Clear Values ≠ Easy Decisions

Posted on February 18, 2013 by zoeweil
Image courtesy michaelaw.

During a recent board of directors retreat at the Institute for Humane Education, our facilitator helped the group (comprised of several new members) get to know each other through a wonderful activity. He’d collected a bunch of quotes and put them in a bowl. We each picked a piece of paper from the bowl, read our quote, and pondered what it meant for us. Then one by one we shared our quote and reflected about its meaning to us.

My quote came from Walt Disney, who said: “When your values are clear, your decisions are easy.”

Not in today’s world, I thought. Really, not even in Walt Disney’s world. Not if your values include compassion, kindness, and living sustainably. Being kind and compassionate and walking lightly in a complex, globalized world requires a great deal of knowledge about a great many things. It may be relatively easy to make kind and compassionate decisions in our interpersonal relationships, but what does it mean to be kind when the foods we eat, the clothes we wear, and the products we use may have contributed to the exploitation, abuse, suffering, death, and destruction of people, animals, and ecosystems?

My values are pretty clear. And I try very hard to live by them. But my decisions are certainly not always easy. Some are easier than others. I don’t want to cause unnecessary suffering and death to animals, so I’ve chosen to be vegan. I don’t want to cause the exploitation and enslavement of people around the globe, so whenever possible I opt for fair trade foods. But few foods actually have such labels; and every day I learn something new, such as how the high demand in the U.S. for the nutritious grain quinoa is now preventing poor Bolivians, for whom it has been a national staple for generations, from being able to afford what is grown in their own country. The truth is that the more deeply I attempt to live according to my values, the more challenged I am and the less easy it becomes to make truly humane and just decisions.

And so when it was my turn to share my quote with the group, I thought how perfect it was that I had picked this one. I had, in fact, written an entire book, Most Good, Least Harm, about the challenges, as well as the joys, of living as deeply aligned as possible with our values. I found myself thinking that Walt Disney’s quote represented a simplistic kind of black and white thinking that I’m trying to depose, by urging people – especially students – to think in ways that are complex, nuanced, thoughtful, and creative, so that they will be able to make wise decisions — a far more important thing to me than easy decisions.

~ Zoe

Zoe Weil, President, Institute for Humane Education
Author of Most Good, Least Harm, Above All, Be Kind, and The Power and Promise of Humane Education
My TEDxDirigo talk: “The World Becomes What You Teach“
My TEDxYouth@BFS “Educating for Freedom”
My TEDxYouth@CEHS “How to Be a Solutionary”

Like my blog? Please share it with others, comment, and/or subscribe to our RSS feed.

Filed under: MOGO (Most Good) | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

John Kasona: How Poachers Become Caretakers

Posted on January 31, 2013 by zoeweil

In a world in which we are endlessly encouraged to think in either/or terms; us versus them; the good guys versus the evildoers; Republican versus Democrat; environment versus jobs; it is refreshing to contemplate transformation, change, and solutionary thinking, as John Kasona does in his TEDx talk.

So take a look at how poachers became caretakers, and then remember that we have the power to transform unjust, cruel, and destructive systems.

All we have to do is teach our children that this is their job — and a job for all of us: to develop innovative solutions to our challenges and create a humane world.

~ Zoe

Zoe Weil, President, Institute for Humane Education
Author of Most Good, Least Harm, Above All, Be Kind, and The Power and Promise of Humane Education
My TEDxConejo talk: “Solutionaries”
My TEDxDirigo talk: “The World Becomes What You Teach“
My TEDxYouth@BFS “Educating for Freedom”

Like my blog? Please share it with others, comment, and/or subscribe to our RSS feed.

Filed under: animal protection, MOGO (Most Good) | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments »

My Solstice Wish for Humanity

Posted on December 20, 2012 by zoeweil

I’m traveling a lot this month, so please enjoy this repost from 12/21/11.

