In which is talked about the idea of a community of supporting members and donors, with the possibility of regular interaction via Zoom and/or live meetings.
“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.”
Margaret Mead
Dear readers and followers of A Biosphere Project,
No, I am not going to spam you weekly with posts about my new support page, promise! And it's also just a coincidence that next Tuesday December 3 is Giving Tuesday (if you don't know what Giving Tuesday is, you can take a look at their website. You could say it's the antithesis of the dreaded “Black Friday,” as a global day dedicated to generosity and giving, to support organizations and charities).
But I wanted to add a few words on my ideas for what could become a “community” of supporting members, something I already touched on in laying out the various formulas of support you can now find on the support page on the website.
For me, this opportunity to support my work and project is not just about a single transaction of a monetary nature, a one-way street from donors to me and my project.
I see it equally as building a 'sangha', a group of like-minded people, a community of people with similar interests, goals, passions, or intentions.
Such a “sangha” is actually desirable for anyone in any field of activity, and in my life as a visual artist I have also found such a sangha. I cherish that sangha even today, even as I am on a different path now (which is actually closer to the previous path than one might suspect). And the community I found at that time in the world of visual art, first and foremost the art collective WorkPlace, has played an extremely important role in my own development as an artist. ‘No (wo)man is an island’, as John Donne put it, and we all need community like we need oxygen, water and food.
I assume that people who choose to become supporting members, sponsors or patrons of A Biosphere Project share a common interest, concern, love or even passion: the well-being of our planet, our biosphere, and all life that is part of our biosphere - including ourselves. People who make the effort to support me and my work share, I suspect, at least some ideas and concerns about the convergence of crises facing our children and their children, and that are threatening all life on our planet. But they may also share ideas, intuitions and imaginations about how to create a more beautiful, healthy, and happy world for future generations.
Informing yourself about the meta-crisis is not always easy, and can bring up a lot of anxiety or intense emotions. In fact, discussing or mentioning the meta-crisis is still something of a taboo in our society. In most social settings or interactions, it is not really appreciated when someone brings up the climate- or biodiversity crisis, or all the related crises that are interconnected in so many ways.
Yet it is absolutely necessary for all of us to make this issue much more central to our daily lives and consciousness, because the great transition that will be needed (which Nate Hagens calls 'The Great Simplification') will have to start from the bottom up, that is, with us. We should not expect that our current political system will begin to formulate the necessary answers, because that political system is too intertwined with the structures that will have to change beyond recognition.
Therefore, it is also appropriate that we connect much more with each other in light of the challenges we face. To support each other in carrying this transition forward, and to affirm each other in the new stories that are beginning to come to life, and to help spread those new stories. It's not enough for everyone on their own little island to do their best recycling or taking shorter showers or driving less. That is a bit like if, in a burning house, everyone would only try to extinguish the fire in their own room. No matter how well intentioned those efforts are, the sum of all our individual actions in that regard are not going to save us. Cooperation in larger contexts is needed at all levels, from the bottom up. We need to arrive at processes of cooperation from the bottom up, and everyone can help with that.
In this light, I also see what a community of supporting members of A Biosphere Project can become: a place to connect, exchange ideas, make connections, and get renewed energy.
Therefore, over time I also foresee the possibility of organizing meetings on a regular basis via Zoom for all supporting members, sponsors, and other donors (including people who make a one-time donation). 'Live' meetings are also among the possibilities, depending on the wishes or preferences of members.
These meetings (on Zoom or live) can thus initiate interaction with exchange of ideas, sharing perspectives and stories, giving feedback or suggestions for new actions, and so on and so forth.
I am thinking here of a frequency of monthly or bimonthly meetings, but that can be reviewed according to what members wish or consider feasible.
There is of course no obligation or expectation to participate in such Zoom calls or live meetings if you wish to become a donor, but it is an opportunity to take the supporting membership beyond an abstract and linear transaction of a purely monetary nature. In any case, the idea of further interaction between donors and supporting members appeals to me a lot, and seems to me a possible source of inspiration and energy both for the supporting members and myself.
I myself am a member of some online communities, such as Deep Transformation Network (the platform of systems thinker Jeremy Lent, author of 'The Web Of Meaning'), of New And Ancient Story (a community of philosopher and climate thinker Charles Eisenstein, author of 'Climate, A New Story’). Other platforms working to bring together individuals and organizations are, among others, One World, Connection Field, Evolutionary Leaders, Source Of Synergy Foundation, and others. In my view, those online communions already represent one aspect of the emergence of networks around the world, one of many aspects of the transition from below that is already in full swing, albeit largely under the radar of the media.
I therefore wish to build a similar initiative to bring together anyone who wishes to support me and my work in a web of connection that goes beyond sharing “green energy (see the pun in my previous blog post about the fundraising project).
Further updates about this will follow in the blog. If you have not yet done so, I invite you to take a look at the new support page on the A Biosphere Project website.
Should you choose to become a donor, I look forward to possibly seeing you in Zoom calls or in person in the future, and working/playing/dreaming together for a more beautiful world!
Thank you for reading, and until the next installment,
All the best to you,
Filip
