Welcome to the final episode of my Witches New Year Podcast Retreat! As you likely know by now, I have a new book coming out in January 2025 called Spells for the Apocalypse: Practical Magic for Turbulent Times. In this episode, you'll get all the tea on how this book came to be, learn what advanced readers like Colette Baron-Reid and Asha Frost had to say about it, and hear excerpts from two chapters: a ritual on facing Fear, and an invocation for Wholeness.

Referenced in this episode:

The Soul's Code: In Search of Character and Calling, James Hillman

Colette Baron-Reid's Enchanted Map Oracle Deck

You Are The Medicine: 13 Moons of Indigenous Wisdom, Asha Frost

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🎉 This episode is for all the collapse nerds! 🎉

🛑 Content warning 🛑: Frank discussion of near-term scientifically accepted and expected climate crises. For all the folks who feel fragile and might be tipped into a downward spiral, maybe skip this one, yeah?

I've invited collapse astrologer, Hummingbird Star, from @astrologyfortherevolution to join us for Witches New Year to do our year ahead overview. 👏🏻 

Given where we're at in the grand scheme of things, I asked Hummingbird to scan the medium-term horizon to help us understand what the Hermit year might be preparing us for on a collective scale. We're not only touching on topics we may want to contemplative in our collective Hermit year, but also the personal question of what role we wish to play in the revolution.

In this episode, we touch on the Neptunian shifts we should be tracking and much, much more.

Check out Hummingbird's website: www.astrologyfortherevolution.com Instagram: www.instagram.com/astrologyfortherevolution YouTube: www.youtube.com/@collapseastrology

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***

NOTE: In this episode, we talk about the potential failure of the AMOC (Atlantic meridional overturning circulation) and since I was speaking off the cuff, there's a danger that this could be spread as misinformation.

So to be clear: Here's a really nice, succinct and digestible explanation of what the AMOC is, and a nice, succinct, and conservative interpretation of what the shutdown would do, from The Guardian (Oct 23, 2024):

"AMOC, or the Atlantic meridional overturning circulation, is a system of ocean currents that brings heat into the northern Atlantic. Warm surface water from the tropics flows north and releases its heat in the subpolar Atlantic, south of Greenland and west of Britain and Ireland. Then it cools and sinks to a depth of between 2,000m to 3,000 metres before returning south as a cold current. Amoc is one of our planet’s largest heat transport systems, moving the equivalent of 50 times the human energy use, and it has a particularly strong impact on the climate in Europe, affects the ocean’s CO2 uptake and oxygen supply, as well as rainfall patterns in the tropics."

"The effects (of a shutdown) include a cooling of the northern hemisphere, particularly northwestern Europe. There would also be a shift of the tropical rainfall belt to the south, which is bad because the rains will move away from the rainforests to regions that are not used to so much rainfall. So this will mean droughts in some regions and floods in others.

AMOC collapse would also have a major impact on the northern Atlantic sea level, which would rise by half a metre or so, in addition to the rise caused by global heating. It would also reduce the CO2 uptake of the ocean because AMOC sinking in the northern Atlantic takes a lot of CO2 down into the deep oceans where it is safely locked away from the atmosphere.

AMOC collapse would also change the nutrient supply and reduce the oxygen of the deep oceans. This would have a massive effect on marine biology and the entire ecosystem of the northern Atlantic."

Generally speaking, what climate scientists in the past had predicated would not happen until after 2050 is happening now, 30 years earlier. It's not that much of a stretch then, to say that what they predicted would happen *before* 2050 will occur a decade earlier. So the possible range of hitting a tipping point to an AMOC shutdown was predicted to be somewhere between 2030 and 2075, or the end of the century as the very outside possibility of it taking that long.

So that puts the tipping point to shutdown right around... now.

Learn more about the AMOC shutdown from collapse expert, Sharon Astyk

 

Welcome back to the second of this teensy tiny Tarot miniseries. Remember, we're continuing our Tarot journey in The Numinous Network throughout the fall and into the new year. Join us for this deep dive! All classes are recorded and archived with no time limit for viewing.

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In Part 2 of my conversation with Holly, we explore collapse grief and death rituals in COVID times, and share fairly extensively about why Transformative Justice and community accountability is such an important aspect of collapse preparedness. We get into some detail about concerns we have over being two cis white women leading a diverse community, and, some ways we are hoping to mitigate that and reduce possible harm. We also share about the importance of play and creativity in collapse work.

In the first minutes of this episode, I make a reference to a Netflix action series that perhaps many will not have heard of: Altered Carbon. I super love the show, for so many reasons not the least of which is the incredible fight choreograhy that features incredible women of colour as lead characters – so badass!

I also reference Sarah Kerr at soul passages.ca as one of my teachers.

Find out more about the Threshold community here.

Register for my Numinous Quest Online here.

Holly is a psychotherapist and a lawyer, and what she calls a “collapsitarian” – she’s spent a long time tracking collapse from multiple perspectives and coalesced her observations into a framework she calls collapse psychology. You can get a sense of that framework by visiting collapse psychology.org Holly approached me in early 2017 and our relationship since then has blossomed into friendship both online and in physical presence, we’ve witnessed each other in grief and pain, but also had a chance to stay up late drinking and laughing. And whether we’re crying or laughing, the topic always somehow comes around to the collapse of empire and large scale convergent emergencies. Find out more about the Threshold community here. Learn about The Numinous Quest Online here.

I'm talking with Mimi Young about clairolfaction, wonderful plant allies for pandemic times, and how to work with tea in a magical – even ancestral – way. Mimi is a shamanic intuitive and founder of Ceremonie (@shopceremonie), an esoteric brand focusing on in-person and online core shamanic and occult education, Remote Shamanic Readings, and plant potions for skin and aura. Mimi works with a blend of modalities including core shamanism, plant spirit healing, chao magick, and Chinese esoterics, with a focus on healing through shadows, dream work, divination, ancestral connection, and psychic development. She is also a neurofeedback practitioner (@openmindsperformance), where she supports others in accessing their peak via neurological resilience.

Check out all of Mimi's offerings here.

Follow her on Instagram: @shopceremonie

 

Find out about doing neurofeedback with Mimi here.

Learn about joining the online Mystery Mentorship Program here.

The book she referenced is For All The Tea In China, by Sarah Rose. 

 

Follow me on Instagram @carmenspagnola Check out my Intuitive Business (And Life) Planning Workshop

Bear is a life coach, artist, and social justice educator who helps socially conscious humans align their actions with their values. In their coaching and teaching, they apply a feminist, anti-racist, anti-capitalist lens. In this episode, I ask them about their gender journey to using they/them pronouns, and we talk about interlocking systems of oppression, call out culture, and wanting healing for people who cause harm without necessarily wanting to be a part of that healing. 

