Schools Are Built for Adults, Not Children with Kavita Anand

Schools Are Built for Adults, Not Children with Kavita Anand

On the school that wraps itself around the child, why governance is an act of love, and the question every school must ask itself every day. What it means for every child to flourish? With Kavita Anand, hosted by Amel Murphy Kavita Anand is an educator, systems leader, and social entrepreneur with over 40 years of experience working across schools, governments, and learning systems. This conversation matters because it questions one of the most accepted structures in society; schooling itself. She and Amel examine how education systems prioritise control, standardisation, and adult convenience over curiosity, meaning, and individuality. Kavita reframes behaviour not as a problem in the child, but as a signal of the system around them. They discuss what it would take to build schools that adapt to children, rather than children adapting to schools. A simple image grounds the conversation; a garden where trees give fruit freely, raising the question of why human systems struggle to do the same. "If you are only consuming it, I don’t see you learning anything. If you learn to create it, then you are learning something." — Kavita Anand EPISODE GUIDE Opening: Kavita as a lifelong learner; the question that drives her work The urgency of now: how do we live together and allow every child to flourish School as a global rite of passage: one system for many different children Classrooms as conformity: rows, standardisation, and the loss of individuality What a good school looks like: meaning, curiosity, and being seen Systems thinking in practice: behaviour as a response, not a problem From hierarchy to collaboration: students, teachers, and leaders learning together Scaling change: from individual schools to government systems Technology and learning: consumption versus creation Kavita’s closing seed: governance as an act of nurturing ABOUT KAVITA ANAND Kavita Anand is an educator, researcher, and systems leader with over 40 years of experience working across education in India and internationally. She is the founder of Adhyayan Quality Education Services and the Adhyayan Quality Education Foundation, focusing on whole-system school improvement and self-review frameworks. Her work spans partnerships with governments, large school networks, and global education initiatives. Kavita lives in India and continues to work closely with educators and systems leaders to reimagine what a good school can be. https://adhyayanfoundation.org/ [https://adhyayanfoundation.org/] ABOUT AMEL MURPHY Amel is the founder of Embodied Beings. She grew up between cultures, and it was the body, not the book, that first taught her what belonging feels like. For over twenty years, she has worked at the intersection of personal healing and collective change, supporting leaders, communities, and changemakers to come into right relationship with themselves, each other, and the world around them. This podcast was born from that inquiry, and from the belief that stories, told honestly, are medicine. www.embodied-beings.com [http://www.embodied-beings.com] https://www.linkedin.com/in/amelmurphy [https://www.linkedin.com/in/amelmurphy] STAY CONNECTED Share this episode with someone who needs it. Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen. Know someone whose story belongs in this podcast? Tell us; we read every message. Music by HappinessInMusic from Pixabay.

The Body Knows What Freedom Requires with Staci Haines

On anger as liberation, the difference between survival and freedom, and why personal transformation and social change are the two beats of the same heart. With Staci Haines, hosted by Amel Murphy. What if healing alone will never be enough? And what if the anger you were told to manage is actually one of the most life-giving forces you carry? Staci Haines has spent over three decades working at the intersection of trauma healing and social transformation. This conversation brings those threads into direct contact. She and Amel speak about why we remain vulnerable to domination, how survival patterns shape our politics, and what it takes to build real agency. Staci draws a clear distinction between healing and liberation, and why one without the other is not enough. They return again and again to the body; to anger as a life-giving force, and to the deeper longing for connection, dignity, and collective freedom that lives underneath it. “Anger is a natural fuel with which to redignify ourselves.” — Staci Haines EPISODE GUIDE Opening and Staci’s guiding questions: systems, bodies, and power Why we are vulnerable to domination: safety, belonging, and survival Healing versus liberation: the difference and why both matter Early conditioning: how systems shape what we practise without knowing Embodiment as a path; returning to the body as a site of liberation The “I” and the “we”; personal healing and collective responsibility What we inherit and what we must transform Anger as life force; boundaries, dignity, and saying no Working with anger in practice: moving energy through the body Closing seed; following the longing for wholeness and liberation ABOUT STACI HAINES Staci Haines is a somatics practitioner, organiser, and educator with over 30 years of experience working at the intersection of trauma healing, embodied leadership, and transformative justice. She is the founder of generative somatics and co-leads the Outer Work Project, supporting people to connect personal transformation with organised social change. Her work focuses on building individual and collective capacity for liberation. Staci is based in the United States. https://generativesomatics.org/ [https://generativesomatics.org/] https://www.outerworkproject.org/ [https://www.outerworkproject.org/] https://www.stacihaines.com/ [https://www.stacihaines.com/] https://generationfive.org/ [https://generationfive.org/] ABOUT AMEL MURPHY Amel is the founder of Embodied Beings. She grew up between cultures, and it was the body, not the book, that first taught her what belonging feels like. For over twenty years, she has worked at the intersection of personal healing and collective change, supporting leaders, communities, and changemakers to come into right relationship with themselves, each other, and the world around them. This podcast was born from that inquiry, and from the belief that stories, told honestly, are medicine. www.embodied-beings.com [http://www.embodied-beings.com] https://www.linkedin.com/in/amelmurphy [https://www.linkedin.com/in/amelmurphy] STAY CONNECTED Share this episode with someone who needs it. Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen. Know someone whose story belongs in this podcast? Tell us; we read every message. Music by HappinessInMusic from

