Rhizome 2025 - Open Session: Culture Hack & Narratives for Systems Change

Summary

The Rhizome 2025 Open Session, hosted by Culture Hack Labs, explores the intersection of culture and narrative-led systems change. The session highlights various methodologies and case studies aiming to tackle systemic oppression, ecological degradation, and inequality. Key components include understanding and reshaping narratives to foster regenerative futures, engaging community actions, and leveraging indigenous wisdom to rethink land relationships. The session emphasizes the importance of justice and ontological shifts in achieving meaningful change. Participants are encouraged to collaborate and participate in a fellowship program that supports cultural interventions and systemic transformation.

Highlights

• Narrative-led systems change focuses on altering cultural narratives to shift systemic behavior 🌐
• Indigenous philosophy and practices play a crucial role in developing alternative narratives 🌱
• The session introduces the Culture Hack methodology for building narrative strategies 🎨
• Participants are encouraged to apply for a fellowship that supports cultural initiatives and narratives for systemic transformation 🎓
• The discussion includes a case study on cultural intervention in Mexico, promoting ecological preservation over urban development 🇲🇽

Key Takeaways

• Changing narratives can transform systems 🌍
• Justice plus ontological shift is essential for systems change ⚖️
• Community collaboration is vital for cultural interventions 🤝
• Narratives are complex and adaptive, influencing behavior subconsciously 🧠
• Indigenous practices offer valuable insights for regenerative futures 🌿

Overview

The recent Rhizome 2025 session by Culture Hack Labs was a captivating exploration into how altering narratives can drive systems change. Led by indigenous leaders and narrative practitioners, the session delved into the methodologies that allow communities to challenge oppressive systems and ecological crises through storytelling and cultural interventions. With a blend of case studies, theoretical overviews, and practical insights, the session provided a roadmap for adopting narrative-led change.

One of the focal points was the Culture Hack method—a powerful tool for those looking to make substantial shifts in public discourse. By framing narratives around justice and ontological shifts, the method promises to unravel and reconstruct the very cultural fabric that holds detrimental systems in place. A standout example of its success is the 'I prefer the Lake' campaign in Mexico, which highlighted the power of public narrative to thwart environmentally damaging projects.

Participants also learned about the potential of a fellowship program designed to foster collaborative and impactful narrative projects. This initiative stresses community involvement, interdisciplinary collaboration, and the utilization of indigenous knowledge to envision and implement regenerative futures. With overarching themes of justice, equity, and the profound impact of narratives, the session inspired attendees to rethink their approach to cultural and systemic change.

Chapters

• 00:00 - 01:30: Acknowledgment and Welcome The chapter titled 'Acknowledgment and Welcome' opens with the speaker greeting everyone with a 'Good morning' and expressing gratitude for their presence. The speaker acknowledges the various territories and global regions participants are joining from, extending a welcoming gesture not only to the participants but also to their respective territories. The emphasis is on gratitude and inclusiveness, highlighting the importance of recognizing all participants and their diverse origins.
• 01:30 - 03:00: Introduction by Andrea Ishuandez The chapter titled 'Introduction by Andrea Ishuandez' begins with a welcoming message expressing gratitude to the attendees for showing up. Andrea Ishuandez introduces herself as an indigenous Mayakicha woman from Highlands, Guatemala. She mentions her role as one of the co-directors of Culture Hack Labs. The introduction sets the stage for the topics to be discussed, though the transcript is incomplete providing only an initial greeting and introduction.
• 03:00 - 05:00: Honoring Cultures and Connections This chapter introduces the speaker, a narrative practitioner with over 15 years of experience in using various forms of media such as video, radio, and journalism for storytelling. The focus is on creating narrative strategies to defend land rights for indigenous communities, both locally and internationally. The speaker expresses honor and gratitude for being part of this endeavor and warmly welcomes the audience to the journey of honoring cultures and connections.
• 05:00 - 08:00: Appreciation for Nature and Acknowledgment of Challenges This chapter, titled "Appreciation for Nature and Acknowledgment of Challenges," emphasizes the acceptance and celebration of diverse ethnic origins and cultural identities. It highlights the importance of welcoming stories, experiences, and connections that individuals have with their ancestors and loved ones. The narrative extends a warm welcome to all the elements that constitute one's life and identity, reinforcing the sense of community and belonging.
• 08:00 - 10:30: Outline of the Call Structure Chapter Title: Outline of the Call Structure Chapter Summary: This chapter is a reflective gratitude session, expressing thanks to the plants and places that support, nourish, and teach us, enriching our bodies with ancient wisdom. It highlights the importance of recognizing and appreciating the contributions of various plant species. Additionally, the chapter emphasizes gratitude towards animals of all species on our planet, acknowledging their presence and contributions to human work. The chapter concludes by recognizing and acknowledging the existence of violence, although further context on this topic is not provided in the transcript.
• 10:30 - 13:00: Introduction to Culture Hack and Narrative Systems Change The chapter introduces the concept of Culture Hack and Narrative Systems Change, focusing on the urgency of addressing the global meta-crisis that affects the planet and all living beings. It emphasizes welcoming diverse life forms into a collective space to share stories from the past, present, and future. The chapter underscores the importance of coming together with intention to collectively build, rebuild, and imagine new narratives and systems.
• 13:00 - 16:00: History and Foundation of Culture Hack The chapter titled 'History and Foundation of Culture Hack' delves into the transformative power of cultural renewal and support, likening it to a symphony that affirms life. It recognizes and honors the concept of wuku emos, an energy associated with water and the unknown, emphasizing a connection to inner powers that are often neglected.
• 16:00 - 20:00: Projects and Case Studies This chapter reflects on the constraints imposed by an over-reliance on rationality in recent centuries. It encourages readers to embrace a broader spectrum of human perception that includes, but is not limited to, rational thinking. By doing so, individuals can reconnect with a world that aligns more closely with our innate sense of creativity and purpose. The discussion aims to inspire a re-evaluation of how we perceive our world and our place within it, urging a balance between reason and other senses.
• 20:00 - 22:00: Introduction by Tiffany and Concept of Narrative-led Systems Change The introduction by Tiffany explores the concept of narrative-led systems change. It emphasizes using narrative strategies and sensory engagement to envision alternative ways of being. It draws on the practices of indigenous communities in Guatemala, highlighting a reality beyond reason that has been obscured but remains powerful in imagining different possibilities for existence. The introduction encourages the audience to relax and engage with these ideas unfolding in the session.
• 22:00 - 27:00: Definitions of Systems and Narratives The chapter starts with a focus on the structure of a call, primarily aimed at welcoming and settling in the audience. It outlines four main points, beginning with an introduction to the organization 'Culture Hack.' Though the transcript ends abruptly, it implies further discussion on what the organization signifies to its members.
