by Frieda Nixdorf and Jo delAmor, Staff Weavers

The Work That Reconnects Network is delighted to announce a new volunteer member of our Weavers team and the Deep Times journal team: Carmen Rumbaut.

Here’s a bit of her story:

I entered WTR via my friends in Buddhism in 2017 while living in the Seattle area [Washington State, USA], and quickly began to facilitate gatherings (both live and online); attend the beginnings of the Anti-Oppression Resource Group; and serve as a member of the editing team for Deep Times journal. My background before that was in climate change activism. I was trained through Al Gore’s Climate Reality Leadership, but became aware back when Jimmy Carter was president [1977-81]. I was a child immigrant, am a retired social worker and attorney, and am bilingual Spanish/English. What brings me joy: meditating, studying mystics, painting, drawing, writing songs, playing guitar, singing in a Unitarian Universalist choir, publishing poetry and stories, visiting my granddaughters and emailing my five siblings. 

Also this month, Paula Hendrick is retiring after five years as a volunteer Weaver. We have valued Paula’s steady presence and thoughtful contributions to the development of the Network. We will miss her on the Weavers team but we are excited that she’ll continue to offer her skills as a member of our Communications Committee.

And, speaking of volunteers, 17 people have recently stepped up to serve on our Gaian Gathering committee, joining our administrative staff and core volunteer members. The enthusiasm, energy, and skills of this globally diverse team are awesome!

Save the Date for the Gaian Gathering!

The Gaian Gathering will be a dynamic and inspiring five day online global gathering held from November 1st through November 5th, 2023. It will be an opportunity for our global WTR community to learn, experience and engage together, as well as a chance to celebrate the Work That Reconnects and Joanna Macy as she approaches her 95th birthday. 

This global summit will be a combination of online events and guided gatherings of local communities around the world. Beyond the typical online summit experience, this gathering will include inspiring and educational content, opportunities to practice WTR together, training for community members to up-level their skills and facilitated conversations for collaborative learning.

Our Gaian Gathering coordinator, Shala Massey, has been doing an excellent job guiding the process and collaborating with our team of dedicated volunteers and Network staff to put all the pieces together. As we work behind the scenes to connect with speakers and WTR Facilitators, dream up inspiring and creative ways to connect with each other and see the plan start coming together, we can hardly wait to share it with you all. 

Stay tuned for the updates and information we’ll be sharing with you over the next couple of months as we come closer to this special event!