Local Futures

  • Home
  • Media Room
  • Blog
  • Store
  • Contact

The Economics of Happiness

Donate
Menu
  • About
    • About Local Futures
    • Who We Are
    • Founder, Helena Norberg-Hodge
    • Our History
    • Get Involved & Support Us
    • Close
  • Our Projects
    • Global to Local
      • International Alliance for Localization (IAL)
        • Join the IAL
        • IAL Members
          • IAL Member Organizations
          • IAL Listserv
        • Video Project: Voices from the IAL
      • Webinar Recordings
        • Sacred Activism in a Post-Trump World Webinar
        • Talking Climate Webinar
        • People Power: Democracy and the Economy Webinar
        • Beyond Trump: The Path to Real Change Webinar
        • Bringing the Food Economy Home Webinar
        • A World Without ‘Free’ Trade: What it would look like and how to get there
        • Beyond ‘Free Trade’ – Alternatives to Corporate Rule
        • Education: Promises, Myths & Realities Webinar
        • Debt and Speculation in the Global Economy Webinar
        • A New Activism Webinar
        • Climate Change or System Change Webinar
        • Going Local Webinar
      • Animation: Going Local: the solution-multiplier
      • Insane Trade Short Film and Factsheet
        • Insane Trade! & Factsheet Translated
      • Planet Local
        • Culture
        • Eco Communities
        • Ecology
        • Health
        • Local Business & Finance
        • Local Energy
        • Local Food, Farming & Fisheries
        • Local Policy & Community Rights
        • Place-based Education
        • Sharing & Repairing
        • Planet Local Short Film Series
          • 1 – Introduction: The New Local Food Movement
          • 2 – Diverse Farming Systems
          • 3 – Local Food Webs: Exploring Systems of Distribution
          • 4 – Local Food Processors: AKA Making Delicious Food
          • 5 – Challenges & Solutions
          • 6 – Ecovillages & Networks for New Farmers
          • 7 – And Finally… Here’s a Little More Inspiration
      • Local Bites Podcast
        • Unpacking Global Empire from an Indigenous Perspective with Tyson Yunkaporta & Helena Norberg-Hodge
        • More than Just the Vegetables
        • Food Sovereignty in the Global Economy
        • Transition, Tradition, and Trade
        • Not-for-Profit Businesses
        • Love, Values, and Wellbeing Economies
        • Growing a Farmers Market from the Ground Up
        • Beautiful Places: A Conversation with Wendell Berry
        • Creating the Framework for a New Economy
        • From GDP to GNH
        • Rebuilding Healthy Communities: The Growing Ecovillage Movement
        • Seeds of Resilience, Seeds of Sovereignty
        • Why Local Ownership Matters
        • Local Alternatives to Globalized Development: A View from India
        • How to Feed the World? A Political Agroecological Approach
        • Helena Norberg-Hodge on how corporate ‘free trade’ deals threaten local communities and economies worldwide
    • Our Work in Ladakh
      • Past Work in Ladakh
        • Experiences in Ladakh 2018
        • Experiences in Ladakh 2017
      • Ancient Futures (book & film)
      • Local Futures’ History in Ladakh
        • Women’s Alliance of Ladakh
    • The Economics of Happiness Film
      • Economics of Happiness Conferences
      • The Film
      • DIY Economics of Happiness Workshop
    • Close
  • Events
    • Upcoming Events
      • Full Events Calendar
    • Economics of Happiness Conferences
      • Past International Conferences
      • Other Past Events
    • Calendar
        • « February 2021 » loading...
          M T W T F S S
          1
          2
          3
          4
          5
          6
          7
          8
          9
          10
          11
          12
          13
          14
          15
          16
          17
          18
          19
          20
          21
          22
          23
          24
          25
          26
          27
          28
    • Close
  • Learn & Take Action
    • Learn About Our Work
      • Learn about Globalization
      • Learn about Localization
      • Learn about Big Picture Activism
    • Activist Tools
      • COVID-19 Response: Let’s Localize Like Never Before
      • What You Can Do To Localize Right Now
      • Films for Change
      • Recommended Readings
      • Organizations for Change
      • Independent Media Sources
      • Maps of Alternatives
    • Close
  • Publications
    • Local is Our Future (latest book)
      • Endorsements for Local is Our Future
      • Translations of Local is Our Future
    • Ancient Futures (book & film)
    • The Economics of Happiness (film)
    • Translated Resources
    • Free Reading Materials
    • Films
    • Books & Other Publications
    • Newsletters & Annual Reports
    • Close
You are here: Home / Inner transformation / Inner Transition: an introduction

Inner Transition: an introduction

September 8, 2016 by Stephen Hinton 3 Comments

640px-004a_mwuerfelI recently took up the challenge to talk about inner transition in the garden of an eco-village project in Värmland County, Sweden. A lot of sun, beautiful place,  no flip-chart or power points. Here is a short account of what I talked about.

