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POETRY READINGSPOETRY READINGS

By Parker J. Palmer

Experience the transformative power of poetry with renowned speaker and author, Parker J. Palmer. Immerse yourself in his soulful recitations as he breathes life into captivating verses that explore the depths of human emotions, nature’s beauty, love’s nuances, and the quest for self-discovery.

Let Parker J. Palmer’s enchanting voice guide you on a poetic journey of reflection and inspiration. Explore our collection now and awaken the senses to the timeless truths found within each carefully selected poem.

“When Death Comes” – Mary Oliver

“The Thing Is” – Ellen Bass

“My Dead Friends” – Marie Howe

Global Summit on Dance Movement Therapy for Change – Reflections Global Summit on Dance Movement Therapy for Change – Reflections

By: Anubha Agarwal , Research & Learning Manager at The Wellbeing Project

Date: January 2023

Last month I had the pleasure to represent The Wellbeing Project at the Fourth Biennial Global Summit on Dance Movement Therapy for Change in the eclectic and colorful city of Jaipur, Rajasthan in India.

The two-day event was co-hosted by Kolkata Sanved – a non-profit organization based in India promoting holistic well-being through Dance Movement Therapy (DMT) and Center for Lifelong Learning (CLL), Tata Institute of Social Sciences – a unit of the leading public research university in India.

The fourth biennale held on January 12-13th , 2023 in Jaipur was focused on exploring the role of DMT and other creative expressions in building our collective resilience for navigating a world that seems to be at a heightened risk of diminished ecological health and well-being. The 2023 Fourth Biennale DMT for Change was attended by a diverse global audience comprising of development sector professionals, including DMT practitioners, Creative Art Therapy (CAT) practitioners, social scientists and public health experts.

With a colorful mix of experiential sessions, workshops, panel discussions and art installations, the Summit events wove together seamlessly in a rich tapestry. While ecological well-being of planet Earth and the looming danger of the climate crisis was the dominant theme at the Summit, the event was peppered with participatory sessions and workshops employing music, visual arts and storytelling to express individual reflections.

That artistic underlying theme at the Summit was evident, when at the time of registration, each Summit attendee was offered an option to choose a handheld musical instrument ( displayed below ). I found it amusing to briefly fiddle with the wide range of percussion instruments and select one, even though the intended use was not entirely clear to me. It became clear in time as the attendees enthusiastically sounded the percussion tools to endorse a speaker or an idea, infusing fresh energy and cheerfulness into the Summit events in the process.

Before the Summit, I was unfamiliar with the role of dance movement therapy as a psycho-therapeutic healing practice. Even though it is commonly known that dancing releases mood-enhancing hormones in humans, I was curious to understand how DMT was different in terms of providing subsistence to trauma victims and survivors of violence in our communities.

While I was quite thrilled to avail an opportunity to experience DMT through an experiential workshop at the Summit, I was also mindful not to participate in the workshop with the possibly unfair expectation to fully imbibe the therapeutic benefits of dance movement therapy. Considering DMT is a therapy, it might need longer duration support and intervention, than joining in one hour and a half long session. Having personally experienced the de-stressing effect of many dance forms in the past despite having two left feet, I was looking forward to experiencing DMT first hand.

During the workshop, free flowing movements that came naturally to each one of us were encouraged, the underlying thought being that DMT is a safe space where in every individual is free to express themselves in the way they want. In line with this tenet, an unfamiliar yet intriguing section of the workshop encouraged each participant to imagine their physical body as a paint brush and to use their limbs and torso to paint a limitless, imaginary canvas. Shifting my mental lens to think of my physical form as a paint-brush took some getting used to but eventually the infectious energy of the workshop cohort took over.

I admit to feeling mentally relaxed and exhilarated post-workshop but still curious to understand how DMT could potentially serve as an antidote to counteract violence in our vulnerable communities. In a country like India, society norms can be quite restrictive of womens’ movement outside the society- or family-ordained ‘safe’ physical spaces, so I felt it would have been insightful to know how the DMT practice can support individuals in freely expressing their possibly repressed agency and take better care of their holistic well-being. In retrospect, I think hearing narratives from DMT practitioners who use DMT as a tool to navigate everyday threats to their physical and mental well-being, would have been of immense value in understanding the practice better.

It is entirely possible that such narratives may have already been shared in the past Summit editions, but as a first-time participant, I missed the absence of such narratives. I did get to interact with a couple of DMT practitioners who mentioned that the practice helps them cope with everyday stress and shift the lens on how they view their lives.

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One of the key learnings for me during the Summit was the reinforcement that approaches to enhance one’s well-being are quite individualized. Availing the opportunities to experience different expressive art forms at the Summit was a constant reminder that there is no one-size-fits-all approach to well-being. An art therapy that might have a profound impact on one, might fail to put a dent on another individual’s well-being.

