The Power of Play and Gathering
Footprint Notes, 3/4/19
Greetings Friends!
Thank you for joining us at Footprint to Wings as we stoke the Race to Zero Carbon, now in progress.
Here are the links, thoughts, and articles that we have shared in the Newsletter, which is free and goes out from time to time.
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Without further ado — Enjoy!
What We’re Listening To:
💚 Jill Vialet TED Talk: The Power of Play. (Warning: You may experience a moistening of the eyes.) “We were built to play.”
💚 WeatherGeeks Podcast “Running Toward Environmental Change” featuring former NFL pro bowl running back Ovie Mughelli and introducing Gridiron Green, a new climate superhero. Some super relevant quotes:
“As a father, the reason I played ball is so I can give them the best house, and the best car, and the best car seat, and the best crib and the best food and the best everything. I can’t even give them the best planet. You want to give your kids the world. I could not give my kids the world.”
“That’s unacceptable to me. It should be unacceptable to every single parent. To every human being who lives on this planet. To say that, you know what, I’ll let someone else deal with it. I’ll let someone else take care of it. It’s like an NFL player saying “I’m going to wait for someone else to make a play.” No team wins when people have the mentality that someone else will figure it out.”
💚 Joan Garry Podcast: “How A Film Festival Impacts Community” — insightful and inspiring on many levels! First, it’s a practical look at the work of building a nonprofit. Apparently, the board is key! Listen to the podcast, and then help us find candidates for our dream board! Second, it validates what we are trying to do. The zero carbon coaching clinic, like a film festival, is a way to build community. Done right, it does far more than simply “educate” people about climate options.
On that note, Joan mentioned this really cool book…
“The Art of Gathering: How We Meet and Why It Matters” by Priya Parker, packed with practical advice on how to make events more satisfying. SPOILER ALERT: It’s not by focusing on the logistics, but on the larger purpose of the gathering.
Some quotes:
“When we do seek out gathering advice, we almost always turn to those who are focused on the mechanics of gathering: chefs, etiquette experts, floral artists, event planners. By doing so, we inadvertently shrink a human challenge down to a logistical one…
“I come to gatherings not as a chef or an event planner, but as someone trained in group dialogue and conflict resolution…
“My job is to put the right people in a room and help them to collectively think, dream, argue, heal, envision, trust, and connect for a specific larger purpose. My lens on gathering — and the lens I want to share with you — places people and what happens between them at the center of every coming together.
“In my work, I strive to help people experience a sense of belonging”
AMEN!
This is what we’re striving for with the Race to Zero Carbon, and especially with how we set up the Zero Carbon Coaching Clinic. The purpose of these clinics is to create a dynamic space for people to solve climate breakdown together. Candidly and systematically and with joy. It’s not just about the problem — it’s about building a thriving community that faces it together. Team building! National pastime building! Culture building! Belonging!
Is this work you agree with?
Jump in and help take it all the way!
- You can help us find and recruit the Dream Team! Perhaps you know some good candidates, perhaps YOU are a candidate!
- You can help us with funds to fuel the work! Your contribution makes it happen!
- You can help spread the word! On social media (Tweet this post!) and in live conversations!
To zero carbon and beyond!
