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“The quality of your attention is the quality of your life.” - John Stoke In this episode of Project Sekai, we're speaking with John Stokes, founder of The Tracking Project, to explore the art of traditional tracking and what it can teach us about our relationship with the natural world. Drawing on decades of learning alongside Indigenous elders and knowledge holders around the world, John shares stories of cultural exchange, the wisdom of elders, and the ways traditional knowledge can help us find our place in a rapidly changing world. He reflects on how our attention shapes our experience of life, why caring grows from connection, and what it means to learn to truly see the world around us. John also shares three simple practices for reconnecting with ourselves and the living world towards the end of the episode.  ----- The Tracking Project  WillCall - Sam's video production company Lotus Compass - Jamie's nature dharma travel company Music by Sunsette - check it out!  Project Sekai is a storytelling podcast exploring people, planet, and purpose, and the ever-evolving question of what it means to live a meaningful life. projectsekai.org

WAYFINDING series “We just want to create. We want to tell meaningful stories and connect with people that are doing good in the world.” — Sam Shimizu-Jones If you're new here ~ this is a creative project born from the question: What does it mean to live a meaningful life? Step behind the scenes with husband and wife duo and founders of Project Sekai, Sam and Jamie Shimizu-Jones. In this episode, they talk about where the idea came from, the role of curiosity and creativity in their lives, and why they wanted to create something that could take many forms: conversations, stories, videos, zines, poetry, and whatever else the project becomes along the way. At the heart of Project Sekai is an experiment in wayfinding. Rather than starting with a clear destination, Jamie and Sam are interested in following the threads that feel alive and seeing where they lead. In this conversation, they share the story behind the project and invite you into the experiment. Oh, and here's this~~~ The Five Happinesses aka five daily practices that will make your life more fulfilling (taught by Kaira Jewel)  1. Daily meditation or spiritual practice of some sort 2. Exercise  3. An act of kindness 4. List three things you're grateful for 5. At the end of the day, journal something good that happened to you that day. ----- WillCall - Sam's video production company Lotus Compass - Jamie's nature dharma travel company Music by Sunsette - check it out!  projectsekai.org

WAYFINDING series In Episode 3, we speak with Ram Appalaraju, who spent more than 30 years in the tech industry, following a path shaped by family, culture, education, achievement, and the promise of a secure livelihood. But as his Buddhist practice deepened, he began to question the relationship between his work and his values, eventually leaving a successful career to make space for something less certain: a life guided by presence, service, and deeper meaning. Ram shares his journey from India to the United States, from engineering to Buddhism, and from a goal-driven life toward one he describes as unfolding. We explore right livelihood, meditation, and the ways mindfulness can transform our relationship with everyday life. We also delve into Ram’s work as a Buddhist and eco-chaplain, accompanying people experiencing grief, isolation, and ecological loss, and ask what it might mean to live with greater agency, compassion, joy, and trust in the unfolding of our lives. Enjoy!  Links:  San Jose Insight Meditation  The Sati Center for Buddhist Studies, where Ram teaches regularly Music by Sunsette - check it out!  --- WillCall - bring your story to life Lotus Compass - travel inward projectsekai.org

WAYFINDING series How can we live in a way that is both aligned in what matters most to us and is responsive to what is needed in the world today? Della Duncan, renegade economist, eco-spiritual educator, and host of the Upstream podcast, has spent her life exploring this question. Her path has taken her from conventional economics to Schumacher College, the teachings of Joanna Macy and the Work That Reconnects, and ultimately toward a vision of economics anchored in right livelihood, a topic that she helps people explore in her role as a Right Livelihood Coach.  In this conversation, Della shares her own wayfinding journey and what it means to orient a life around ecological values. We explore the pillars of the Great Turning, the idea of a “livelihood garden,” and Frederick Buechner’s invitation to look for where “the world’s great hunger and your great gladness meet.” We ask what nature might teach us about who we are, what it means to cultivate a livelihood that nourishes rather than depletes, and how we can listen for the work that is ours to do. Links:  Della's website Schumacher College - holistic, ecological, transformative and transdisciplinary education Joanna Macy's Work that Reconnects - a form of group work designed to foster the desire and ability to take part in the healing of our world Naropa University - Buddhist-inspired contemplative education Spirit Rock - Buddhist meditation retreat center in California Music by Sunsette - check it out!  Della's full bio:  Della Z Duncan guides journeys upstream to the root causes of the challenges of our time to empower us to realize and re-member who we are, why we are here and how we can contribute to the Great Turning. As a Renegade Economist, plants in her regenerative livelihood garden include hosting the Upstream Podcast challenging mainstream economic thinking through documentaries and conversations including The Green Transition: The Problem with Green Capitalism and The Myth of Freedom Under Capitalism, supporting individuals as a Right Livelihood Coach, co-founding and co-directing the California Doughnut Economics Coalition which just released a Doughnut Snapshot of the state of California, helping transition businesses and organizations to post capitalism, and teaching and facilitating courses and retreats on Buddhist Economics, the Work that Reconnects, and Regenerative Economics including the annual Regenerative and Cooperative Economic Design Course and the Cultivating Regenerative Livelihoods Course through Gaia Education.  Della is also the Course Development Manager of Fritjof Capra’s Capra Course on the Systems View of Life, a founding member of the California Doughnut Economics Coalition, a Senior Fellow of Social and Economic Equity at the London School of Economics, a Gross National Happiness Master Trainer,  and a Senior Lecturer of Renegade Economics and Regenerative Livelihoods at the California Institute of Integral Studies, Santa Cruz Permaculture, Vital Cycles Permaculture, and Gaia Education. She holds an MA in Economics for Transition with Distinction from Schumacher College, a BA in International Relations and Sociology with highest honors from the University of California, Davis, a graduate certificate in Authentic Leadership from Naropa University, and has completed Joanna Macy’s Work that Reconnects Intensive Program. --- WillCall - bring your story to life Lotus Compass - travel inward projectsekai.org

WAYFINDING series How can you build a life in relationship with the Earth and trust your path as it unfolds? Athena Steen, co-founder of the Canelo Project, has spent decades exploring this. A master builder and artist working with earth materials, her life reflects a deep listening to place and process. In this conversation, Athena shares her journey into the “infinite possibility of expression,” raising children through unschooling, and learning to trust her inner voice. We explore the energy of homes, a philosophy of “no mistakes,” and what becomes possible when we pay attention to the patterns of the natural world. Links:  Canelo Project: Athena's natural building school in southern AZ The Nito Project: Cinematic & instructional natural building YouTube videos made by two of Athena's sons  Strawbale & natural building books by Athena & Bill Steen Music by Sunsette - check it out!  --- WillCall - bring your story to life! Lotus Compass - travel inward projectsekai.org