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<font size="+2" face="Calibri"><i><b>February</b></i></font><font
size="+2" face="Calibri"><i><b> 6, 2024</b></i></font><font
face="Calibri"><br>
</font><br>
[ "Deluged" LA - NYT data display ]<br>
<b>See Where Heavy Rainfall Deluged California</b><br>
By Leanne Abraham, Zach Levitt and Elena Shao <br>
Feb. 5, 2024<br>
Source: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National
Centers for Environmental Prediction Notes: Data reflects
near-real-time analysis of liquid precipitation amounts. Values are
in inches of water or the equivalent amount of melted snow and ice.
Times are Pacific.<br>
A powerful atmospheric river inundated California late Sunday
evening and Monday morning, bringing howling gusts and torrential
rain that flooded roads, felled trees and snapped power lines. The
storm lingered over Southern California on Monday, with some areas
receiving record-breaking rainfall.<br>
- -<br>
The latest storm is the second atmospheric river to drench
California in a few days. Intense rain and strong winds also hit the
Bay Area and Central Coast beginning late last week, prompting road
closures from flooding and debris flow and leaving hundreds of
thousands of people without power.<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/02/05/us/california-rainfall-map.html?unlocked_article_code=1.TU0.k3Fl.weHEup9Psryo&bgrp=g&smid=url-share">https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/02/05/us/california-rainfall-map.html?unlocked_article_code=1.TU0.k3Fl.weHEup9Psryo&bgrp=g&smid=url-share</a><br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/02/05/us/california-rainfall-map.html">https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/02/05/us/california-rainfall-map.html</a><br>
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<p><br>
</p>
<i>[ lunacy is self-delusionary - and cash makes it worse - McKibben
clips ]</i><br>
<b>Bank of America to World: Just Drown Already</b><br>
Finance capitalism as a suicide machine<br>
Bill McKibben<br>
Feb 5, 2024<br>
Bank of America has its roots in California. Founded in Los Angeles
in 1923, it was acquired by a San Francisco bank, which took the
name in 1930—and over time it has grown to become the world’s
second-largest bank by deposits, second only to New York-based
Chase.<br>
<br>
I tell you this for two reasons. One, California is, as of this
writing, being absolutely battered by an “atmospheric river” that
has knocked out power to hundreds of thousands, and caused mudslides
on high ground along the Pacific Coast. As Andrew Dessler pointed
out yesterday, the physics are pretty simple: “A warmer planet has
more water vapor in the atmosphere. And, everything else being the
same, an atmospheric river carrying more water vapor will cause more
rainfall when it hits land and starts rising.”<br>
<br>
And second, Bank of America is a proximate cause of this kind of
chaos, because it refuses to stop lending for fossil fuel expansion.
Indeed, last week it engaged in perhaps the single most
irresponsible about-face of the climate era. <br>
Three years ago—in the wake of the Greta-inspired mass uprising of
young people around the world—Bank of America apparently felt it had
to make some gesture, so it chose a pretty easy route to demonstrate
its newfound greenness. It said it would no longer lend for new coal
mining or coal-fired power plants or for new oil exploration in the
Arctic. These were seen to be beyond the pale because…well, they
are. They represent some of the most egregious possible insults to
this planet.<br>
<br>
But last week they said, never mind. If you want some money for a
new coal mine, our window is open again. If you’re an oil company
that feels like searching for oil in the Arctic now that you’ve
melted it, we can make a deal. As the Times reported last week<br>
<blockquote>Bank of America’s change follows intensifying backlash
from Republican lawmakers against corporations that consider
environmental and social factors in their operations. Wall Street
in particular has come under fire for what some Republicans have
called “woke capitalism,” a campaign that has pulled banks into
the wider culture wars.</blockquote>
That is to say, they’re far more afraid of some oil-soaked GOP state
treasurer than they are of an atmospheric river bearing down on the
world’s fifth largest economy. It’s proof, of course, that their
words about climate change were just pious nonsense. They’d insisted
