Katie Conlon
on re-envisioning Waste Narratives
“Fall back in love with the natural world. You were born into these times for a purpose. The world is waiting for you to integrate your calling into the woven story of our planet. In the Vedantic and Buddhist traditions, this is called aligning with one’s dharma, one’s life path or purpose.”
Katie Conlon, Ph.D. is following her dharma every day.
She is a re-envisioner of waste narratives, as she witnessed firsthand the contradictions between the so-called "development" and the ecological harm.
A global citizen and traveller, she had the chance to live in villages that were sustained through traditional, self-sufficient livelihoods. She decided to absorb these deep lessons on living in harmony with Gaia. This is what changed her life’s course. Katie became interested in discovering and researching waste and sustainability issues for bridging the social-ecological divide.
Katie is a researcher, poet, yogini, nature enthusiast, and storyteller based in India. She is a Fulbright Research Fellow, a National Science Foundation Fellow and a researcher with Portland State University.
Over the years she has lived, worked, and travelled around the globe to over 50 countries, including spending several years in Mali and Guinea. No matter the place she lived in, her focus was SEVA, the Sanskrit “selfless service”. This led her to found Ecoseva Institute, a nonprofit that focuses on “service to the earth”.
As a National Geographic Society Explorer, she conceptualized and led the project ‘Himalayas to Sea, Plastic Free’, which documented community-led plastic pollution reduction initiatives across the Himalayas through a series of 18 short films. Recently, Katie brought her wisdom to a virtual reality marine debris project where she created an immersive, transformative experience for business leaders and policymakers.
Read Katie Conlon, Ph.D.'s answers for Inspirators, discover her valuable work and find ways to be in place with land, following her ideas:
“Get off your devices and get out into the real world: go for an ‘awe’ walk, join organizations you admire to gain life experience, read books about people and places you care about, make time every day to be outside, connect with nature, maintain your connection the world!”
Thank you, Katie, for being a Waste Re-Envisioner!
#INSPIRATORS QUESTIONNAIRE
Name: Katie Conlon
Company / Institution: National Geographic Explorer; Ecoseva Institute (Director); The Institute for the Study of Energy & Our Future (ISEOF); Portland State University
Title: Storyteller (writing, poetry, film), Researcher, Explorer, Peacebuilder, Yogini
Website: www.eco-culture.world ; www.ecoseva.org
LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/katie-conlon-ph-d-a2879bb/
Country of origin: USA
Country you currently live in: India
Your personal definition of Regeneration: Leaving the Earth better than you found it!
Main business challenge you face: Fundraising for environmental storytelling – both films and writing.
Main driver that keeps you going: Knowing that there’s work to do and that I can contribute meaningfully to it.
The trait you are most proud of in yourself: Creativity; perseverance; being a weaver of wisdom.
The trait you most value in others: Energetic; accountable; motivated by selfless service (SEVA).
Passions & little things that bring you joy: Meeting others who are dedicated to stewarding the Earth and creating positive change in the world.
The #inspirators who determined you to take the regenerative path: The village community in Gao, Mali, who I lived with for 2+years in the Peace Corps.
Also, the permaculture community on the Big Island of Hawaii. I lived and worked on farms there as a wwoofer (Worldwide Opportunities on Organic Farms) for a year.
A hint or starting point for companies or professionals that are taking the first steps in the regeneration journey: Get out of the office and get your hands dirty on the weekends!
Second: do an audit of your company and work with a ‘start from where you are’ approach. Where are your points of leverage, where can you enter this movement?
Most used and abused clichés in sustainability that bother you: ‘Sustainability’! If we are sustaining the current destructive system then ‘sustainability’ is a bit of an oxymoron.
An honest piece of advice for young people who lose hope: Read Active Hope by Joanna Macy and Chris Johnstone.
Get off your devices and get out into the real world: go for an ‘awe’ walk; volunteer, work on farms, take part in citizen’s science projects, join a conservation corps, create/work in a community food garden, intern with organizations and people you admire to gain life experience, read books about people and places you care about.
