Building Architectures of Grace: How Contemporary Mysticism Can Help Us Lead in Chaotic Times, with Robin Alfred

Building Architectures of Grace: How Contemporary Mysticism Can Help Us Lead in Chaotic Times, with Robin Alfred

Hosted by Matthew Green. Produced by J'aime Rothbard. What relevance do timeless mystical principles have for the way we work with groups of people today? And how can contemporary forms of "applied mysticism" help us rise to the challenge of these chaotic times? For 35 years, Robin Alfred has been facilitating transformational processes for groups ranging in size from six to 600 people and encompassing everyone from U.N. climate experts and nonprofit leaders to government officials and corporate executives. In his forthcoming book Emergent Leadership: Applied Mysticism for Complex Times, Robin distils the essence of what he has learned about applying mystical principles in these contexts and the breakthroughs this approach can unlock. In this episode, Matthew and Robin dive deeply into a question at the core of both Robin's book and this podcast: What does it take to establish the kind of coherent field that can change the destiny of individuals and organisations, foster innovation and genius, and help heal the individual, ancestral and collective trauma that traps us in repeating loops from the past? Robin explains how the phrase 'applied mysticism' came to him during a training he was running two years ago called The Art of Facilitating Transformational Fields, which explored how to tap into a higher organising principle to help guide what happens in a space. "Contemporary mysticism is a mysticism that is continually being revealed. It's not something that is fixed in time. It's not something that is thousands of years old. It has a contemporary updating aspect to it," Robin says. "And embodied mysticism also means that it's a mysticism that isn't just a philosophy, it's something that lives in the cells of my being." Robin shares his sense of the growing willingness of people working in many different kinds of organisations to embrace more soul-oriented approaches as the planetary crisis reveals the limits of business as usual – and the opportunities this opens up. "They know that there has to be another approach, that the existing approaches don't work," Robin says. "So the inner life of the leader is important. The collective fields are important. How do you create a healing field at work? That's important. Belonging is important. All these things become more and more important because people see that the traditional ways of approaching all this have led us into this huge dysfunction." Matthew and Robin also explore the role of presence, precision, intention and humility in working with organisations – and some of the most striking and challenging moments from Robin's long facilitation career. This conversation is a must-listen for anyone who wants to gain a deeper understanding of how mystical principles can be applied to support organisations to evolve – and hear more about how they can equip us to play a leadership role in the face of the world's escalating challenges. Robin's book Emergent Leadership: Applied Mysticism for Complex Times is published by Open Circle in August. Further Resources: Pocket Project Resilience Program [https://pocketproject.org/resilience-program/] Open Circle Consulting [https://www.opencircle.live/] Emergent Leadership [http://bit.ly/emergentleadership2025], Robin's training in applied mysticism The Art of Facilitating Transformational Fields [https://www.opencircle.live/blog/art-of-faciltating-transformational-fields] (Article by Robin for Mobius Strip) About Robin Alfred: Robin Alfred is an executive coach, facilitator, and organisational consultant with over 35 years of experience working globally with NGOs, top teams, SMEs and individuals. A former criminal justice social work manager in London, Robin later co-founded Open Circle Consulting [https://www.opencircle.live/], bridging inner and outer transformation. His trauma-informed, emergent approach integrates frameworks including Appreciative Inquiry, Process Work, and Archetypes at WorkTM . A Senior Student of Thomas Hübl, he supports international trainings on collective trauma and mysticism. Robin also serves on the Pocket Project's Trauma Consultancy Team and teaches "Emergent Leadership [https://bit.ly/LeaderAsMystic2025]," a training in applied mysticism.

Presencing America's Ugly Truths: Collective Healing in a Time of Collapse, with Hawah Kasat & Reggie Hubbard