that they understood how crucial it was to change: “Climate change
is no longer a far off risk but rather a global concern with impacts
that are already beginning to unfold, including increased frequency
and severity of extreme weather conditions, melting glaciers, loss
of sea ice, accelerated sea level rise and longer, more intense heat
waves and droughts.” ...<br>
<blockquote>Reporting transparently on their ratios of clean energy
to fossil fuel finance is key to seeing whether or not they are
living up to their net-zero commitments. Right now, they aren’t –
and that must change. Our planet, our economy, and our investment
portfolios are all at stake.”...<br>
</blockquote>
As you can tell, this about face by BofA stings. It takes so much
work to move these guys an inch, and then given half a chance they
slide right back to where they were before.<br>
<br>
Small banks seem able to make money doing decent things—here’s a
nice story about a merger of local California banks where they
pledged, among other things, to "refrain from any new financing of
fossil fuel extraction activities, especially expansion projects
that would develop and lock in dependence on new fossil fuel
infrastructure, either through corporate or project-based finance,
subject to compliance with banking rules and regulations."<br>
<br>
But the big boys? Damn them to hell, which is clearly where they’re
content to send all of us.<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://billmckibben.substack.com/p/bank-of-america-to-world-just-drown">https://billmckibben.substack.com/p/bank-of-america-to-world-just-drown</a><br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://open.substack.com/pub/billmckibben/p/bank-of-america-to-world-just-drown?utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web">https://open.substack.com/pub/billmckibben/p/bank-of-america-to-world-just-drown?utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web</a><br>
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<i>[ </i><i>4 months ago, </i><i>the poem and a deluge - thanks
Sara C) ]</i><br>
<b>‘An alarm bell’: Libyan poet warned of flood risk in Derna before
dying in storms</b><br>
This article is more than 4 months old<br>
Mustafa al-Trabelsi attended a meeting about state of the dams days
before Storm Daniel hit city<br>
Patrick Wintour Diplomatic editor<br>
Thu 14 Sep 2023<br>
<p>On the night of the storm, at 7.44pm, Mustafa wrote on his
Facebook page: “The scenes are scary, and things may escalate to a
disaster, and we are under the rule of a corrupt tyrant who has
nothing but data, claiming to be prepared and, in fact, does not
have any equipment, and rescue teams are only few.<br>
<br>
“May God protect the Scouts, the Red Crescent and volunteers who
prove that in every crisis our country goes through, they are true
voluntary organisations, and the absence of a failed state. May
God help the families all over our beloved country.”<br>
<br>
The rain<br>
Exposes the drenched streets,<br>
the cheating contractor,<br>
and the failed state.<br>
It washes everything,<br>
bird wings<br>
and cats’ fur.<br>
Reminds the poor<br>
of their fragile roofs<br>
and ragged clothes.<br>
It awakens the valleys,<br>
shakes off their yawning dust<br>
and dry crusts.<br>
The rain<br>
a sign of goodness,<br>
a promise of help,<br>
an alarm bell.<br>
<br>
At 9.37pm, he wrote: “We have only one [an]other in this difficult
situation. Let’s stand together until we drown.”<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext" href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/sep/14/libyan-poet-the-rain-floods-mustafa-al-trabelsi">https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/sep/14/libyan-poet-the-rain-floods-mustafa-al-trabelsi</a><br>
</p>
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<i>[ some complexity of batteries ]</i><br>
<b>Battery Energy Revolution. What now?<br>
</b>Just Have a Think<br>
Feb 4, 2024<br>
Battery energy storage is already shaking up the automotive
industry. But developers are constantly looking for ways to increase
energy density, decrease battery pack weight, and add range to their
vehicles. It's not just car makers though. The aviation industry is
watching progress on battery technology very closely indeed. Now
sulphur (or sulfur in the US) has entered the fray to add a new
dimension to that progress.<br>
- -<br>