Content Warning: We do touch on sexual violence, capital punishment, and more, but we also take stretch breaks and pauses for breath as we do so. Remember to pause the recording if you feel yourself tensing up or becoming very activated.

Bearcoaches.com Undoingpatriarchy.com

Caliban And The Witch by Silvia Federici

Combahee River Collective and How We Get Free: Black Feminism and the Combahee River Collective by Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor

Alternate ROOTS alternateroots.org Info about the online version of ROOTS Week

Selected Poems of Nikki Giovanni

Killers Of The Dream by Lillian Smith

The Farm: Angola, USA

13th, Ava DuVernay

bell hooks on “white supremacist capitalist patriarchy”

Whiteness At Work, Desiree Adaway with Jessica Fish and Erika Hines

Beverly Daniel Tatum, author of Why Are All The Black Kids Sitting Together In The Cafeteria?  on diversity as an aftereffect of a lifelong commitment to the self-named struggles of people of color

Philly Stands Up zine

Beyond Survival book

"The Opposite Of Rape Culture Is Nurturance Culture" and Turn This World Inside Out by Nora Samaran

“No one enters violence for the first time having committed it.” -Danielle Sered, quoted by Mariame Kabe

Jasmine Richardson and Eliza Robertson are an astrology team who make their home online at KosmicTonic.com. Today we’re talking about what the astrology looked like leading up to 2020 that might have revealed something big like a global pandemic was coming, and looking ahead to the outlook for the rest of 2020 and beyond. How did we get here and where are we going?

We begin with a resource round up of highly recommended modern astrologers to follow and learn from:

ISAR Kaitlin Coppock at Sphere and Sundry Nina Gryphon Demetra George Chris Brennan - The Astrology Podcast  Gray Crawford Barbara Hand Clow - Journeys Through Nine Dimensions Fortune’s Wheelhouse Podcast Wesly Feuquay - Psylogia

We also look at what stands out to be aware of for Fall/Winter of 2020/21. We look at Mars Retrograde (Sept 9 - Nov 13), possible advancements in science, America's progress on its' Pluto return, and eclipses at the end of 2020 (Nov 30 and Dec 14) which set the tone for 2021. 

Book consultations with Jasmine and Eliza at kosmictonic.com and follow them on Instagram @kosmictonic and on Twitter @kosmic_tonic 

Register now for my Intuitive Business (And Life) Planning Workshop on September 26, 2020.

Eric Tyrone is the founder of Soul Dreamers and the creator of the "Get Woke In Your Dream-Time" Masterclass. In the past, Eric ran a non-profit called "Awakening Through Art", founded a mindfulness App, and was a co-facilitator of a nationwide meetup called EcoTuesday. In this episode we talk about the purpose of dreaming, how to interpret your dreams and heal through dreamwork, and we even do a little on the spot interpretation of a slightly anxious dream I had about a tarantula and my son.

Listeners can save $100 off his 4-Week “Get Woke In Your Dream-Time” Live Group Masterclass by using the coupon code: DREAMS333

Find the next start date at www.soul-dreamers.com 

Follow Eric on Instagram @_Soul_Dreamers

 

Find out more about the Threshold community here.

Darius Mills is a Conjure Oils expert and to be honest, probably the one of the most charming guests I’ve ever had. In this interview, Darius shares how he used hoodoo conjure magic to manifest a fully paid international move. We touch on Jesus, quantum physics, intergalactic beings, ancestors, and how to make a honey jar. 

Follow Darius on Instagram @dariusmills91 to find out when his next Conjure & Create program begins (at time of posting, Sept 2020).

This is the continuation of my conversation with Mara Cur , a hide tanner, hunter, wildcrafter, herbalist and wilder punk extraordinaire. In this episode Mara talks about the history of hide tanning and the important role that women and femmes played in this vocation. We also circle back to the question I posed in the last episode about how she approaches redress with Indigenous communities as she returns the teachings of hide tanning that were eradicated by colonialism.

The resource that Mara recommends to learn about White Saviorism is NoWhiteSaviors.org.

 

Mara credits visionary Cree artist, Kent Monkman, for his teachings on the early history of the fur trade.

 

I’d like to lift up Bruce Alexander’s essay, The Roots of Addiction in Free Market Society, as a formative document in my collapse awareness that relates quite directly to what Mara was saying about the first 250 years fo the fur trade. It uses the experience of the Orcadians – that’s Scottish folks from the Orkey Islands, previously renown for their sobriety –  employed by in the later days of the fur trade by the Hudson’t Bay company, as a study in how cultural dislocation and attachment rupture were direct causes of alcoholism.

 

If you really want to geek out on that particular historical niche, you can read my other teacher, Michael Newton’s book, We’re Indians Sure Enough: The Legacy of Scottish Highlanders in the United States.

Check out Mara’s online offerings at liminagathering.com and her own website Crowsnest wildcraft.com 

This season of the podcast is brought to you by the Threshold community. If the topics engaged in this episode appeal to you, check out our programming at www.thethresholdcommunity.com

Mara Cur is a hide tanner, hunter, wildcrafter, and herbalist. She is a teacher of mine that I’m excited to share with you because I love her thinking and articulation on so many topics like settler colonialism, attachment, trauma and radical politics. In this episode Mara shares about growing up an orphan in a high demand community (cultic religion).

 

Check out Mara’s offerings on her site, Crowsnest Wildcraft, and follow her on Instagram @woodland.cur

 

Continue the conversation in Part 2 here.

 

This season of the podcast is brought to you by the Threshold community. If the topics engaged in this episode appeal to you, check out our programming at www.thethresholdcommunity.com

Sharon Ross, aka Afrovivalist, is an African American woman, huntress and survivalist in America here to teach city folks how to prepare for any and all emergencies – not just coronavirus but any natural or human-made disaster. I think you can hear in my voice in this episode that I've got fan fever.

Her online retreat, DeCamp Outdoors, is happening August 21-23. You'll learn how to prepare for the second wave of COVID-19 and beyond. Hunting, soapmaking, ham radio operation – learn from experienced guides in the field.

What does Sharon say in brief about the second wave?

1) Get your water sorted out 2) Food stores 3) Shelter in place improvements 4) Get a food dehydrator!

Go follow @afrovivalist on Instagram and Facebook, and get your ticket to DeCamp Outdoors – I'll see you there!

Note: This show is rated E for "explicit". Cover the young ones' ears. We are using our grown up words for this topic, people!

This season of the podcast is brought to you by the Threshold community. We look forward to welcoming Sharon as a Guest Guide in September! 

