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“The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.”
— Martin Luther King Jr.
Dear community,
You are reading the We Create Meaning newsletter, which brings together the latest updates from the WeSpace and offerings from our community.
Earlier this month, we welcomed Sharon Dolev and Emad Kiyaei, two seasoned peace activists from Israel and Iran respectively, who have been doing groundbreaking work in the field of nuclear nonproliferation with their organization METO.
In her account of Palestinian peace activist Sulaiman Khatib’s story, American-Jewish author Penina Eilberg-Schwartz introduces the question: “What does it really mean to share space?” Our first conversation with Sharon and Emad, moderated by Asmaa Guedira, was perhaps our humble attempt to create a shared space to imagine the impossible; to imagine peace.
In moments like the one we are in right now, peace seems far on the horizon, obscured behind fear-inducing headlines of conflict, hatred, and violence. Sharon reminded us that fear can make people do the most abominable things. Fear is a force field that sweeps and cuts between us. Captured by its logic, it makes us march to its dead drums, and it won’t cease unless we make peace.
For peace doesn’t just happen. We need to create and sustain it. Peace needs a larger story, one that invites multiple narratives to be expressed and heard, to meet and speak to each other — in words, minor gestures, and sometimes silence. As the story unfolds, characters lose their faceless, 2D personas. Depth pours in and texture forms. And then, the epiphany. The walls that separate us are made of cardboard. Much truer are the webs that spin us in relatedness. “My papa always says”, told Emad, “when you cut yourself, it's red. When you cut the other person, it’s also red. Don't forget that.”
I won’t write a detailed event summary here. There were 30 people in the room, each with their own stories, backgrounds, and filters. Decontextualized takeaways don’t do justice to the full-bodied perspectives of our speakers, nor the richness of the warm data: the heated conversation, the sweaty hands, and twisting knees, the room sticky with the density of emotions, the hugs and smiles and affirmations of one another’s humanity at the end of a long evening.
When I left the WeSpace that night, it seemed that for a brief moment, even the black branches of the trees bent a little more towards the earth.
What does it really mean to share space?
With gratitude,
Niels Devisscher, editor at We Create Meaning
Upcoming Events
WeSpace Members' Night / July 3
We welcome you on July 3rd for an exclusive members' night. Join us for an evening that celebrates curiosity and community, with engaging conversations, refreshing drinks, and live music from our talented in-house DJ crew.
Are you looking for a co-working space? This is a great opportunity to chat with some of our members, discover the space, and have your questions answered by the team! Download the invitation brochure below to learn more.
Offerings from the Community
Introduction to Navigating Complexity Workshop / July 11
How to navigate and make decisions in rapidly changing or complex environments?
Are you curious how you can design conditions for innovation and change when old patterns of perception and action no longer fit the complexity of the context you are acting in?
This workshop is tailored towards people working in systems change, and who are seeking novel approaches to handling the challenges they face in their work, as well as novel ways to prioritize, allocate resources, and develop projects. We will cover methodologies informed by the emerging science of complex adaptive systems, and developed by Prof. Dave Snowden, including Estuarine Mapping, Sensemaker® , and Complex Facilitation.
Join community members Alexandra Robinson and Anne Caspair from Complexity Partners for an exclusive opportunity to learn supportive ways of relating to the challenges you face when working in complex environments.
Tantric Energetics & Inner Transformation Workshop / July 6
On July 6, join life coach, mentor, and scientific researcher Mazen R. Harb and colleague Krisana Locke for a transformative one-day workshop celebrating the essence of life. In this workshop, you will learn to express your feelings and release old tensions, allowing them to dissolve through acceptance and awareness. Rediscover the natural pulsation of your energy as you explore the balance between activity and rest.
Don't miss this opportunity to reconnect with your inner self and embrace the flow of life in a supportive and nurturing environment.
Multi Species Worlding - Imagination & Design Workshop / July 3
Niels and Rūta are organizing their first Multi-Species Worlding workshop of the year, in collaboration with Amrei Andrasch and Manuel Funk from Knoweaux Applied Futures!
Animals and plant life are often casualties of our human inventions and designs, rather than co-creators that mutually benefit from them. This has resulted in catastrophic biodiversity loss.
This workshop encourages participants to take on the perspective of another species, feel what it’s like to be “other”, and speak on behalf of it. It seeks to catalyze a perception shift, away from the separation from nature and human exceptionalism towards interbeing — living and working with other species in the interest of all. Such a perception shift will contribute to your story, systems, and product innovation that build towards thriving and radically inclusive futures.
Body in Light / 3-day Energy Healing Workshop / June 28-30
We Create Meaning is on a mission to turn We Space into a thriving community where caring people tackle humanity’s biggest challenges together. If you have any questions are inquiries, or would like to support our work, please reach out to steffen(at)createmeaning.com