• 27:00 - 31:00: Cultural Constructs and Their Impact The chapter 'Cultural Constructs and Their Impact' begins with an overview of a method for narratives in system change practice. It introduces a case study that demonstrates the development and potential outcomes of this work over recent years. Additionally, it outlines the structure of this discussion, including a segment for Q&A. It touches on the 'culture hack' method, questioning its origins and future directions, within the context of a non-profit organization.
• 31:00 - 35:00: Impact of Dominant Western Cultural Constructs The chapter discusses the impact of dominant Western cultural constructs on global systems. It highlights the role of consultancy in supporting organizations, social movements, and activists to initiate cultural actions that aim at system change. The central mission is to alter the narratives that have contributed to ecological breakdown and systemic inequality through a cultural change process. Narrative system change involves creating shifts in cultural structures to address these issues.
• 35:00 - 40:00: Role and Function of Narratives The chapter discusses how narratives can justify oppressive structures such as inequality, ecoite (a possible play on eco-elite or ecocide), and genocide. It introduces the concept of a 'culture hack' to plant 'ancient future narratives' that challenge these damaging worldviews, enabling alternative ways of knowing and existing. The narrative aims to shift from a false capitalist to a life-centric worldview. By altering communication and narrative codes, we can transform interpersonal relations and ultimately, the systems currently dominating the world. This transformation is seen as urgent and necessary.
• 40:00 - 45:00: Justice Plus Ontoshift Framework The chapter titled 'Justice Plus Ontoshift Framework' delves into the historical context and evolution of a significant framework developed from earlier efforts. Specifically, it discusses how between 2012 and 2019, an activist group known as 'the rules' sought to tackle profound issues such as inequality and ecological degradation. This group not only engaged in activism but also served as an independent research hub, aiming to conduct cultural interventions to address these global challenges. Their efforts in the years 2016 and 2017 marked a pivotal moment, described as a 'collective call' to action, as they strived to confront and resolve fundamental root causes threatening societal and environmental health. 'The rules' exemplified a passionate commitment to enacting systematic change through collaborative and research-driven initiatives.
• 45:00 - 50:00: Aubrey on Narrative-led Systems Change Method The chapter 'Aubrey on Narrative-led Systems Change Method' explores the concept of the 'culture hack methodology.' This methodology is developed through the experiences, practices, and examples of activists, land defenders, narrative practitioners, ecologists, and independent researchers. The strategy aims to create what is known as a cultural hack, and it is fundamentally a community-based approach.
• 50:00 - 57:00: Five Steps of Culture Hack Method The chapter discusses a communitarian narrative strategy that has been developed and tested in Latin America and around the world. Specifically, in 2018, during a public consultation about constructing an airport, a coalition comprising Nawa and Elcoa communities and NGOs in Mexico aimed to bring ancient ways of life to the forefront of the discourse regarding the new airport in Textooko.
• 57:00 - 62:00: Fede on Case Study: Culture Hack in Mexico City The chapter discusses a case study centered in Mexico City, focusing on a cultural intervention during a presidential election period in Guatemala. Organizations collaborated to highlight structural racism and extractivism, with a focus on Telma Cabrera, a Maya land defender, who ran for presidency. The narrative aimed to bring attention to land defense and structural racism during the electoral process.
• 62:00 - 66:00: Impact of the Culture Hack In 2019, in response to a call from indigenous allies in Brazil, a global gathering of over 300 indigenous women was organized. The focus was on healing in the midst of the Amazonian and global climate crises. Following this gathering, efforts were directed towards creating spaces dedicated to land defense.
• 66:00 - 71:00: Fellowship Details and Timeline In the chapter 'Fellowship Details and Timeline', the focus is on collaborative initiatives from 2021 and 2023, involving land defenders from different regions, including the Mesoamerican region, Caribbean Island, and Pacific Island. The narrative centers around highlighting indigenous voices and solutions amidst the climate crisis. These efforts emphasize the importance of existing living solutions within local territories.
• 71:00 - 75:00: Fellowship Logistics and Application The chapter delves into the concept of 'hacking the narrative of land ownership' and emphasizes reclaiming land to foster a harmonious relationship with Earth. This is part of a broader global movement aimed at liberation with Mother Earth, termed 'back to land.' In 2024, efforts are focused on creating pathways towards regenerative futures that go beyond a mere fixation on carbon. A process dubbed 'not research' is initiated to plan the liberation of land, waters, and ecosystems.
• 75:00 - 77:00: Conclusion and Next Steps In the concluding chapter titled 'Conclusion and Next Steps', the focus is on the process of engaging with communities, particularly concerning the concepts of 'cateripalism' and colonialism. It emphasizes the importance of research and listening processes that have been undertaken over the years. This methodology is referred to as the 'narrative culture hack method'. The chapter serves as an overview of the processes and methodologies that have been applied, as the speaker prepares to introduce another participant to further elaborate on the narrative approach.