Video Transcripts available at our website <br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="http://www.justhaveathink.com">http://www.justhaveathink.com</a>
<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=myZvKcyhV64">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=myZvKcyhV64</a>
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<i>[ Nick Breeze book discussion ]</i><br>
<b>COPOUT</b><br>
Climate Emergency Forum
<p>Feb 4, 2024<br>
Climate Emergency Forum welcomes Nick Breeze, author, climate and
wine journalist, to discuss his forthcoming book, "COPOUT," where
concerns are expressed about the ineffectiveness of the UNFCCC
COPs in achieving their intended goals.<br>
<br>
This video was recorded on January 18th, 2024, and published on
February 4th, 2024.<br>
<br>
In this dialogue, participants engage in a comprehensive
discussion about the critical issues surrounding climate change
and the inadequacies of international efforts, particularly
through United Nations climate change conferences (COPs). The
threat of climate change to industries like coffee and wine is
highlighted, underscoring the urgency of addressing environmental
issues.</p>
The conversation also centers around Nick Breeze's forthcoming book,
"COPOUT," that will provide the author’s perspective on the COPs
spanning from COP21 through to COP28. The importance of narratives
and communication in conveying the truth about climate change, even
in its dire nature, is emphasized, with a distinction made between
hope and courage as driving forces for change.<br>
<br>
The dialogue touches upon the role of youth in climate activism,
acknowledging figures like Greta Thunberg and highlighting the need
to involve and educate the younger generation. The participants
discuss the tradition of alternative people's conferences and
express concerns that the corporate-style management of COPs may be
overshadowing the voices of grassroots movements.<br>
<br>
The conversation concludes on a positive note with a reminiscence of
the success of the Cochabamba conference, presenting a hopeful
example of effective, democratic collaboration that addressed
climate issues. Overall, the dialogue provides a nuanced exploration
of climate challenges, solutions, and the importance of global
cooperation.<br>
<br>
Links:<br>
- COPOUT: How governments have failed the people on climate<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://genn.cc/copout-nick-breeze/">https://genn.cc/copout-nick-breeze/</a><br>
<br>
- Greta Thunberg and Svante Thunberg - Straight Talk (YouTube Video)<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://youtu.be/GiD04TRwebQ">https://youtu.be/GiD04TRwebQ</a><br>
<br>
- Earth Song: What COP 28 taught us about winemaking in a warming
climate<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://www.thedrinksbusiness.com/202">https://www.thedrinksbusiness.com/202</a>...<br>
<br>
- Gonzo Journalism<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gonzo_j">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gonzo_j</a>...<br>
<br>
- Reaching Youth Through Climate Fiction (CEF Video)<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://youtu.be/SN6wmUmX8ms">https://youtu.be/SN6wmUmX8ms</a><br>
<br>
- World People's Conference on Climate Change (wikipedia)<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_P">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_P</a>...<br>
<br>
- People's Agreement of Cochabamba<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://links.org.au/bolivia-full-tex">https://links.org.au/bolivia-full-tex</a>...<br>
<br>
Special Guest:<br>
Nick Breeze - is recognized as an influential figure in the field of
climate change communication. As an accomplished journalist and
climate ambassador, he is known for his effective interview style
and personable approach, making complex environmental issues
accessible to diverse audiences. Breeze has played a significant
role in raising awareness about climate change through his
interviews, writings, and upcoming book titled "COPOUT." His work
emphasizes the urgency of addressing climate issues, critiques the
shortcomings of international climate conferences, and advocates for
a more empathetic and courageous approach to tackling environmental
challenges.<br>
<br>
Regular Panelists:<br>
Dr. Peter Carter - MD, Expert IPCC Reviewer and the director of the
Climate Emergency Institute<br>
<br>
Paul Beckwith - Climate Systems Scientist. Professor at the
University of Ottawa's Paleoclimatology Laboratory as well as at
