New Evolutionary Leaders Join the Circle
The Source of Synergy Foundation is delighted to announce 19 new members joined the Evolutionary Leaders circle in 2016. All were nominated by one or more of the existing members, and all are outstanding leaders in their diverse fields. We welcome:
Patricia Albere, Panos Anastasakis, Darius Barazandeh, John Clausen, Stanislav Grof, Kazu Haga,
     
Adam Hall, Kristin Hoffmann, Kurt Johnson, Bernardo Kastrup, Joe Martino, Jennifer McLean,
  
   
Gino Pastori-Ng, Llyn Roberts, Derek Rydall, Alan Steinfeld, Cassandra Vieten, Claudia Welss, and Mikki Willis.
Find out more about the members of the Evolutionary Leaders circle at www.evolutionaryleaders.net/evolutionary-leaders.
Books by Evolutionary Leaders
 Emergence: Seven Steps for Radical Life Change, by Derek Rydall
Are you struggling to improve something about yourself—your health, your mindset, your relationships? Recognize this one simple, radical truth: the answer is already in you.
When the basic principle of life—the Law of Emergence—is disrupted, you are stopped from knowing that you are the perfect you. Like an acorn is a perfect acorn that becomes a perfect oak tree, there is not a part of you from beginning to end that isn’t exactly what you should be.
The Law of Emergence provides the foundation to re-engage with this ancient principle. In this seven-stage framework, spiritual life coach Derek Rydall changes the conversation around how to achieve your potential by showing you how to activate the genius already in you and empower your purpose in life.
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 Fine Lines: Vladimir Nabokov’s Scientific Art, by Stephen H. Blackwell and Kurt Johnson
Kurt Johnson is co-editor of a new landmark book from Yale University Press that is the first full appraisal of Vladimir Nabokov’s long-neglected contributions as a scientist. Although his literary achievements are renowned, until recently his scientific discoveries were ignored or dismissed by many. Nabokov created well over 1,000 technical illustrations of the anatomical structures of butterflies, seeking to understand the evolutionary diversity of small butterflies called Blues. But only lately have scientists confirmed his meticulous research and vindicated his surprising hypotheses.
This volume reproduces 154 of Nabokov’s drawings, few of which have ever been seen in public, and presents essays by ten leading scientists and Nabokov specialists. The contributors underscore the significance of Nabokov’s drawings as scientific documents, evaluate his visionary contributions to evolutionary biology and systematics, and offer insights into his unique artistic perception and creativity.
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 The Reunited States of America: How We Can Bridge the Partisan Divide, by Mark Gerzon
Out of Many, One.
In this era of poisonous partisanship, The Reunited States of America is a lifesaving antidote. At a time when loyalty to party seems to be overpowering love of country, it not only explains how we can bridge the partisan divide but also tells the untold story of how our fellow citizens already are doing it.
This book, a manifesto for a movement to reunite America, will helpus put a stop to the seemingly endless Left-Right fistfight while honoring the vital role of healthy political debate. Mark Gerzon describes how citizens all over the country—Republicans, Democrats, and independents—are finding common ground on some of the most divisive and difficult issues we face today.
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The 30-Day Sobriety Solution: How to Cut Back or Quit Drinking in the Privacy of Your Own Home, by Jack Canfield and Dave Andrews
The 30-Day Sobriety Solution is a uniquely liberating approach to releasing yourself from the bonds of alcohol in your life. And if you're already in recovery, it will support your lifelong goal of staying alcohol-free.
 Alcohol kills one person every ten seconds worldwide, according to the World Health Organization. Thankfully, now, for anyone who feels that alcohol has become a problem—and for the 23.5 million Americans living in recovery and looking to be reinspired—this new program introduces a groundbreaking model for sobriety that you can achieve in your own home.
The 30-Day Sobriety Solution grew out of Jack Canfield’s decades-long work in self-esteem and success training. Its principles were carefully developed into a program by Dave Andrews and tested by thousands whose amazing stories of recovery are shared throughout the book.
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The Urban Monk: Eastern Wisdom and Modern Hacks to Stop Time and Find Success, Happiness, and Peace, by Pedram Shojai
 Pedram Shojai shares how the calmness of Zen masters is attainable in today's fast-paced world, and with practice, you too can stop time, refuel, and focus on the things that really matter.