Life Wants Life in You with Gaye Donaldson

On reverence, the story big enough to make a difference, and why those who struggle to belong may be the ones the world needs. With Gaye Donaldson, hosted by Amel Murphy. What does it mean to belong to life itself — not just to a person, a place, or a community? Gaye Donaldson is a systemic constellation practitioner and teacher whose work has been shaped by a lifelong inquiry into belonging. Adopted as a baby, she has spent over thirty years following that question through whole system agriculture, health, and human systems. She and Amel speak about belonging not as a concept but as something lived; through family systems, ancestry, and the wider field of life itself. They trace a shift from competitive individualism towards interdependence, and what it asks of us now; including the capacity to stand at the edge, between belonging and not belonging. At the centre of the conversation is a return to reverence; right place, right size, right relationship with the earth, and the quiet trust that life itself is generative. "Systemic constellation work, in essence, is about finding the story that's big enough to make a difference." — Gaye Donaldson EPISODE GUIDE Introduction; belonging, systems, and reverence for life Gaye’s path; agriculture, homeopathy, and systemic constellation Adoption as origin; the question of belonging across a lifetime Holding the unanswered question; depth, cost, and meaning Interconnected systems; from soil to human relationships The collective shift; the end of competitive individualism Edge dwellers; those who can bear not quite belonging A return to reverence; right place, right relationship with the earth What is missing; the unseen and the space around things Life wanting life; transgenerational resilience and continuity Capacity and the horses; belonging beyond the human Closing seed; you can be small and still held ABOUT GAYE DONALDSON Gaye Donaldson is a systemic constellation practitioner, teacher, and co-founder of the Centre for Systemic Constellations. Her work spans over thirty years across whole system agriculture, homeopathy, and systemic constellation, exploring how human lives are shaped by interconnected systems and ancestral patterns. Her practice is grounded in the question of belonging; its absence, its cost, and its eventual return. Gaye lives in the UK, where she spends time each day with her herd of Icelandic horses. https://www.thecsc.net/ [https://urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=https-3A__www.thecsc.net_&d=DwMFaQ&c=euGZstcaTDllvimEN8b7jXrwqOf-v5A_CdpgnVfiiMM&r=E09zlk1Dv_VGQ8OVsORCKLbzzU3DwQqHMmBDq97BFSQ&m=cA572UF1UE7WnGrScBlv99bO4HWcO3k15uLbZ5esFGmgIhkSAeilqrW8IlHd_2l9&s=T0ExDixpVETi5x9mlX5K6EU-VDOpHpl4sSg3XaTbVk4&e=] ABOUT AMEL MURPHY Amel is the founder of Embodied Beings. She grew up between cultures, and it was the body, not the book, that first taught her what belonging feels like. For over twenty years, she has worked at the intersection of personal healing and collective change, supporting leaders, communities, and changemakers to come into right relationship with themselves, each other, and the world around them. This podcast was born from that inquiry, and from the belief that stories, told honestly, are medicine. . www.embodied-beings.com [http://www.embodied-beings.com] https://www.linkedin.com/in/amelmurphy [https://www.linkedin.com/in/amelmurphy] STAY CONNECTED Share this episode with someone who needs it. Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen. Know someone whose story belongs in this podcast? Tell us; we read every message. Music by HappinessInMusic from Pixabay.

