Stop, Reflect & Listen - London on September 23, 2009

[Christer Soderberg]

For pictures from the event at Casa Decor UK click here.

Coming from Stockholm to London is always an experience; the city is literally cooking with activity, you can feel the energy all around you; business is very much "happening", crisis or no crisis. I made the assumption that activities to alleviate the social, environmental and economic pressures on society and the planet would be equally powerful - I was wrong.

But not for lack of trying. Almost without exception, the people I met and individuals I spoke to all felt passionate about the environment and social injustices, and many were putting in long hours to prove it. The question begs: is this behaviour sustainable? Is it sustainable for a few to work themselves to exhaustion while the wheels of industry and "business as usual" grind on, inexorably, like a supertanker into the mist?

We have no idea whatsoever where this is taking us (we might sometimes think we do, but let's face it - we don't).

Science, on the other hand, thinks it does. Increasingly voices are getting louder about something big; evidence points to increasing natural disasters, polar ice-caps are melting beyond the most pessimistic scenarios, drought, fires, what next?

"It's too late to be a pessimist" says the motherly voice at the end of Yann Arthus Bertrands "Home" (www.youtube.com/homeproject). I agree!

But if working hard and passionately isn't working, what should we do?

Stop, Reflect & Listen

Full Stop! - Create the conditions to get away, stop the noise, all the "to do's", stop all the demands on yourself (demands from others are easier). This might take time to organize (and realize), but it's worth it. Please note! This doesn't mean drop everything and run, it means doing "mini" Stop, Reflect & Listen's - mini SRL's.

When you have created the space, given yourself the gift of time and space for yourself, then ask yourself; reflect on these questions:

Where are you (professionally, personally, in relation to others)?
Where do you want to be?
How do you want to get there?

Then comes the fun part; start listening. What is going on around you? What are people around you doing, how are they reacting, to you, to events in the world, to different ideas. Are these the ideas you want to fill your life?

You can do these things anytime, anywhere, you just have to choose to do it - choose to do it!

This is what Open World Café is about - making this choice easier, creating a place where people can meet, talk, and ask these questions - of themselves, and perhaps help someone else along their path.

Open World Foundation goes a little further by promoting projects which create places where this work can take place in naturally inspiring settings, like "Replanting a Rainforest" in Brazil. A unique opportunity to Stop, Reflect & Listen takes place at the Fazenda Ambiental Fortaleza where we offer a retreat in November - come and join us - and plant some trees for yourself! See "Events" or click here.

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On the day after the event, at the beautiful Casa Decor UK, situated on a tree lined street in Chelsea, just around the corner from Kensington Gardens, I went for along walk on the Hampstead Heath. It was a clear, sunny day with a fresh breeze, and I walked the paths in the company of beautiful trees of all ages, sizes, shapes and colors; the leaves just beginning to turn. I lay down and closed my eyes under a Lind, I almost climbed an ancient willow, and admired several maples. Trees, all over the place, trees! Nature is there to help us - always! We can always charge our batteries in nature, let's not forget it!

There were trees that were several hundred years old on the heath, and centenary oaks in parks in the city. These are there for a reason - somewhere deep inside of us - we acknowledge the power of nature. Some of us respond by showing that we are more powerful - that we are not "afraid" - and destroy these gifts in our environment, unaware that in the process we are destroying our own livelihood.

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I began my short talk at the event with some pieces of broken ceramics I had found at low tide along the Thames. I used these remnants of civilizations past as a metaphor for the stories we all carry with us; interesting, loving, memorable stories, but also banal, scary, and sometimes terrifying stories. But we are not our stories, we are much more. To use the words of the latest science; quantum, or string theory; we are the "infinite potentiality" of all things. When we go from seeing that as a science, to making it our "con-science", I believe that we can create a future more beautiful, more creative, more compassionate, and more fullfilling than anything we can possibly imagine today.

Open World Foundation and specifically Open World Café wants to contribute towards this process, and with your help we can make it happen. But talking is not enough, we must do it, we must make choices.

The first priority for the event in London was to create awareness about our small but growing foundation, the organic Open World Café in Stockholm, the possibility of more Open World Cafés; perhaps in London, in São Paulo, in New Delhi? And tell the story of "Replanting a Rainforest"

It's difficult to engage in a meaningful dialogue at these events, there were more than 30 inspiring human beings that honoured us with their presence, some coming very far. I hope we can continue the dialogue here on the community with all 198 of you, from more than 20 countries!

Putting Open World Foundation on the map is an important service to our present sponsors and helps us offer our projects to other discerning individuals, companies and institutions. If you have any suggestions and/or ideas regarding fundraising and/or contacts to potential sponsors, please contact me at: [e-mail].

Finally, I would like to thank, once again, all the kind and generous individuals that helped us make this event possible. Some of these are:

Kersti Urvois from Casa Decor UK opened her beautifully appointed home and business to create the perfect and inspiring setting to Stop, Reflect & Listen. Casa Decor UK is not only a beautiful space, it inspires artists from all disciplines to create beauty and inspire others. (http://www.casadecoruk.com)
Kristina Locke from Conscious Food who contributed with healthy gluten and dairy free nibbles that are not only fair trade and good for you they’re entirely guilt free too. (http://www.consciousfood.co.uk)
David Defrates from Azo Graphics on Grays Inn Road who generously contributed to the printed materials made available at the event. (http://www.azographics.co.uk/find-us/#grays)
GreenBagTag, who is sponsoring our "Replanting a Rainforest" and offering smart solutions for climate neutral travel. (http://www.greenbagtag.com)
EarthPositive, who by providing 100% organically grown, ethically traded, and carbon neutral T-shirts helps us "walk the talk" in our "Wearing is caring" sponsoring campaign. (http://www.dynamics.se/earth.html)
The Brazilian Embassy in Stockholm and The Brazilian Chamber of Commerce in Stockholm, for their longstanding support.
James Thomson for the best photography of the event (see a selection here), Patricia Souza, Laisa Manhães Alves, and Sara La Rocca who shined with their beauty, welcoming guests and helping with the refreshments.

(Almost) Last but not least, my inspiring daughter Christiana, Open World Ambassador par excellence, for her outstanding presence of mind and commitment to sustainable living and leadership.

And thank you all of you who were there, let's continue our dialogue here, for more Sustainable Living in an Open World (S.L.O.W.)!

Sincerely,

Christer Söderberg

[Nancy Noemi Gonzalez]

Thank you for such inspiring actions and ideas! Reading about the growth of Open World Cafe is definitely encouraging!
All the best to you & generous team!