Rhizome 2025 - Open Session: Culture Hack & Narratives for Systems Change Transcription

• 00:00 - 00:30 Good morning everybody. Welcome. Thank you for coming and thank you for joining to the space. So we are acknowledging uh the different territories and all the different parts of the world that you are joining. We say hello to you uh hello to your territories and welcoming them. So, thank you for showing up. This is an
• 00:30 - 01:00 honor for us to come here and thanks all for coming and showing up today. We're very honored. So, I want to ask you to start and start taking a moment right now. Uh my name is Andrea Ishuandez. I am an indigenous Mayakicha women from Highlands, Guatemala. I'm uh right now as one of the co-directors of culture hack labs and uh I'm also a
• 01:00 - 01:30 narrative practitioner. I have been during more of 15 years of my life working in narratives through uh video, radio, journalism, storytelling, creating narrative strategies to the defense of land in indigenous communities not just in my homeland but in a lot of other communities that had opened their work, their strategies and for me it's an honor also to be part of this journey with you all. So welcome. You are very welcome here. Your culture
• 01:30 - 02:00 is welcome. Your ethnic origin is welcome. All of the complexities that make you up a cultural identities are welcome here. Your stories, her stories and all the experiences of your ancestors. Uh we are honoring them and also welcoming them. We are welcoming you with all your connections, with your children, with your life, with your partners, siblings, parents, animals, and all the other loved ones that are part of your life and your community. We
• 02:00 - 02:30 give thanks to the plants and all the places who can support us, nourish us, feeds us, teach us, and build our bodies with ancient wisdom. I am thanking today to the plants, and we give them our thanks. We want to give thanks also to the animals of all the species in our planet who support our work with their present with their inner being. We give thanks to them and also we are also acknowledging all the violence all the
• 02:30 - 03:00 suffering that the planet species and other beings are facing right now due the meta crisis that we are going through. But also we welcome you all. We welcome all life to our circle. the past, the present, the future, all the stories that we can collectively build and also the collective stories that we can build to change. So, thank you all for coming and your intention of collectively build, rebuild, imagine,
• 03:00 - 03:30 renew, support and transform as a beautiful symphony of life affirming cultures. You're welcome to settle in and especially today that in the Mayaki way of counting the time we are honoring the wuku emos the energy of water but also the energy that calls the unknown and we honor that energy that connect us through the world of inner powers that uh we rarely allow to blossom and we
• 03:30 - 04:00 invite you to root in different visions as the ones that had been imposed on us. So in this system in which our true nature is essentially limited by the use of reason because in recent centuries we have given too much space to rationality and confine our existent to that framework. We have forgotten also that we possess other senses that allow us to perceive a world closer to the sense of creation. And our purpose is to develop
• 04:00 - 04:30 senses and also narrative strategies to create and create other ways of being and existing. And because this has been part of the way of indigenous communities in Guatemala, this is a reality beyond reason that has been hidden from us, but it's also present that allows imagine different possibilities for our existences. So, thank you all for coming. We invite you to settle in and enjoy this ride smoothly. So, thank you very much and uh
• 04:30 - 05:00 we're going to start by sharing uh a bit on the structure of the call that we have for you all today. So, I'm very sorry if I I will be taking a bit of time welcoming you all but it was very important for us to to start and settle in with you. Um our call today will have these four specific points. We are going to share about who we are as culture hack a brief story. We're going to talk about what does it mean for us
• 05:00 - 05:30 narratives for system change practice. We're going to share with you an overview of our method and and a case study around how we have been developing our work in the past years and the possibilities that can arise from it. So this will be the main structure of our call and we will have an small space also for Q&A and culture hack method. Where does it come from and where are we going? We are uh first of all a nonforprofit
• 05:30 - 06:00 consultancy that supports organizations, social movements, activists to create cultural actions for system change. Uh our mission is to change the narratives that are had created the ecological breakdown, the structure, the inequality and we do it through a process of culture change. And what we need we mean by narrative system change is to create shift in cultural structures that
• 06:00 - 06:30 justify oppression, inequality, ecoite and genocide. In culture hack, we seed ancient future narratives that allow the emergence of other ways of knowing and being to collectively transform towards false capitalist and lifecentric worldviews. We deeply believe that by changing our communication, we can change codes in narratives and also in our relations that can lead us to change the systems that are overthrowing also right now in the world. And this process has been
• 06:30 - 07:00 born from uh previous iterations. In 2016 2017 uh there was a process of a collective call. Uh there was an organization that was called the rules that existed between 2012 and 2019 that was an activist collective that during eight years of its existence focused on addressing the root causes of inequality and also ecological breakdown and doing cultural interventions. The rule was an independent research space that uh allow
• 07:00 - 07:30 us to start thinking what we do call now the culture hack methodology and through the examples lives and also ways of doing work of activists land defenders narrative practitioners ecologists independent researchers we develop this strategy and this method does that allow us to create what we have called now cultural hack and the cultur method is a community uh
• 07:30 - 08:00 communitarian narrative strategy that has been developed and tested in different parts of Latin America and in the world in 2018 in the middle of a public consultation to build an airport. We worked uh with a coalition of Nawa and Elcoa communities and NOS's in Mexico that were defending an ancient life in Textooko and built a narrative intervention to put at the center of the conversation of an airport the voices of
• 08:00 - 08:30 the lake. Then we jumped in into what Milan context in 201819 during the electoral process for presidency. We work with a coalition of organizations who wanted to visibilize the structural racism and extractivism state in Guatemala. Telma Cabrera, a Maya land defender, decided to run for presidency and also allow us to create a narrative action and intervention to talk about the defense of land and structural racism in times of elections. Then in
• 08:30 - 09:00 2019 in Brazil, after the call of allies from indigenous people who defend Amazonia, we listened and amplified the narrative that calls for the cure of the earth in the middle of a pandemic. We co-organized a global gathering of more of 300 indigenous women to talk about the ways that we can heal our bodies, our spirits, and our territories in the midst of a climate crisis. Right after that we jumped in creating some spaces for land defense and during
• 09:00 - 09:30 the 2021 the futuras indas and the messameric action together with land defenders from different regions and indigenous nations of Mesoamerican region co-created narratives to put at the center of the climate crisis conversation the voices of the living solutions that already exist in our territories. Then in 2023, we uh together with land defenders from Tarter Island, Meso America, Caribbean Island, and Pacific Island
• 09:30 - 10:00 gathering gathered to hack the narrative of land ownership. And together we called land back to right relations as a global transition to liberate ourselves with mother earth through a process that we call back to land. In 2024, we were working the pathways to regenerative futures beyond the carbon fixation. Through a process of not research, we were setting out our intention of finding pathways to liberate land, waters, ecosystems and
• 10:00 - 10:30 communities for the enclosures of cateripalism and colonialism. So the process that we have been going through these years of going into practices with communities with research with listening process is what we do so called the narrative culture hack method. So we want to overview a bit of what he has been going on in our process and I am welcoming now uh our mate um to come and join h to share what is this narrative
• 10:30 - 11:00 for system change. So welcome welcome. Hi everyone. I'm Tiffany. I'm part of the culture hack team based in Berlin at the moment. It's great to see you all here. Welcome. And yeah, I'm going to be running through the fundamental concepts of narrativeled systems change. So if you move to the next slide, we'll see that essentially narrativeled systems change is based on the principle that if you change the narrative, you change the system. So here are some basic concepts. We will
• 11:00 - 11:30 explore some today in more detail but in some for now at the most fundamental level we're working with systems which are made up from dynamic interactions and these interactions form networks which are coordinated nodes like people, platforms, institutions and so on that shape and spread meaning. And within these networks, we find narratives, which are the linguistic and semantic structures that we use to make sense of
• 11:30 - 12:00 the world. And narratives aren't just discursive. They they really shape culture and perception and power. And together, these narratives make up the narrative space where narratives kind of co-live and interact with each other in a specific time frame. It's almost like a public discourse full of competing logics and worldviews and meaning systems. And finally, we always work towards centropy, the movement towards life coherence and complexity. And this is
• 12:00 - 12:30 always our aim as narrative practitioners. This is kind of an evolution towards life centric regenerative and relational cultures. And if we move to the next slide, we start with a definition of systems. So in more detail, systems are groups of actors and materials that are coordinated in a purposeful way. They have inputs, processes, and outputs. And they can be found across ecological, social, economic domains shaping and
• 12:30 - 13:00 being shaped by these dynamic interactions. And it's worth noting that our understanding of systems is rooted in systems theory, complexity science, evolutionary theory, which are all fields that explore how complex systems evolve and self-organize and adapt over time. Next up is a definition of narratives. They are interpretive social structures that frame our experience and help us make sense of everyday reality.