This is actually an excerpt from a now-retired course I used to have called Intro to Tarot. You'll get all the backstory of that in this episode, but the main content here is about the history of the Tarot going all the way back to a syncretic figure called "Hermes Trismegistus" who was not a singular person but rather a collective of writing by powerful magi, like how Homer is not actually one writer but ratherthe combined works of several bards over centuries...It's mysterious and fascinating and I hope you enjoy this sweet lil artifact from my archive!

Stay tuned for part two on the proliferation of decks across the globe and through the ages, from the Sola Busca deck of the Renaissance to the icon and groundbreaking Rider Waite Smith, to today's artist-driven marketplace of Post Modern decks! Subscribe to this podcast to get that episode automatically in your podcast player.

Thanks to folks who write helpful honest reviews! They help the right listeners find a sense of belonging and resonance - I super appreciate you taking the time to write a few words.

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Today I'm speaking with Danielle Dulsky, author of Woman Most Wild: Three Keys for Liberating the Witch Within. Today, we’re focused on Daniells’ second book, The Holy Wild: A Heathen Bible for the Untamed Woman.

We talk about ancestral inheritance and its influence on our spellcraft, mothering as witchcraft, and we touch on the effects of whiteness, capitalism, and patriarchy on our spiritual practice. She also tells us some awesome stories about the Mother of Babylon and other dark goddesses. It’s a toothsome conversation and I found Danielle very relatable and I suspect you will too!

Be sure to check out her newest book, Seasons of Moon and Flame: The Wild Dreamer's Journey of Becoming, due out March 10, 2020.

In this conversation, Danielle mentioned The Atlantis Bookshop in London, and recommended the book The Witch of Portobello by Paul Coelho.

Check out all of Danielle's website for all of her excellent offerings including online courses, workshops and her Patreon page.

Maia Toll is with us today speaking about creating kinship with other-than-human friends. Maia is the author of The wild Wisdom series which includes The Illustrated Herbiary, The Illustrated Bestiary, and the forthcoming, Illustrated Crystallary. I wanted to have this conversation through a lens of climate change and dynamic social transition. How can we have a conversation about working with plants and animals and crystal without discussing climate change and over-extraction, amirite? In this episode, we also mentioned the Archetypes Deck by Kim Krans. Find me on Instagram @carmenspagnola Learn about Wet'suwet'en solidarity: @takaiya.blaney @gidimten_checkpoint @smogelgem @strikingstick #wetsuwetenstrong #youthforyintah #indigenousyouthforwetsuweten

I’m speaking with Celtic studies and Gaelic scholar, Michael Newton. He’s a researcher and teacher with a history of recovering and interpreting original sources of Scottish Highland language, literature and tradition. He’s written multiple books and even produced and performed on an album of songs in Gaelic, and that’s how I discovered Michael’s work on my journey to learn to sing Gaelic laments and blessings, and learning about the tradition of keening, (which is a thing I do on certain occasions).

Michael has a folk school called The Hidden Glen where he offers online courses on topics in Gaelic culture and folklore. I’ve taken two of the courses: Reclaiming the Roots (6 classes, new intake January 2020) is about deepening the understanding of Scottish Highland heritage during the era of the clan systems and the importance of the relationship to land and relationships with the more-than-human world. 

Stories of Scottish Highland Immigration is about the experience of Gaels in the New World as told by Gaels themselves – we learn about the complex reasons for mass migration through their songs and remnants of the Gaelic bardic tradition.

And a new course in 2020 I’m excited to be taking is called Radicalizing The Roots: Deconstructing Whiteness Through Gaelic lenses and Decolonizing Scottish Heritage. This one feels like a natural extension if you're doing social justice or ancestral reclamation and healing work. (6 classes, new intake January 2020) Resources for deeper inquiry: Decolonization Is For Everyone, Especially White People (Part 1)

Decolonization Is For Everyone, Especially White People (Part 2)

Decolonization Is For Everyone, Especially White People (Part 3)

Books: Warriors Of The Word: The World Of the Scottish Highlanders (Kindle)

Seanchaidh na Coille: Memory-Keeper Of The Forest: An Anthology of Scottish-Gaelic Literature of Canada

A Handbook Of The Scottish Gaelic World

Papers: Academia.edu

Michael's Patreon Page

 

Francis Weller is a psychotherapist and author of The Wild Edge Of Sorrow: Rituals Of Renewal And The Sacred Work Of Grief. In this episode we talk about the Five Gates Of Grief, men's circles, patriarchy and our infatuation with mythopoetic white men at the mic.

We also welcome back my husband for a "Rubenation" where he tells about his experience in a program for men about learning how to make friends as an adult male.

Also in this episode, I share the promo code provided by our sponsor Hollyhock to get a 15% discount on all meals + accommodations packages in 2020!

Resources cited in this episode include:

Joanna Macy Toward Psychologies of Liberation, Helene Schulman Carolyn Baker Finding Beauty In A Broken World, Terry Tempest Williams Jeannette Armstrong, Okanagan wisdom keeper and elder

Would you like to sponsor an upcoming episode? Please fill out our application form. Thanks!

 

This episode is part case consult, part psychoeducation, part storytelling. I'm so excited to share with you a conversation with my Clinical Supervisor and mentor, Patti Elledge, and to announce her new 3-month online program for like-minded therapists of all specialties!

I'll be assisting Patti both behind the scenes and in-class, as well as making myself available for one-on-one participant support through the program which runs January through March 2020.

You may have heard Patti's interview in TNP118: Patti Elledge on the Neurobiology of Attachment, Grieving Together, and Mobilizing Outrage.

In this episode, we talk about principles and techniques for managing Global High Activation States, the difference between "going global" and numinous unity experiences, and why working with the body to release trauma is so critical – especially in this time of increasing collective trauma. Resources mentioned in this episode include: Accessing The Healing Power Of The Vagus Nerve: Self-Help Exercises for Anxiety, Depression, Trauma and Autism,by Stanley Rosenberg

We-space practices

This is the drawing by Patti's 9-year old client, illustrating a Global High Activation state:

Patti is a Somatic Experiencing Practitioner (SEP) who has specialized in therapeutic application of neuroscience for more than 40 years, and teaches Diane Poole Heller’s groundbreaking work, DARe, which treats adult attachment wounds. She has a broad clinical background in treating developmental and attachment based traumas, offering somatic strategies to access healthy bonding and co-regulatory processes.

She worked directly with babies, children and families for more than 20 years prior to her SE training in the late 90s, and weaves strategies from the fields of interpersonal neurobiology, sensory processing, developmental differences and neurodiversity, coherent narratives and embodiment through movement and creativity. Her blending of a variety of somatic and body-mind techniques helps to treat and resolve over-coupled elements of survival energies (fight-flight-freeze responses) that become so seemingly intractable with the essence of loving/bonding and “belonging.”

Registration for the Somatic Mentoring programis capped at 25 spots.

Nov.26: just 8 spots left!