Make time every day to be outside, connect with nature, and maintain your connection to the world. Fall back in love with the natural world. You were born into these times for a purpose. The world is waiting for you to integrate your calling into the woven story of our planet. In the Vedantic and Buddhist traditions, this is called aligning with one’s dharma, one’s life path or purpose.
Must-reads for any regenerative professional:
· The One-Straw Revolution - Masanobu Fukuoka;
· Love Letter to the Earth - Thich Nhat Hanh;
· A Wild Love for the World - Joanna Macy;
· Silent Spring - Rachel Carson;
· Thinking in Systems - Donella Meadows;
· A Systems View of Life - Fritjof Capra & Pier Luigi Luisi;
· Soil, Soul, Society - Satish Kumar;
· Earth Democracy - Vandana Shiva;
· Ancient Futures - Helena Norberg-Hodge;
· The Dream of the Earth - Thomas Berry
· The Spell of the Sensuous - David Abram
· Sustainable [Re]volution: Permacultre in Ecovillages, Urban Farms and Communities Worldwide - Juliana Birnbaum & Louis Fox (Eds.)
· A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose - Eckhart Tolle
· The Shallow & The Deep, Long-Range Ecology Movement. A Summary - Arne Naess (Essay)
· The Trouble with the Wilderness - William Cronon (Essay)
Movies or Documentaries you would watch all over again: The Need to Grow is a great film on regeneration; The Economics of Happiness.
Blogs / Websites / Podcasts you visit frequently: The Great Simplification with Nate Hagens; On Being with Krista Tippett; Emergence Magazine Podcast.
Music that makes you (and your heart) sing: I grew up on the West Coast of the US. Up through the mid-2000s, you could still see shows for relatively cheap, and live music was a big part of my life all through high school and college. I love music and dance, many genres, but seeing bands live is the best.
Some of my favourite shows over the years include: Radiohead (multiple times!), James Brown, BB King, Erykah Badu (multiple times!), Sharon Jones, Manu Chao, Tom Petty, Van Morrison, Dave Matthews, David Byrne; Burning Spear; the Marley’s, Toots & the Maytals, etc.
Also, incredible live bands and bands from areas of the world that have been in conflict in recent years - supporting their work goes a long way to building peace and understanding in the world - DakhaBrakha from Ukraine and Vieux Farka Toure, Habib Koite, Tinariwen, and Salif Keita from Mali.
Places you travelled to that left a mark on you: I read an interview with Bayo Akomolafe recently, and he said that the places we live, and all our experiences leave a mark on us, that we are ‘hyphenated beings.’ As someone who has lived in and worked around the globe (+50 countries), this resonates deeply.
This past summer I was on a pilgrimage in North India and one of the places I trekked was up to the headwaters of the Ganges, at Gangotri Glacier. With this particular glacier, one is overtaken by the beauty, but also the fragility. The history of India is due to the fact that this glacier has been providing water for millenniums, yet it is receding at unprecedented speeds. What happens when it stops? Water is absolutely sacred for sustaining life on this planet.
Global Regenerative Voices you recommend us to follow:
The Earth: she has her own rhythms and cadence, so spend time with her every day!
Wisdom keepers of traditions around the globe: honour the people who work with the Earth daily and are deeply connected (these will most likely not be voices with podcasts).
Trends in Regeneration we should keep an eye on: Restoring, macro-level water cycles, such as the work of Regenerative Resources Co (Neal Spackman) and the Regreening the Sinai project by the Weathermakers.
Community-based regenerative work like HYPHA and SCOOP on the Isle of Jersey.
Also, radical community building and unusual friendships. I love this story of the nuns collaborating with the Shinnecock Tribe in a seaweed watershed restoration project in New York. Also, regenerative projects growing and working with hemp or mycelium for plastic alternatives, building materials, etc.
Best places for business networking (online or offline): Your local farmers market!
Events we should attend: The best seat in town is watching a sunrise or moon rise, regularly. Invite your friends.
Associations, business clubs, tribes you belong to – and why:
National Geographic Explorers Community – an incredible group of intrepid, caring earth stewards and daring researchers.
