Earth Circle

Summer 2025 Earth Circle

Radical listening for climate justice.

Heart-to-Heart seeks to help leaders of all ages across Massachusetts grow their long-term capacity to contribute to the climate justice movement.

Much of activism is about “what we do” and “what we want them to do”—campaign, policy, protest, and action. This Earth Circle is upstream of that. It is a practice of slowing down in the face of urgency, pressure, content, and conflict of our political present. It is a practice of radical listening—the listening we need to disrupt and replace patterns of hierarchy, scarcity, othering, and grind.

In this circle, we will listen for the earth as it is present in ourselves, one another, our communities, and in the ecosystems which make all life possible. We will supplement what we already know about listening with practices from Parker Palmer’s Circles of Trust and Marshall Rosenberg’s Nonviolent Communication. Through mindful listening to life at all its layers, we will empower ourselves to nurture the whole web of relationships that make up our movement.

Globe in person's hand lifting up to trees

Format:

This summer, we will gather once on zoom and once in person:

Wednesday evening, July 30, 6:30-9:00 on Zoom
Saturday, August 9, 9:30 a.m – 5:00 p.m., at Bethel Church (41 Empire St, Quincy, MA 02169)

Both online and in person, we will gather in different configurations: a full circle, small groups, and “solo” outdoor time in direct dialogue with our patch of earth.

We will explore theseEarth Circle Touchstones to ground and guide our gathering.

We will also frequently gather around a “third things”—a poem, a song, an artifact, one of our own stories from the movement—allowing us collectively and individually to react, respond, and make meaning. Lastly, we will counterbalance this “content” with stillness, silence, spaciousness, and time to reflect.

We intend to build on this offering with more opportunities in the coming year.

Who is this for:

We are building an intergenerational cohort of climate justice leaders, including individuals from the following age ranges 15-30, 30-45, 45-60, 60+. If you’re unsure if this cohort is for you, consider our (very broad)definition ofclimate justice leadership, or reach out to the facilitator at eben.bein@alum.mit.edu.

Registration for two-part program open until July 23rd!

Summer 2025 Circle Schedule

A two-part sequence in which we will grow our capacity to be Earth Circle weavers by exploring the touchstones, stillness, and our identities and leadership goals in the climate justice movement.

Root - Wednesday, July 30, 6:30 - 9:00PM, Zoom

2.5hrs, whole group “circle”, breakouts, a break and a (preferably outside) sit spot experience

Full Circle Grounding (arriving, body scan, earth scan, and movement)
Full Circle Reading & Reflecting on the Touchstones
What and why of the Earth Circle
Dyads/Triads for these questions: Who are you? Why are you here? Any additional Touchstones reflections

*short break*

“Solo” Sit Spot/Earth Dialogue Time on the same questions
Full Circle “End with Introductions”

Flower - Saturday, August 9, 9:30AM - 5:30PM, Bethel Church, 41 Empire St, Quincy, MA 02169

In-person day-long gathering, with lunch, full circle, dyad/triad and “solo”/sit spot time, location with green space in MA TBA.

9:30 Full Circle Grounding, Reading & Reflecting on the Touchstones (45min)

10:15 The Tragic Gap: Responding to short stories about our visions for the world and the tragic gap between what is and could be

11:15 Needs v. Strategies (1hr15)

12:30 Lunch

1:30 Leadership, Needs and Open & Honest Questions

2:30 Practicing Questions with Stillness & Earth (“solo” and dyad/triad time)

how does nature ask you questions? how do you ask nature questions?
are these questions open and honest? how do you know?
what makes you feel more or less lost?
what is Earth telling you about needs and strategies?

4:00 – Going forth knowing it is possible

Who are your people in the fight for climate justice?
Which of these skills will help you to listen for earth in them? In yourself?
How might we weave these skills of the Earth Circle into the movement? (Feedback)

5:00 – Appreciations, Celebrations, andparting song

Interested?

Are you interested in weaving the Earth Circle with us? Please complete the form linked to the “Apply Now” button below by July 23 to reserve your spot.

If you have questions about any aspect of the program, feel free to email the lead facilitator, Eben E. B. Bein at eben.bein@alum.mit.edu.

Apply Now

Lead Facilitator – Eben E. B. Bein

Eben (they) is abiology-teacher-turned-climate-justice-educator, activist, and multi-disciplinary artist. They grew up in a cohousing community on Nipmuc land (Acton, MA) and received a BA in Biology and teaching certificate from Dartmouth College and a Masters in Science Writing from MIT. They currently empower and co-learn with young climate advocates atClean Water and across theMassachusetts Youth Climate Coalition, while nurturing intergenerational relationships within in the state’s largest climate coalition,Mass Power Forward. Eben draws on practices from Circles of Trust (Palmer, Wilkinson), Nonviolent Communication (Rosenberg, Kashtan, Mosenzon), anti-racist organizing principles (brown, Kendi, Okun), and 14 years of teaching and organizing to inform their facilitation. They also enjoy singing, dancing, visual art, writing and most recently poetry. Their words can be found in the likes of The Atlantic, NOVA PBS, Nimrod International Journal, New Ohio Review, PINCH, four anthologies, their chapbook Character Flaws (2023 Fauxmoir Lit) and atebenbein.com. They currently live on Pawtucket land (Arlington, MA) in a house they co-bought with their husband and poet friends.

Co-Facilitator – Steve Tumolo

Steve (he) is an educator who specializes in accompanying learners through transitional and transformational moments of their lives. His approach brings together Marshall Rosenberg’s Nonviolent Communication, an incarnational spirituality, and the body’s natural capacity for healing. He is a certified trainer with the Center for Nonviolent Communication, a Laudato Si’ Animator, Somatic Experiencing Practitioner, T’ai Chi Chih instructor, and PhD candidate in leadership at Gonzaga University. His work accompanying incarcerated people has been featured in NBC News, the Philadelphia Inquirer, and New Jersey Monthly. He is the recipient of the Elizabeth Ann Bogert Memorial Award for the Study and Practice of Christian Mysticism, an OPUS Vision Award from Pacifica Graduate Institute, and the Environmental Achievement Award from the United States Environmental Protection Agency. Steve is the Chief Encouragement Officer at Heart-to-heart.