Carleton University<br>
- -<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eYKkeN8lwr0">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eYKkeN8lwr0</a><br>
<p><br>
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<i>[ Steffi Bednarek video interview ]</i><br>
Resonant World #65<br>
<b>What can usefully be said about the climate crisis, at this
point?</b><br>
It’s everywhere and nowhere. In me and around me. Some days I see
the graphs and the maps and the projections and I feel a jolt of
primal fear. Mostly I’m numb.<br>
<br>
And yet, when I consider the inner dimensions of the crisis — how
climate change may reflect the condition of our collective psyche —
a deep curiosity stirs.<br>
<br>
I feel an aliveness around this inquiry that’s missing when I focus
purely on what’s “out there” — the disasters; the creeping loss of
so much I love; the unfolding drama of the battles over giant,
abstract-sounding systems, from energy to food, politics and water.<br>
<br>
Horrifying and captivating as these processes are, so much of the
discussion around them feels somehow partial. The dark hinterland of
our shared unconscious — which lies behind, and shapes, all the
events playing out in the external world — feels at once more
fertile, and more forbidding, to explore. There are no maps to this
invisible landscape; no annual reports. But the truths hidden in
these territories may prove more consequential to Earth’s future
than anything we can depict on a graph.<br>
<br>
That’s maybe why I loved my conversation with Steffi Bednarek so
much. A psychologist who grew up in what was then East Germany, and
who’s lived for years in the UK, Steffi began to transition from
trauma therapy to climate psychology a decade ago, when motherhood
crystalised her fears over the climate and extinction crises.
Deploying a combination of therapeutic skill and systems thinking,
Steffi now works with multi-national companies, global financial
institutions and governments to facilitate the kind of internal
reflection that just might dissolve some of the seemingly
insurmountable inertia holding back meaningful change.<br>
<p>- -<br>
</p>
<b>Inevitable Tensions</b><br>
<br>
Steffi and I had been in sporadic contact since being introduced in
January last year, by a friend I met while studying individual,
inter-generational and collective trauma in Thomas Hübl’s two-year
Timeless Wisdom Training. But our conversation really began to
develop after I published “Should I Stay or Should I Go?” in July
(Resonant World #35), a video exploring the dilemmas posed by
working for large corporations complicit in the climate crisis.
Recording the video was part of my process of integrating my
experiences as a climate correspondent at Reuters, a news
organisation which sees no conflict between its professed commitment
to impartiality, and hosting industry events in Houston aimed at
removing the “pain points” holding back faster production of oil and
gas. (Resonant World#58).<br>
<br>
The conflict I described in the video aligned closely with Steffi’s
work with teams and individuals she supports to explore the
inevitable tensions that arise from participating in an economic
system that is driving the accelerating breakdown of Earth’s life
support systems.<br>
<p>Steffi Bednarek presents at the Co-evolution Lab on November 9,
2023 in Munich, Germany, which was organised by the consultancy
OSB-I. The event convened industry leaders to explore what it
means for profit-making organisations to assume responsibility for
collective social and ecological well-being. Credit: OSB-I.</p>
<p>- -<b><i><br>
</i></b></p>
<p><b>Internal Family Systems</b></p>
We recorded the above conversation on November 24, a few days before
the start of the COP28 UN climate talks in Dubai. Every part of our
exchange felt vibrant and emergent to me, but if I was to highlight
a particular segment it would be Steffi’s explanation of how she
applies the Internal Family Systems (IFS) model of therapy,
developed by Richard Schwartz, to better understand our collective
failure to confront the climate crisis, and chart new paths forward.<br>
<br>
In brief, IFS is based on the recognition that each of us is
comprised of a kind of committee of sub-personalities — or “parts” —
that function in many respects like an unruly family that resides
within us (hence the name Internal Family Systems). These “parts”
may have very different ideas about what’s good for us, and we