Hosted by Matthew Green. Produced by J'aime Rothbard. How does the source code underlying centuries of global colonialism live on in our minds and bodies? And how can we transmute the legacy of this monumental collective trauma field into an authentic commitment to justice, restoration, and repair? In this episode, Hawah Kasat, host of Everlutionary [https://open.spotify.com/show/3D0UVQDg76F4S1iCWHS3iS?si=c3481d8c350e4da8], and Reggie Hubbard, founder of Active Peace Yoga [https://activepeaceyoga.com/], lay out a vision of collective healing informed by decades of community organising, racial healing work, social justice activism, and spiritual practice — and explore the role white-bodied people can play. As the United States descends into increasingly overt displays of authoritarianism, racism and bigotry, Hawah and Reggie say their country must confront the mindset that enabled past acts of enslavement, genocide and gender violence — and continues to orchestrate new forms of oppression in the here and now. "America's truths are ugly and we as a culture have not reckoned with the ugly," Reggie says. "And when you don't reckon with the ugly, you can't be surprised when the monster gets in your face." With Matthew Green co-facilitating a Pocket Project Integration Lab [https://pocketproject.org/integration-labs-2026/] exploring British colonialism with Manda Johnson (our guest on Episode One [https://open.spotify.com/episode/0GqxMFVxGxmhyTqfaIm9p3?si=0cba98b2afa4497f] of What Is Collective Healing?), Hawah and Reggie also share perspectives on the role descendants of colonisers can play in meeting this moment. While the process of confronting legacies of historical oppression can unearth buried layers of grief and shame, Hawah and Reggie see this work as essential to building authentic relationships with communities impacted by past colonial actions. "I think it's important that we can understand that we are not who our ancestors were," Hawah says. "And the only way to make sure that we never allow that to happen again is to acknowledge what our ancestors did…We have to trust each other with our hearts, with our grief. With our words, with our emotions." This episode opens a window into both the perils posed by a rising tide of authoritarianism and the necessity of exploring the unresolved collective and inter-generational trauma layers that are causing past patterns of domination, repression and exploitation to play on repeat. Lighting the way for anyone committed to transmuting these cycles, Hawah and Reggie show how we can retire the colonial operating system in favour of a paradigm rooted in our fundamental inter-dependence. "What does it mean to heal when there is so much dis-ease or disease that is rampant physically and emotionally and psycho-spiritually?" Hawah asks. "So collective healing to me is that experience of us understanding that we need to remember that healing is a universal goal and it involves all of us in joint action toward a desire for being whole." Further Resources: Hawah Kasat [https://hawahkasat.com/] (Official Website) Everlutionary: Healing and Transforming the World [https://open.spotify.com/show/3D0UVQDg76F4S1iCWHS3iS?si=c3481d8c350e4da8] (Hawah's podcast) Roots to Sky Sanctuary [https://rootstosky.net] (Hawah Kasat) Insight Timer [https://insighttimer.com/HawahKasat] (Hawah Kasat) Instagram [https://www.instagram.com/hawahkasat] (Hawah Kasat) Active Peace Yoga [https://activepeaceyoga.com/] (Reggie Hubbard) Pure Sound to Ground [https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXufankCD4K486rMVXAwAKpQeN5XMPpYL] (Reggie Hubbard) Active Peace YouTube [https://youtube.com/@reggieglobal?si=tKuwzDDw9EiTQdRq] (Reggie Hubbard) The Power of A Purposeful Pause [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1ERsv_39vE] (Reggie Hubbard) Pocket Project Integration Labs [https://pocketproject.org/integration-labs-2026/] Further Resources: Resilience Program [https://pocketproject.org/resilience-program/] About HawaH Kasat: Hawah Kasat is a celebrated global humanitarian, author, educator, non-profit leader, TEDx speaker, and yogi. He has over 25 years of experience training teachers around the globe and leading dynamic shamanic classes at conferences and festivals. Over the years, he has authored 4 books and produced 4 documentary films. In the year 2000, he co-founded One Common Unity (OCU), an award-winning non-profit organization that heals cycles of violence and trauma through social-emotional literacy, conflict transformation, mindfulness, mental health, and arts programming. During his time as Executive Director, OCU impacted over 40,000 youth and families in Washington, DC. Most recently, Hawah helped launch Roots to Sky Sanctuary [http://www.rootstosky.net/], a 125-acre regenerative farm and healing arts center situated in northern Appalachia, where he serves as a Managing Partner. About Reggie Hubbard: Reggie Hubbard is the founder/Chief Serving Officer of Active Peace LLC. He has done many things, but is most proud of being a caring human, a stroke survivor, teacher/wisdom steward, strategist, organizer, spiritual advisor, minister of sound and devoted seeker of truth, compassion, health, well-being and justice for all. Through Active Peace, he teaches all walks of life through wisdom, movement, meditation and sound, ways to cultivate well-being as a foundation rather than an afterthought.