There is also the question of lack of funding to support well-being – the proverbial elephant in the room. However, until the world decided to acknowledge the presence of the aforementioned elephant and fully awaken to the mental health crisis we are in, one of the speakers at the Summit offered a slightly simpler solution to cope, “Art therapy is expensive… a good place to start is to start noticing what art tools you have easy access to at home such as fallen leaves, spices or other readily accessible elements of nature often overlooked. Art material could be taken from elements that are part of an individual’s environment or identity.”

The two-day DMT Summit for Change feels like a great step in the right direction as such gatherings help mainstream conversations on mental well-being and facilitate the oft-forgotten human connect. Overall, the two days left me feeling happier, joyous and craving for more opportunities to rekindle the deeper human connect, that often gets overlooked in our everyday lives, but that such events help us remember.

The reigning emotion for me at the end of the two-day art-based DMT for Change Summit and 2022 The Wellbeing Summit was that of HOPE. Hope for mental well-being taking center stage at a global level, specifically in cultures that in the aftermath of the pandemic are slowly opening up to talking about mental health and well-being.

Voices of Wellbeing | Laura Calderón de la Barca Voices of Wellbeing | Laura Calderón de la Barca

“We need to come together, to heal together”

Words by: Laura Calderón de la Barca, speaker at The Wellbeing Summit for Social Change

The topic of individual, ancestral and collective trauma is huge and very complex. We can best understand it through individual stories that help us visualize the impact of trauma, and the ways it can heal. Also, seeing what has happened to us, has happened to others also, can help normalize the experience, and alleviate the shame that the presence of trauma often brings. In that spirit, I share here part of mine.

One thing I would like to add to what I said in the interview, is that in this windy and complex journey of coming together to heal from collective trauma, we sometimes need to create particular healing containers for different groups of people to do their particular work before we can come together with enough resources, capacities and in a safe enough way for the joint healing to happen. That means that we need to support people who share lived experience of a certain kind of trauma to come together with the appropriate facilitation to heal together, and then share healing space with others who belong to groups who have hurt them, and vice versa: those who have in their ancestry or in their current experience oppression, need to come together with others to do some healing on their own before attempting to come together with others who are or were hurt by that oppression. I have found that the best facilitation is offered by people who have healed enough from that same kind of trauma, and can bring their wisdom and presence to their facilitation.

I want to thank: my colleagues at The Collective Change Lab, with whom I have explored the intersection of trauma and social change systems; Thomas Hübl, with whom I have healed, trained and currently work with in collective healing courses and workshops; and the Zapotec communities of the Pueblos Mancomunados de la Sierra Norte de Oaxaca, Mexico, with whom I learned about the profound value of their way of life through direct experience, and discovered in the resonances that my heart and body felt, how much of that is still alive in me.

You can find more information on the systemic and collective dimensions of trauma and collective healing at the following sites:

collectivechangelab.org

pocketproject.org

Collective Trauma Summit

If it’s of interest, you can also read my thesis by clicking here.

Creating Art and Peace in Africa with Green String Network

INTERVIEW WITH GREEN STRING NETWORK INTERVIEW WITH GREEN STRING NETWORK

What is the Green String Network?

Green String Network (GSN) is an African based organization. We are a network of like-minded individuals and organizations working on developing trauma-informed peacebuilding. We believe that there is a direct link between levels of trauma in vulnerable communities and the challenges faced with justice, reconciliation, security, and overall social wellbeing.

How does your work connect to inner wellbeing and social change?

Violence begins with a thought, yet few interventions focus on the mental wellbeing of at-risk communities, and institutions like the police. GSN concentrates on trauma as a root cause of instability not just a consequence of violence and instability. By connecting our inner wellbeing to issues of social justice and change we believe we are mentally and emotionally preparing those working on issues of violence, neglect, abuse and other difficult issues with a more holistic tool kit.

How do you believe art can be used for social impact?

GSN understands the transformative power of art. We utilize art to depict the experiences of our program participants. In using art as a source of individual reflection and communal dialogue, we strengthen relationships and raise awareness regarding violence, adversity as well as healing practices.

Please tell us about these individual stories that the artists have created.

The artists were given a summary of The Wellbeing Project’s research on “Wellbeing for social entrepreneurs.” From reading the research, the artists developed a set of stories.

The two artists were from Kenya and South Sudan, GSN has worked with both several times in the past.

David Radoli grew up in Mombasa but went to school in Nairobi. He is a graduate of the Technical University of Kenya. Radoli, as he prefers to be called, has been in the media/art industry for over 18 years. He has extensive experience in publishing, advertising, storyboarding and copyrighting. Due to his versatility in arts, he has worked for McCann Erickson, a leading advertising agency. Radoli has a strong preference for working with ink, pen, and watercolors. He has a passion for painting human figures and is an excellent caricaturist.