Tomorrow night is the longest night in the northern hemisphere and the longest day in the southern hemisphere. Usually on the northern hemisphere’s winter solstice I write about my experience in Maine, where the darkest night also represents the turning of the year toward light.

This year, perhaps because I’ve been conversing regularly with a couple of people in Australia and New Zealand who read my blog, I’m struck by how limited my solstice message is each year. I’ve really just been writing for those in the North above a certain latitude. Not only are my musings not applicable to the temperate South, they also don’t mean much nearer the equator where most people in the world live. Their days are relatively stable, hovering around half night and half day. The metaphors of entering the darkness and bringing light don’t carry much power.

I’ve always been struck by the fact that the light immediately returns after the winter solstice and immediately ebbs after the summer solstice. Just as summer begins, with its promise of luxuriously long days and nights that go on and on, it is in fact growing darker; and just as winter begins, with its promise of cold and dark, it is in fact growing lighter.

And what this reminds me of, that I hope is applicable to everyone, everywhere on this solstice, is that things are far more intricate than they seem. Longest day/longest night – these are the extremes that mark the vastly larger, more complex, more nuanced life that lies between the poles. Yet it seems that we humans so often cling to those poles, defining ourselves, casting our vote, throwing our lot in with those who profess often simplistic either/ors. We are surrounded by these simplicities, whether they come in the form of partisan politics, diet fads and health regimens, religious dogmas, or economic absolutes. Too often they lead us away from wise solutions to our challenges.

And so my solstice wish for humanity is this: Let us remember that the extremes of longest day/longest night happen only twice every year and that the solutions to our myriad problems will be found in our muddy, complicated, daily world by those who are willing to listen, learn, explore and think deeply and creatively, rather than attach themselves to the loud and obvious absolutes that we humans are so prone to notice and cling to, to our great peril.

~ Zoe

Zoe Weil, President, Institute for Humane Education
Author of Most Good, Least Harm, Above All, Be Kind, and The Power and Promise of Humane Education
My TEDxConejo talk: “Solutionaries”
My TEDxDirigo talk: “The World Becomes What You Teach“
My TEDxYouth@BFS “Educating for Freedom”

Like my blog? Please share it with others, comment, and/or subscribe to our RSS feed.

Filed under: MOGO (Most Good) | Tagged: , , , , , , | Comments Off

We Don’t Need More Gandhis – We Need More People Acting on Their Ideas

Posted on June 13, 2012 by zoeweil
Image courtesy of six million dollar dan
via Creative Commons.

Note: Zoe is on vacation, so please enjoy this repost from 6/3/09.. 

In my book, Most Good, Least Harm, I share stories of individuals who’ve created positive change through volunteerism, philanthropy, innovation, entrepreneurship, and activism. When I lead MOGO workshops, I invite participants to consider the ideas of a few individuals who’ve made a difference for others and to imagine their own ideas. We all have them. Unfortunately, they may lie below the surface, seemingly inaccessible. Perhaps as children we were told our ideas were impractical, or we were humored, cute creators of finger paintings and crayon drawings, instead of encouraged to be real visionaries.

I remember a pivotal moment in my childhood when an adult took my ideas seriously. My best friend, Robin, her brother, Tory, and I, would often play together as children. Robin and Tory’s father was Victor Kiam, entrepreneur and businessman. Victor became well known as the man who liked Remington shavers so much that he bought the company (Remember those commercials? “Shaves as close as a blade or your money back.”). But, before Remington, Victor ran other businesses. Robin, Tory and I liked to create skits and commercials, and Victor encouraged us to come up with ideas for a commercial for his company. He wasn’t just indulging us. He was serious. I truly believed that if we came up with something really good, he’d truly consider using it. I felt empowered and appreciated. I knew my ideas mattered.