To me, getting to the heart of inner transition is about understanding our own dual nature: if we feel threatened we are likely to get in a mode of fleeing the scene, aggressively fighting for what we want or just freezing. But absent the feeling of threat we are calm, relaxed, loving and often generous.

The prospect of having less fossil fuel or money to go round puts most people into threat mode. But in threat mode we are not thinking long-term. It is just this problem that faces civil society when developing the dialogue around how we can develop society to show more planet care and at the same time more people care and fair share.  We need to create the space where the dialogue can be held without fear driving us.

It is good to talk about this together. I tried dividing the circular space in front of me into two sections illustrating the two modes. (I had help from some remarkably tame hens.)  The group could then use this space to explore what it is that puts you into the different states, and what it is that drives decision-making.

Presented with threats, quick, decisive reactions are needed. You focus short-term, trust authority, use force, and are goal-oriented.

In the more peaceful mode, you are looking long-term; love and appreciation are at the center. Force is not at the forefront, but discussion, dialogue and envisioning are.

bild15

You quickly come to see how much of what might appear reasoned, rational decision-making is actually fear-based.

Actually, in the resilient, balanced society, you create and carry a preparedness to deal with threats whilst setting up a society that offers security of inclusiveness, where having food and shelter is the norm rather than a privilege.  In a community like a municipality, town or village the planning approach could look like this:

bild20

Lynne Twist, the founder of the Hunger Project, offers the idea of the three poisonous thoughts that persist as a result of being exposed to a culture overly focused on threat.

  • There is not enough
  • You have no power
  • More is better

These thoughts can pervade everything in our life and take over, fueling addictions, aggression and alienation.

We asked what we can do to create a culture of peace. Below are some ideas that are especially relevant for eco-villages and other communities, like local transition initiatives.

bild24

Stephen Hinton spoke about Inner Transition at an event in London on September 14th, 2016, which was sponsored by Local Futures, Initiatives for Change, and the Global Hub for the Common Good. Other speakers included Helena Norberg-Hodge, Lawrence Bloom, Diego Isabel La Moneda, and Michael Smith.  For more information about this event, click here.

Share this:

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn

Related

Globalization and Terror
Positive Thinking in a Dark Age

Filed Under: Inner transformation, Resistance and Renewal Tagged With: community, inner transition, peace culture, renewal, sustainability

Author: Stephen Hinton

Stephen was one of the founders of the Transition movement in Sweden, an original member of the Humanitarian Water and Food management team, and the co-founder of the Swedish Eco-village, Änggärdet.

Comments

  1. Lynn Lamoreux says

    September 8, 2016 at 4:43 am

    Very useful. I tried to repost to my FB page, but it would not let me.

    Reply
    • Sean Keller says

      September 8, 2016 at 6:04 am

      Sean from the Local Futures team here. Sorry about that. It should be working now!

      Reply
  2. Jim Lovestar says

    February 24, 2018 at 3:21 pm

    Beautiful. I am often confronted by my internal thoughts: There is not enough
    You have no power
    More is better
    As Lynne Twist noted. Then I can remember what is true and practice gratitude, the antidote.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Subscribe to the Economics of Happiness Blog

Sign up for our email updates

Latest Blogs

  • What did we lose when we lost the stars?

    February 22, 20211 Comment
  • Trade treaties and the climate emergency

    February 15, 2021No Comments
  • Birdsong as a Compass

    February 7, 20212 Comments
  • Cities and Green Orthodoxy

    January 28, 20211 Comment
  • How to fix a food system that’s not designed to feed people

    January 19, 20211 Comment
  • Progress and the modernization of Ladakh

    December 18, 20203 Comments

Blog posts by Category

  • Capitalism (3)
  • Climate Change (41)
  • Community (26)
  • Consumerism (3)
  • Coronavirus (16)
  • Democracy (3)
  • Development (20)
  • Economic Growth and Degrowth (31)
  • Economics of Happiness Conferences (4)
  • Education (7)
  • Environment (31)
  • Food and Farming (54)
  • Free Trade and Globalization (39)
  • Happiness (2)
  • Health (22)
  • Indigenous worldview (13)
  • Inequality (5)
  • Inner transformation (13)
  • Livelihoods and jobs (33)
  • Local energy (7)
  • Local finance (4)
  • Localization (44)
  • Nature (1)
  • New economy (17)
  • Resistance and Renewal (15)
  • Technology (27)
  • The Economics of Happiness (15)
  • Uncategorized (3)
  • About
  • Contact
  • The Economics of Happiness
  • Learn & Take Action

Sign up for our email updates

Donate Now

International Society for Ecology and Culture © Copyright 2021 | site by digiflip
loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.