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Exploring the Universe Story through Myth and Ritual

$35.00

Jane Riddiford & Rod Sugden
Level(s):ages 6-106
Available!  2 PD Hours

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KONICA MINOLTA DIGITAL CAMERARodSugden

with Jane Riddiford and Rod Sugden
CPD Hours: 2
Level(s): From 6 to 106
Webcasts Available Now!

                    People everywhere are searching, asking: What is the new mythology to be, the mythology of this unified Earth as one harmonious being?  — Joseph Campbell.

For the universe to become meaningful we must find the personal in the cosmos. — Teilhard de Chardin

 

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How do we make the story of a vast universe personal?

In this presentation you will learn how the Universe Story can become meaningful and personal through creative engagement with it. You will see the remarkable work of Rod Sugden and Dr. Jane Riddiford in inner city London with their colleagues at environmental education charity Global Generation; and how they introduced the Universe Story to primary and secondary pupils through Big Bang Summer Schools and Space and Nature workshops. They will share the ways they have combined science and myth, imagination and practical action through involving young people in story, rituals and practical experiences of caring for the planet. You will see how young people have discovered meaning, purpose and direction by recognizing this enormous story as their own story.

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A New Mythic Story and Values

Rod and Jane explore the role that myths have played for all cultures and how the story emerging in science today IS a new creation story that can play the same role.  In their own teaching, instead of trying to shoe horn the Universe Story into the curriculum they have made the Story of the Universe the primary context for all learning.

This program is an introduction to the role of mythic stories — and the Universe Story in particular —  as carriers of values and rituals as ways of grounding and embodying meaning. It’s an opportunity to learn about and participate in practices they have used to cultivate artful ways of connecting to the Universe Story with young people and adults, schools and businesses in inner city London, e.g. storytelling, deep time walks, sitting still, free fall writing, and spending time by the fire.  Students co-create their own mythic interpretation of this epic adventure.

 

On Being Indigenous to the Cosmos and Deeply Relating to the Land

Jane talks about how for her the Universe Story overlapped with Maori cosmology and helped her to become indigenous to the Cosmos and to have a meaningful relationship to the land.  Numerous other values in the story are explored such as ways to become comfortable being part of a story in which uncertainty plays such a central part, and the end is not yet written.  How do we see generosity, giving of self, and developing healthy boundaries inside this new story.  What can this new understanding of a a radically creative universe inform our understanding of leadership?

 

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Rituals and Activities Included in this program:

Weaving
Working With the Timeline
Sitting Still
Finding Values in Nature
Free Fall Writing
Making Bread
Sharing Story
Planet

Bread started with water and water started with a love affair between hydrogen and oxygen.

— A participant in a Global Generation workshop

 

You will take away . . .
* Fresh excitement about the Universe Story.
* New meaning and Understanding
* Ways to apply values within the Universe Story to one’s life
* Creative ways to explore the Universe Story and have fun sharing with others.

 

Deep Time Education opens our hearts and minds to a huge perspective on life and provides meaning and purpose through a genealogy that connects us to the soil , the stars and everything In between, enabling us to feel that nature is our family.  — Jane Riddiford and Rod Sugden

 

Bio(s):

Rod Sugden has been a primary school teacher in the public and private sector for the last 14 years. He now divides his time between Dallington School and delivering educational programs for Global Generation. Over the last five years I have introduced children and young people to the Universe Story and have found that they have a deep enthusiasm and connection to learning about who they are and what they are a part of.

Jane Riddiford has more than 25 years of experience in delivering environmental, arts & vocational training projects in New Zealand & the UK. She is the Founding Director of Global Generation. Bringing different parts of the community together through connecting to nature in the widest sense of the word has been a consistent thread throughout her working life.  In 2016, Jane was awarded a Doctorate in Organizational Change from Ashridge Business School.  Her inquiry drew on experiences within Global Generation and focused on how the living story of ecology and the wider cosmos can support collaborative approaches to leadership within an organization.

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Reviews (1)

1 review for Exploring the Universe Story through Myth and Ritual

  1. Jennifer Morgan

    It was a great summary of my extraordinary experience at the Dallas Montessori Conference. I am so excited to learn this work and to feel a part of this educational movement.

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Anthony Robert Zelle, Esq., Tony is an Earth lawyer. While serving as Chair and President of the Earth Law Center, following 30 years in private practice trying cases and arguing appeals, he served as lead editor and author of the only comprehensive book on the subject: Earth Law: Emerging Ecocentric Law-A Guide for Practitioners. Developed for law school curricula, and now part of developing LLM programs internationally, the book has also become the primary reference source for practitioners.

The focus of Tony's current work is developing Earth law in practice and creating revenue-generating opportunities for Earth lawyers.

Learn more about Tony’s journey from a recent Boston College Law School Magazine profile.https://lawmagazine.bc.edu/2025/02/voice-for-the-earth/

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Maisie Paddon, Maisie is spearheading the advancement of Earth Law by integrating its principles into transformative policies and business strategies that resonate with Earth-centric practices and Nature's patterns. At the helm of Project 2040, she seeks to revolutionize financial systems, foster circular economies, and develop regenerative food systems. Her extensive experience in top-tier management consulting, with roles at Ernst & Young and Capgemini, showcases her ability to lead complex innovation programs and engage with C-suite leaders. With a solid foundation in Philosophy and Climate Science, Maisie is deeply committed to beneficial systemic change. She champions the inclusion of Nature's voice in discussions that tackle the multifaceted crises of today's modern world, while aligning her efforts with global frameworks like UN SDGs, ESG principles, and ISO standards. Her holistic and emotionally intelligent approach underscores her pursuit of sustainable and equitable solutions.