experience their conflicts as recurrent tensions and dilemmas.<br>
<br>
At the risk of gross oversimplification, Our “Manager” parts are
focused on keeping us safe and functioning in day-to-day life. Our
“Exiles” are the parts of ourselves that may carry grief, fear,
anger or shame that we do our best to suppress. And our
“Firefighters” intervene when internal conflicts become too painful
— to numb us with addictions, or temporarily relieve the tension via
emotional outbursts.<br>
<br>
Steffi argues that many of us hold back from speaking up at work
about climate change because our Manager parts are intent on keeping
us safe by conforming. That means we push our strong emotions about
the climate away as Exiles. And when the conflict between our
Manager and Exile parts gets too much to contain, the Firefighters
rush to the scene.<br>
<br>
IFS offers an alternative course.<br>
<br>
All of us can start to lead from a part known as the “Self” — the
pristine level of awareness that stands outside the realm of trauma
or cultural conditioning. This is the part that can listen to the
competing perspectives of the Managers, Exiles and Firefighters and
develop a more mature, integrated response.<br>
<br>
Steffi asks what would happen if we started to apply this model of
“Self Leadership” at a societal level — to gain deeper insights into
the interplay of activists, politicians, fossil fuel executives and
the countless other forces shaping the climate crisis? What would it
look like to channel “Self” energy on a collective scale? (I feel
I’ve learned a bit about that in the collective trauma healing work
of the past three years).<br>
<br>
Our conversation felt like we were barely getting started in this
inquiry. But if you’re interested in a new lens for viewing what can
seem like a terminally intractable crisis, then I warmly invite you
to listen to our discussion in the video, above, or read the partial
transcript of our conversation below (after Steffi’s bio), which we
revised and developed in subsequent correspondence for clarity.<br>
<blockquote><b>Steffi Bednarek Bio</b><br>
Working at the intersection between climate, systems theory and
the psyche, Steffi’s move from trauma therapy into climate
psychology over the past decade was a deeply personal response to
the sense of grief she felt as a mother in a time of global danger
and biodiversity loss.<br>
<br>
She is an Associate of the Climate Psychology Alliance, Firekeeper
at the World Ethics Forum, and Associate of the American
Psychological Association’s Climate Change Group. She co-founded
the journal Explorations into Climate Psychology. <br>
<br>
Steffi’s book Climate, Psychology and Change will be published
this year, and has been endorsed by Fritjof Capra, Bill McKibben,
Satish Kumar, Nora Bateson and others.<br>
</blockquote>
- -<br>
<b>Internal Family Systems and the Climate Crisis</b><br>
<p><b>Matthew Green and Steffi Bednarek</b></p>
<b>Matthew: We’ve obviously known about climate change for decades.
We’re feeling the impacts, we’re seeing the disasters unfolding,
and yet we haven’t prepared ourselves internally for what has
already happened. Why is that?</b><br>
<br>
Steffi: Psychologically speaking we have a term called “disavowal” —
which describes a mental state where I can be in two places at the
same time. I can know about climate change, and at the same time
“not know” — without these two conflicting states cancelling each
other out.<br>
<br>
So that means that it’s perfectly possible to be deeply concerned
about climate change, and our children’s future — and then somewhere
on the way from home to work, leave those worries behind. <br>
<br>
And I think this fragmentation that we experience as individuals —
and which is also encouraged by society — is starting to break down.
So we have people who feel really troubled by working in certain
industries, because they know that what they’re doing in their day
job does not correspond to their deeply held values.<br>
<br>
<b>Matthew: Not everybody has the option to step off their career
track. How do people cope with the tension of working for a
heavily polluting industry, or its enablers, for example, while
also caring about the climate?</b><br>
<br>
Steffi: It depends on the industry, but in some sectors it's still
perfectly possible to just park your concerns about climate change
outside the building and say: “There’s nothing our company can do.”
Or there can be an attitude of: “Yes, we’ve made some adjustments.”
