on Holistic Health, and is in the process of writing a book on natural fertility and conception. Last but not least, Aumatma has facilitated retreats on holistic health and on alternative economies for many years and spends time helping to create community in creative ways. Aumatma’s main mission in life is to see a healthier world, where children are born free of toxins, and people live healthy, purpose-filled lives and her vision is a world which operates on love, generosity, and abundance, where community trumphs cash. More about her can be found on her website.
Steven Budden is an author, artist, songwriter, and the founder of Flow Healing Arts, where he supports leaders and future leaders in somatically healing childhood trauma for deepening love and intimacy and embodied living. For the past few decades, he’s been obsessed with conversations about beauty and healing / awakening, which have been deepened and catalyzed by his own traumatic experiences. He’s also been exploring models of entrepreneurship and minimalist living (on farms, in an Airstream, on a sailboat, etc). He earned his MFA from the San Francisco Art Institute in 2004. His songwriting alias, Saint Milkweed, was born in 2008. His books are available on Amazon, including Flow: An Illuminated Training Manual and the Flop Eared Gospels (a novel). You can find him at stevenbudden.org, flowhealingarts.org, saintmilkweed.com. He currently lives in a cabin in the redwoods of Sonoma County, with Gingerbear, an alchemical medley of Yorkie and Chihuahua.
Chris Tittle is passionate about life-sustaining alternatives to the neo-liberal market paradigm. As a deep ecologist, barefoot lawyer-in-training, and community resilience advocate, he currently serves as the Director of Organizational Resilience with the Sustainable Economies Law Center, an Oakland-based legal organization creating a new legal landscape that supports grassroots economic empowerment. At SELC, his work focuses on community currencies, rethinking housing and land ownership, and bringing principles of social and economic justice into non-profit funding strategies. As an advocate of self-directed (and debt-free) education, he is also training to become a lawyer through the California Law Office Study program, a practice-based alternative to law school. Chris completed an MA in Economics for Transition at Schumacher College (UK), where his dissertation explored permaculture and a Rights of Nature framework as more culturally-appropriate and transformative responses to climate change adaptation in the Global South. He has worked with youth in the South Bronx, taught English in Japan, and explored mystical Islam in Senegal. Once, on a whim, he traversed 3/4 of the globe without stepping foot on a plane. His writing can be found on Shareable.net, MNN.com, and his blog at oaktreegarden.wordpress.com.
Holly Roberson has spent the last fifteen years starting, managing, and supporting social enterprises. In her home state of Missouri, Holly established and grew three social enterprises: Terra Bella Farm, a 160-acre organic demonstration farm; Ragtag Cinema, an independent film house and bar/café; and Uprise Bakery, an organic bakery/gallery. In 2004, Holly left Missouri and moved to New York City to co-convene two multi-year projects involving young leaders and social change. Holly joined Ashoka::Innovators for the Public in 2007, and focused on bringing the work of Ashoka, its fellows and the field of social entrepreneurship, to the Bay Area. Since leaving Ashoka in 2011, Holly has worked with various organizations and entrepreneurs locally and globally to launch businesses with a social impact. Holly is on the board of Oakland-based YouthSEED, an organization that supports the creation of community-led social enterprises by providing resources, training & investments to young innovators who traditionally face barriers to economic opportunities. Holly is a mama to two awesome little boys, James (5) and Eli (2).
Shilpa Jain is currently rooting herself in Oakland/Berkeley, CA, where she serves as the Executive Director of YES!. Prior to taking on this role, Shilpa spent two years as the Education and Outreach Coordinator of Other Worlds and ten years as a learning activist with Shikshantar: The Peoples’ Institute for Rethinking Education and Development, based in Udaipur, India, where she served as coordinator of the Swapathgami (Walkouts-Walkons) Network. All of her work seeks to uncover ways for people to free themselves from dominating, soul-crushing institutions and to live in greater alignment with their hearts and deepest values, their local communities, and with nature.
Any questions?
Please write to us at eeejam.yes@gmail.com if you have any questions or concerns. The priority deadline for applications is July 31, 2015, and final deadline for applications is September 15, 2015. The sooner you apply, the more easily we can work out scholarships, work trade, and tuition that can work for you! You can find the online application here.
We are so looking forward to Jamming with you!
Aumatma, Chris, Holly, Julia, Julian, Maya and Shilpa
The EEE Jam Organizing Team
