StillnessActivism-Image

The Inner Work of Outer Change

an online mindfulness course for leaders, changemakers, organizers and activists

StillnessActivism-Image

The Inner Work of Outer Change

an online mindfulness course for leaders, changemakers, organizers and activists

A 7-week Mindfulness Course

for Leaders, Activists, Organizers and those on the Frontlines of Changemaking

Wednesdays, April 21 - June 2

9-10:30am PT | 10-11:30am MT | 12-1:30pm CT | 5-6:30pm GMT

We live in a complex time, overwhelmed by intractable social issues and climate crises. And, if you are working on the frontlines of changemaking, the stakes are big and only getting bigger. For many leaders, activists, organizers and frontline workers, the work itself can lead to overwhelm, burnout and disillusionment. The magnitude of grief, heartbreak and uncertainty is vast, and the possibility of change seems bleak. There is little time to stop with so many things to do. There is little if any time for rest, reflection and getting still. But…

What if tending to our inner landscapes was an inseparable part of creating more meaningful impact in the world?

What if we could source our work from a boundless well of support?

What if we could create more equanimity in the face of tremendous uncertainty, grief and overwhelm?

What if our activism was not only fuelled by getting still, but what if getting still was activism itself?

NEXT COURSE

Wednesdays, April 21 - June 2, 2021

7 week online course

Cost: sliding scale $195- $135 CAD

**Cost should not be a barrier to your participation. Reach out about scholarship options.

REGISTER
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Lisa Gibson

For the past two decades, I have worked in the nonprofit, activist, changemaking, consulting worlds and seen the levels of stress and anxiety that both fuel and are a product of the work environment. I have seen how when we don’t tend our inner landscapes, it has an impact on the collective. And, I have seen the inseparability of the self and the systems we are a part of.

Throughout this time, yoga and meditation have been the foundation of my change work.  Breath, movement, stillness and silence have been my refuge. The interconnection between inner and outer change has become undeniable, and we need practices to embody them.

Stillness Activism is an online mindfulness course to cultivate the inner capacities required to create meaningful impact in the world. 

This course is for you if:

  • you are an activist, leader, organizer, or anyone on the frontlines of changemaking
  • you are overwhelmed by the complexity, heartbreak, grief and uncertainty embedded in the social and environmental issues we are facing
  • you know what burnout feels like and you want to find ways to make your activism more sustainable
  • you want practices that bring more wholeness, joy, equanimity and hope to the intensity of your work
  • you want to experience a community of like minded changemakers
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Each week includes:

  • Audio recording of the weekly teaching
  • Invite to a 90 minute Zoom call
  • Series of practices to integrate mindfulness into your daily life
  • Resources (readings, poems, videos) to bring the teachings alive
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Through the 7 weeks together, we will explore:

~ the connection between inner and outer change ~

~ mindfulness in movement ~

~ why stillness matters ~

~ basic postures for sitting meditation ~

~ techniques to work with emotions, thoughts and blindspots ~

~ sitting with discomfort ~

~ shadow work ~

~ practices to make your changemaking more potent, intuitive and impactful ~

 

Calls will take place on Wednesdays from 9-10:30am PT

You do not need to participate on the live calls in order to join the course. You may access all the course session materials, including the teachings, Zoom calls, resources and practices through our online course members’ page. 

**Cost should not be a barrier to your participation. Reach out about scholarship options.

REGISTER
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This course provided a place to find community, support and encouragement in a time of deepest uncertainty. It gave me confidence to speak from a place of resource and also, a grounded and centered sense of place that came from daily meditation practice. Lisa’s resources - from informative talks of today’s greatest thinkers to inspiring poetry and quotes from activists and justice seekers both current and historical- fed into nourishing respectful community conversations. I feel I’ve begun to gain understanding of how I am uniquely equipped for my specific definition of activism. And am therefore, less consumed with the magnitude of pain in the world and more empowered to move forward with dignity and perseverance.

Havana Davidson

Artist, Community Builder, Mother
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Stillness Activism offers a comprehensive, timely and critical toolkit to understand, embrace and transform self, community and systems with an authentic, meaningful and deeply analyzed way.

Eda Ertan

Community Activist

 

Course Outline

Week 1: Doing + Being - Unpacking the ways that we do too much and undervalue time for simply being; working with attention, surrender and stopping.

Week 2: Stillness + Movement - Finding mindfulness in stillness and in movement; practicing meditation moment to moment 

Week 3: Befriending the Nervous System - Understanding the neurobiology of mindfulness and how we can work with the nervous system in healthy and supportive ways.

Week 4: Befriending the Shadows - Working with the parts of ourselves that we keep cloaked and safety out of view; bringing light to our shadows so we understand how they get in the way. 

Week 5: Befriending the Suffering - Extending the practice of mindfulness to how we witness injustice and inequity; staying awake to suffering and to our own privilege  so that we can serve.

Week 6: Intimacy with all things - Understanding how the radical act of sitting still opens us to our nonseparation from and interdependence with ourselves, each other and all things.

Week 7: Integration - Integration - Weaving together the practices and teachings from the previous weeks; developing intentions for going forward.

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REGISTER

Lisa Gibson is a transformative facilitator, coach and systems change consultant. She specializes in helping people and groups bring their whole hearts forward in creating a more just, caring and sustainable world.

With over 20 years experience in local and international work at multiple scales, she works with individuals, organizations and communities to embed systemic change, transform belief systems, and construct alliances across diversity. Lisa’s work focuses on a range of issues, including facilitation of complex multistakeholder processes, creativity and innovation, leadership development, curriculum design, equity and diversity, and mindfulness.

Lisa has practiced meditation intensively in the Zen tradition for the past decade, and is a senior monk with her teacher Diane Musho Hamilton Roshi. She is also a longtime yoga teacher and movement practitioner in a range of traditions. At the heart of her work, Lisa is passionate about integrating personal transformation and social change to enact new ways of being with ourselves, each other and with the planet.