Danielle Blackwood is the author of The Twelve Faces Of The Goddess: Transform Your Life With Astrology, Magick And The Sacred Feminine. In this episode, we talk about strong archetypal goddesses for each astrological sign. Danielle also tells the amazing story of her incredible grandmother's survival in a Siberian work camp and escape after nine years, eventually finding and reuniting with Danielle's mother after nearly a decade of estrangement. It gives me chills to hear it.

Danielle mentions astrodienst.com as a resource for discovering your own astrological chart.

Read Danielle's monthly Cosmic Weather Report here. You can connect with her here on her website and make sure you follow her on Facebook and Instagram.

The world of sigil witchery can be both fascinating and intimidating depending on your relationship to your artistic side. I was happy I mustered up the courage to try my hand at sigil craft with a little help and encouragement from Laura Tempest Zakroff, author of Sigil Witchery: A Witch's Guide to Crafting Magick Symbols.

Ask for Sigil Witchery and all of Laura's books at your local independent bookseller. Check out Laura's artwork and upcoming workshops here, also at her sigil witchery site, and also on Instagram via @owlkeyeme.arts Tag Laura and @carmenspagnola on Instagram – show us your sigils!

This episode is sponsored by Thérèse Cator's new program, Embodied Manifestation. Thank you, Thérèse!

 

Handful of Stars is the new book from Helene Saucedo about the ancient art of hand analysis common known as palm reading. It's a tool for self-discovery and divination that is cross cultural and widespread, but palm reading is often quite confusing and shrouded in mystery for those of us who didn't grow up in a culture that widely embraces the practice. Helene has created a book and handprint kit for those of us who are curious about how much our hands can tell us about our life path and purpose.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

Handful Of Stars: A Palmistry Guidebook and Handprinting Kit

Helene's website

Richard Unger's Life Prints and Hand Analysis Institute

And a final thank you to this episode sponsor, Elate Clean Cosmetics. Check out their new Rise:Together collection on Instagram.

In this episode we are joined by Scott Richardson-Reed author of the popular blog, the Cailleach’s Herbarium, where he writes about Scottish Folk Magic, witchcraft, folklore and herbalism.

I’ve followed Scott's blog for a few years now and have thoroughly enjoyed the depth of research and frank discourse he brings to topics like cultural and spiritual appropriation, reclaiming or reimagining ancestral practices and animism in Scottish myth. I'm thrilled for this opportunity to dive deeper into his excellent series, The Good, The Dead and the Faery: Scottish Folk Magic And The Dead.

I’m delighted to share with you a long awaited conversation – long awaited by me anyway – with Scott Richardson-Reed, the conversation in which I learn that…I have an accent! Who knew? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Links to topics in this conversation: Tales of the Taibhsear concept album- limited edition on sale now!

skyrie stones - "colourful stones" divination

Amanda Edmiston, Botanica Fabula Storytelling

Debbie Armour, Burd Ellen music

Survey of Scottish Witchcraft Saining Not Smudging: Purification and Lustration in Scottish Folk Magic Practice

Sarah Faith Gottesdiener is an artist, tarot reader and educator, and witch. She is also the creator of the very popular Many Moons journals and Moonbeaming program. Sarah is also co-host of the Strange Magic podcast.

You can find Sarah's readings and courses at: visualmagic.info

Buy Sarah's art here.

Finally, sign up for Sarah's excellent Moonbeaming newsletter.

My guest today is Clinical Counsellor, relationship therapist, and fat activist, Dawn Serra. Dawn offers trauma-informed, weight-neutral, radical mental health care, particularly for those in larger and marginalized bodies. I super enjoyed this conversation about fatphobia, anti-Blackness, ableism, disability, perimenopause, Ozempic and cultivating a kinder relationship with our ever-changing bodies.   Connect with Dawn at tendandcultivate.com   Follow her on Facebook and Instagram     Referenced in this episode   Mia Mingus, disability rights activist and contributor to Octavia's Brood with her story, Hollow   Gloria Lucas of Nalgona Positivity Pride    Sabrina Strings and her book, Fearing the Black Body    Da'Shaun Harrison, Belly of the Beast    Sonalee Rashatwar @thefatsextherapist   Tressie McMillan Cottom, THICK and Other Essays   Culture Work on TikTok and Substack   Betty Martin   Dr. Asher Larmie, The Fat Doctor   (their Ozempic masterclass is listed here)   Zena Sharman, The Care We Dream of: Liberatory and Transformative Approaches to LGBTQ+ Health   Ep229: What it Feels Like For A Girl with Emelia Symington Fedy on sex and pressure   Ash of The Fat Lip - A Fat Liberation Podcast came up with the infinifat classification - details about the history are here: --- https://fluffykittenparty.com/2021/06/01/fategories-understanding-smallfat-fragility-the-fat-spectrum/ --- https://cherrymax.medium.com/community-origins-of-the-term-superfat-9e98e1b0f201   Covid PSA:   WHO technical document   University of Bristol study   Elevator Covid transmission study   ☎️ Leave feedback for this episode! ☎️    Check out The Spirited Kitchen: Recipes and Rituals for the Wheel of the Year   Learn more about The Numinous Network

I'm thrilled to be speaking with Lori Lambert Williams today about Controlled Remote Viewing – a protocol to access the subconscious and determine information about any location, person, or thing anywhere at any time.

Remote Viewing is a technique commonly associated with intuition, but actually has its military roots both in Russia and the US. Much research around Remote Viewing has been funded by the Pentagon and developed by the Stanford Research Institute.

Lori has been a professional remote viewer and teacher since 1996. Her classes and trainings are available online at intuitivespecialists.com

 

Stephanie Papik is an indigenous Inuit woman, experienced facilitator and program manager, current Director of Indigenous Relations and stakeholder Engagement for a division of the government of British columbia, as well as fibre artist and entrepreneur.

What strikes many people upon first meeting Stephanie, probably second after her big warm smile, are her beautiful facial tattoos.

I was so pleased she agreed to come on the show and talk about what these tattoos mean to her and to her Inuit culture.

Check out the show notes at carmenspagnola.com for links to all the resources mentioned in this episode.

Elizabeth Brown is a master dowser and author of DOWSING: The Ultimate Guide For The 21st Century. Her storied career includes the co-founding and running of a geopathic stress consultancy, she has studied with two former presidents of the British Society of dowsers, and has trained in remote viewing and more. Plus, she comes from a family lineage of water dowsers.

In this episode, Elizabeth helps us understand the history and science behind dowsing including the sometimes surprising involvement of the Catholic Church. We discuss whether pendulums are as effective as rods, and the importance of finding your niche as a dowser. (We can't all be experts at everything, right?) She also explains what a session with her entails and helps me get a sense of what's affecting my nasal congestion.