Embracing Migration in a Culture of Care, with Ana María Araos

Hosted by Sonita Mbah Produced by J'aime Rothbard When migrants arrive in host countries, authorities tend to assume that it's up to the newcomers to adapt — not the other way around. What if we could create cultures of welcome to support a two-way process — where both migrants and hosts embrace opportunities to learn and adapt? In this episode, Colombian philosopher turned culture change researcher Ana María Araos and co-host Sonita Mbah explore the Pocket Project's new Cultures of Welcome [https://pocketproject.org/cultivating-cultures-of-welcome/] programme. Launched this month in Germany, where both Ana María and Sonita live, this initiative supports organisations, leaders and migrant communities to build the relational capacities needed to allow a true sense of welcome and belonging to emerge. As fellow migrants living in Berlin, Sonita and Ana María explore the growing challenges facing migrants in Germany — where 25.2 million people of the country's population of 83.7 million have a migrant or refugee background. Ana María recounts how she first moved to Germany in 2011 then returned to Colombia nine months after her daughter was born in 2015. Having moved back to Germany in August, 2023, Ana María has seen how political changes in the country have negatively impacted migrants, many of whom live with a growing sense of insecurity and fear. Ana María and Sonita explore both the opportunities for connection and the challenges they have experienced integrating into German society — and envision a future of reciprocity where both migrants and host cultures can help each other to thrive. This dialogue provides a moving insight into the complexities migrants face in building new lives and shows how the kind of resilience practices offered by the Pocket Project are being adapted to tackle pressing global challenges. Further Resources: Cultures of Welcome [https://pocketproject.org/cultivating-cultures-of-welcome/] Sensata [http://sensataux.de] (Ana María's research consultancy) Ana María's on LinkedIn [https://www.linkedin.com/in/anaaraos/] Resilience Program [https://pocketproject.org/resilience-program/] About Ana María Araos: Ana María is a Colombian philosopher turned culture change researcher, driven by one question: How is collective change actually possible? Since 2013, she has helped organizations and governments design, implement, and measure collective change initiatives. In 2019, she founded Sensata Research to reinvent data collection — moving away from extractive methods that consume people's time, attention, and cognitive effort — and began supporting changemakers across Latin America with evidence-based insights. In 2023, Ana María moved to Berlin. There, she confronted her own complicity in a model of research rooted in prediction, control, and objectivity. She is now transitioning toward a practice that honors the interconnectedness of all beings, an inquiry that pursues resonance and collective wisdom. Today, Sensata Research operates from Berlin, helping changemakers build monitoring, evaluation, and learning systems that allow organizations to be transformed by the encounters with the very people they seek to serve.

Our One-Year Anniversary Special Episode

Hosted by Matthew Green. Produced by J'aime Rothbard. A year ago, we launched What is Collective Healing? to create a platform for practitioners from around the world to share what they are learning as they build the trauma healing architecture of the future. In this special anniversary episode, we've woven together a selection of excerpts into an audio tapestry designed to reflect the enormous diversity of experiences and depth of wisdom conveyed by the more than 40 conversations we've published so far. Timed to mark the start of Phase 1 of the Pocket Project Resilience Program [https://pocketproject.org/resilience-program/], this episode shows how pioneering work to integrate individual, ancestral and collective trauma offers pathways to a more flourishing global future. We love to hear from listeners in the comments and invite you to continue to journey with us as we gather more inspiring stories in the year ahead that show collective healing is not only possible — it's a living field of intelligence in which we can each play a part. With gratitude, Kosha, Matthew and Sonita. Links to entire episodes, in order of speakers featured in this episode: David Young: The Art of Collective Integration [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-art-of-collective-integration-with-david-young/id1813974942?i=1000710206556] J Dallas Gudgell: Restoring Connections with the More-than-human World [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/restoring-relationships-with-the-more-than-human-world/id1813974942?i=1000730503090] Yocheved Sidof: Accessing Ancestral Healing [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/accessing-ancestral-healing-with-yocheved-sidof/id1813974942?i=1000713313999] Laura Calderón de la Barca: The Collective Wound of Colonialism [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-collective-wound-of-colonialism-with-laura/id1813974942?i=1000711093472] Luka Faradsch: Grief as a Gateway to Resilience [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/grief-as-a-gateway-to-resilience-with-luka-faradsch/id1813974942?i=1000736196244] Stephanie Pizzaro: Embodying the Feminine [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/embodying-the-feminine-with-stephanie-pizarro/id1813974942?i=1000727968011] Nico Forest Heinimann: Recursion or Ruin: AI and the Future of Collective Healing [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/recursion-or-ruin-ai-and-the-future-of/id1813974942?i=1000731725834] James Scurry: From Bystander to Witness, Transforming Global Media [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/from-bystander-to-witness-transforming-global-media/id1813974942?i=1000744914303] Manda Johnson: Global Social Witnessing Episode [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/global-social-witnessing-with-manda-johnson/id1813974942?i=1000709203164] Subscribe to What is Collective Healing for Reggie Hubbard & HawaH Kasat [https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/what-is-collective-healing/id1813974942]

