Satish Kumar - Soil, Soul & Society

http://www.connectingforchange.org The future well being of humanity and the earth is dependant on a new world view in which the care of the planet, nourishment of the soul and the nurturing of the human community are integrated and seen as a continuum.

As the trinity of Egalité, liberté and fraternité, we need a new trinity for the age of ecology which has wholeness, integrity and cohesion. During his keynote Satish will propose the trinity of soil, soul and society.

Our reverence for the earth, our care of the soul and a just order in society represent a vision of sustainability, spirituality and justice.

When he was only nine years old Satish Kumar renounced the world and joined the wandering brotherhood of Jain monks. Dissuaded from his path by an inner voice at the age of eighteen, he left the monastic order and became a campaigner for land reform, working to turn Gandhi's vision of renewed India and a peaceful world into reality.

AnchorFired by the example of Bertrand Russell, he undertook an 8,000-mile peace pilgrimage, walking from India to America without any money, through deserts, mountains, storms and snow. It was an adventure during which he was thrown into jail in France, faced a loaded gun in America -- and delivered packets of 'peace tea' to the leaders of the four nuclear powers.

In 1973 he settled in England, taking an Editorship of Resurgence magazine. He has been the editor ever since. He is the guiding spirit behind a number of ecological, spiritual and educational ventures in Britain. He founded the Small School in Hartland, a pioneering secondary school (aged 11-16), which brings into its curriculum ecological and spiritual values. In 1991 Schumacher College, a residential international centre for the study of ecological and spiritual values, was founded, and Satish is a Visiting Fellow.

Satish currently sits on the Advisory Board of Our Future Planet, a unique online community that enables people to share ideas, design the future and create global change in the real world. He is also the editor of Resurgence Magazine, an eclectic mix of articles on ecology, alternative education, spirituality, sustainable development and the arts.