• 13:00 - 13:30 And we'll dive deeper into this in a bit, but it's worth highlighting two elements here. One is that narratives frame what we see. And two, they guide what we do. So they have material effects. And much of this happens on an unconscious level. And again, it's worth noting that our understanding of narratives is very much rooted in the field of embodied cognition, which is part of cognitive science that sees thinking and perception as arising from an interplay between the brain and the body rather than just being confined to
• 13:30 - 14:00 the mind alone. On to the next slide. So again, narrativeled systems change. The core idea here is that when you change the narrative, you change the system. In other words, by shifting narratives, which are kind of shared cognitive maps and values that sustain a certain system, we can then redefine what is possible and ultimately reshape the system itself. So what does this mean in times of systems
• 14:00 - 14:30 collapse? So we are in the midst of a meta crisis and at its core is a crisis of culture and we are living in the culture of the anthroposine. And what does this look like? Well, it's on the next slide we see is unprecedented environmental and social challenges. For example, inequality, ecological collapse, climate change, biodiversity loss, rising authoritarianism, institutional racism, and so on. Many of the topics you're all
• 14:30 - 15:00 working on, I'm sure, in dayto-day. And they're not just symptoms of systemic breakdowns. They are the results of a deeper cultural paradigm. And let's pause here for a moment and just define what we actually mean by culture. Culture is the values, belief systems, and ontologies that drive human behavior. And culture shapes how we relate to ourselves, how we relate to each other, and the network of life around us. And our current growthdriven capitalist culture, particularly in its
• 15:00 - 15:30 neoliberal phase at the moment, commodifies life and resources and reinforces separation and exploitation. And on the next slide, we'll dive even deeper into the fundamental kind of um deep structure of culture. If we boil it down to its core ingredients, it's essentially the relationship between self and other. And self is the conscious human like you or me. And other is everything that is not self. So
• 15:30 - 16:00 what we perceive lies beyond us like the external world such as animals or objects or rivers or trees. and what lies between you and your perception of what is other. On the next slide, we'll see are cultural constructs and these define our reality. And constructs might include moral judgments, values, worldviews, even kind of metaphors and frames and so on. And on the next slide, this summarizes
• 16:00 - 16:30 what I've just mentioned, but your essential takeaway here is that the relationship between self and other is mediated through cultural concepts. And we as narrative practitioners aim to shift these cultural constructs. So let's move on to an example. We can understand the deep structure of a culture or the relationship between self and other by making observations in its context. On the next slide, we can see
• 16:30 - 17:00 that 0 well the humans make up 0.01% of the biomass on the earth. And through the advent of industrial revolution and globalization, humans have managed to wipe out 83% of all wild mammals and cut the plant biomass in half during our time on the planet. And we can infer from this on the next slide that dominant western cultural constructs often frame anything as
• 17:00 - 17:30 anything that's non-human as other. So something that's separate from us. In this case, nature, animals, ecosystems and and so on. And this separation is carried through the construct nature is a resource which justifies this extraction and destruction. On the next slide, let's loop back to narratives. How does it relate to narratives? Well, constructs are carried through narratives. And what I'll do now is pass to Yael, who will
• 17:30 - 18:00 dive deeper and walk you through how narratives function. Thank you so much, Tiffany. Hello everyone. My my name is Yael. I'm really honored to see so many of you here interested in narrativeled systems change and creating life affirming futures. I'm calling in today from the lands of Kauaii. So, aloha to you all. And Tiffany gave us some definitions of narratives and how we at Culture Hack
• 18:00 - 18:30 view narratives and within the the context of our culture. So I will go a little bit deeper and share how how they create our reality. So imagine narratives like a map. The territory, everything you see in front of you is what you can observe or experience. The map is then an interpretation of that world. So we can
• 18:30 - 19:00 orient ourselves and guide our understanding within that territory. This is very similar to how narratives work. They provide the justification and the basis for our actions in the world. And as Tiffany said, much of this happens on a subconscious level. So at Culture Hack, a lot of what we do is actually to make the invisible visible, bringing to our awareness that narratives are constructing the way that
• 19:00 - 19:30 we relate to the world. In the next slide, you'll see an example of this. So here the example of the narrative or the frame nature is a resource is acting as a map that frames nature or this forest as something primarily for human use and consumption. So in this case we're seeing the forest being reduced into a commodity like timber. This frame this narrative nature
• 19:30 - 20:00 as a resource is justifying acts like deforestation. This is a very simplified example of how narratives are shaping our experience or leading to behaviors or or actions. And to say that the narrative about nature for example that we find in western culture are different to the ones we find in indigenous cultures. Indigenous cultures have the narrative or frame of nature being the source of
• 20:00 - 20:30 life rather than a resource. So then this narrative, this belief system would lead to a very different set of behaviors and action. So as you can see and what we what we really what we center at the at the at the core of culture hack and how we view narratives is that they're complex. They're adaptive evolutionary systems. They're alive. They're born.