My own father was also a businessman. And he was one of the best, kindest, loving men I’ve ever known. I adored him, and 24 years after his early death, I still miss him terribly. When I was little, he sometimes took me to work with him. He was the vice president of a textile company, and it was so much fun to hang out in the art room where artists designed the fabrics. I got to paint to my heart’s content, and I was often very excited to show my dad my work. I asked if he’d ever consider using my art. I was indulged and humored, but the truth was I knew that my art would never make it onto a pillowcase. Now, my father wasn’t the president of his company as Victor was, so he may not have been able to offer his daughter the possibility of such an achievement, but there was something deeply disappointing in knowing that there was no chance, no matter how good my work, that it would be welcomed in this world of commerce.

How many of us have come to believe we have no real ideas or products of merit, nothing within us to lead, to create real change? I recently gave a MOGO talk, and afterward a woman told me that she felt a bit depressed afterward. “We can’t all be like you,” she expressed. “I’m not Gandhi.”

Well, I’m sure no Gandhi either, but that’s not what the world needs. We don’t need more Gandhis; we need more people who believe in their capacity to bring their creativity to light and manifest their ideas. We need more people who, as children, were given the gift of knowing that their ideas – if good – could be made real.

You have dozens of ideas, maybe below the surface just waiting for a bit of excavation. Dig in. What ideas do you have? Make them real. Make just one of them real. It matters that you do.

For a humane world,

Zoe Weil, President, Institute for Humane Education
Author of Most Good, Least Harm, Above All, Be Kind, and The Power and Promise of Humane Education
My TEDx talk: “The World Becomes What You Teach“

Like my blog? Please share it with others, comment, and/or subscribe to the RSS feed.  

Filed under: changemakers, creativity, MOGO (Most Good) | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

Lightening Up and Letting Go: Learning From Fighting Dogs

Posted on May 20, 2011 by zoeweil

Yesterday afternoon, two of our dogs, Ruby and Elsie, got into a fight. They’ve been fighting periodically over the past 5 months, and each fight has gotten worse. I had thought that their last fight, well over a month ago, was the final battle, and that they’d worked things out. Basically, Elsie, now an adolescent, has begun to irritate Ruby, soon to turn 8. When we first adopted Elsie, who was around 6 months old, she was like a fountain of youth for Ruby. The two played and played, and we were delighted that Ruby had a best friend, sister, and playmate.

But this year, Elsie’s been pestering Ruby, sidling up next to her, on her tail, challenging her status as queen bee in our household, and Ruby has been voicing her displeasure by growling. Elsie doesn’t take the hint, and Ruby has attacked her half a dozen times. The first couple of times Elsie barely fought back, but yesterday, she fought back hard. Usually, I let them work it out and no one is hurt; but this time, they wouldn’t stop. I tried everything I could think of: yelling at them, tossing a sheet over them, throwing their stainless steel dog bowls, and finally getting a broom. The broom worked. I got them apart. We were all shaken.

And when this happened, my husband and I were soon to hit the road to drive to Massachusetts to watch our son’s breakdancing performance at school, and I didn’t want to leave our housesitter to handle any fallout from the fight. So I called the motel where we’d be staying and asked about bringing Elsie. They said yes.

Elsie traveled for six hours, four hours longer than the longest road trip she’d ever been on with us, arriving at a strange motel room to spend the night. She seemed a bit anxious, but she cozied up in the bed and fell asleep. In the morning we went to the school to watch the performance and stopped to take Elsie for a brief walk in the rain. A carpet of pink flower petals lay on the ground and Elsie lay among them, a beautiful sight. A balm after the storm that had precipitated her joining us.

A couple of hours later we were back on the road home. Elsie was a good traveler, confused though she must have been. When she and Ruby saw each other upon our return they were wary. Elsie slinked into the house, obviously worried. But then they ran outside – where they are always best friends – before coming back in and slipping into their uncertain patterns in the house. Ruby growling quietly; Elsie refusing to back off.

I hope there won’t be any more big fights. I hope that Elsie will stop challenging Ruby’s status in our household, or if she simply must be the alpha, that Ruby will let go as she ages. I hope that Elsie will learn not to be such a pest around Ruby, and that Ruby will just lighten up.