Sarah Kerr is a death doula and ritual healing practitioner. She work with dying people and their families, as well as families navigating the death of a pet, and also lectures and teaches about death care and the healing power of ritual. Sarah perviously appeared on the podcast in episode 98: Priestess, Shaman, Mystic Scapegoat.

The most incredible thing happened during the taping of this episode. Precisely what I was asking Sarah advice around happened...to her. This episode is dedicated to Sarah's deceased cat, Luna, and all those who are suffering grief over the death of a beloved animal, or tree friend, or natural landscape. Sarah generously wrote about her experience on her blog.

In this episode, we talk about the nuts and bolts of dying well, (are there things you should or shouldn't say to a dying person?), being a death doula (how do you manage your energy being in such intense environments?), and ways to honour the death of animals and trees.

 

How do you know if you're in a cult? And, how does an open society confront propaganda, brainwashing, and the rise of fascism? That's the undercurrent of this conversation with noted cultic studies expert, Alexandra Stein, PhD.

Alexandra Stein is a writer and educator specializing in the social psychology of ideological extremism and other dangerous social relationships. She brings an extraordinary lens to cultic studies with her attachment-based approach, which helps us understand how an average person – privileged and educated, even – can fall under the influence of a high-demand group.  

Pashta MaryMoon is a death doula, a Wiccan, a Quaker, and a longtime fan of Jesus. In fact, before we get to our conversation on death and dying, Pashta gives us a revealing tour of her early spirituality – a syncretic blend of earthy paganism, deep devotional relationship with Jesus as brother/lover/son, kinship with Mary Magdalene, and Wiccan god/goddess themes. To say she's a singular presence is understatement.

Pashta has been a compassionate radical her whole life. She is a longtime grassroots organizer including anti-nuclear activism in the '80s, and frontline support worker during the HIV/AIDS crisis in the '90s, with a current focus on death care alternatives in Canada.

I'm delighted to welcome back to the podcast, Tiffany Śwxeloselwet Joseph, to talk adapting to catastrophic collapse. Tiffany tells us stories about bees, salmon, orcas and humans, and her main strategy for collapse resilience: cultivating beauty inside and out. Go here to read and share the story of SEMSEMÍYA 

 

Learn more about Tiffany and how you can work with her or invite her to your gathering.

Welcome back to the show for the sixth time, peak oil expert and author, John Michael Greer. In this episode, we're celebrating the tenth anniversary of John's seminal book, The Long Descent: A User's Guide To The End Of The Industrial Age. 

John explains the concept of Catabolic Collapse, why apocalypse scenarios are problematic and the hopium of political will and green utopias just as much so. I ask him about useful viable professions in collapse scenarios and how to choose where to live. Finally, John gives us three steps for personal preparation to face the deindustrial age.

Read the full article: Peak Oil Advice From German Poets

Patti Elledge is a Trauma Healing Specialist and Somatic Experiencing Practitioner with a private practice in Asheville, NC. She's my supervisor and mentor and I'm here to tell the world: I love her and I think everyone should have more Patti in their life. I want that for you. You deserve some Patti.

In this conversation, Patti explains what Attachment is, what different Attachment styles look like in babies and how that translates in adulthood, the role of Evolutionary Biology in our Attachment systems, and how we can heal attachment wounds in a world of persistent precarity, climate change, and social turmoil.

I particularly enjoyed hearing Patti's thoughts on grief, rage, and how Attachment shows up in our spiritual lives.

Here are the resources Patti noted in this interview:

Mary Main

Mary Ainsworth

John Bowlby

Joanna Macy

Peter Levine and Somatic Experiencing

Stephen Porges and the Polyvagal System (YouTube)

Allan Schore and the Good Enough Mother

Portrait Of A Marriage: Yes, It's Mine (the article mentioned that I wrote)

Learning To See In The Dark Amid Catastrophe: An Interview With Deep Ecologist Joanna Macy

Patti specializes in somatic healing techniques via organic, instinctual ways of the body and psyche, allowing for more connection with self and other and the emergence of creativity and spirituality. Patti credits her training by Peter Levine, Diane Poole Heller and Raja Selvam.  She has assisted more than 40 trainings worldwide and now teaches Diane Poole Heller's pioneering work DARe, (Dynamic Attachment Re-Patterning Experience).

Patti has specialized in therapeutic application of neuroscience for 40 years and has a broad background in early development (interpersonal, social/emotional, language and cognition), sensory processing disorders, self- and co-regulatory processes and the neurobiology of stress and trauma.

While Patti's work is grounded in current day research on the neurobiology and physiology of the human stress mechanism, it is also infused with embodied intuition and a compassionate heart.

You can reach Patti at:

www.pattiatlarge.blogspot.com

https://dianepooleheller.com/teachersproviders/

https://sepractitioner.membergrove.com/member-details.php?id=1388

My guest today is author, speaker and consultant, Monique Gary Smith. We're talking about Territorial Acknowledgements, a small act of Reconciliation that is spreading beyond the borders of our province and country.

When I committed a few years ago to incorporating acts of Reconciliation into my personal and professional life, I began inviting elders (of all ages) to open all of my retreats and workshops with a Territorial Acknowledgement. When I was invited to give a speech, or lead a networking event, or any kind of circle, I would also verbally acknowledged the traditional occupants of the territory, wherever I went. And if I travelled outside of my region to go on Quest or a spiritual retreat, I would reach out to the local band or tribal office to find out more about the land and the ancestors from that place. But I only learned how to do this because my friend, Monique, guided and re-directed me again and again.

In this episode, Monique shares some ideas for how any person wanting to incorporate this small act of Reconciliation into their life or work might begin in a good way.

MoniqueGraySmith.com

Truth And Reconciliation Commission Of Canada: 94 Calls To Action

We're not afraid of grappling with the tough stuff here on The Numinous Podcast! In this episode we're engaging with high stakes violations of values and betrayals that lead to Moral Injury.

Moral Injury can occur when you do or fail to do something, when you witness something, or when you hear about something after the fact, that violates your deeply held beliefs and values in a high stakes context.

Certainly healthcare practitioners and mental health professionals will be interested in this discussion, but also anyone who has grappled with moral emotions like outrage, shame, guilt, and remorse.

Moral injury is a social wound that helps the collective stay co-operative. Grappling with Moral Injury is a civic responsibility – a moral obligation as our guest says – and a sign of a healthy pro-social individual.

Our guest on this episode is Dr.Robyn Walser, a licensed psychologist and co-author of 7 books on Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (commonly known as ACT). She has most recently written a book entitled,The Heart of ACT: Developing a Flexible, Process-Based, and Client-Centered Practice Using Acceptance and Commitment Therapy.  She’s an Assistant Professor at the University of California, Berkeley, the Director of TL Psychological and Consultation Services, and works at the National Center for PTSD. Dr. Walser has been offering ACT workshops since 1998.

