Pathways to Planetary Health Forum Spring 2022 Series Introduction

Since the Pathways to Planetary Health Forum began in 2020 we have been fortunate to host incredible guests in conversation on contemplation and planetary health, including author Paul Hawken, activist Kerry Kennedy, and actor Ed Norton, to name a few. These free online gatherings create a space to share ideas and understanding.

The Garrison Institute’s mission is to apply the power of contemplation to today’s pressing social and environmental concerns. Through our Pathways to Planetary Health initiative, we bring this to bear on the complex environmental challenges of our time, and the Forum is our premiere public program. With the Forum, we invite audiences to think critically about our planet’s health, the interconnected systems that underpin its operations and the people that depend on them, and to explore solutions to a healthier world. 

At Garrison, we have identified four pathways necessary for planetary health. Half Earth recognizes the inherent value of the natural world and its biodiversity. Ecological Civilization calls on a restructuring of human environments to be more sustainable. Regenerative Economics changes the role of capital to be more inclusive while building our ecological civilization. And the Common Good underlies our social fabric with a prevailing sense of altruism. All four pathways must be pursued simultaneously in order to achieve the mass-scale structural shift necessary for our planet and all life on Earth.

It is with the four pathways in mind that we are pleased to announce our Spring 2022 Pathways to Planetary Health Forum series. By creating an arc through the pathways we aim to highlight the important role of each in achieving planetary health.

In January, we welcome Haley Mellin and Steve Brumby in discussion on land conservation and biodiversity visualization. Haley is an artist and conservationist, using compelling visualization alongside strategic partnerships to secure lands of significant conservation value for biodiversity and indigenous communities. Steve, a theoretical physicist and co-founder at Impact Observatory, is using AI to visualize land use, carbon, and biodiversity around the world. 

In February we will engage Tensie Whalen, professor at NYU Stern, Director of the Center for Sustainable Business at NYU, and former President at the Rainforest Alliance in discussion on the role of business in an ecological civilization. We will discuss how to achieve meaningful results for planetary health in the private sector. 

In March our guest Eric Beinhocker, professor at the University of Oxford and Executive Director of the Institute for New Economic Thinking at Oxford, will bring perspective on a new economic paradigm that propels this great transition. 

In April we welcome author Paul Hawken back to the Garrison Institute to reflect on the pathways and the actions they inspire. Paul will be joined by a series of regenerators to highlight the application of these pathways in this event co-hosted with Tricycle.

And in May we welcome Cynthia Bourgeault, renowned theologian, faculty emeritus at the Center for Action and Contemplation, and founding director of her Wisdom School network, in conversation on the common good. 

From our first Forum with David Simas, CEO of The Obama Foundation, to our most recent with Thibault Manekin, founder of Seawall Development and author of Larger Than Yourself, these discussions with Garrison Institute co-founder Jonathan F.P. Rose have brought awareness, understanding, and inspiration to a public audience. We can’t wait for you to join in this next chapter.