Are We Ready for a Different Way to Grow?

Homemade Sourdough Bread is one of the offers available through the Shakti Community Support Board.

After sharing my thoughts about capitalism and my commitment to find equitable and just financial practices, I was excited and grateful to receive positive feedback from you. Many of you contacted me to share that you too struggle with navigating an exploitative economic system and want to participate in a mastermind group for the specific purpose of finding ethical solutions to economic security. Yes! I did not think that I was alone in this desire. I appreciate each one of you who reached out to me.

Your interest and support has spurred me to delve deeper into my research and to curate a repository of resources to inform our future mastermind group. My goal is to initiate a mastermind group by early September. I also hope to develop several stand-alone workshops that reflect the conversations and learnings that we glean from the mastermind group, thus extending the reach of the information. The Shakti Support Council is fully backing this idea and is instrumental in getting this new initiative off the ground. Thank you women!

While preparations are happening, I will continue to share snippets from my research as well as offer economic justice practices to implement. Below are my insights for this week:

• The primary principles of permaculture are excellent guideposts for organizing a just and equitable economic system. They are:
  • People Care: Providing basic human needs
  • Earth Care: Protecting natural resources and biodiversity
  • Fair Share: Returning surplus to the system and limiting consumption

Each principle is regenerative, meaning the principles, when implemented, encourage regrowth, renewal, and restoration. Nothing is extracted or exploited.

• This particular insight comes from my study of astrology. I was listening to an Astrology Hub podcast (episode 1024) in which the guest astrologer, Adam Gainsburg, shared his thoughts about the Uranus trine Pluto transit happening this Friday (July 17). Adam believes this transit, which will occur several more times over the next two years, is an opportunity to examine how we as humans chose to innovate and how our choices impact our personal power. He invited people to sit with the following question:

Are we, as a species, now ready to stop using conflict as a way to grow and [instead] start using radical collaboration and integration as the way to grow?

I believe this question is at the root of anti-capitalism work. The way we answer this question will inform the fair share practices that we choose to implement. 

There are several ways that you can practice generosity and reciprocity this week. 

1. Donate school supplies for Vincent Dial Day. This annual event is happening on July 25 at Carver Park in Johnson City, TN. Shakti is collecting school supply donations to take to the festival. These school supplies are given to students who experience financial insecurity. You may drop off donations during Makerspace Open Hours: Wednesdays and Fridays from 2 to 5 pm. 
2. Engage with the Shakti Community Support Board. This board is an opportunity to share your abundance as well as an opportunity to seek collaboration. We have several requests and offers posted on the board. For example, I am offering a loaf of Sourdough bread to anyone who would like one. Another person is seeking a travel buddy. A third person is offering art supplies. Let’s cut down on consumerism and share resources and invite connections.
3. Donate non-perishable foods to the Little Free Pantry. As you may imagine with the rising food prices, more and more people are seeking food assistance through the Little Free Pantry in front of Shakti. If you have the ability to share food or to make a financial donation for us to shop for food, then please consider doing so in the coming weeks. 

Wishing everyone a wonderful week!

Love,

Kim

P.S. Stop by Makerspace this Friday, July 17, and have some birthday cake. It’s chocolate of course!

For nearly thirty years, Kim Bushore-Maki has served Appalachia as both a pioneer and champion of holistic well-being and community health. 

A licensed clinical counseling professional, she became the first Master level clinician at East Tennessee State University's Counseling Center, where she provided therapeutic services and directed the Sexual Violence Prevention Program and the Alcohol and Drug Prevention Program.

During her tenure at ETSU, she was a founding organizer of the Tennessee Coalition for Healthy and Safe Campus Communities as well as Tennessee's representative for the National Prevention Network. She drafted ETSU's first Sexual Violence Response Policy and coordinated the region's first "Take Back the Night" program and fundraiser (the oldest worldwide movement to stand against sexual violence in all forms), the proceeds of which funded the first SANE nurses at the Johnson City Medical Center. Kim also served as Interim Director of Disability Services for 11 months.

In 2010, Kim followed her intuition and vision to found Shakti in the Mountains, a thriving healing-arts center that draws on somatic expressive therapy, archetypal psychology, wisdom traditions, and regenerative economics. Kim continues to maintain a small private therapy practice and also leads healing programs and retreats, guides the Shakti Stewardship Program, and serves as a community-building consultant to justice-oriented initiatives committed to building safe, inclusive, vibrant, and resilient communities.  ​

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