Preview of the Collective Trauma Summit 2023
The annual event will energise anyone engaged in healing work.
Resonant World #41
Nine days of wall-to-wall discussion of “collective trauma” might not sound like everybody’s idea of fun.
So I’m pleased to report that working on the Collective Trauma Summit 2023 has left me feeling more optimistic than ever that our species now has the tools to clear the fatbergs clogging our collective psyche.
To share a taste of what’s in store when the summit airs in late September, myself and fellow co-hosts will join Thomas Hübl, the summit convener, next Thursday, August 24, for a free 90-minute preview session exploring some of the themes that came up as we recorded interviews with the guests over the past few months. (We’ll be starting at 9am L.A. / 12pm N.Y. / 5pm London/ 6pm Berlin).
You can register for free for the preview event here.
The summit itself runs from September 24 to October 4.
“Island of Coherence”
For those new to the annual gathering, the line-up includes some of the biggest names in trauma work — such as Gabor Maté, Richard Schwartz, and Peter Levine — and academics, writers, activists and artists, such as a Joy A. DeGruy, Adrienne Maree Brown; Peter Kalmus; Maria Leistner; and Edgar Villanueva, to name a few.
The 60-plus speakers are all helping society to integrate individual, transgenerational and collective trauma, in some form. But the summit is more than just a series of conversations: By building a global platform to sensitively and safely explore massive trauma fields — from structural racism to the climate crisis — we create an “island of coherence,” whose energetic impact ripples far beyond the 100,000 viewers.
In this sense, the speakers — however accomplished or well-known — are no more or less important than each audience member who contributes the gift of their attention. These new connections fuel a fast-growing, global network of organisations and initiatives aimed at supporting trauma integration — what we refer to at at the summit as the “global healing movement.” By following even one of the conversations, you’re helping this movement evolve and grow.
After serving as a co-host last year, I was delighted to be invited back, and it’s been fantastic to have an opportunity to record four sessions — on climate anxiety (Britt Wray); the COVID-19 pandemic (Ed Yong); military veterans (Cormac Doyle and Josh Goldberg); and the legacy of trauma and cultural resources inherited by the children of Holocaust survivors (Helen Epstein). I learned a lot preparing for, and during, these conversations, and I plan to write more nearer the summit.
Meanwhile, please do drop by our preview event on Thursday, if you feel called.
Work with Me: Soul-Witnessing Via The Tarot
I used to have no interest in Tarot, and — if I’d given the practice more than a moment’s thought — would have dismissed it as something slightly sinister, and certainly not part of my path.
I’ve since learned that I was missing out on a powerful, safe and endlessly enriching psychedelic experience — in the true “mind manifesting” sense of the term.
If you enjoy Resonant World, then you may find a Tarot reading with me a helpful resource for tapping into the kind of deep inner guidance that can help us to navigate life’s challenges with greater confidence, ease and flow.
I work with the cards to open an oracular space (to borrow Matthew Stelzner’s term) to connect you to the part of yourself that knows the answers you seek, and can communicate precisely via the 1,200 symbols in the Thoth deck. It is amazing to see what the beautiful, multi-layered imagery can unearth from just below the surface of our awareness — and feel the clarity and energy that a reading can unlock.
I charge £70 / $90 for a session that typically lasts 90 minutes, including a guided meditation to establish a coherent field linking us with the cards. Sessions in-person (in London) or via Zoom. (I am a member of the Tarot Association of the British Isles and abide by its code of ethics). Do feel free to email me if you have any questions. Reading the Tarot is one of my absolute favourite things to do, and I love how people light up with the insights and realisations that a session can evoke.
Paid Subscriptions now Open
I’m hugely grateful for all the support and encouragement I’ve received over the past year. I’ve now turned on the option to pay to subscribe to Resonant World. Though I plan to share most of the content freely for the time being, if you do wish to support this project with a paid subscription, it will help me to write more frequently; report in more detail; profile more guests, and record more video and podcasts. Thank you!