Holding conversations and sharing stories to turn the human course...
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THIS INITIATIVE
This Great Turning (GT) Initiative is a project of the People-Centered Development Forum and is developed in response to David Korten's latest book, The Great Turning: From Empire to Earth Community, This Initiative's mission is to contibute to the greater body of Great Turning work by forwarding the following framing ideas and connections: 1. Help individuals, communities, and organizations displace the prevailing Empire prosperity, security, and meaning stories that define dominator hierarchy as the natural and essential human order, with Earth Community prosperity, security, and meaning stories that celebrate the human capacity to live in cooperative balance with one another and Earth. 2. Facilitate the creation and strengthening of networks and alliances based on mutual trust and a shared commitment to changing the defining stories of the prevailing culture. 3. Expose the dominator relationships of Empire as the upstream source of the many forms of violence against people and nature that threaten the human future, and identify the partnership relations of Earth Community as a defining feature of the cultures and institutions now within our means to bring forth. 4. Name this the time of the Great Turning to highlight the epic nature of the choice between domination and partnership, and the opportunity created by a potential terminal crisis to create a world that works for all by turning to partnership as a conscious collective choice. 5. Provide a strategic framework grounded in a theory of change that calls for displacing stories of Empire that affirm domination as inevitable and beneficial with stories of Earth Community that celebrate the positive potentials of partnership.
The Northwest Earth Institute was founded in 1993 by native Oregonians Dick and Jeanne Roy. Dick had been working as a corporate lawyer since 1970 and Jeanne had been working as an activist on air quality and solid waste issues.garden gates In 1993, Dick decided to resign his job as a lawyer and volunteer full-time with Jeanne.
This is a very propitious time, as we are close to a major change in the nature of our national government. We can't assume the change is secure yet, so we must continue to support all actions to get out the vote and support the election of Barack Obama. However, it's not too early to also plan for next steps when he is elected. Obama has stated that he expects change to come from the grass roots. It is up to us - Navigators of the Great Turning - whether we know we are one yet or not, to begin to mobilize a two-way communication: to the future White House with thoughtful insight into the possibilities of change and Earth Community, and from the White House to all who are ready to work together in support of change - with, perhaps concerted letters and emails to congressional delegations to insist on support for legislation that creates change as well as support for "sacrifices" that "We the People" will need to make to ensure meaningful change is possible. Perhaps we can begin a discussion here on how to build this structure for change?