Work that Reconnects
An introduction to the spiral of the “Work that Reconnects” after Joanna Macy
“When I let myself really take in what I know about the state of the world, my first response is unspeakable grief. […] But when my anger comes into its full power, grounded and familiar to me, it can grow into a lifelong task of changing things.”
– Donella Meadows (our translation)
In Joanna Macy's work, gratitude is the first step of the spiral of the “Work that Reconnects”. Not understood as obligatory optimism, but as a way of reassuring ourselves of what gives us strength.
This workshop introduces the qualities of pain: grief is also the capacity to love and to connect. Anger is also the ground of the longing for justice. Fear presupposes the longing for connection. And emptiness makes room for something new. The next step is about ordering things anew.
This includes the “three stories of our time”: business as usual, the great unravelling — and the great turning, in which political action, structural change and a shift in consciousness work together. Different perspectives on power and community are reflected on as well.
The final step is called “going forth into action” and helps us to focus our political work more clearly.
The concrete design is adapted to the topic, the group and the occasion.
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