Quinalt Rainforest, Photo by Elliott Bronstein
We are two full months into what has been a transformative learning journey with five modules of two webinars each complete. There’s still time to catch up and join in! Joe Brewer, Penny Heiple, and many other volunteer facilitators have taken us through the process of beginning to think bioregionally as we listen to and gently transform our landscape and organizing teams.
Currently, we have 101 participants from Cascadia signed up for the learning journey with more on the way after the inspiring Bioregional Finance (BioFi) conference that recently took place in Seattle. Each bioregional event is a new opportunity to inspire new waves of organizers! We take heart that this method of organizing is contagious.
Even if you don’t have time for the learning journey in its fullness, all people from Cascadia are welcome at the Cascadia Regional Call, which takes place fortnightly at 10:30 a.m. PST. The next one is this Friday, May 23rd.
Bringing Collapse Awareness to the Fore
It’s always a hard pill to swallow—especially for people in the Western world—to realize that our current way of life is untenable, that our economies are collapsing, that our governance cannot bear the strain of unchecked growth, that six of nine planetary boundaries have already been crossed as of 2023.
The truth is, the writing has been on the wall for decades, and as dramatic and sweeping changes in government policies occur at faster and faster rates, the proximity of collapse is not so hard to believe. While collapse will undeniably bring about many uncomfortable changes, it does not mean all is lost. In fact, many countries, especially in the Global South, that have been affected by the extractivist nature of capitalism have been waiting for this pivotal moment.
There’s always a chance that humanity will not survive this crisis we have manufactured for ourselves, but life is resilient, and every effort to preserve right relationship with the land, biodiversity, and just transitions toward degrowth economies makes it more likely that we can survive this.
Prepare for and celebrate change when you can—all we have is this moment.
For more support in supporting your process toward collapse awareness and acceptance, see this offering.
Recultivating Bioregional Imagination
In the most recent webinar for the How to Organize Your Bioregion learning journey, Joe Brewer asked the question, “Are you dreaming of the forest or is the forest dreaming of you?” If we enter into the lens of our innate bioregional imagination, we can answer, “Both.”
Human beings begin with a sense of awe and wonder for the natural world, which culture often takes from us after scolding, demands toward timeliness, and a hyper-generalized sense of danger. As adults begin to rebuild bioregional lifeways and weave intergenerational work, we must recultivate our sense of pattern, wonder, and humility as we observe the bioregion in action.
If we stop and listen, if we move at the pace of pleasure, if we meet others in the landscape, we can hear what the bioregion wants from us. The trees, birds, insects, and small mammals are speaking—it’s not just a dream. The non-human world is clamoring for our attention. What moments do you give yourself to simply observe and receive?
Cascadia Regional Call Updates
Our fortnightly regional calls have been wildly successful as a way to share collective wisdom and support bioregional efforts on the ground. With a grounding practice, recap of the recent learning journey webinar, group updates, community-based presentations, breakout groups, and an artistic closeout, it has become a nourishing space for everyone to see what is possible when we work together toward a shared purpose.
Watch the recording of our most recent regional call, wherein Jan Inglis discusses how to approach non-performative land acknowledgments.
If you would like to present about healthy group dynamics or organizing tools for bioregional organizers, please email LearningJourney@RegenerateCascadia.org.