Break Free From Plastic (Core Member) - because we need a world free from plastic & plastic pollution!
Marine Debris Foundation (Board) stewarding the oceans – the lifeblood of the world - to be free of pollution
Home for Humanity – One Home Journey Partner
HYPHA Consulting – regenerative consulting partner
NELIS Global, Japan – a global movement for connecting and inspiring social innovators for a more regenerative world.
World Beat Center, San Diego – a longtime supporter of WB and sustainability advisor, stop by if you’re in San Diego!
5 Gyres Ambassador – stewarding our ocean health!
Capra Course Alumni Group – Who doesn’t love a group of systems thinkers dedicated to the planet?
Fulbright Specialist – I love being able to serve through community-building and education.
Environmental Peacebuilding Association – because we need more research and narratives supporting our connections with the Earth
Sustainable Development or Regeneration courses, trainings, or certifications that really teach us how to have an impact:
Highly recommend working on an organic, regenerative farm (at least for a month, a few months, a year, or longer)– nothing beats personal experience!
Expose yourself to different worldviews, such as Bon Vivir, Gross National Happiness (GNH), or other Indigenous Worldviews.
Permaculture course with Starhawk
Bullock’s Permaculture Homestead Orcas Island, WA
Participate with Village Building Convergence in Portland Oregon
Findhorn Ecovillage, and the Great Turning
Learn or get involved with Vikalp Sangam & Global Tapestry of Alternatives
Learn or get involved with Ecoversities Alliance
Get involved with World Localization Day & Local Futures activities
Analog Forestry, Agroecology Belipola Program in Sri Lanka
One Island Sustainable Living Center, Big Island Hawaii http://www.oneisland.org/hawaii/
Fritjof Capra Systems View of Life Course
Support or take part with Good Market Global https://www.goodmarket.global
Home for Humanity is planning to launch a ‘Ph.D.’ Planetary Healing Degree in the coming year as part of their One Home Journey, keep an eye open for that. See also the list of Homes for Humanity, such as Sekem in Egypt.
Reasons to feel optimistic about our future in 2030:
“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)
I’m optimistic about all the organizations in the courses and trainings (see above), all those who create spaces and communities for stewarding regenerative worldviews and practices in the world.
Reasons to feel pessimistic about our future in 2030: I have running documents where I sort information for research. One of the sub-themes in my ‘Enviro Pollution’ document got so long, that I recently gave it its own folder titled: COLLAPSE! Right now, I have 107 items for concern in this document, top of the list is hard to say but I’ll throw a few out there:
· The slowing and potential collapse of AMOC;
· The acidification and overall state of rising temperatures, pervasive plastic and chemical pollution in the world’s oceans;
· The Gov. of Japan dumping nuclear wastewater back into the ocean;
· Microplastics are found in rainwater everywhere on Earth;
· Already 5 of the 9 Planetary Boundaries are transgressed, all are worrisome but compounding chemical pollution on human and environmental health is particularly alarming.
· And, what if James Lovelock was right when he said “Humans are too stupid to prevent climate change” (2010), that we were warned about Limits to Growth over 50 years ago (which turned out correct) but yet leaders still don’t care?
Regenerative Leadership qualities much needed today: Deep listening with the Earth; interbeing intelligence; systems thinking; eco-literacy; patience and empathy for self and others; gratitude.
The #inspirator you are endorsing for a future edition of the newsletter is:
India Hamilton (HYPHA & SCOOP Jersey);
Taylor Smythe (HYPHA);
Neal Spackman (Regenerative Resources);
Shariff Abdulla;
Rama Mani (Home for Humanity);
Ashish Kothari (Vikalp Sangam, Global Tapestry of Alternatives, Pluriverse);
Manish Jain (Swaraj University & Ecoversities Alliance)
The quote that inspires you:
“I live my life in widening circles, that reach out across the world”
(Rainer Maria Rilke)
“The cosmos is within us. We are made of star-stuff. We are a way for the universe to know itself.”
(Carl Sagan)
Your own quote that will inspire us:
