The Vallejo Farmers Market
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For today's suggested topic lets consider Empathy Circles. (Please see my previous diaries in this series on my struggle with grassroots organizing at this link #1, #2. And two additional diaries I did on Empathy Circles before I started this series: links #1 & #2)
Two weeks ago I started taking a 5 week training session to become a Empathy Circle Facilitator. This series is a personal account of my experience. Jump the fold fold for more pictures and commentary.
The Participatory Budgeting Table
The Vallejo Farmers Market for me was my connection with community. It was the center of my grassroots organizing. Each week for a number of years I would set up the voter registration table then go about the business of meeting and talking to anyone that stopped by. With other volunteers at the booth I was able to move around and visit other booths.
Community Group Called Better Vallejo
Every week there were different community groups that set up table and promoted their organizations or promoted some civic activity. For example Vallejo had a well funded Participatory Budgeting project that invited the community to propose city funded projects that would adopted by a vote by Vallejo residents. I believe the top 10 projects with the most votes were funded.
Better Vallejo was a typical community group that set up a booth at the Farmers Market. They promoted a pledge to make Vallejo better.
“As our name suggests, Better Vallejo is about making things better. Our mission states in part that we are committed to examining our attitudes, words, and actions to ensure they reflect our pledge. In 2009 when Better Vallejo was first organized, we created a pledge that states: “I pledge to create a Better Vallejo by honoring the contributions of all people. I believe we thrive when we respect one another in pursuit of the common good.” — From the Vallejo Times-Herald: Better Vallejo”s year
Protesting GMOs at the March Against Monsanto
The Farmers Market was host to many protests. We had a large protest on Genetically modified organisms (GMOs). SEE: March Against Monsanto.
The large group dispersed into the market with signs and enthusiasm talking about the dangers of GMOs to any one that would listen.
This a way to raise awareness on an important environmental issue. Specifically, they protested the Monsanto modifying crops to resist being poisoned by their insecticides.
My eVallejo The Participatory Budgeting project
All of the above activities gave me a sense of connection with people and community topics. I joined the The Participatory Budgeting process and proposed a project I called eVallejo.
From the sign:
eVallejo will promote internet access, internet basics, and internet commerce for benefit of the Vallejo community.
I spent a few months promoting this project, but unfortunately this project did not get enough votes to be funded. However, I led to me being involved in a much larger and more important project.
Last Saturday I attended my second training session to become a Empathy Circle Facilitator. The lesson was for me to conduct an half hour session as the Facilitator. And this morning I attended a Empathy Circle Cafe where I was able to practice being the Facilitator for about an hour and a half.
It was a group of about 7 people and we all talked about the environment. My job as Facilitator was to explain the process and make everyone feel it was a safe place to express themselves.
I must confess I got similar feeling about this online event that I felt at the farmers market. The group was from around the world. As the session progressed most all the participants volunteered a recent experience they had with environmental loss or destruction. This was a very powerful sharing that each of us was sensitive to loss. I felt I was not alone.
I shared a word with everyone in the group: Solastalgia. It was the book by Glenn A. Albrecht called Earth Emotions that brought this new word to me. I did a full diary on the the word for Daily Kos. See: Solastalgia: The Feeling When The Waveform Of The Destruction Of Your Home Collapses On You.
Solastalgia (/ˌsɒləˈstældʒə/) is a neologism, formed by the combination of the Latin words sōlācium (comfort) and the Greek root -algia (pain, suffering, grief), that describes a form of emotional or existential distress caused by environmental change. It is best described as the lived experience of negatively perceived environmental change.
From Wikipedia: Solastalgia
In closing I would like to share a link to the 2 training session that I attended on Saturday.
Thank You,
Jonathan Gordon