As I write these words, I find them familiar. I see the ways I, too, can be a pest in my family (like Elsie), and the ways I, too, can be inflexible around my likes and dislikes (like Ruby). I see the ways in which as much as we love one another, we, too, can fight (although we do so with words, not teeth). I see the ways in which we each seek control in different forms and styles and the ways in which lightening up would be just the solution to many a conflict.

Maybe if I work on my own behavior, Ruby and Elsie will miraculously solve their behavioral challenges, too.

Zoe Weil, President, Institute for Humane Education
Author of Most Good, Least Harm, Above All, Be Kind: Raising a Humane Child in Challenging Times, and The Power and Promise of Humane Education
My TEDx talk: “The World Becomes What You Teach“

Like my blog? Please share it with others, comment, and/or subscribe to the RSS feed.

Filed under: habits, mindfulness, MOGO (Most Good), third side thinking | Tagged: , , , , , , , | Comments Off

Look Beyond Either/Or to the Both-And

Posted on April 18, 2011 by zoeweil

I’m swamped with our new graduate programs right now, so here’s a repost from 7/20/09 that I hope you’ll enjoy.

I’ve been thinking a lot about the ways in which we humans seem to gravitate towards “either/or” choices. Either we protect Northern Spotted Owls or people’s logging jobs. Either we invade Iraq or not. Either we pull the troops out or stay. There are more. Either we trust our minds or hearts. Either we are Christian or Muslim. Either we are Republican or Democrat.

Yes, there are people who want to protect owls and jobs, think beyond either/ors and work creatively to come up with the wisest choices in Iraq, trust both their minds and hearts, see the connections between all religions, and consider themselves Independents. But it seems to me such people are the minority.

Among activists, the either/ors are sometimes cast starkly: either someone (or some company or industry) is good or evil. The CEO of Altria (formerly Philip Morris), of Exxon-Mobil, of Monsanto –- they must be evil, while the CEO of Working Assets/CREDO must be good.

It’s just not this simple. But complexity is, well, complex. Commitment to seeing both-ands instead of either/ors demands more from us. It may at first even appear wishy-washy, as if you’ve lost your passion and your commitment if you don’t immediately “take sides.” It shouldn’t. Instead, a commitment to both-and is a commitment to problem-solving at the deepest level. A realization that people have the capacity for dangerous, unwise, unhealthy choices, as well as compassionate, kind, and brilliant choices means that we can try to influence the former, rather than call people names and divide the population into us and thems.

There will be many times when taking sides is exactly what you need to do, but let’s not let side-taking become a knee-jerk reaction to everything that is presented to us in either/or terms. You’ll find either/ors everywhere. Listen for them. And then see if you can determine a more nuanced both-and…and a solution that works for all.

Zoe Weil, President, Institute for Humane Education
Author of Most Good, Least Harm and Above All, Be Kind: Raising a Humane Child in Challenging Times
My TEDx talk: “The World Becomes What You Teach“

Like my blog? Please share it with others, comment, and/or subscribe to the RSS feed.

Filed under: critical thinking, third side thinking | Tagged: , , , , , , , | Comments Off

Prepare to Be Amazed By the Humble Starling

Posted on March 4, 2011 by zoeweil

I grew up in Manhattan where I was exposed to few species of birds, primarily just sparrows and pigeons. Pigeons were commonly referred to as rats with wings, but I thought they were lovely, and I enjoyed watching the usually elderly people (described as eccentric and generally avoided) feeding them in the park. The pigeons surrounded their benefactors, cooing and alighting on their shoulders. So while pigeons were largely despised, there were those of us who loved them.

I remember the first time I saw a European starling. I was startled by such a gorgeous bird, with a bright yellow beak and lavender, turquoise, and green iridescent feathers shining amidst their otherwise speckled feathers. I asked the person with me what kind of bird was that!? She was shocked that I didn’t know what a starling was. Introduced into the U.S. in the late 1800s, they are now considered an invasive species that competes with native birds and ruins crops. I understand that problem, but the consequence of being branded as a pest can be pretty awful for individual animals who, through no fault of their own, are poisoned and trapped in droves.