• 20:30 - 21:00 They can evolve. They mutate. We can influence narratives, but they can also influence us. As Tiffany mentioned, the narratives are interpretive social structures that we use to make sense of the world. And so they can start in individual actors but then spread and grow and have a network effect until they become an
• 21:00 - 21:30 actual narrative form on its own. Again, they're alive and they animate our reality whether we're conscious of it or not. In that way, they dictate our beliefs and behaviors and they live through our everyday actions. So as much as we are creating narratives and and experiencing the world through those frames, they are in turn creating us and dictating how we how we navigate this
• 21:30 - 22:00 reality. So now that we've shared a little bit more on narratives, how they construct our reality, we'll spend a moment contextualizing this in a cultural context of systems collapse. How do we as narrative practitioners move narrative towards a place of system
• 22:00 - 22:30 centropy? To share this, we offer this framework. And in a system, when we look at systems theory, we see two forces at work. We see centropy and entropy. Entropy being the movement towards breakdown, singularity, chaos, and centropy being the movement towards higher levels of coherence, complexity, and life. Our narrative work with the aim of evolving culture is shifting or refraraming entropic narratives towards
• 22:30 - 23:00 centropic narratives. Entropic narratives being characterized by fragmentation, conflict, destruction, us versus them towards centropic narratives characterized by animistic, relational, and interconnected world views. So that's always our goal as narrative change practitioners to evolve cultures into a place of system centropy. Our approach to narrativeled systems
• 23:00 - 23:30 change is rooted in the PR principle of just this plus autotoshift. You'll hear us bringing this forward through our work and we believe that in order to transition out of the meta crisis that we're in, we need to address structural inequities, challenging systems of oppression, redistributing power, and repairing harm. This is the work of justice. But justice on its own is not enough. To move beyond systems that have
• 23:30 - 24:00 created the metacar crisis, we need a parallel shift in ontologies. Ontologies are the ways in which we view, understand, relate, and sense the world. And so this means rethinking the very foundations of how we've constructed reality, what we value, and how we understand our place in the web of life. Essentially, we need to marry the demands of justice with an ontological a
• 24:00 - 24:30 different way of being, sensing, and relating to the world. And this quote by philosopher Biocom exemplifies why. And he says, "Demands for social justice may get us a seat at the table, but they will never let us leave the house of modernity. In order to leave the house of modernity, we need new ontologies. An example of what uh justice plus ontoshift frame or narrative could be is land back to right
• 24:30 - 25:00 relations. This emerged from research we conducted on the land ownership narrative in collaboration with a group of indigenous land offenders from Abiala or what is known as North and Central America. In do in a dominant culture defined by land ownership, the call for land back is a necessary reframe towards justice. But this still operates within the paradigm of ownership, within the paradigm of possession. So when we go
• 25:00 - 25:30 undergo an onto shift seeing land as beyond property seeing land as kin as mother as source we begin to move beyond land back to land back to right relations. So what might this look like in in in practice and how does this relate to systems change? So for example, the center for democratic environmental rights has developed legal framework that allow a land to own
• 25:30 - 26:00 itself recognizing its inherent rights and creating sovereignty for land. And our allies at the center for ethical land transition are supporting title holders in the sacred act of relinquishing land and restoring relational accountability with indigenous peoples of those territories. You can learn more about this narrative research on our website in one of our published issues and we'll be sharing more about this um to come in the next presentation and in the fellowship as well. But wanted to give them give an
• 26:00 - 26:30 example of what we mean by a justice plus onto shift and what is at the core of our approach to narrativeled systems change. Thank you Yael. All right, we just um shared a lot of information. So, we're just going to take a moment to breathe and ground. If you just close down your eyes and feel yourself in your chair, wherever you may be in the world, noticing the incredible net of
• 26:30 - 27:00 human life force that we represent in this moment on the planet, all with our feet on the ground connected in to mother earth. Just notice your breathing for a moment and allow it to deepen. Feeling the air of your territory entering your lungs, nourishing your body. allowing all the words, all the
• 27:00 - 27:30 concepts, all of these ideas to just wash within your system. Let's take two deep breaths in together with your spine straight, feet planted on the ground, deep into the belly, and release. On this next breath, breathing in your love for this earth, your commitment to lifecentric
• 27:30 - 28:00 futures and releasing. We can open our eyes back up again to see each other. My name is Aubrey. I'm likewise to ya here in Hawaii. This is my home where I've lived um almost all of my life uh on the island of Aahu in the Aupa of Ponalu. And my background is as a futurist and
• 28:00 - 28:30 um really interested in how change happens and how we hold visions of the future and move towards them as collectives. And so narrativeled systems change is a big piece of that work that I hold at the core of my being. And just it's such an honor and so profoundly touching and exciting to see this many people interested in this work and just to know that in this moment of um profound challenge that we're sort of holding each other even though we may not have ever met that we're all holding
• 28:30 - 29:00 this shared vision this shared you know prayer hope dream of something different to emerge. So that um in and of itself to me is narrative change happening as we speak. So mahalo for being here. Mahalo for showing up. Mahalo for all that you do in your worlds. Deeply grateful each of you. I'm going to talk a little bit about our method. Um you know for those who end up uh applying for the fellowship or becoming part of the fellowship, this is what we'll spend
• 29:00 - 29:30 you know our time going through and working through together. So this is going to be a very brief overview. We also have our curriculum is open source and online. We'll share the links to that again in our follow-up emails. But um all of this is available. We've we've done uh a lot of work to make this open and available to all. We're actually doing a curriculum refresh right now. So it's going to get even better. uh but the method is you know deeply grounded in research that happened over many years and it's developed into this this form that you see here today that is an
• 29:30 - 30:00 iterative alive format very similar to um to you know the way we speak about narratives being alive the method is alive so it meets the narratives in that way um and meets life in that way as an alive format that that grows and shapes as you work through it so I'll talk through each of these um these steps steps of the method but just you know grounding that it was developed by a whole collective of humans who've been doing this work for many years and hold justice plus onto shift at the core of
• 30:00 - 30:30 the work to dismantle structural oppressions by seeding regenerative futures and go to the next slide Betty the first step in the method is called ask and this is really about um coming together you know when whatever it is that you're looking to to think about in terms of the narrative shift the narrative you're trying to create the dominant narrative that you care about that you want to create change around. Who is the we that is approaching this inquiry? So we spend a bit of time um thinking about our point of view. So like who is the we? What do
• 30:30 - 31:00 we stand for? What are our political viewpoints? What are our value sets? What's our core inquiry? Who is this collective that's approaching this narrativeled systems change effort? So um in our last fellowship cohort we had um just for two examples, one was the center for ethical land transition. So they were a group of individuals, community members, realtors, lawyers, all kinds of folks who were looking at reimagining narratives around land ownership. So they were thinking about who is this we, you know, what makes
• 31:00 - 31:30 these particular realtors and lawyers different than say other realtors and lawyers or the the folks who want to be able to steward land. What's make what what makes us different? What is this we that we're trying to identify? And that point of view becomes really important because it allows you to think about who is in the collective that's doing the work, who are we trying to address, and who are we trying to shift. But it creates a boundary for creative inquiry. Um that again, you may, you know, over time as you learn more about the narrative you're seeking to address and
• 31:30 - 32:00 shift, this may change as well. But we start with creating that point of view. Then we move into what we call the listening phase. And this is really like your data collection. This is getting out there um listening to what's actually happening on the ground. Narratives are stories. They're alive. They're being told in various ways. So there's different types of listening that we speak about. We speak about big listening and small listening. Um big listening would be, you know, more datadriven, maybe AIdriven using
• 32:00 - 32:30 different data analytical tools to understand big wa swaths of narratives that are happening out there in the world. um and we'll we teach different ways to use tools to do that. Then there's small listening which has a variety of forms. So small listening can be interviews, it can be surveys, it might be reports, it might be your own sort of social media scanning, it might be holding inerson gatherings. Um it's ways to listen. We call it small listening because it's more interpersonal. So it's less large data
• 32:30 - 33:00 driven, more interpersonal listening. And again this listening is just to understand what's happening out there. We may have preconceived notions about the narrative space, what's being said in a certain dominant cultural narrative that we're seeking to address. Um, again, that example of land ownership. Another example from our previous fellowship was the well-being economy alliance. And that was a group of organizations um who are looking to change the narratives around economies so they could center well-being. And you know, what does that look like? That's a
• 33:00 - 33:30 collective of organizations. So, they're going out there and trying to listen to how are people speaking to the economy? What sort of words are being used? How are what sort of memes are being used? How are people thinking about this thing we call the economy? In the listen phase, we also sorry, one more thing, better if you go back. In the listen phase, we also talk about narrative communities. So people will start to think about, you know, what are the groups of folks who are are talking about this narrative in different ways and identifying that and we'll help you develop what we call a listening model.
• 33:30 - 34:00 So we do a lot of work in this space around taking a moment pausing checking our assumptions really listening to what's happening out there and then using that as our data to drive forward our our reframe and our narrative change. So I can go to the next slide B. Thank you. So once we've done that then we move into understand. So, we've done it, you know, deep sense making, um maybe even going back to our point of view, making some shifts, understanding our our um narrative space better, and then we actually map it. And we've got some incredible tools to help you think about
• 34:00 - 34:30 how do you map what what data you've collected. Um we use the Justice Plus onto shift framing to do that. We also talk about um identifying the narrative communities, so groups of people that are having different kinds of conversations about the narrative space that you're analyzing. And we even map those against things we call attention, network, and power. So, who's holding the attention in the narrative space? Who's holding the networks? Who's holding the power? Um, and you're looking for things like you want to
• 34:30 - 35:00 actually understand the dominant narrative deeper, you know, and sometimes folks wonder, do I do I want to understand, you know, the narratives that are counterintuitive to what I care about? Yes, absolutely. you're looking to understand the whole space and then you're looking to understand the bright lights that might be existing out there that are blips on the screen of you know really interesting new futures that are emerging new ways of talking about the issue. So we do a lot of work in the understand phase to really map and understand the detail of the data we've collected. And that helps us think about what we call this window of discourse
• 35:00 - 35:30 which is if we're trying to shift a narrative we're looking okay where are we now where are we sort of stuck in this narrative space where are we trying to shift to and what's the window between that's a realistic space within which we can move the dominant narrative to something different. You know, systems change happens over time. So, it's usually not something that happens overnight. That can happen. You you can have an like a spontaneous remission experience, but usually systems change is is a long-term endeavor. So, we're
• 35:30 - 36:00 looking for the window of discourse that allows change to happen. Then we move into the recode phase, which is the really creative part where we're looking to develop a narrative strategy. And back again to that example of the well-being economy alliance when they went through um their narrative listening and understanding how people are speaking about the economy. They came up with you know sort of three different ways of thinking about how do we reframe you know mimemetic structures about the economy and they came up with three different means. One was well-being economy which
• 36:00 - 36:30 is what they've been using. One was postgrowth economy and one was an economy for all life. Then they went out and they tested those frames and they actually found that an economy for all life was like heads and tails above the others. So you know where they had called themselves even as an organization the wellbeing economy alliance they found that that terminology didn't resonate as well with the general public. So it's this this phase is again testing iterating understanding what you've learned going
• 36:30 - 37:00 out into the world and and seeing how does it land. You know we've got this picture of the the dart and the target. It's like what what is really landing with folks? what's going to have ripple effects and start to create change in the narrative space so that you're changing the conversation, changing the culture through changing the narrative. And then we move to the hack and that's uh again like the really creative fun part. You get it out into the world to seed culture change. Um and we're going to share in a minute an example of a a hack, but it's a very
• 37:00 - 37:30 creative process. It doesn't have really um you know a certain way of showing up in the world. It can show up in a variety of different ways. You might have a podcast. You might have an inerson gathering. You might have a social media campaign. You might have a big community action. You might have public art. Might be a variety of these things. Um and in the next call, we'll actually dive into how we're going to frame this fellowship and sort of support um a risomatic collection of hacks. So, we'll be sharing about that on May 2nd. Um, but it's really this
• 37:30 - 38:00 idea of the creative process of, you know, he's in here reforesting the narrative landscape. So, what does it look like to plant these seeds that then start to change the way people think about, speak about, and actually act in terms of the narrative that you care about and shifting the dominant way of being? So, what the heck? What happens next? It's a cycle of narrative actions and learnings. So, you know, it can be an app. It could be a demonstration in the streets, a flash mob, it might be several years of movement building. The
• 38:00 - 38:30 the example we're going to share in a moment was a very long process. Um, but it can take so many different forms. And this really is about shifting our inner mindset, understanding that narratives are alive, that they're complex, adaptive living beings, that we make the world all the time with the narratives that we hold, and then finding ways to bring that aliveness out into the world using creative means, using collective organizing. You know, it's part art, part community action and community organizing plus the science of the data collection. So, um yeah, that's a very
• 38:30 - 39:00 brief overview of what we do at Culture Hack and I will turn it over now to um Fede to share about our case study. Thank you. Hola everyone. Uh I am Fede. I am from Mexico, specifically from Morelos, the lands that gave birth to the Zapatista movement 100 years ago. So, I'm really grateful to be here. I'm I'm really honored uh for your presence. And what
• 39:00 - 39:30 we're going to go through it's the a case study and it's the it's actually the first iteration of culture hacking back in 2018 and uh we have sent the documentary but if you you didn't watch it you can still watch it after this uh after this presentation. Um, so I will go through the big overview of the hack and how does that relate to what Aubrey just
• 39:30 - 40:00 shared with you. And just as a context, it is important to name that this happened at the heart of Mexico City, right? And back in the days before colonizers, Mexico City was actually a system of watersheds and lakes. And the communities and cultures that cohabited that ancient lake had its everyday life
• 40:00 - 40:30 rooted into the relationship with this ancient lake. So you can see here uh in the in the map how it looked like. But 500 years after colonization, the fight against the water and to to create what we call modernity is what we call now the mega city of Mexico City. As as you and as you can see in the in the map, basically
• 40:30 - 41:00 almost all the systems of lakes were desiccated until uh the day of today, right? So this is the context where this story happened and I won't go through the specifics of the story but something something that I want to name here is that culture hack is just part of a long history of organization right and in the 22 years of struggle of aenko there were
• 41:00 - 41:30 big moments of wins where they could uh um cancel an airport back in 2021. But then there was a project of creating this new part of the city just on top of the remaining parts of the lake in Tesco, right? And then there were a lot of repression, murder, violence against the communities um behind this idea of
• 41:30 - 42:00 development of the city of creating jobs of creating new spaces and a place for the the the the planes to land. So in 2018 we approached to the process of this resistance just when a new government entered the arena and said we are going to make a consultation to ask the whole
• 42:00 - 42:30 uh the whole Mexico if they actually want or they don't want an airport in that specific space. So that's when it all started. But it is important to say that the consultation wasn't actually uh driven by protecting the lake. It was actually saying do you want an airport in Tesco or do you want an airport in Santa Lucia? So you can see here the
• 42:30 - 43:00 axis of justice that Yael already explained, right? And we could map the different um discourses that were around the construction of the of the airport. So the big businessmen were saying the airport is progress and development and that was just reinforcing the systems of oppression. The new government was saying we will bring a consultation to ask if you want airport here or airport there and that was reinforcing the
• 43:00 - 43:30 status quo be because it wasn't allowing the people to actually decide not to go into the path of modernity and the communities the indigenous and the rest of communities that were around the remainings of this lake were basically saying yes to the land no to the plains. Right? So we had these different narratives around this specific topic of the construction of a mega airport and what we did is starting to