The Urban Monk, a New York Times bestseller, reveals the secrets to finding an open heart, sharp mind, and grounded sense of well-being, even in the most demanding circumstances. Shojai’s no-nonsense life mastery program brings together clear tools and exercises that can elevate your existence. Learn to honor your body with nutrition and shake free from addictions to toxic substances and experiences. Let your body and  mind unwind each day with evening meditations, loosening exercises, and resting rituals that will keep any stress or unfinished business out of the bedroom, helping you sleep better so that your body can rejuvenate.
The world needs you to step up and live your life to the fullest. Pedram Shojai is the Urban Monk who can show you how to drink from infinity, find peace and prosperity, and thrive in a modern world.
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 Welcome to the News from the Source section of the EL Newsletter. The Evolutionary Leaders Circle is a project of The Source of Synergy Foundation (SOSF).
The Source of Synergy Foundation recognizes that our essence is Source: a single, universal field out of which everything emerges, where we are united as one.
From this place we create opportunities for Synergy that spirals out creating, expanding and deepening connectivity and synergistic engagement.
Our Foundation is built upon exploring, utilizing and awakening to our innate qualities and capacities as conscious, evolving expressions of the Source of all that is, all that was and all that ever will be.
Each month SOSF will be featuring uplifting stories, activities that foster synergistic engagement and cutting edge research that supports the evolution of consciousness. We will also highlight the work that our dynamic SOSF Team is doing to promote synergy in various arenas. We think you will find these efforts inspiring. Here are some recent examples below.
In Synergy,
Diane Williams, President
Source of Synergy Foundation
Denise Scotto, Esq. (third from left, above), Secretary of the Board of SOSF, organized and spoke at an event at the United Nations on the topic, Shared Standards & Shared Values as a Pathway toward Social Inclusion, an official panel during the 54th session of the UN Commission for Social Development on February 9. Denise is executive board member of the UNSRC Enlightenment Society and the Values Caucus at the UN, Chair of the International Day of Yoga Committee at the UN, an Interfaith Minister, and holds positions of leadership in professional legal organizations.
Deborah Moldow, Representative to the United Nations of The World Peace Prayer Society, organized an event on February 3 at the United Nations hosted by the UN Alliance of Civilizations and the Committee of Religious NGOs at the UN to honor World Interfaith Harmony Week. Addressing "Interfaith Harmony as Key to Implementing the Sustainable Development Goals" were speakers from UN Missions and agencies, as well as leaders of international organizations. There was also an inspiring presentation of the Sustainable Deveopment Goals by young people and representatives of 11 religious traditions.
New York Synergy Circle
A special dinner on January 17th brought together New York area Evolutionary Leaders and members of the Source of Synergy Foundation Board of Directors for an evening of sharing and getting to know one another.
Longtime Evolutionary Leaders Gerard Senehi and Deborah Moldow and SOSF Board members Pamela Kraft, Denise Scotto and Rick Ulfik welcomed new members of the EL circle Patricia Albere, John Clausen, Kurt Johnson, Kristin Hoffmann and Alan Steinfeld.
After Pamela read the Source of Synergy Foundation mission statement for a bit of inspiration, Deborah recounted the history of the Foundation and the Evolutionary Leaders project. She said that everyone at the table could “see the emergence” in the global emergency. Each one introduced her/himself by saying how their work was contributing to the new paradigm. Around the table, there was passion for indigenous cultures, human rights, philanthropy, science, education, music, spirituality, collective evolution, unity and even new ways of thinking.
As Kristin Hoffmann said, "It was such a beautiful evening shared in friendship, light and new beginnings!" 
Americans: Tell the Senate to Stop the DARK Act!
 Ocean Robbins of the Food Revolution Network urges:
Senators acting under orders of their big food and chemical company donors have introduced a new Deny Americans Right to Know (DARK) Act that would overturn democratically-passed laws to label genetically engineered (GE) foods in Vermont and other states, and block the government from ever implementing mandatory nationwide GE food labeling.
We deserve to know what’s in our food. If you're from the U.S., click here to sign Environmental Working Group's petition, and to tell your Senators to stop the DARK Act and support mandatory GE labeling.
Don’t let Congress take away your right to know.
Yours for the right to know,
Ocean Robbins
Team Max: You Can Change the World
Gayle S. Rose is a successful Harvard graduate, classical musician, business woman and social activist who lives in the smart part of town in Memphis. She has three sons, Morgan, Max and Mikey. Max was 19 when he died in a road accident in 2009. At the time Max had just started work as an intern at Streets Ministries, a youth organization in one of Memphis’s most depressed inner city areas.
