fringe—from yoga and meditation to complementary medicine and sustainability—into mainstream consciousness. Particularly innovative initiatives include helping military veterans heal from post-traumatic stress disorder; the women’s leadership center; the center for sustainable living; and pioneering programs on mindfulness in the workplace, education system and at- risk urban youth communities. “We recognize that because we live in an interconnected world; the behavior of one can contribute to creating changes that benefi t the whole,” says Donahoe. “Doing both the inner and outer work can awaken the best in the human spirit, and so provide hope and healing to individuals and society.” For those unable to travel great distances for a holistic immersion experience in community with like- minded seekers, Wanderlust Festivals may offer an answer. Four-day regional summits, primarily held at ski resorts during the off-season, feature teachers like Shiva Rea, Elena Brower and Gurmukh; stimulating discussions; yoga; music and adventure, amidst stunning vistas. Wanderlust co-founders Sean Hoess
and Jeff Krasno strive to create an expansive space for personal growth and mindful living. One common element at every gathering—now including urban and exotic locales—is Seane Corn and Suzanne Sterling’s Off the Mat program, mobilizing yoga students toward activating social change. The Shift Network is dedicated to creating an online community that shares the tools of self-actualization, empowering a global movement of people creating an evolutionary shift of consciousness that leads to a more enlightened society, built on principles of sustainability, peace, health and prosperity. This new model for the
28 Central Florida natural awakenings
human potential movement has roots in the grandfather of retreat centers; The Shift Network’s founder, Stephen Dinan, both worked at Esalen and contributed to Esalen’s Center for Theory & Research. Dinan explains that at a meditation retreat, he received a detailed vision of “a large global transformation network that would be helping to usher in a shift to the new era.” The Shift Network now offers free teleseminars and online summits on subjects ranging from meditation and parenting with presence to enlightened business practices and cultivating peace. “We started with The Sacred
Awakening Series—40 days with 40 spiritual leaders—and 30,000 people signed up in 21 days,” says Dinan. The Inspiring Women Summit attracted 25,000 participants. Since 2010, more than 400,000 people from 160 countries have participated in free teleseminars; 18,000 have paid for online courses such as Barbara Marx Hubbard’s Agents of Conscious Evolution, Andrew Harvey’s Christ Path and Thomas Hüebl’s Authentic Awakening. The Shift Network has already
reached profi tability and donated more than $50,000 to nonprofi ts. Dinan’s vision includes providing education program certifi cations; building a multimedia platform of e-zines, mobile phone apps and web TV broadcasts; and eventually building facilities and intentional communities to model the possibilities of a more healthy, peaceful, sustainable way of life. From reading a book on meditation to attending a yoga intensive or tapping into a multifaceted community striving to change the world, we have myriad opportunities to lead an examined life. While the seeker may have a personal goal in mind, each mode of self-inquiry can expand outward toward making the world a better place. Hay encourages us all. “You’ve been criticizing yourself for years and it hasn’t worked. Try approving of yourself and see what happens.”
Bess Hochstein is a freelance writer enjoying bicoastal bliss in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, and Sonoma County, California. Connect at
BessHochstein.com.
Photo by Ali Kaukas / Wanderlust Festival
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