• 43:30 - 44:00 co-create a point of view. There were many organizations involved in this. There were different communities and group of activists and land defenders involved on this. So we start with the process of an internal consultation. How can we hear the voice of the territory? How can the communities tell their own stories? And how can we open a third option in the consultation? And
• 44:00 - 44:30 that led to a very beautiful uh document that is called the letter of the lake which is basically the communities telling the story and what the lake actually wanted in this in this whole story. So you can go and hear it in the documentary or you can go and read it whenever you want. But after that starting point, the point of view of defending the lake of
• 44:30 - 45:00 Tesco, we started to identify the narrative communities by listening to the conversation in social media and the conversation in the media. So at that point it was easier to to listen to the open conversations in in different uh social media. But the important thing here is that before we started all of this thing, the conversation was centralized by the new government
• 45:00 - 45:30 followers and the proposal of the consultation, right? And the communities didn't have actually an important presence in this in this space of communication. So the mentions to this Aenko community was actually very small ver barely present and it was an echo chamber of activists and organizations. We also did a listening in the media, right? So we started to
• 45:30 - 46:00 manually read all the media that was talking about this during this period and prior. And what we found was that the conversation was centered around the government, the businessman and the money around the mega project. So nobody was saying is this a good idea to actually build an airport on top of a lake. It was rather about it's going to be very expensive to build an airport on top of the lake. Right? So the big
• 46:00 - 46:30 listening gave us the the small listening give gave us also this um texture of the narrative that the voices of the communities were not present in the public conversation. So what we did was actually mapping the different communities that were participating in this in these two axis the justice and onto shift right so as you as you can see the businessman and the airport
• 46:30 - 47:00 development was reinforcing systems of oppression the new government was reinforcing a status quo and the organizations and NOS's that were involved were talking about this from a very legal framework and perspective, right? So they were actually far far away from the communities who were saying basically what we want to preserve here is the life is the land are the animals and our way of
• 47:00 - 47:30 existence. So this is where the culture hacking method came into into place. So what we did was basically to reframe the narrative of the consultation. So instead of asking do you want an airport here or there, we opened a third option in the narrative by saying I prefer the lake. that was kind of the in the middle point between what the communities were saying and
• 47:30 - 48:00 where the big communities that could influence the narrative were saying. So we kind of found this middle ground in between and then this is where the moment of organization is really important in the process of culture hacking. Pooter hacking cannot coexist without organization and without people actually moving into the streets, moving into their communities to actually go
• 48:00 - 48:30 and activate these narratives. But we went from these big big organizations and coalitions of communities into the narrative of I prefer the lake and what was behind that claim. Right? So we went from organization to narratives. But then when we started this whole campaign, the narratives also started to call for action to call for organization
• 48:30 - 49:00 and this became actually a an industry's movement of people saying in times of dry in times of crisis what we want is actually to preserve life to preserve the lake. Right? So we started to have actual impact in the narrative and the big media started to talk about the echoite that was happening with the construction of this big airport. And in
• 49:00 - 49:30 three weeks of this online campaign and in the ground campaign, the voices that were present in in that conversation grew in a very important uh in a in a very important um cadence, right? So we we see this in in the ryome fellowship but there is a moment where there is a tipping point in the conversation and when you reach more than the 25% of the
• 49:30 - 50:00 conversation then it starts to actually become a common sense and that's what actually happened in the conversation and what we actually wanted as a narrative objective which was opening a third option in the consultation the day of the consultation This is a graph or a a a visualization of the conversation around the airport. And it was an important um there was an
• 50:00 - 50:30 important uh big note that was saying we want the airport in Santa Lucia. And there was another big note saying we want the airport in Tesco. But there was a third and big and and and important note saying I prefer the lake. Right? And you can say yes for sure but that just remained in social media right but no after the consultation and the airport was cancelled in Tesco what
• 50:30 - 51:00 started to happen is that in other territories along Mexico this became a common sense if Tescoo was saying I prefer the lake Santaia was starting to say I prefer the mountains and in Baja California, they were starting to say, "I prefer the water." And in SoiCo, they were saying, "I protect the the the water." And then in Chiapas, they were saying, "I prefer the the living system of of of um
• 51:00 - 51:30 of of the Selvas, right? And after some years of this action, we can start to see what we call to start seeding cultural change. The organization continued, the process of defending the land continued. And after 2020 20 years of resistance, Aenko actually rematriated the land and negotiated an ecological reserve, the
• 51:30 - 52:00 ancient lake of Tescopo that is 41 times uh the the size of Central Park. So this is not a small win. This is a big win for the existence of that lake and the systems of life that is behind it. So we want to share this uh this story because this this comes this is where the culture hack comes from and this is what actually we see that culture hack has
• 52:00 - 52:30 the capacity to do along with organizations and people who actually want to go out and defend mother earth and defend their communities. So I'll stop there. I I'm sure there are many questions but I will pass this to Aubrey who will lead us to the end of this call and also to the Q&A. Thank you Fede and thank you everyone. I'm seeing all these
• 52:30 - 53:00 incredible things happening in the chat, people organizing themselves and finding collectives and threads and Telegram chats and it's super exciting because this is what it's all about. The ryome is alive and we are all part of it together. So just honoring that aliveness really beautiful to witness. Um our next call is on May 2nd. Um and just to clarify, apologies if we we mixed, you know, Central Standard Time with Mexico time. We've pinned this to Mexico time because it doesn't change in um in terms of when when the time
• 53:00 - 53:30 changes in some parts of the world. Um here's our timeline for what's upcoming. We have today's session, the second open session on the 2nd of May. We've had lots of questions around whether you can watch the recording and still apply for the fellowship. The answer is yes. Um we do want people to be live if possible. For some folks like today was Good Friday, they couldn't make it. Um but it is required that you watch and digest those two first sessions because they are foundational to what will come after. Um and there were also some
• 53:30 - 54:00 questions around you know how it works to participate in the fellowship. We ask that you know and whether there's a stipend we ask that you fully commit if you plan to apply to the fellowship. We only have a limited number of seats. Um and we really it's a very active process. So just sharing that up front. On May 2nd we'll open the applications for the fellowship itself. Um so if you decide to apply that's when that will begin and you'll have until May 16th to submit your application. on um around
• 54:00 - 54:30 June 6th, we plan to announce uh who's been accepted to the fellowship. And then in the 13th of June, we will begin. Um from there, we have about every two weeks on Thursdays at the same time, 11:00 a.m. Mexico time. Um again, pinned to that time because it won't change when we do the daylight savings thing in certain parts of the world. So, just double-checking your calendars if you do plan to apply, making sure that that time works for you, that you can clear
• 54:30 - 55:00 it every other week. Um, and then we have our inperson gathering in September, which is a really incredible time um when folks get to come together in person, do work together on the ground at a land project that we are all involved with um called Brave Earth, a center for applied cultural transition, which is um sort of the birthing home of culture hack in a really beautiful part of Costa Rica. Um, so we ask that if you are going to apply, you make sure those dates will work for you. It's a really important component of the fellowship.
