Because we hold the future of all life
in our hands,
through the impacts
of our various extraordinarily powerful technologies,
we need also to hold, consciously,
the future of all life
in our hearts,
and support one another
in taking compassionate action
to protect life's continued unfolding
on this planet.

(Dennis Rivers)

The central purpose of the Work That Reconnects is to help people uncover and experience their innate connections with each other and with the systemic, self-healing powers in the web of life, so that they may be enlivened and motivated to play their part in creating a sustainable civilization. In order to do this, we pursue these contributing goals:

• to provide people the opportunity to experience and share with others their innermost responses to the present condition of our world
• to reframe their pain for the world as evidence of their interconnectedness in the web of life, and hence of their power to take part in its healing
• to provide people with concepts–from systems science, deep ecology, or spiritual traditions–which illumine this power, along with exercises which reveal its play in their own lives
• to provide methods by which people can experience their interdependence with, their responsibility to, and the inspiration they can draw from past and future generations, and other life-forms
• to enable people to embrace the Great Turning as a challenge which they are fully capable of meeting in a variety of ways, and as a privilege in which they can take joy
• to bring people into mutual support and collaboration in working for the world

"Gratitude and Grief for Our World," in the Essay section of this web site, conveys some of the philosophy behind the Work That Reconnects.

Workshops

Introductory evenings, one or two day workshops, and week-long retreats, are usually sponsored by faith, peace, environmental, and/or professional organizations.  Facilitators who have worked intensively with Joanna Macy (including Molly Brown) are available all over the world. 

Workshops are highly experiential and tailored to the needs of each group.  However, no matter what the setting and time frame, the Work proceeds through a spiral: from gratitude, to honoring our pain for the world, to seeing with new eyes, to going forth in service to the world (according to ones own life situation, resources, and gifts).  This spiral of work cycles back through these four stages over and over again, each time at a new level of experience and insight.

For information about Molly Brown's workshops in the Work That Reconnects, visit the workshop page on this web site. Check the Calendar for upcoming workshops.

For more information about the Work That Reconnects around the world, visit Joanna Macy's web site: http://www.joannamacy.net/theworkthatreconnects.html

For a complete video presentation of a teaching workshop with Joanna Macy, visit this site: http://www.theworkthatreconnects.org/

~~~