Organic Intelligence®: Activating Self-Healing Through the Power of Pleasure and Joy, with Steven Hoskinson

Hosted by Matthew Green. Produced by J'aime Rothbard. Are we approaching trauma work upside-down? For years, Steven Hoskinson followed conventional psychotherapeutic wisdom by making a person's distress and difficulties the focus of his sessions. But there came a point where he realised there was a better way. By guiding people to notice cues of orientation, enjoyment, pleasure and wellness, Steven discovered that he could help them to activate their capacity for self-healing. This insight led to the development of Organic Intelligence [https://organicintelligence.org/] (OI™), an increasingly popular therapeutic modality employed by thousands of practitioners around the world. In this episode, Steven and Matthew explore the essence of Steven's approach and how it's contributing to the broader trauma healing movement. Grounded in the awareness of our sense-experience — or orientation — and recognition of a clients' latent resources, OI recognises how innate wholeness emerges in what Steven calls Post-Trauma Growth. "Our attention has been therapeutically directed toward what the problem is, what the conflict is, what the unconscious dysregulation is," Steven says. "And it is all negatively valenced: It's all about the problem, the challenge, the neurosis, the difficulty that's there. The discovery that I've made after being an orthodox therapist and a somatic trainer in trauma therapy is that that is not the preferred biological method. Instead, we are growing capacity or growing the cup [https://open.spotify.com/episode/1EYwstbXlzBHCOqDB8qMjq?si=U9XVpLjHRLWgVVNEfaX1Ig]." Rather than exclusively focus on the negative emotions, which amplifies the human "negativity bias", Organic Intelligence activates the mind-body system's natural impulse to restore and rebalance after trauma. This is achieved by supporting people's awareness of sense-connections and the 'window of enjoyment' – the daily experience of simple human pleasures in the here-and-now, despite the pain from the past. "We train to recognize our self-healing capacities, and our coaches identify those for their clients," Steven says. "They reflect those back to the clients in a specifically attuned way that then simply does the work." By providing an accessible introduction to Organic Intelligence, and the journey of discovery that has informed Steven's work, this episode aims to inspire anyone interested in learning more about how committed practitioners are evolving new ways to heal humanity's oldest wounds. "What does it mean to entirely revamp the idea of what trauma healing might really be?" Steven asks. "And how do we begin to implement this on a broader scale?" Coming up at the Pocket Project: Register for Phase 1 of the Resilience Program [https://pocketproject.org/resilience-program/]: Become part of a global network committed to nurturing resilience, coherence, and healing across societal spaces in this practice-based training. Further Resources: Organic Intelligence [https://organicintelligence.org/] About Steven Hoskinson: Steven Hoskinson is an internationally recognized teacher, author, and innovator in Post-Trauma Growth (PTG). For over 20 years, he has been a presenter and professional trainer on the global stage, empowering thousands in response to large-scale societal needs. Steve's work at Organic Intelligence® has included teaching as Adjunct Faculty for JFK School of Psychology, Advisory Board Member for The Trauma Foundation, and a founding member of the International Transformational Resilience Coalition (ITRC) National Steering Committee. He has been featured in Dr. Mark Hyman's "Broken Brain" docu-series, the 2019 Plum Village Neuroscience Retreat in France and has provided numerous professional conference presentations and keynote addresses. As Director of Education, he has developed the science-backed OI Trajectory™ professional training programs and continuing education in Post-Trauma Growth.