Type of Method
• Meditation - Spiritual Guidance
• Coaching - Transformation - Philosophy
Suitable for
The Work That reconnects is a group workshop process that connects people and brings forth inspiration and active hope, out of separation, fear, anxiety and hopelessness. The Work is based in the Buddhist and Systems Theory teachings of Joanna Macy. The Work That reconnects is a process to re-connect us with ourselves, each other and the Earth, and to find inspired, compelling actions which each person can take.
The workshops all follow a common pattern or process which is a spiral of four stages, these are; Coming From Gratitude, Honouring our Pain for the World, Seeing with New Eyes, and Going Forth. Each stage prepares the next, and has a menu of tried and tested exercises, tools and processes which facilitators can choose from, so that the spiral can take anything from a couple of hours to a weekend, or the entire lifetime of a project.
In each workshop and in each stage, participants are invited to navigate, express and share their own emotions and insights about the state of the world, and the resources and tools available to them to work towards what Joanna Macy calls “The Great Turning”. As a group process each participant’s experience is greatly expanded and deepened by sharing.
The Great Turning is not guaranteed, and will not happen without the Great Unravelling (collapse) and provides tools to explore how to get out of destructive Business As Usual, and invest ourselves more fully into what we care for, accepting uncertainty and the unknown with compassion in our hearts.
The Great Turning is well underway even as the great Unravelling accelerates. The Great Turning is composed of three mutually reinforcing dimensions each of which is necessary to the creation of a life-sustaining society; 1/ To slow the damage to Earth and its beings 2/ analysis and transformation of the foundations of our common life; and 3/ a fundamental shift in world-view and values. Workshop participants who are called or inspired to act or commit to one or more of these dimensions, get to understand that others are inspired by and committing to other dimensions, which together make up the totality of the Great Turning.
Workshops can be held open for the public, or for existing (closed) groups, projects, companies and so on, in an appropriate time scale. Ask a facilitator if they can hold a workshop in your area, or for your company or group or where you might find a workshop to participate in. The body of work and skills is open source, facilitators may have been trained, or may have learned by involvement and doing. More information can be found here and Jem Bendell held a live Q&A with Joanna Macy which can be found here
Guides using this Method
Matthew Painton
Deep Adaptation Coaching
I specialise in coaching people in the Deep Adaptation network who are suffering with ‘bigger-than-s …
Inna Alex
WTR Facilitator, Permaculture educator, Yoga teacher, MSc Env Management
I have been teaching workshops & retreats in the Work That Reconnects (WTR) in New Zealand & …
Jenny Rose Smith
Deep Listener; Hakomi therapist in training. Trauma sensitive meditation instructor.
As I have become older I have increasingly known that slowing down, simplifying and working more wit …
Fernando García Ferreiro
Experienced beginner
I have been an Experienced Beginner since I left my job as Director Health and Well-being at the Eur …
Claudia Junker
Learning & Development expert, Systemic consultant, Coach
(English version below) Was finden wir auf der anderen Seite, wenn wir durch die Verzweiflung und di …
Gwyneth Jones
Deep Adaptation and Resilience Coach, Work That Reconnects facilitator
I help guide people through the emotional and spiritual journey of dealing with climate collapse, an …