But the adjustments are just a box-ticking exercise to enable the
system to continue.<br>
<br>
There are sectors that are closely connected to the fossil fuel
industry, where I definitely see that staff are starting to feel
increasingly uncomfortable about their roles, and what they’re
contributing to. And at the same time, there are people who may have
waited their whole life for a career opportunity: Not everybody has
the choice to step off that ladder. So it’s about how we hold this
conflict — and stay with it — wherever that tension will lead.<br>
<br>
If we avoid the tension, then we have to become blind to something:
the way in which we are participating in the system. It's not
possible to be part of a dysfunctional system without also in some
way adapting to it — even though that causes us to suffer. So my
work is about shining a light on that tension, and bringing greater
awareness to the incongruence that to a greater or lesser extent
we’re all living.<br>
<br>
<b>Matthew: When we know we’re participating in a destructive
system, we have to shut part of ourselves down. But if we want to
be healthy, we have to retrieve that part that we’ve had to let go
of. But as you say, if we feel like the only way we can do that is
by leaving — and leaving is not an option, or we don’t feel like
it’s an option — then where do we go?<br>
</b><br>
Steffi: We can go from a huge mess to a lesser mess, but we're all
in quite a messy situation now. <br>
<br>
I have worked with individuals who've had enough support to really
make a big change within an organisation — where it had looked like
the odds were against them. This is not the heroic story of the
individual saviour. But we can sometimes see certain cracks and
openings where change is possible. And sometimes it’s quite
surprising what happens when we put our foot in one of those cracks
and stay with it.<br>
<br>
And of course, we can’t do this on our own, we need the right kind
of support in order to bear the awkwardness — and at times downright
hostility — that people face, when they call something out that
doesn't make sense.<br>
<br>
I think we need to start having these kinds of conversations, and
think about what it means to be human at this time, and not just
what it means to serve in a corporate role. <br>
<br>
<b>Matthew: I’m thinking now about a conversation I had a few months
ago with Sophie Cowen, who was one of the Extinction Rebellion
activists who broke the windows at Barclays Bank. For most people
in companies that I’ve worked for, contemplating something like
that would make them feel extremely uncomfortable. Is there a
middle way?</b><br>
<br>
Steffi: For me it’s not an “either-or”. There’s a diversity of
approaches: The whole ecology needs to change. Every day we
participate in a death-bringing ecology. We each have a lot of
choices about our level of daily participation in this. That doesn’t
mean that we all have to smash the windows of a bank, but we all
have choices in every little situation that we’re in.<br>
<br>
I’m thinking about sitting in meetings at work: What’s our comfort
zone in stepping into an awkward conversation? Or speaking up when
decisions are taken where everybody knows the impact on communities,
on people, or other-than-human beings, or on the climate? It takes
enormous courage to raise one’s voice and to say: “Hang on a moment,
what are the consequences of this decision?” Or to say “no” to
something, not because it’s not economically profitable, but because
it feels morally wrong. This really scares a lot of people, and we
each have to find the boundary of our comfort zone.<br>
<br>
And some people actually really need to find a way out, when the
moral injury caused by staying within the system, and not speaking
up, feels so unbearable that they actually need to put themselves —
you could maybe argue — on the right side of history. Because we all
have to justify what we did in this decade to the next generation,
the decade when we can actually still change something.<br>
Steffi Bednarek. Credit: OSB-I.<br>
<b><br>
Matthew: And when it comes to challenging authority at work, and
risking isolation or rejection by colleagues, we may be touching
into layers of inter-generational trauma. We may have inherited
trauma from ancestors who were forced into exile — which could be
reactivated by feelings of being forced to leave our job. And our
cells may still hold memories of a time when being accepted by our
tribe was a matter of life and death.</b><br>
<br>
Steffi: Our nervous system is completely wired for community, and
there’s this natural sense of shame that comes up when we betray the