Gayle founded Team Max in his memory, starting with a Facebook call for volunteers to help repair an old lady's house after a tree had fallen and crushed it. That day 40 young people responded, but Team Max has now become known throughout Memphis for its vigilante philanthropy with over 1500 members answering calls for help–what Gayle calls a flash mob for service.
Watch the video below – and get inspired!
See a video on Gayle's full story at https://vimeo.com/137284229.
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ELs on Watkins Spiritual 100 List for 2016
Watkins 2016 list of the 100 Most Spiritually Influential Living People – spiritual teachers, activists, authors and thinkers that change the world – came out in print in the Spring issue of Watkins Mind Body Spirit magazine.
In 2011, Watkins bookshop in London started publishing the 100 list with the goal of celebrating the world’s living spiritual teachers. This special magazine issue features 16 pages dedicated to highlights about each individual’s significant impact.
To be considered for the list, the person has to have made a unique and spiritual contribution on a global scale. By taking into account the amount of times that a person is Googled or how many times their Wikipedia profile is viewed, the list gains a highly democratic and transparent parameter.
The impressive list includes eleven members of the Evolutionary Leaders circle (here in order of listing):
Deepak Chopra
Alex Grey
Vandana Shiva
Neale Donald Walsch
Bruce Lipton
Jack Canfield
Gregg Braden
Stanislav Grof
Gary Zukav
Michael Bernard Beckwith
Lynne McTaggart
Congratulations to these Evolutionary Leaders who have touched so many lives!
Deepak and Oprah Team Up Again
Shedding the Weight: Body, Mind and Spirit
Deepak Chopra and Oprah Winfrey will launch their latest free 21-day meditation experience on March 21st.
Experience more energy, creativity, and light in every facet of your life when you join Oprah and Deepak on an inspirational meditation journey that will last a lifetime. Discover what truly nourishes your entire being and lift the heaviness that has held you back from being your best self.
Stabilize physical hunger, alleviate mental unrest, and satisfy spiritual longing.
Your transformation begins on Monday, March 21st in Oprah and Deepak’s all-new, free 21-Day Meditation Experience, Shedding the Weight: Mind, Body and Spirit.
Register for Free HERE
U.N. DAYS COMING UP
INTERNATIONAL WOMEN'S DAY
March 8
The 2016 theme for International Women’s Day is “Planet 50-50 by 2030: Step It Up for Gender Equality."
WORLD WATER DAY
March 22
Watch Bruce Lipton's video:
"No Water, No Life" on www.newstorieshub.com
The Science of Personalized Nutrition
Video by Joan Borysenko
Joan Borysenko asks:
"Why am I on a campaign to increase nutritional literacy? Easy- knowing why what we eat matters can change our personal health and the health of our country.
Check out my short video on the 5 pillars of dietary doom. It’s part of a presentation that I crafted for the World Summit of Integrative Medicine–an impressive online conference that that can be downloaded free at WSIM2015.com.
Co-creating the Buddha as Sangha
Video by Terry Patten
Thich Nhat Hanh famously said “the next Buddha may be a Sangha.” It’s a phrase that is repeated so often for a reason — it points to something important.
In this brief video, Terry asks — what kind of practice is required to earn our place as a creative participant in such a community? How can we join together and go way beyond what we already know? Only that has a chance to transform our world. And yet that’s what Buddhas do.
 "Despite all the bad news and the attempts of modern-day robber barons to steal our democracy and our planet, I am filled with hope. I know that when enough of us perceive the true workings of this EHM (Economic Hit Man) system, we will take the individual and collective actions necessary to control the cancer and restore our health." [...]
"Tom Paine inspired American revolutionaries when he wrote, 'If there must be trouble, let it be in my day, that my child may have peace.' Those words are as important today as they were in 1776. My goal in this new book is nothing less than Paine's: to inspire and empower us all to do whatever it takes to lead the way to peace for our children."
I'd Like to Help - A Conversation with Charles Gibbs
 What can we learn from a pioneer who co-created the largest grassroots interfaith organization in the world? This week's Awakin Call with Charles Gibbs gifted us with answers to this question.
Charles Gibbs is an Episcopal priest who, from 1996 until his retirement in 2013, served as the founding executive director of the United Religions Initiative – serving from URI’s gestation to its position as an international network which consists presently of more than 750 cooperation circles (each comprising members of at least 3 faiths or traditions) in 92 countries.