 

Referenced in this episode

Case Conceptualizing in Acceptance and Commitment therapy for Moral Injury: An Active and On-Going Approach to Understanding and Intervening on Moral Injury, by Jacob Farnsworth, Lauren Borges, Sean Barnes and Kent Drescher and Robyn Walser

The Moral Injury Workbook: Acceptance and Commitment Therapy Skills for Moving Beyond Shame, Anger and Trauma to Reclaim Your Values by Robyn Walser, Wyatt Evans, Kent Drescher, Jacob Farnsworth

The Heart of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy: A Talk by Robyn Walser (YouTube)

 

The Moral Injury Course

• Become a member of The Numinous Network and begin a supportive somatic practice ahead of the live sessions. Group somatic practice sessions happen Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays.

• If appropriate, begin The Safe & Sound Protocol (included in membership) to support nervous system resilience.

• Attend the live sessions, starting in June. Live Sessions form a sequential series of psychoeducation and progressively layered activities:

Friday, June 28, 10-11am PT

Saturday, June 29, 9-9:45am PT

Sunday, June 30, 10-10:45am PT

Monday, July 1, 10-10:30am PT (optional for additional or catch-up work)

Fridays, July 5, 12, 19, 26, 10-11am PT

Live sessions will be recorded and archived for later viewing at your convenience.

• Optional: Stay on with us for aftercare! In August, we're streamlining the calendar and focusing on somatic practice and weightlifting. (Discharging anger by lifting heavy shit!) In September, the full calendar of events is back up and running, with additional SSP co-listening sessions to support nervous system regulation ahead of the American election season.

The Moral Injury course is included in Numinous Network membership which is offered at a sliding scale from $45 - $75 US per month, providing access to over 30 live events and over 50 hours of video on-demand.

 

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Learn more about The Spirited Kitchen: Recipes & Rituals for the Wheel of the Year

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In this episode, I'm thrilled to talk with Matthew Remski about how one finds oneself in a cult, how to get out, and what high demand groups have to do with social justice, climate change and collapse. Matthew is a writer and cultural critic who published an explosive article in The Walrus called, Yoga's Culture Of Sexual Abuse: Nine Women Tell Their Stories.

Since then, I've followed Matthew and especially appreciated his real-time critique of the unravelling of the Shambala meditation community. Resources cited in this episode include:

Alexandra Mann, Terror, Love and Brainwashing: Attachment In cults And Totalitarian Systems

Dr.Cathleen Mann

Steven Hassan

Dr.Michael Langone

This Is Not your Practice Life

 

My guest today is gardener, landscape designer, teacher of permaculture, and business owner, Solara Goldwynn of Hatchet & Seed.

Known for bringing lush, edible landscapes to forgotten private corners and under-used public spaces, Solara is not only a champion of sustainable values but I consider her a strong role model. But I also know that folks who live with such conviction also shoulder more emotional burden than most; I wanted to know how she copes with her own eco-grief and climate anxiety.

We talk about her work, what she thinks the future of the planet will look like when her daughter grows up, reconciling with having children in an age of overpopulation, and how she seeks joy in spite of these dire times.

For eco-inspiration, follow Solara and Hatchet & Seed on Instagram.

I'm delighted to welcome Jessie Hemphill back to the show to talk about Indigenizing Urban Design and also what we can learn about collapse and crisis preparedness from an Indigenous perspective.

I'm so excited that Jessie is attending our retreat, Ritual + Practice For Urban Homestead this fall because we are both pretty serious peppers and like to talk shop about our emergency preparedness plans and kits.

To learn more about Jessie's work in Comprehensive Community Planning, and to read her Master's Thesis summary, visit: alderhill.ca

To learn more about our Hollyhock retreat, visit our event page.

Tending The Threshold is an event happening in Ashland, Oregon, on May 26 and 27th, 2018. Tickets can information can be found at tendingthethreshold.com

It is a gathering of Change-makers, Bridge builders and Edge Dwellers, with no agenda other than to practice being together, and to learn how to take care of each other and the world, in these challenging times.

The container at this un-conference will be held by a group of ten co-facilitators from three countries and many walks of life. The group includes:

Poet and spoken word artist, Tannur Ali Conflict Engagement and Resolution practitioner, Aftab Erfan Equity and Inclusion Consultant, Desiree Adaway Clinical Psychologist and Author, Bayo Akomolafe Social Entrepreneur, Donnie Maclurcan Artist and Death Doula, Rachael Rice Educator, facilitator and Indigenous rights activist, Aaron Ortega Videographer and artist, Bec Stupak Therapist, ritualist and conference founder, Holly Truhlar

And myself, Carmen Spagnola.

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Holly Truhlar, MA, JD, is a grief practitioner, ritualist, and community builder. She has a Masters degree in Transpersonal Counseling Psychology from Naropa University and a law degree from the University of Denver. Combining her experience in justice work and relational psychology, she created an intellectual, emotional, sociological, and spiritual approach to activism called Radical Attunement Work (RAW). Her writing and workshops dance with the topics of planetary grief, cultural trauma, oppression and inequality, restructuring power, environmental justice, conscious collapse, and subversion of the dominant system. She's deeply committed to transforming our culture of exploitation into communities of care.

http://hollytruhlar.com

Tending The Threshold is an event happening in Ashland, Oregon, on May 26 and 27th, 2018. Tickets can information can be found at tendingthethreshold.com

It is a gathering of Change-makers, Bridge builders and Edge Dwellers, with no agenda other than to practice being together, and to learn how to take care of each other and the world, in these challenging times.

The container at this un-conference will be held by a group of ten co-facilitators from three countries and many walks of life. The group includes:

Poet and spoken word artist, Tannur Ali Conflict Engagement and Resolution practitioner, Aftab Erfan Equity and Inclusion Consultant, Desiree Adaway Clinical Psychologist and Author, Bayo Akomolafe Social Entrepreneur, Donnie Maclurcan Artist and Death Doula, Rachael Rice Educator, facilitator and Indigenous rights activist, Aaron Ortega Videographer and artist, Bec Stupak Therapist, ritualist and conference founder, Holly Truhlar

And myself, Carmen Spagnola.

