Ecopsychology Presentations

Public Lectures, Conference Presentations, & Participatory Events

on topics related to

Spiritual Ecopsychology

Upcoming: 

• Psychology of Wilderness Experience course for Naropa University’s MA program in Transpersonal Psych/Ecopsychology, with co-guide Scott Brown. Includes a three-day fasting solo. June 13-20, 2012, Colorado. (Not open to the public.)

• I’ve recently moved from the North Bay area of California to Boulder, Colorado to teach transpersonal ecopsychology at Naropa University, a wonderful institution dedicated to contemplative education.  Once I get my feet under me, I’ll offer both individual support and group practices in spiritual ecopsychology. If you are interested in working with me, write me a brief email and I’ll keep you posted. I’m also seeking new local allies and venues for collaborative projects.

Selected Past:

•  “We Ain’t Got No Wildlife Here”: Transformative Effects of a Contemplative Assignment in Ecoliteracy.  Chosen by Naropa University as of three “Green Papers” on Contemplative Education and Ecological Sustainability for President Obama’s campus challenge. Green Papers presentation at Naropa’s Arapahoe Campus, Boulder, CO, September 2012.

• Psychology of Wilderness Experience course for Naropa University’s MA program in Transpersonal Psych/Ecopsychology, with guest co-guide Maria Owl Gutierrez and assistant Scott Brown. Includes a three-day fasting solo. June 18-24, 2012, Colorado. (Not open to the public.)

• Pagan Chanting Circle.  Join professors Tina Fields and Anne Parker in a pagan circle to offer gratitude for this moment in the wheel of the year. Together we will sing many beloved, inspired and beautiful chants from various pagan paths to connect with the earth, the seasons, our deepest selves and more.   Naropa Unversity’s Nalanda Campus, Boulder CO.  Community Practice Day: March 6, 2012,  1 – 2:30 pm.

• Chieftain, Peasant, Shrub and Bramble: Indigenous Irish Relationship with Trees.  “In contrast to the contemporary industrial growth society’s view of plants as nonsentient beings to be used or killed at will for our own benefit, the complex indigenous legal system known in Ireland as the Brehon Law, used from prehistory up until the 17th century, delineated penalties for mistreating trees and shrubs that were not dissimilar from the penalties for mistreating other humans. This paper describes these and discusses some environmental ramifications of animistic vs. inanimistic cultural consciousness.” In panel, “Botanical Influences on Cultural Consciousness.” February 10, 2012. Society for the Anthropology of Consciousness annual conference.  Millenium Harvest House, Boulder, CO.

•  At the same conference, I also moderated the panel on Teaching Consciousness: Strategies from the Field and Class, which featured a number of Naropa faculty speaking about transformative work with students in the wilderness.

• SEED Institute’s Language of Spirit conference: A Dialogue Exploring the Nature of Reality from Indigenous and Western Science Perspectives. This brings Native elders, linguists, physicists, & other scholars and visionaries together to discuss a topic in depth. This year’s topic: Science, Technology & Creativity – how technology has impacted our essential humanness. Your worldview may never be the same again, and you’ll like it that way.  Aug 14-16, 2011,  Albuquerque NM.

• Hardly “Common:” Crows and Ravens in Folklore & Spiritual Contexts.  Join me for an engaging presentation about the Corvidae, focusing mainly on crows and ravens. Here on this continent, crows have assimilated to human life wonderfully, whereas in Hawai’i, the native crow is nearly extinct. Why? After learning the basics about the birds and their lives, we’ll look at crows & ravens’ appearance in folklore and spiritual context cross-culturally. This will include Crow’s role as a family spirit helper in Hawaii, and Raven as Trickster among Pacific Northwest tribes, in relationship with an ancient Norse deity, and observed for divination omens in such diverse places as Britain and Tibet.  Please bring your own tales about any of the Corvidae to share.   Napa-Solano Audubon Society monthly meeting, open to the public.  April 12, 2011, 7-9 pm, Vallejo, CA.

• Trance Induction through Contra Dance: Weaving Communitas. American Anthropological Association conference, Nov 17-21, 2010 .  New Orleans, LA.