Deng Majid Chol Deng recalls drawing at home and enjoying pictures in the books at school. He improved his drawing skills initially by copying the picture and was encouraged by his family, who liked his drawings of daily life. Later, he gained a scholarship to study at Nasser University in Tripoli, Libya. It was a totally new environment for him and he was struck by the uniformity of opinions. After initially working using his Chemistry degree, he became connected with The Roots Project in 2011 and now displays his paintings there as well as holding exhibits in other locations.

What is the value of using artists to communicate on this subject?

An artist interprets a story based on his/her own life experiences. Images which emerge are not prescriptive and allow those who view them, their own interpretations based on their own life experiences. Two people can look at the same painting and each sees a completely different story in the painting.

What is wellbeing for GSN?

Wellbeing is an approach targeting the emotional, cognitive, physical, spiritual and social aspects of the human experience. It is about feeling happy, healthy, socially connected, and purposeful.

Are there any learnings you would like to share with other organizations and communities?

1. Healing is a critical part of stabilization, development, governance, and peacebuilding processes. Finding a way to work through personal pain can support the larger communities healing process.

2. For the leaders of the social change movements, understand that what you experience continues impacting you — your ability to love, show emotions and empathy. Do not let the violence and adversity you are challenging change you to be someone you are not. Take the time for your own self-care and connect to a larger community of changemakers. Take the time you need with your family and other friends. Find joy outside of your work. And be kind and lovely to yourself.

How can people connect with GSN?

Follow our work on our website — we will be starting a new blog shortly about the stories of transformation taking place in our programs.
Or on:
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``IT'S YOU AND ONLY YOU THAT CAN MAKE YOURSELF HAPPY.`` ``IT'S YOU AND ONLY YOU THAT CAN MAKE YOURSELF HAPPY.``

By Alice Gatignol

Cecilia Flores-Oebanda is the president and executive director of Visayan Forum, a non-profit, non-governmental organisation based in the Philippines. Visayan Forum focuses on promoting the development, welfare and rights of marginalised people to end human trafficking. Cecilia and Visayan, now called Voice for the Free, have trained more than 1000 collaborators in the work against human trafficking and have helped more than 60,000 victims.

The story of Cecilia is one of the accumulation of trauma, ignored for years, followed by an epiphany, a renaissance. She was about 15 years old when she became a youth leader in a politically unstable Philippines, governed by a president considered a tyrant. However, Cecilia was determined to fight. At the heart of the fight, groups were organised to tell stories about liberation theology, and eventually Cecilia became one of three female commanders of the guerilla movement. In the middle of all this violence, the news landed: Cecilia was pregnant with her first child. “It is difficult to be pregnant when you are a guerilla fighter in the mountains,” she shares. When Cecilia gave birth, she was forced to give up her child. To make the situation harder, this was when she was informed of her mother passing away. Losing all hope, Cecilia hit rock bottom, and lost herself in the process.

Life on the battlefield carried on, and before she knew it, Cecilia was pregnant with her second child. She reminisces solemnly about the day on the battlefield when her loyal assistant tried to protect her 8-month pregnant body in a hole he dug with his bare hands, in the midst of gun fires and screams. “He was still calling my name when he died.” Seconds later, Cecilia and other men were captured and put into prison. There, she started her family, giving birth to her second child. The family spent four years in prison. Upon her liberation, Cecilia decided to definitely close this chapter of fighting and violence.

By then, her family was in Manila, and every Saturday, Cecilia attended meetings at the University to discuss current ongoings in provinces, and what needed to be done. There was a recurring theme that alarmed them all: the missing children from various regions, who were said to have come to work in Manila. However, nobody knew where they were. Many of them were victims of prostitution, many girls were sold, raped and used. Cecilia’s focus turned to child protection, and her battle became a peaceful one; one for equality, justice and safety.

The Wellbeing Project enabled Cecilia to reflect upon herself: her life, her purpose, her sacrifices, and those of others. As a participant of the Inner Development Program, Cecilia raised and released the trauma that had locked up inside herself throughout the years, to mourn the pain, to listen to her sufferings. “I finally got to process what was going on in my life, for all these years; I had been like a headless chicken who continued to run and run and run…”

“The Wellbeing Project provided me a safe space where I could pause and reflect — a space where I was able to heal the wounds I have incurred throughout my life as a freedom fighter, an activist, a friend, a daughter and as a mother. Choosing to become a freedom fighter and advocating against slavery and human trafficking was a choice which gave me heavy weight to carry and endure. Wellbeing helped me reach closure and move past the previous chapters of my life. It gave me a deeper sense of humanity and liberated me from guilt and unnecessary stress that I have been dealing with. I was able to process my brokenness, trauma, pain, and loss. My time with Wellbeing has been a gift of a lifetime and I’m extremely grateful.”