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Kerry Hudson, Hudson works as an activist and public interest lawyer with a focus on social justice, and an academic and employment history addressing heirs' property reform and protections of the Florida aquifer. He served as co-founder and manager for a medical practice that focused on Environmentally Acquired Diseases, and the effects of that most macro of human phenomenon—climate change, on the most granular, personal issues—individual health and the chronic and intractable maladies brought on by changing climate. He has served as Education Director for Rights of Nature and eco-centric education, creating informational content addressing topics such as environmental protections and property law, and the Public Trust Doctrine, and creating supplemental educational content for the law school textbook Earth Law: A Practitioner’s Guide. He holds an MFA in writing, has a publication history with both fiction and non-fiction, and has authored funded grants examining strategies to mitigate generational heirs' property abuses. He holds a J.D. with a focus on Environmental Justice, social equity, and restorative justice and has created informational and educational content addressing the intersection of environmental and legal issues such as the one-percenters' climate change preparations. Currently based in London, He works on a long-form manuscript addressing the importance of property law, social justice, and the climate change crisis.

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April Elizabeth Finlayson, April Elizabeth Finlayson is an “Edu-neer” dedicated to designing holistic and transformational learning experiences. She has a fervent commitment to reimagining education, promoting lifelong learning and creating uniquely curated, humanizing educational experiences for youth, and the young at heart. This has led to the development of nearly a dozen innovative schools and numerous educational programs in the K-12, after-school learning, adult development and Higher-Ed spaces.

April’s style of leadership and service is rooted in making space for learner voice, agency and empowerment. She believes that the best teaching and learning is reciprocal, interwoven and interchangeable. April asserts that “if a learner knows that they are seen, affirmed, “in-powered” and protected while learning, they will feel loved, and will henceforth thrive!”

April's students and graduates have gone on to international and national renown in philanthropy, entrepreneurship, professional athletics, entertainment, and being great, enjoyable people. April was cross culturally raised and educated between The Bahamas, the USA and Canada. She completed her undergraduate degree in International Development Studies, Political Science and Management from McGill University, and earned both her Master's Degree in Mind, Brain and Education and her Doctorate Degree in Education Leadership from Harvard Graduate School of Education.

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Tara A. Pierce, Tara holds degrees in painting, the humanities, a J.D., and an LL.M. in Oceans, Environment, & Sustainability. This transdisciplinary background enriched her legal studies and contributed to the successful publication of several papers on Earth Law and Restorative Ocean Farming. Her latest thesis synthesised her entire academic and hands-on experiences into an approach to transforming the law into a healing practice. Tara regularly guest lectures on Ocean & Coastal Law developments for various institutions in the United States and Europe.

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Cat Haas, Cat Haas is the Director of the Eco Jurisprudence Monitor (EJM), where she oversees the research and development of the world’s most comprehensive database of ecological jurisprudence initiatives globally. Since 2022, she has led efforts to document and analyze the global evolution of Earth-centered law, with a particular focus on the Rights of Nature movement, ecological law, and Indigenous ontologies. Cat holds an M.A. in Global Studies from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where her research explored the influence of Indigenous cosmologies and pluriversal ontologies on the development and globalization of the Rights of Nature movement.
She also serves on the Steering Committee of the Global Alliance for the Rights of Nature (GARN) Academic Hub, an interdisciplinary network of scholars specializing in ecological law and governance.
With a background in environmental education, Cat is passionate about fostering awareness and advocacy for sustainable, equitable legal frameworks that address the climate crisis and center ecological well-being

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Ava Roche, Ava is currently a pre-law focused senior at Columbia University studying Political Ecology, conducting her senior thesis on the socio-political effects of deep-sea mining in the Cook Islands. She is attending Columbia University’s Climate School next fall, and aspires to be an earth lawyer, with experience as the student director of the Earth Law Centers, “Earth Law: Emerging Ecocentric Law- a Guide for Practitioners” course last summer. She is an avid scuba diver who is passionate about protecting earths vital oceanic ecosystems, and is interning at Columbia Law Schools, "Sabin Center for Climate Change Law” this coming summer under Michael Gerrard. Above all, she can’t wait to TA with Earth Law Practice and work in such an impactful environment.

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Joseph O’Brien, Joseph recently graduated from Brown University with a concentration in environmental studies. At Brown, he organized an experimental climate negotiation simulation featuring non-human, non-state, and state actors. With a background in regenerative agriculture, political theory, and contemplative education, he is excited to support this year's cohort jump into the chaotic, beautiful, and generative world of Earth Law.

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Janet Marley is completing an MA in Ecopsychology at Naropa University. She is currently researching styles of governance in traditional indigenous societies of Turtle Island and how such wisdom ways can positively influence modern ecocentric regenerative residential communities and bioregional initiatives. She has a BA in Religious Studies from Brown University. Janet is a community organizer with an abiding interest in designing and co-creating intentional living and learning centers that model and teach connection, communication, and reciprocity with the natural world. Her gifts and roles include Teacher, Naturalist, Healer, Event Producer, and Facilitator of ceremony, council, rites of passage, vision quests, ecotherapy, and trauma integration work. She is a Montessori-trained educator and mom of two young children. She currently serves as a board member for The Circle for Change Initiative and is the Director of Programming and Events at the Manitoulin Eco Park, an indigenous-led nature connection facility in Ontario, Canada.

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