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Bayo Akomolafe (Ph.D.) is a renegade academic, lecturer, speaker, and proud diaper-changer. Bayo curates an earth-wide organization, The Emergence Network, for the re-calibration of our ability to respond to the civilizational crisis--a project framed within a feminist ethos and inspired by indigenous cosmologies. He considers this a shared art--exploring the edges of the intelligible, dancing with posthumanist ideas, and dabbling in the mysteries of quantum mechanics. In short, Bayo has given up his longing for the "end-time" and is learning to live in the "mean time." In the middle, where we must live with confusion and make do with partial answers. He speaks and teaches about his experiences around the world, and then returns to his adopted home in Chennai, India - "where the occasional whiff of cow dung dancing in the air is another invitation to explore the vitality of a world that is never still and always surprising." Bayo has authored two books, ‘We Will Tell Our Own Story!’ and ‘These Wilds Beyond our Fences: Letters to My Daughter on Humanity’s Search for Home.’ 

http://bayoakomolafe.net

Tending The Threshold is an event happening in Ashland, Oregon, on May 26 and 27th, 2018. Tickets can information can be found at tendingthethreshold.com

It is a gathering of Change-makers, Bridge builders and Edge Dwellers, with no agenda other than to practice being together, and to learn how to take care of each other and the world, in these challenging times.

The container at this un-conference will be held by a group of ten co-facilitators from three countries and many walks of life. The group includes:

Poet and spoken word artist, Tannur Ali Conflict Engagement and Resolution practitioner, Aftab Erfan Equity and Inclusion Consultant, Desiree Adaway Clinical Psychologist and Author, Bayo Akomolafe Social Entrepreneur, Donnie Maclurcan Artist and Death Doula, Rachael Rice Educator, facilitator and Indigenous rights activist, Aaron Ortega Videographer and artist, Bec Stupak Therapist, ritualist and conference founder, Holly Truhlar

And myself, Carmen Spagnola.

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Desiree Adaway is a Principal of The Adaway Group, a minority and woman owned consulting firm that brings together multi-racial teams to work on projects related to racial equity and social justice. With over 20 years experience creating, leading and managing international, multicultural teams through major organizational changes in over 40 countries, she is uniquely qualified to partner with talented leaders to successfully navigate through integrations, reorganizations, and all stages of organizational evolution. She works from an intersectional perspective, which believes that organizations thrive when they build cultures that are inclusive of wide ranging ethnic, racial, gender, sexual, religious, and national identities and abilities.

http://desireeadaway.com

Tending The Threshold is an event happening in Ashland, Oregon, on May 26 and 27th, 2018. Tickets can information can be found at tendingthethreshold.com

It is a gathering of Change-makers, Bridge builders and Edge Dwellers, with no agenda other than to practice being together, and to learn how to take care of each other and the world, in these challenging times.

The container at this un-conference will be held by a group of ten co-facilitators from three countries and many walks of life. The group includes:

Poet and spoken word artist, Tannur Ali Conflict Engagement and Resolution practitioner, Aftab Erfan Equity and Inclusion Consultant, Desiree Adaway Clinical Psychologist and Author, Bayo Akomolafe Social Entrepreneur, Donnie Maclurcan Artist and Death Doula, Rachael Rice Educator, facilitator and Indigenous rights activist, Aaron Ortega Videographer and artist, Bec Stupak Therapist, ritualist and conference founder, Holly Truhlar

And myself, Carmen Spagnola.

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Rachael Rice is a full-time artist, musician, writer, educator and death doula. Her work lies at the crossroads of grief, radical togetherness, creative expression, death, learning, and magic. Her background is in critical pedagogy and constructivist theory where she specialized in differentiated instruction and educating for democracy with concentrations in Art and English. She spent over 20 years in the classroom as a certified, licensed public school art teacher, as well as in after-school and out-of-school community-based arts programs that serve primarily at-risk youth, folks with disabilities and low-income communities. She also worked in the social enterprise non-profit startup world implementing systems to support communities our current systems have failed. 

http://rachaelrice.com

 

Bec Stupak is an artist, musician and videographer who's work is based on visioning, magic, ritual and ecstatic play. Her focus has been on depicting liminal spaces and transporting the viewer into the non-ordinary through the experience of her work. She was a Deitch Projects artist, exhibited at the Whitney Biennial and has been a primary member of the Joshua Light Show. Most recently she has been exploring expressions of gratitude and the experience of ceremony through a series of drawings that are transformed into wearable prayers.

http://www.becstupak.com

Tending The Threshold is an event happening in Ashland, Oregon, on May 26 and 27th, 2018. Tickets can information can be found at tendingthethreshold.com

It is a gathering of Change-makers, Bridge builders and Edge Dwellers, with no agenda other than to practice being together, and to learn how to take care of each other and the world, in these challenging times.

The container at this un-conference will be held by a group of ten co-facilitators from three countries and many walks of life. The group includes:

Poet and spoken word artist, Tannur Ali Conflict Engagement and Resolution practitioner, Aftab Erfan Equity and Inclusion Consultant, Desiree Adaway Clinical Psychologist and Author, Bayo Akomolafe Social Entrepreneur, Donnie Maclurcan Artist and Death Doula, Rachael Rice Educator, facilitator and Indigenous rights activist, Aaron Ortega Videographer and artist, Bec Stupak Therapist, ritualist and conference founder, Holly Truhlar

And myself, Carmen Spagnola.

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Donnie Maclurcan, PhD, is an author and social entrepreneur. He is passionate about all things not-for-profit. Originally from Australia, he moved to the U.S. in 2013, from where he runs the Post Growth Institute, exploring how we accelerate the shift to a thriving, prosperous society within ecological limits. As a consultant, Donnie has helped more than 400 not-for-profit projects start, scale and sustain their work, while his own initiatives include developing: Free Money Day, the Post Growth Alliance, the (En)Rich List, the Offers and Needs Market process, Cascades Hub, and Project Australia. Affiliate Professor of Social Science at Southern Oregon University, Donnie holds a Ph.D. in social science, with his research having explored nanotechnology’s implications for global inequality. He is currently completing his third book: How on Earth: Our future is not for profit.

https://www.postgrowth.org

Tending The Threshold is an event happening in Ashland, Oregon, on May 26 and 27th, 2018. Tickets can information can be found at tendingthethreshold.com

It is a gathering of Change-makers, Bridge builders and Edge Dwellers, with no agenda other than to practice being together, and to learn how to take care of each other and the world, in these challenging times.

The container at this un-conference will be held by a group of ten co-facilitators from three countries and many walks of life. The group includes:

Poet and spoken word artist, Tannur Ali Conflict Engagement and Resolution practitioner, Aftab Erfan Equity and Inclusion Consultant, Desiree Adaway Clinical Psychologist and Author, Bayo Akomolafe Social Entrepreneur, Donnie Maclurcan Artist and Death Doula, Rachael Rice Educator, facilitator and Indigenous rights activist, Aaron Ortega Videographer and artist, Bec Stupak Therapist, ritualist and conference founder, Holly Truhlar

And myself, Carmen Spagnola.