Forging this multinational interfaith organization didn't come without it's challenges, yet all these challenges birthed new connections and understandings that has continued to grow even in the face of divisive events like 9/11.
Charles reflects,"I believe that together we created a living antidote to the poison of hatred, division and violence that manifested in those events.”
In dialogue with Charles Gibbs feels like a darshan, a dharma talk, a poetry reading, and a friendly chat all mixed into one. Sprinkled through out are insights and words of wisdom drawn from years of experience and introspection. [...]
Read Full Article HERE
What Vets Don't Tell You
Free from Lynne McTaggart
Lynne McTaggart is a best-selling author, researcher and lecturer whose work has rightly been described as "a bridge between science and spirituality."
For the past 20 years she has been researching medicine and its shortcomings, and quantum physics and what this means for you and the world we live in. The result has been best-selling books: The Field, The Intention Experiment, and What Doctors Don't Tell You.
Now she is offering a free copy you can download of "What Vets Don't Tell You." Just click below!
Inspiration Corner
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The Unstoppable Momentum of Natural Forces
By Claudia Welss
Originally seen at www.noetic.org on December 9, 2015
Twenty years ago I was distributing research by the Union of Concerned Scientists to global executives of major corporations at the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley, trying to get their attention and hoping to influence their policies. The research concluded we had twenty years before Earth and humanity reached a climate tipping point, beyond which there was no turning back.
Last week, truthout published this story: A Generation of Delay: Climate Policy is Twenty Years Behind. No kidding. Almost to the day. But that doesn't fool me into thinking nothing's changed over the last twenty years. Something powerful has changed. Something subtle, below the radar, and powerful in its subtlety.
The IONS community has been studying consciousness and healing for decades. And quietly groups of citizen "activists" have been picking up what IONS and other scientifically-minded organizations like the Maharishi Foundation (TM), Global Consciousness Project and Global Coherence Initiative have been laying down. The result is the organic growth of self-organized communities like the Gaiafield Project, BeThePeace, 1BODy, MedMob, Unify, MasterShift, the Subtle Activism Network and countless other initiatives that are using collective acts of consciousness to support collective transformation. Recently, a spontaneously organized group of subtle activists named #EarthLove partnered with the Amplifield, a new digital Earth community for collective meditation, to send synchronized energetic support for a breakthrough at COP21.
In a December 5th article by truthdig called Positive Vibes Flow at Climate Talks, the author wrote: Yet even normally sceptical COP attenders think Paris is on the verge of a breakthrough...“There may be a deal, but there’s so much still to resolve that it’s not at all certain. Yes, Paris is a tipping point. And it can tip either way.” ...Some speak of “unstoppable momentum towards a significant outcome”. Others invoke the unstoppable momentum of natural forces [emphasis added], and question whether the Paris agreement—however superlative it is—may have come decades too late.
I have often in the past worried that it was too late. On a trip to South Korea in the late 90's, I sat with the Chairman of the Daelim chaebol (conglomerate) who spoke to me in very reassuring terms about their "Hansoop Spirit," which included a philosophy of stewardship for their land and people. This beautiful man handed me a large souvenir medal with an image of wild flora and fauna on one side and the corporate logo on the other; then he handed me a company brochure, the cover of which was entirely devoted to one of its many huge petrochemical plants spewing emissions into the air. And I thought, "it's too late."
I'm not in Paris, but friends are, and there are conflicting reports of what's actually happening there. And I again feel it's late--but not too late. The new news is there's another "unstoppable momentum of natural forces" quickly gaining speed over the last two decades. Consciousness and healing are growing up. It's no longer just about "my" consciousness affecting "my" healing, as wonderful of a paradigm shift as it is to recognize mind and body as inseparable. We are now willing to take on what's possible when we join forces of consciousness, when we regard our mind as inseparable from the body of humanity (and even of Earth herself). Subtle activism is about "me" joining "my" consciousness with others to uplift not just our attempts at world change, but the well-being of the whole directly. It's joining global communities of Indigenous and ancient wisdom holders who have been practicing this sort of world healing all along. And it's running with the scientific evidence of correlations that suggest over and over again the causal connection between consciousness and the material world; that suggest we can affect external coherence with our own internal coherence, and that due to the "field effect" it takes a very small percentage of people to create a shift in the whole field. Even so, we don't require the permission of science before we act on the possible; to do that, it has been recognized, is to make science just another religion.