• 55:00 - 55:30 Um, and then in November, late November, the Ryzen will end. And we'll speak more to the fellowship itself and, you know, how it's going to flow and, you know, the way that we've tied it to what we call the pathways um towards regenerative futures. But part of our thinking is designing this around COP, which is happening in November. So there will be some, you know, sort of focus on whether we release hacks at that point. We'll speak more deeply into that process in the next call. So, just generally, the online
• 55:30 - 56:00 sessions are 90 minutes every two weeks between June and September. Again, those are on Thursdays at 11:00 a.m. Mexico time. Um, you receive access to the culture hack hack methods and tools. We're, you know, diving deep into learning how to design, execute narrative interventions. So, you're getting the collective wisdom of this team. All of us are there to co-f facilitate. you have a very kind of dynamic co-f facilitation model. So you have access to all of that shared wisdom. Um and also the peer exchange
• 56:00 - 56:30 which we're already seeing happen in the chat. You know being part of this global cohort of folks. We really value diversity and and just you know acknowledging and um apologizing that we can't you know pick a time that works for everyone on the planet. It's just logistically not possible. So we've done our best to try to cover as much as we can and just acknowledging that for some folks in South Asia, South Asia and Oceanania, it's a difficult time. Um so considering that if you do apply, we did have a fellow from India last year who,
• 56:30 - 57:00 you know, decided that that was worth it to her to wake up in the middle of the night. So I'm happy to talk that through with any more if you have questions. But you get to join this global cohort and incubate your project. So we're asking that you come with a project in mind that you're working on already or have been seating to want to work on. Uh it's a it's a live active process in this fellowship. So you bring your project, you bring your narrative that you want to work on and we begin from the the very start working together on your project. Uh and then there's the inerson
• 57:00 - 57:30 gathering. So, um, full participation is asked of anyone who does decide to apply and just making sure your energy feels aligned with this space and what you've experienced of who we are and and how we speak about these issues. There's no financial cost, but there also is no stipend. Um, so, you know, all of the costs are covered and we offer that um to you as our as our offering. Um, yeah, there's the link to the application and I think we can see if there's time for a few
• 57:30 - 58:00 questions. Tiffan has been monitoring the chat for us. I'm not sure if there was any questions you wanted to pull to the forefront, Tiffany. Was it the ones that you put in through the signal chat? Yeah, maybe a bit about logistics and and um money. So, logistics in terms of um timing of things, the fellowship, there are quite a few questions about the the $20,000 mentioned. Yeah. So that I I was
• 58:00 - 58:30 sharing in the chat on that we we use that just to to help underscore the investment that we've made in each fellow. So there isn't a stipend, it's a free fellowship, and the cost to us as an organization is approximately 20,000 per fellow to run the fellowship, including the in-person um event in Costa Rica, which is fully covered. So there's no cost to you to participate, but from an organizational perspective, it costs us about 20,000 per fellow. And that's just to help underscore that we really ask for full commitment. um that if you're going to apply, just know that
• 58:30 - 59:00 you can make those Zoom calls, that you can make the in person, that you you have the capacity and space to really devote to this work. Uh it it takes time, you know, and so we we ask that you come with a project that feels alive for you, that's woven into the work you're doing, that you have passion for, that you want to dedicate your time and energy towards because that will really make um both your experience at the fellowship really rich and the network of fellows really rich. uh and it's you know when everyone comes with that level
• 59:00 - 59:30 of of participation and commitment we have a really vibrant cohort. So that's the reason we shared that dollar amount. Let's see there's another question on sorry can people apply as individuals or does it have to be in groups? Yeah, we can your project be um does it have to be one specific local community or can you do projects beyond borders?
• 59:30 - 60:00 Yes, projects can definitely be beyond borders. Um whether or not you can apply as a team, we ask that you apply as at least two people. Um for the most part, we have had individuals in the fellowship in the past. So if you have a specific question around that, send me an email and I can and speak to you about it. Um but for the most part we're asking for people to apply as teams. The reasoning for that is that when you apply as a team you're able to support each other. This is really um deep work. It can be overwhelming at times to digest a lot of
• 60:00 - 60:30 the methodology. So having someone else to work with also just you know rolling out the hack and all of that. It's um it's really helpful to have a team and most people often people apply as an organization. Some have applied as individual activists which is also fine. And I see some people even connecting in the chat to see if they could find a team which would be really exciting because that's very rumatic. Um but you particularly in an organization it's it's important to have other team members because you support each other. You help to share out with your
• 60:30 - 61:00 organization what you're learning. Um you can back each other up if you know someone's sick or something like that. And also just to deepen the learning to have have a team member we found has been really helpful. Um if any other anyone else on our team has a answer to share around that please jump in. Yeah I I think you you answered it already Aubrey. I think that the important thing to name here is that uh what we try to do with the risome is to support your work. So ideally you should be already
• 61:00 - 61:30 working on some kind of intervention of culture hack intervention and these will be tools for you to actually uplift it and make it happen. So that's that's one thing. The other thing is that in the next call we'll go in depth into the specifics of the Ryzen fellowship and also how to apply and what kind of projects you can apply into into this fellowship. So I'm sure there will be a lot of very specific questions but we
• 61:30 - 62:00 will answer a lot of the framework in the next session.