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Aaron Ortega is a Pacific Northwest Native who has spent 25 years facilitating educational and experiential forums for the reclamation, preservation, and integration of Indigenous insights. Ortega is one of the founding members of 'Inside Circle', the recent subject of the award winning documentary 'The Work', a film about the benefits of skilled confrontational inquiry for men within a maximum security prison. Aaron co-created cross-cultural rites of passage with Dallas Chief Eagle for the 'All Nations Training Center.' Recently, he has been offering consultations, special one-day events, and a two day 'movement' course for Women, 'Way of the Luminous Warrior'. He lives in Southern Oregon.

Tending The Threshold is an event happening in Ashland, Oregon, on May 26 and 27th, 2018. Tickets can information can be found at tendingthethreshold.com

It is a gathering of Change-makers, Bridge builders and Edge Dwellers, with no agenda other than to practice being together, and to learn how to take care of each other and the world, in these challenging times.

The container at this un-conference will be held by a group of ten co-facilitators from three countries and many walks of life. The group includes:

Poet and spoken word artist, Tannur Ali Conflict Engagement and Resolution practitioner, Aftab Erfan Equity and Inclusion Consultant, Desiree Adaway Clinical Psychologist and Author, Bayo Akomolafe Social Entrepreneur, Donnie Maclurcan Artist and Death Doula, Rachael Rice Educator, facilitator and Indigenous rights activist, Aaron Ortega Videographer and artist, Bec Stupak Therapist, ritualist and conference founder, Holly Truhlar

And myself, Carmen Spagnola.

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Aftab Erfan, PhD,  is a scholar-practitioner working in the areas of community engagement, conflict resolution, strategic planning, intercultural diversity, and leadership development for social transformation. Her facilitation approach is based in various methodologies including Deep Democracy, the Art of Hosting and Harvesting, Theory U, Action Inquiry and the Expressive Arts field. She is often called in as a facilitator when there is a large degree of complexity, when there are divisive issues within a group, or when a group simply needs help to connect on a deeper level. She has facilitated large group decision-making and conflict resolution in high-stakes situations, including in the Middle East.

http://wholepicturethinking.com

This episode is going to be a very special one for all the listeners who live with chronic illness and all the listeners with Indigenous heritage. These stories and experiences are interwoven in my conversation today with Anishinaabe medicine woman, Asha Frost. 

Asha Frost (she/her) is a member of the Chippewas of Nawash First Nation. She’s a longtime healer working with homeopathy, plant medicine, and ceremony. She’s also the author of the bestselling book, You Are the Medicine: 13 Moons of Indigenous Wisdom, Ancestral Connection, and Animal Spirit Guidance, as well as the Sacred Medicine Oracle Deck.

This is real talk about living with chronic illness, and about white supremacy and colonialism in the wellness industry and the medical field.

In this episode, we explore the perennial paradox of any health diagnosis: the tension/balance between accepting the reality of chronic illness while also reaching towards healing.

Throughout, Asha shares some of the medicines that can be helpful on this journey.

Connect with Asha

Follow her on all the socials: Instagram, Facebook, YouTube, TikTok

Pre-order her new oracle deck, The Animal Elders Oracle

Visit her website to sign up for her newsletter

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Tending The Threshold is an event happening in Ashland, Oregon, on May 26 and 27th, 2018. Tickets can information can be found at tendingthethreshold.com

It is a gathering of Change-makers, Bridge builders and Edge Dwellers, with no agenda other than to practice being together, and to learn how to take care of each other and the world, in these challenging times.

The container at this un-conference will be held by a group of ten co-facilitators from three countries and many walks of life. The group includes:

Poet and spoken word artist, Tannur Ali Conflict Engagement and Resolution practitioner, Aftab Erfan Equity and Inclusion Consultant, Desiree Adaway Clinical Psychologist and Author, Bayo Akomolafe Social Entrepreneur, Donnie Maclurcan Artist and Death Doula, Rachael Rice Educator, facilitator and Indigenous rights activist, Aaron Ortega Videographer and artist, Bec Stupak Therapist, ritualist and conference founder, Holly Truhlar

And myself, Carmen Spagnola.

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Tannur “Shewrightz” Ali is the emcee and story weaver for our conference. She's a poet, workshop facilitator and vessel of divine flow. She has been featured in every region of the country, as well as in Europe, stunning audiences with the insightful power of her words and voice. Tannur’s "Dancing Between Realms National Tour" visited 25 cities throughout the U.S. during 2016-17. The tour came on the heels of her winning the 2016 International Poetry Slam in Bled, Slovenia. A prolific writer and relationship-builder, Tannur uses her poetry and poetic spirit as a force for engaging creative energy and power, and as a rallying cry to build artistic and civic community.

https://www.shewrightz.com

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https://tendingthethreshold.com

I’m delighted to share with you this vibrant, passionate and also at times very tender conversation I had with Danielle Prohom Olson of Gather. Danielle is a wildcrafter and herbalist, and Gather is her creative collaboration with Jennifer Aikman, where they teach, write, and host events dedicated to ancestral foods, magical cookery and seasonal celebrations.

Thousands of people around the world follow and appreciate their work through their website and newsletter, as well as their Patreon and Facebook accounts. But for me, what really comes through their work, is that Gather is about more than just events and recipes and articles.

Check out Danielle's essay, The Magical Herstory of Food.

This is a long-overdue episode. Two of my city's most interesting residents live right next door and we've finally had a chance to sit down for a proper interview.   An artist and mother, Beth Threlfall is a black cord priestess with Thirteenth House Mystery School in Victoria BC. She works hard to bring her art into the world on a day-to-day basis: believing that art is a way of living — not a thing to do — has helped her experience community through her artistic practice. She is also a children’s art instructor with the non-profit organization ArtsReach, and works with the Pandora Arts Collective in her home community of Fernwood. Beth is best known as the originator of Fernwood’s famous Pole Painting Project, which she started back in 2008 and has not only transformed the look and feel of the streets in her neighbourhood but has also inspired residents to artistically engage with and participate in their local surroundings.    A practicing witch since his initiation in 1986, John Threlfall is a black cord priest with Thirteenth House Mystery School. A freelance writer for nearly 30 years, John has had a typically eclectic career—including working as a stage manager, wedding DJ, technical director for a haunted Gold Rush theatre, co-host of a motorcycle TV show, four seasons as the on-air "walking encyclopedia of popular culture" for CBC Radio's Definitely Not the Opera, and 12 years as a staff writer for Monday Magazine, where he ultimately wound up being Editor-in-Chief. He’s currently the Special Projects and Communications Officer for the Faculty of Fine Arts at the University of Victoria, and has been teaching with UVic’s Department of Writing since 2006.    Thirteenth House Mystery School is one of the Victoria's oldest and largest covens. Started in 1993, Thirteenth House has also been running introductory public classes in the practice of witchcraft since 1998.