Welcome to The Great Turning Initiative at Findhorn!
Our online spiritual education and resource centre is for anyone who is questioning or concerned about the plight of humanity and the planet, and is seeking ways to proactively engage through connection with spirit and like-minded others. Together, we can turn the tide by contributing individually and collectively to the cultivation of a life-affirming global family. We are uniquely positioned to amplify and bring together the great minds, who have dedicated their lives to the pursuit of humanity’s evolution, to help us to navigate the greatest challenges humanity has ever faced by shifting our consciousness to accelerate The Great Turning.
Our Story: The Birth of the Initiative
Like many others around the world, I have been increasingly rocked by the convergence of multiple crises humanity is facing from the global pandemic, to catastrophes resulting from human-caused climate change, to social injustices, to the threat of mass species extinction, including our own.
I have noticed a propensity in me, and those around me, to at times spiral into an abyss of overwhelm, shock, depression, anxiety, fear, anger, powerlessness, paralysis, confusion, hopelessness and despair.
Yet, at the same time, a heightened awareness has been growing in me of the need to empower myself to face the adversity head on and expend my energy contributing to the healing and wholeness of humanity and the planet. I began to look to my personal and professional network for trusted leaders in the areas of deep ecology and human evolution who are already working towards this end.
The potential holistic response to these challenging times is known by many names:
- The Great Awakening
- The Great Transition
- The Great Reunion
- The Great Transformation
- The Great Revolution
- The Great Work
- The New Story.
All point to an evolutionary leap of consciousness required of humanity.
At a time when the mainstream is calling for ‘The Great Reset’ which would be business as usual, further perpetuating ‘The Great Unravelling’ as coined by Deep Ecologist, Joanna Macy, The Great Turning initiative will promote and cultivate a spiritually-awakened, holistic, life-affirming counterpoint to support humanity to navigate the challenges of our times and encourage our evolutionary impulse toward a mature planetary civilisation, as Evolutionary Leader, Duane Elgin aptly puts it.
The Great Turning initiative is for the first time bringing together the visionary work of the giants whose shoulders we stand upon:
- Craig Schindler & Gary Lapid, who first coined the term The Great Turning in 1985;
- Joanna Macy who popularised it through The Work That Reconnects;
- Thomas Berry who championed The Great Work and The New Story;
- David Korten who wrote The Great Turning: From Empire to Earth Community; and
- Duane Elgin who recently wrote about humanity’s Great Transition in Choosing Earth.
These great thinkers will be regular contributors to our Great Turning Blog as well as key speakers on our educational programmes.
We can each play our small part by gathering as like-minded, kindred spirits to hold each other in our fragility and vulnerability through these challenging times. By being together and honouring our pain for our world in crisis, we can come back into balance and serve society from a place of empowerment, evolving spiritual maturity, authenticity and resilience.
A little bit about me
I hold a degree in Psychology and am trained in alternative energy medicine as well as spiritual and personal development. I have over 20 years’ experience in spiritual education and mentoring at Findhorn Ecovillage in the North East of Scotland, where I currently reside. During that time I directed and produced my first feature-length documentary film – An Enquiry into a New Story for Humanity: Change the Story, Change the World. I have specifically been designing and delivering innovative and pioneering educational workshops and, in most recent years, have become proficient in the art of online delivery.
I am a lifelong student of Eastern and Western spiritual and mystical traditions. My focus is spiritual awakening and the evolution of human consciousness from an integrated scientific and esoteric point of view. I am passionate about the potential in moving from our current paradigm of separation and fear to an emerging paradigm of unity and wholeness.
The Visionary Giants Whose Shoulders We Stand Upon
There are countless visionaries around the world who have devoted their lives to the evolution of consciousness. Here are just some of those who have specifically been proponents of The Great Turning and whose voices we seek to amplify.
We recently held a panel discussion with our Great Turning visionaries, which you are warmly invited to view here: https://greatturning.net/an-intimate-discourse-with-visionaries-of-the-great-turning/
Dr. Craig F. Schindler is a nationally known author and speaker; coach and counselor in transformative psychology; conflict resolution expert; executive coach; and former professor of environmental ethics. He is the author of The Great Turning with Dr. Gary Lapid. They were the first to coin the term “The Great Turning” now used around the world to describe the leap of consciousness needed for humanity to survive and thrive. Called a win/win masterpiece, The Great Turning envisions a new era of human dignity, environmental restoration and lasting peace.
Thomas Berry (1914–2009) was one of the twentieth century’s most prescient and profound thinkers. As a cultural historian, he sought a broader perspective on humanity’s relationship to Earth in order to respond to the ecological and social challenges of our times. Berry urged humans to recognise their place on a planet with complex ecosystems in a vast evolving universe. He sought to replace the modern alienation from nature with a sense of intimacy and responsibility.
Joanna Macy PhD, is a scholar of Buddhism, general systems theory, and deep ecology. A respected voice in the movements for peace, justice, and ecology, she interweaves her scholarship with five decades of activism. The author of World as Lover, World as Self, Coming Back to Life, Active Hope and ten other books, she is the root teacher of the Work That Reconnects, a ground-breaking theoretical framework and workshop methodology for personal and social change. Joanna is also a Findhorn Fellow. Photo credit: Adam Loften.
David C. Korten holds MBA and PhD degrees from the Stanford Business School. He is a former member of the faculties of the Harvard Graduate School of Business and the Harvard Graduate School of Public Health. For 21 years, he lived and worked as an economic development professional in Ethiopia, Central America, the Philippines, and Indonesia. He is founder and president of the Living Economics Forum and co-founder and board chair emeritus of YES! Media. His books include Change the Story, Change the Future: A Living Economy for a Living Earth, and the international best sellers When Corporations Rule the World and The Great Turning: From Empire to Earth Community.
Duane Elgin is an internationally recognized speaker, author and social visionary who looks beneath the surface turbulence of our times to explore the deeper trends that are transforming our world. His books include: The Living Universe, Voluntary Simplicity, Promise Ahead, Awakening Earth, Humanity’s Journey Home: Learning to Live in a Living Universe, and most recently, Choosing Earth: Humanity’s Great Transition to a Mature Planetary Civilisation.
Join Our Inaugural Online Self-Study Programme: The Great Turning Experiment
If you are nourished by our panel discussion, you may also be inspired to join our Great Turning Experiment, online from Findhorn in self-study format. All of our panelists have joined as session speakers to delve more deeply into how to navigate and actualise The Great Turning.
Join Us Online for Our Latest SELF-STUDY Programme
Join Us Online for Our Next LIVE Programme