I believe it’s important to appreciate each species with whom we share this planet – even if, through our unwise actions, we’ve introduced them into places they didn’t naturally arise. It’s important, because when we vilify another species, whether passenger pigeon (now extinct because of the genocide we perpetrated upon them), or mosquitoes (now resistant to more and more pesticides), we often cause more harm than good. We have a habit of making choices that are both unwise initially, and unwise in response.

I don’t have an answer to how to solve the problems caused by introduced species, but in the case of the European starling, it’s worth pausing to marvel at these incredible birds. Then perhaps we can attempt to generate solutions that are best for all: humans, the environment, and other species.

Prepare to be amazed:

For a healthy and humane world,

Zoe Weil, President, Institute for Humane Education
Author of Most Good, Least Harm
My TEDx talk: “The World Becomes What You Teach“

Image courtesy of Rachel Davies via Creative Commons.

Like our blog? Please share it with others, comment, and/or subscribe to our RSS feed.

Filed under: animal intelligence and emotion, animal protection, compassion, Most Good, nature, third side thinking | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

When Compromise Means Defending the Indefensible, It’s Time to Embrace Our Idealism

Posted on February 7, 2011 by zoeweil

My friend and colleague, Mary Pat Champeau, brought over a Netflix video for a few of us to watch at the Institute for Humane Education. It was called The Girl in the Café, and I figured she’d just landed upon a really entertaining film and wanted to share it. “Just send it back when you’re done,” she said. I wasn’t supposed to be home that evening because of my Aikido class, but my back was hurting, and so I decided not to go to class and watch the film instead. I’m so glad I did.

The Girl in the Café is certainly an entertaining film, but its entertainment value is trumped by its great message. Revolving around the G8 summit and the Millennium Goals to (among other things) eradicate extreme poverty, the take home point is that we must stop dithering and compromising our values; we must stop defending the indefensible; we must stop conflating idealism with utopianism; and we must commit to meeting goals that are, beyond a doubt, achievable, if we harness our will to achieve them.

The next morning, I read an AP article about farm groups joining together to fight bad publicity and improve farmers’ images. In the article, Joe Cornely, a spokesman for the Ohio Farm Bureau, is quoted saying the following:

“So often people advocate for a utopian world and it’s not doable…. Feeding the world requires us to kick up some dirt and create a few odors. That is just a reality of producing food and fiber that may not fit in with the utopian vision…. The vast majority of people are reasonable people, they just need to know that you can’t have the perfect world.”

What Cornely is implicitly defending are egregious farming practices in which sentient beings are crammed into cages and crates in which they can barely move, routinely mutilated without painkillers or anesthesia, forced to live (and die) under conditions so inhumane that were such atrocities perpetrated on dogs or cats the people responsible would be thrown in jail. He is also implicitly defending practices that are causing such horrific pollution that wildlife, too, routinely die by the thousands, as waste lagoons burst and their contents spill into waterways.

Having watched The Girl in the Café the night before, Cornely’s words were particularly cynical. By resorting to utopianism as the alternative to institutionalized cruelty and destruction in our modern farming practices, he tries to appeal to those “reasonable” people among us who might be swayed that striving for a more humane, sustainable, and healthy world is either impossible or downright silly.

Idealism is too often perceived as a weakness, a form of immaturity, a sign that a person is not yet wise. Yet Martin Luther King, Jr., was an idealist, and so was Mahatma Gandhi. Nobel Peace Prize winners, Wangari Maathai and Aung San Suu Kyi, are also idealists. Even the founding fathers of the United States were idealists, and without William Wilberforce’s persistent idealism, what might have happened in the British Parliament during the endless debates about the African slave trade? Today, it is the tireless efforts of millions of changemakers across the globe – fueled by a belief in a better world; fueled by idealism – that is creating systemic change leading us closer to peace and closer to restoration. Without idealists who envision a safer, saner, more equitable world and who are willing to work toward it, the fate of billions of people, animals, and the ecosystems upon which we all depend, would be far worse.