rules of the community. We’re wired with a deep urge to belong.<br>
<br>
But what happens if we belong to a system that’s become
dysfunctional — not due to any one particular person’s or group's
doing — but because the whole system has acquired a self-replicating
quality that has become toxic? <br>
<br>
The part that knows that something is wrong gets split off and
pushed down into the unconscious. But really that part that we send
into exile in this way is the healthy part. The same process has
happened on a collective scale — millions of people suppressing
their fear, anger and confusion over the climate crisis because
society demands it. So we need to turn our attention to the parts of
ourselves that we've had to send into exile to belong to this toxic
normality. Until we do this, we will continue to live in a state of
disavowal or denial.<br>
<b><br>
Matthew: We’ve moved into the language of the Internal Family
Systems (IFS) approach to psychotherapy [developed by American
therapist Richard Schwartz]. Maybe you could explain why you think
IFS can help us respond to the climate crisis?</b><br>
<br>
Steffi: Internal Family Systems is based on the fact that we don’t
have a uniform, single perspective on anything. What we think of as
“me” is in fact comprised of many parts. For example, if I have a
craving for chocolate, there’s the part of me that really wants to
eat the chocolate. And there’s another part of me that says: “Hang
on a moment, what are the consequences of doing that? Should you be
eating chocolate now?”<br>
<br>
And there may be other parts that have more opinions, and so there’s
a whole series of dialogues going on inside. And depending on the
situation, one part will win — and then maybe the other parts will
start to complain.It’s like there’s a whole family of parts
struggling for control inside each one of us — which is why the
model is called Internal Family Systems. <br>
<br>
<b>Matthew: Having this model is a relief: If I have all these
warring parts, no wonder I’m so dysfunctional a lot of the time!</b><br>
<br>
Steffi: Within this system, IFS has identified that there’s some
core parts that we all share. <br>
<br>
There are the Protective parts, often called “Managers” — their
priority is to make sure we keep functioning securely in our
day-to-day lives. These are the parts that adapt to the family
system we grow up in, and the wider cultural context. Manager parts
often sound like the voice of authority. They say things like: “What
do you mean, leave your job?! How could you even contemplate doing
that?!”<br>
<br>
Manager parts know how to read the room and play it safe. <br>
<br>
In IFS, we call the parts of ourselves that we’ve had to suppress to
fit in “Exiles.” We have literally sent these parts of ourselves
into exile. <br>
<br>
In what we call modern society, this process has happened on a
collective scale: We’ve had to suppress many of the natural impulses
that are essential for maintaining a healthy nervous system — such
as connecting with each other deeply; speaking authentically; and
getting enough rest and downtime. We’ve had to turn these healthy
parts of ourselves into Exiles, in order to fit into society’s
norms.<br>
<br>
But these Exiles don’t just disappear: You can’t get rid of them;
they’ve just been pushed to the margins. We experience this when
somebody says something that triggers us: The anger, or fear or
sadness that we’ve sent into exile comes flooding back, and we may
feel completely overwhelmed. And then the Manager parts come in and
say: “You’re not supposed to get upset in a team meeting! These
feeling have no place here!” <br>
<br>
People experiencing this conflict often come to therapy and say: “I
get too emotional.” What they are really saying is that they want
the therapist to help them get rid of the Exiles, to push them back
to the margin. But maybe at this time that we’re in, those Exiled
parts are the last frayed lifeline we’ve got to a healthy nervous
system. <br>
<br>
And then “Firefighters” say things like: “This conflict is making me
feel uncomfortable — let’s have a drink instead.” They can use all
kinds of addictions — including things like TV, overwork, shopping
or other forms of avoidance — to provide temporary relief. But that
comes at a cost, because it just keeps the whole conflict going for
longer.<br>
<br>
And so when it comes to climate change, the Managers ask us to play
it safe, to just wait a little, to keep quiet and not make things
awkward, just keep it nice and safe.<br>
<br>
Internally, our Exiles may be screaming out in fear or anger over
