Spring/Summer 2009
Sean is offering two Saturday day-long workshops this Spring and Summer through The Center for Integral Human Being in Sebastopol, California. Both workshops run from 10 am to 5 pm and include a break for lunch. Both events are limited to 15 participants to ensure intimacy. To register for either event call The Center for Integral Human Being 707-823-1400.
March 14th Living Integral Awareness: Cultivating Daily Intimacy with Reality (see description below) Cost: $149 for registrations received by February 1st, $195 thereafter.
May 16th Integral Ecological Awareness: Nature as Transformative Path (see description below) Cost: $149 for registrations received by April 1st, $195 thereafter.
Sean is also available for a variety of presentations on Integral topics ranging from experiential explorations to advanced theoretical explications. Contact him for details on keynote speaking, individual or small group talks, daylong and weekend workshops, seminars, and courses. Below are a few sample descriptions of presentations he delivers. Sean can work with you or your group to design the prefect integral presentation for your needs.
Integral Ecological Research: Including Animal Interiors (One-hour Talk)
Ecological sciences and systems theories provide powerful methods for understanding the functional-fit of organisms in the natural world. Cognitive ethology, biosemiotics, and zoophenomenology provide rigourous methods for exploring the interiors of those same organisms. To date these divergent approaches have not been able to be integrated by their respective practitioners: leaving the study of ecology devoid of an understanding of the interiors of animals. In contrast, Integral Ecology uses the meta-framework of Integral Methodological Pluralism (IMP) to create a mixed methods approach that not only acknowledges animal interiors but actively investigates and includes them in ecological research. In short, IMP is used to octangulate data from eight fundamental methodological zones as a means of entering the “black box” of animal subjectivity. The result is a radically unique approach to ecology that provides integral solutions to todays multifacted environmental issues.
The Transformative Power of Integral Education (Three-hour Talk)
Is it possible to assess the effectiveness of Integral Education? Can we use assessment tools and results to maximize the transformative potential of a curriculum? In this session Sean presents the ambitious longitudinal study of the Integral Research Center at John F. Kennedy University that will begin in the fall of 2008. This research attempts to answer the above questions using a mixed methods approach based on the eight zones of integral methodological pluralism. This session also explores how this study will integrate 1st-, 2nd-, and 3rd-person data by weaving phenomenolocial examination, structural assessment, hermeneutic exploration, participatory inquiry, empirical investigation, cognitive testing, and systems analysis. Sean will outline the importance of a wide range of sources of data for such research to be successful, including student applications, course work, in-person gatherings, psychological tests, focus groups, and interviews. This session concludes with a presentation of twelve different psychological assessments that can be used in such studies, including measurements of body awareness, emotional intelligence, personality, and ego development.
Living Integral Awareness (Full-day Workshop)
In a world that is only growing more complex and dynamic it is becoming increasingly important for us to embody an integral awareness that connects our body, mind, and Spirit in the contexts of self, community, and nature. No approach supports this unfolding more than Ken Wilber’s “All Quadrant, All Level” (AQAL) model, which is known for its integrative cognitive prowess – mapping and explaining the relationship between recurring patterns of reality. But what is often overlooked is how this comprehensive map of reality is also a map of our own awareness. This workshop introduces participants to the foundational elements of Wilber’s Integral model through experiential exercises which highlight the multidimensional nature of our awareness moment to moment. In particular, we will explore the many kinds of perspectives we inhabit throughout our day. By becoming more conscious of this cascade of perspective taking, we can leverage it towards cultivating qualities of Being that support more freedom and fullness throughout our lives. This workshop is appropriate for both individuals who know nothing about the Integral model and for those who have been applying it for years.
Integral Ecological Awareness (Full-day Workshop)
Nature is multi-dimensional and elusive. We are living in times that tend to flatten nature out – removing the depth and the mystery of the natural world. This workshop places you into direct contact with the hum and buzz of the more-than-human-world. It utilizes the integral framework as a map for developing distinctive and powerful exercises for experiencing nature with a unique form of Integral Life Practice called “Eco-ILP” that is based on Wilber's integral model. Sean has developed over a dozen practices for taking embodied integral perspectives on and as nature. These practices are presented in chapter 10 of Integral Ecology. These practices cultivate Integral Ecological Awareness, fostering a deeper care for self, others, the planet, and all life. Participants will have the unique opportunity to engage these practices and learn amidst the Laguna Wetlands Preserve in Sebastopol, while engaging in activities that reveal nature as a path for self-transformation.
Nature as Transformative Path (Five-day Seminar)
This personal growth intensive is a program combining breakthrough exercises for experiencing Nature with a unique form of integral practice based on Wilber's integral model. This seminar is designed to explore Nature within an integral framework that honors the multiple levels and dimensions of the human body, mind, and sprit. Sean will guide participants through an experience that includes theory and practice, individual and community. He will provide a toolbox for deepening one's relationship with Nature for years to come: cultivating an Integral Ecological Awareness, fostering a deeper care for self, others, the planet, and all life. Nature as Transformative Path is ultimately about realizing one's own true Nature in the context of the natural world. Participants will have the unique opportunity to practice and learn amidst the natural world, while engaging in activities that reveal nature as path for self-transformation.
Integral Ecology and Sustainability (Six-day Seminar)
Join us for six days to explore ecology and sustainability from an integral perspective, the most comprehensive framework available anywhere. You'll gain insights and skills that will help you with more effective and engaging approaches to the environmental challenges we're all facing, whether local, regional, or global. This panoramic seminar provides a balance of theory and practical application, as well as individual and group experiences, both indoors and outdoors. Deeply focused sessions will explore issues such as community and international development, ecological activism, education, business, government, personal awareness and worldcentric responsibility. Here's your chance to become part of this growing and vitally important community of deep awareness and heartfelt action.