• Bringing Earth Reverence into Everyday Life. (Co-presented with Maria Owl Gutierrez.)  Mending Our Relations with the Natural World, the first conference of the Earth Medicine Alliance.  First Unitarian Universalist Church, San Francisco, Nov. 6, 2010 .  Blog Post with Details & PDF brochure link

• Language of Spirit conference: A Dialogue Exploring the Nature of Reality from Indigenous and Western Science Perspectives. Invited “inner circle” participant.  Theme: Time Travel! Albuquerque, NM, Aug 14-17, 2010.  PDF brochure

• “We Ain’t Got No Wildlife in Marin City”: The Use of Epistemological Story in Teaching Ecoliteracy. Society for the Anthropology of Consciousness (SAC) conference.  U.C. Berkeley, CA, March 2010.   PDF Brochure

• Enchantment – Employing Song to Shift Consciousness. Experiential workshop, Society for the Anthropology of Consciousness (SAC) conference.  U.C. Berkeley, CA, March 2010.   PDF Brochure

• Eco-Anxiety. Radio interviews for the News, with Will Sterrett.  KTRH 740 (Texas), July 29, 2008.

• Biospheric Family Values: A Foray into Spiritual Ecopsychology. The Great Turning: Education, Leadership and Activism for a Life Sustaining Civilization conference.  Geneva Point Conference Center, Moultonboro, NH, October 2007.

• Wearing the Other’s Skin: The Great Selchie (in Story, Song, and Lived Experience). Occidental Arts & Ecology Center (OAEC) Chautauqua.  Occidental CA, Sept. 8-9, 2006.

• Ecopsychology. Radio interview for The Ecology Hour, with Samantha Abbott & Chris Skyhawk.  KZYX (Mendocino CA), August 15, 2006.

• Kumu Pohaku (Stones as Teachers): Awakening to the Spiritual Dimension of Ecosystems. International Society for the Systems Sciences (ISSS). Theme: Complexity, Democracy,  & Sustainability.  Sonoma State University, CA, July 2006.

• Wildlife Neighbors.  Storytelling & song about our local wildlife neighbors, for grades 2-5.  Sonoma County Library, May 2006.

• Tears for Mother Earth’s Child: The Fragile Desert as Victim of the Iraq Invasion. Mother’s Day Rally for Peace, co-sponsored by CodePink. Courthouse Square, Santa Rosa CA, May 14, 2006.

• Indigenous Wisdom and Alternative Healing. Earth Day College for high school students, sponsored by the Green MBA Program, New College of CA, North Bay Campus. May 2005.

• Ecology and Consciousness. Panel presentation. EcoFest, Sebastopol CA, October 3, 2004.

• Education for Sustainability. Thoreau Center for Sustainability. “Pizza and Politics” series. San Francisco CA, July 20, 2004.

• Education for a Just, Sacred, and Sustainable World. “Reclaim the Commons – Deconstructing Empire” Teach-In and Conference. (Numerous locations in San Francisco, CA), June 2004.

• “What About MY Environment?” –  Incorporating Environmental Justice Issues into Environmental Education. North American Association for Environmental Education (NAAEE) conference. Two-day experiential workshop in Toward the Just City strand, team-taught with Brian Johnson.  Boston, MA, August 2002.

• Volatile Spirits: Ecological Imbalance & Supernatural Assault in Contemporary America. In Challenging the Institutionalized Sacred panel (presented in absentia). American Anthropological Association, Washington D.C., November 2001.

• With a Blindfold On: An Ecopsychological/Animistic Critique of Neo-Shamanic Practices. Society for the Anthropology of Consciousness.  Portland OR, March 1998.

• The Role of Collective Story in Ecological Behavior Modification on the Island of Bali. Northern California Women’s Caucus: Religious Studies. Spring Meeting. Pacific School of Religion, Berkeley CA, May 1997.

• Earth’s Blood. Blood Magick Art Ritual (In Celebration of Menstruation/Menopause). The Lab, San Francisco CA, June 1996.

• Shifting Historical Perceptions of Other Animals, as Seen through Cross-Cultural Mythologies and Art. (Lecture and slide show.) Mythopoeic Society conference, Univ. of Colorado at Boulder, July 1996.

• Weed Women (Wildcrafting and Preparation of Herbal Remedies). Gardnerville NV, 1987-89.

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