some incongruence, but our Firefighters come in and say: “Just go to
the kitchen and have another glass of wine.” That happens at the
individual level, in organisations, and at the national level. Big
pockets of society act this process out.<br>
<br>
<b>Matthew: So what can we do to resolve these conflicts?</b><br>
<br>
Steffi: The important thing to remember is that we also all have a
more fundamental part, which in Internal Family Systems we call the
“Self”. This is the part that can stand back and observe our
thoughts and feelings — and which is recognised as a core part of
our being in every major religion and wisdom tradition. The Self is
able to listen to all the other parts and take their views into
account, a bit like the chair of a board meeting canvassing opinion
to find the best solution.<br>
<br>
We all have access to the Self — it’s universally human. Even people
who have experienced extreme trauma still have this part, it doesn’t
go away for as long as we live. It’s a bit like a cloudy day: We
know the sun is still there, even though we sometimes wonder where
it’s gone. <br>
<br>
The beauty of IFS is that it reminds us how to act from a position
of Self leadership, which can bring awareness to the inner conflict
between our Managers, Exiles and Firefighters. So instead of acting
these conflicts out, we can use the Self to bring our parts into
harmony. <br>
<br>
The Self can support us to respond to the climate crisis in
healthier ways. It can help us to find the courage to challenge
situations that are not aligned with our values. And it can guide us
to communities that can support us to consciously step out of toxic
environments.<br>
<br>
<b>Matthew: How do we help more people to overcome these inner
conflicts? Do we need new institutions? Or perhaps new practices
within organisations? What does our "psychic sanitation" system
look like in the decades to come?</b><br>
<br>
Steffi: It’s clear that organisations can no longer be solely
focused on the economic success of their business. However, the
imperative to serve business interests and collective and ecological
well-being is not free of tensions, paradoxes and conflicts of
interest. The economic system makes no provision for future
generations, and other-than-human life.<br>
<br>
Many problems are still externalised — meaning management thinks
somebody else should take responsibility for impacts their company
is causing. Many challenges are only selectively addressed, or when
solutions are put forward, they can be instrumentalised to serve
other agendas. Often there is no bad intention at work: It’s just
that familiar ways of defining what a problem is shape responses in
the old, fragmented ways.<br>
<br>
For me the most important work happens in the spaces where we come
together, broaden our mindsets, and explore new narratives about
what's possible.<br>
<br>
When I work with an organisation, I don’t parachute in a solution
that isn’t already there. I pay attention to what people may already
be doing on the margins. I create a container that makes it safe for
people to say: “I’m also a musician, and in music we riff in a very
different way to how we hold our team meetings here, can I tell you
about that?” We just need life to come back into the imaginative
places that we habitually deaden.<br>
<br>
We really need to create spaces where there is no right and wrong,
where we relate and listen with much greater depth and awareness.
And when we do that, something shifts. And we can’t predict what it
is, but something shifts and Life comes through. As far as I am
concerned, that is the level of depth we need to go to in order to
shift to a healthier ecosystem.<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="https://matthewgreenglobal.substack.com/p/a-new-lens-on-the-climate-crisis">https://matthewgreenglobal.substack.com/p/a-new-lens-on-the-climate-crisis</a>
<p><br>
</p>
<font face="Calibri"><br>
</font><font face="Calibri"> <i>[The news archive - ]</i></font><br>
<font face="Calibri"> <font size="+2"><i><b>February 6, 2005 </b></i></font>
</font><br>
<font face="Calibri"> </font> February 6, 2005: Chris Mooney points
out the numerous falsehoods in the recently released Michael
Crichton novel "State of Fear."<br>
<a class="moz-txt-link-freetext"
href="http://www.boston.com/news/globe/ideas/articles/2005/02/06/checking_crichtons_footnotes">http://www.boston.com/news/globe/ideas/articles/2005/02/06/checking_crichtons_footnotes</a>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<p><br>
</p>
<p><font face="Calibri"> <br>
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