Are the reported "positive vibes" flowing at COP21 being amplified by our meditations and prayers? Maybe. But to me the real headline is how the growth of subtle activism, known by many names, is becoming one of the real unstoppable forces of nature.
Claudia Welss is a member of the IONS board of directors, the Global Coherence Initiative Steering Committee, and the Gaiafield Project Council.
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Are You Allowing Yourself the Gift of Imperfection?
By Darius M. Barazandeh
Reprinted from You Wealth Revolution, August 13, 2015
Let me ask you a question, “Have you ever felt like you’re constantly running against something invisible?”
So many times in our life we are moving from one thing to the other. Constantly in a hurry. Always trying to ‘get somewhere’ or do something. Maybe it’s a fear. Maybe it’s a lingering feeling like something is going to go wrong and you just don’t know what that is. Maybe it’s just a perpetual feeling like you’re not good enough. Maybe it’s something was said to you years ago and it just stuck. You keep hearing it again and again. Or maybe its ‘locked up’ within your emotion memory and it’s causing anxiousness deep down within you.
I know in my own life, when I was kid I was fairly athletic, but I was really, really not gifted in coordination. For example, when it came to things like dribbling a basketball I was all ‘left’ feet and hands!
still to this day – and many of you will probably laugh – I still can’t dribble a basketball. I tried and tried and tried, and we always had these drills where we would run across the basketball court at recess. We’d have to basically run and dribble the ball while racing each other in a relay race.
And everybody knew, it seemed, when it was my turn. If we were ahead I hear them say, “Go faster, go faster…Darius is coming up next! We’ve got to keep our lead.” It seemed like the whole class knew I was going to fumble it. Now those days are long over and despite not being able to dribble a basketball I’ve been able to succeed at many things. Yet to this day – I’ll be honest – I still walk into a gymnasium and I sweat and I start to get nervous. Even after all my self work there are still vibrations that are in my emotional memory to this day!
I say this because I want you to allow yourself to be a ‘work in progress.’
Give yourself the gift and lesson of FREEDOM to be a work in progress! Even the greatest teachers are still learning each and every day. I suggest that you remind yourself that its o.k. to keep learning.
Allow yourself the freedom to be imperfect. Your imperfection is your gift.
I’ll never forget when ‘The Secret’ came out. Everyone was vigilant and guarding their words and thoughts – or so it seemed! I’d hear people say, “Oh don’t say it’s too expensive,” “Oh don’t talk about your bills being high” or “Don’t think anything negative.” ‘The Secret’ was a terrific movie but so many interpreted it to mean that the we have to be totally positive all the time to have good things happen in our lives.
I submit to you today that I have a blessed life…but I am not 100% positive in all my thoughts. I see the balance. I see the good and the bad. The blessings and challenges and I feel my own pain.
The goal is not to avoid or suppress your feelings or thoughts but rather to find the priceless gift and understanding that comes from your own mistakes, pains, and defeats. Even on a day-to-day basis if a negative thought or feeling comes up go in and find the gift. Find the lesson and reason it was in your life. All of this brings it back into full awareness.
If we do this we can be fully conscious. Rather than ‘stuffing’ things under the rug!
Let me ask you:
What are some things in your life that were lessons? Often times when something still aches or feels uneasy it’s because we still have not processed the emotion and found the lesson.
How do you know?
If you feel like there are things in some way holding you back, that you can’t see, that you can’t really taste, that you can’t really feel totally but you feel uneasy, that could be a sign that there’s something there possibly holding you back.
Here’s what I want you to do:
When that feeling comes up say that right after me: “I ALLOW.” Put your hand on your heart and just breathe in: “I ALLOW” “I ALLOW.”
“I allow those situations to unfold for my greatest lesson. I allow those situations to be a great lesson. I allow love to open up and unfold in my life. I allow myself to accept and approve the things that I cannot change. And I love myself. “
Take a deep breath and allow your heart to expand right now. Allow the love of your heart to flow out. You can imagine a pink or violet light in your heart space just flowing out to the rest of the planet. Just allowing your soul and your feeling of joy to expand out and just allowing it all to be one.
Much Love and Light,
Darius
NOTE: In case you are wondering those early days of not being able to dribble that basketball made me go deeper into myself for validation. I caused me to find the divine power within and eventually led me to where I am today. I do believe that if I had been great at sports I might have been content with outward validation. Hence a very different life path might have emerged. Everything has a divine purpose!
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Evolutionary Leaders is a project of