Cornely and the Farm Bureau fighting reforms follow a long line of people who dig in their heels to protect the status quo, no matter how destructive and unjust that status quo is. They prey on our fears and doubts, our inertia and apathy, our greed and our self-centeredness. They urge us to feel superior if we are “pragmatists,” even though there is nothing pragmatic about practices that cause harm and suffering and misery.

It’s time for all of us to embrace the idealist within and refuse to succumb to the messages that would keep us inert. This does not mean we should be utopians or refuse to compromise when compromise serves the ends we seek. It does not mean that we should perceive the world – or other people – in either/or terms, taking sides rather than seeking viable solutions. It means that we should envision the world that we have the power to create and take all the necessary steps to achieve it, practically, and with every ounce of our idealism intact.

And we must nurture our children’s idealism, ensuring that they never fall for the myth that wisdom lies in abandoning your ideals and that “reasonableness” is a sign of maturity. Instead, we must raise them to be solutionaries who use their great minds in service with their loving hearts to change unjust and inhumane systems, understanding that their idealism can and must be harnessed effectively and practically for the good.

For a better world,

Zoe Weil, President, Institute for Humane Education
Author of Most Good, Least Harm and Above All, Be Kind

Like my blog? Please share it with others, comment, and/or subscribe to the RSS feed.

Filed under: changemakers, citizen activism, goodness, humane education, movies, systemic change, third side thinking, values | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

World in Conversation Project

Posted on January 31, 2011 by zoeweil

Since my TEDx talk was released, I have been receiving lots of emails from people wanting to learn how to implement the ideas I shared. I’ve also been hearing from humane educators and groups doing fantastic work across the globe. For my next several blog posts, I wanted to share some of their great work.

In a recent blog post about Sam Richards’ outstanding TEDx talk on empathy, I talked about the ways in which Richards so masterfully modeled the elements of humane education. Sam Richards is also the co-director of a fabulous humane education program at Pennsylvania State University – the World in Conversation Project – which provides a facilitated forum for important discussions around race. Check it out.

For a better world through education,

Zoe Weil, President, Institute for Humane Education
Author of Most Good, Least Harm, The Power and Promise of Humane Education, Claude and Medea, and Above All, Be Kind

Like my blog? Please share it with others, comment, and/or subscribe to the RSS feed.

Filed under: critical thinking, Cultural Issues, discrimination, education, humane education, perspective, social justice, third side thinking, websites | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

Empathy’s Role in Education

Posted on January 26, 2011 by zoeweil

Check out this TEDx talk by Sam Richards, a sociology professor and co-director of Race Relations at Penn State:

At the Institute for Humane Education, we identify four elements as key to providing quality humane education. They include:

  1. Providing accurate information about pressing issues and challenges of our time.
  2. Fostering the 3 Cs of curiosity, creativity, and critical thinking.
  3. Instilling the 3 Rs of reverence, respect, and responsibility.
  4. Offering positive choices and the tools for becoming a solutionary.

Note how masterfully Sam Richards, in just 19 minutes, manages to employ the first three elements, while leaving viewers pondering their choices and their roles in addressing some of the challenges we face. What I particularly appreciate, as a humane educator, is that the entire talk, entitled “A Radical Experiment in Empathy,” is aimed at evoking the compassion that can lead us toward critical and creative thinking and problem-solving for a better world.

This is such an important talk which everyone should see, and a incredibly useful tool for teachers exploring complex, challenging, and critical issues in classrooms.

Zoe Weil, President, Institute for Humane Education
Author of Most Good, Least Harm, The Power and Promise of Humane Education, and Above All, Be Kind

Like my blog? Please share it with others, comment, and/or subscribe to the RSS feed.

Filed under: accurate information, compassion, critical thinking, education, humane education, politics, systemic change, third side thinking, videos | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments »

Next Page »
Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 437 other followers