The New World Will Be Woven with Catalina Cock Duque

On collective intelligence, creating your own seasons, and the islands of hope already taking shape.. With Catalina Cock Duque, hosted by Amel Murphy. What if the biggest crisis of our time isn’t climate or conflict — but the false sense that we are separate? Catalina Cock Duque is a Colombian systems thinker and social innovator working across peacebuilding, bioeconomy, and youth leadership. She and Amel speak about what it takes to bring people together across deep divides; from former enemies to institutions and communities. Catalina describes how real change takes root; not through top-down solutions, but through collective care, shared agency and deep reconnection She shares stories of young people rebuilding their communities, and the discipline of choosing where to place attention when the world feels overwhelming. “Our biggest crisis is that deep level of disconnection from ourselves, from others, and from nature.” — Catalina Cock Duque EPISODE GUIDE Introduction and Catalina’s work in Colombia From social entrepreneur to weaver; connecting people and systems Responsible mining and Ecoflora; business as regenerative practice The crisis of separation; starting with the self Collective intelligence; creating conditions for shared insight Human connection before solutions; former enemies in dialogue Burnout and the fractal model; inner and outer change Creating your own seasons; rhythms of work and rest Islands of hope; attention and what we choose to see Young changemakers; action without resources Closing seed; the future as something we weave ABOUT CATALINA COCK DUQUE Catalina Cock Duque is a Colombian systems thinker and social innovator devoted to regenerating the social fabric. Her work spans peacebuilding, responsible economies, youth leadership, and bioeconomy, bringing together communities, institutions, and business to build regenerative systems. She is co-founder of The Weaving Lab and a board member of Ecoflora. Catalina lives in Medellín, Colombia. Fundación Mi Sangre https://fundacionmisangre.org/ [https://fundacionmisangre.org/] Alliance for Responsible Mining / Oro Verde https://www.responsiblemines.org/ [https://www.responsiblemines.org/] Ecoflora https://ecofloracares.com/ [https://ecofloracares.com/] The Weaving Lab https://weavinglab.org/ [https://weavinglab.org/] Documentary (DW TV) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHyqRPWoaiU [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHyqRPWoaiU] ABOUT AMEL MURPHY Amel is the founder of Embodied Beings. She grew up between cultures, and it was the body, not the book, that first taught her what belonging feels like. For over twenty years, she has worked at the intersection of personal healing and collective change, supporting leaders, communities, and changemakers to come into right relationship with themselves, each other, and the world around them. This podcast was born from that inquiry, and from the belief that stories, told honestly, are medicine. www.embodied-beings.com [http://www.embodied-beings.com] https://www.linkedin.com/in/amelmurphy [https://www.linkedin.com/in/amelmurphy] STAY CONNECTED Share this episode with someone who needs it. Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen. Know someone whose story belongs in this podcast? Tell us; we read every message. Music by HappinessInMusic from Pixabay.

The Future Doesn’t Want to Be Controlled with Laura Pastorini

On humility as leadership, indigenous wisdom, and why transformation begins in your nearest relationships. With Laura Pastorini, hosted by Amel Murphy. What if the future isn’t something you control, but something you have to learn how to listen for? Laura Pastorini joins Amel from Cabo Polonio, a remote coastal village in Uruguay with no electricity, where time and attention move differently. They speak about what happens when you bring CEOs, activists, and indigenous leaders into the same room, and stop trying to control the outcome. Laura shares how leadership shifts when you listen to the moment rather than impose a plan; including a vision council that was completely redesigned at the last minute because the field demanded it. Running underneath is a more disorienting idea; that real change might not start at scale, but in how you show up in your closest relationships. “We say that we humans are fertilisers of the soil, so that our role is to be fertilisers.” — Laura Pastorini EPISODE GUIDE Opening and introduction Laura in Cabo Polonio; place, presence, and disconnection from modern systems From anthropology to embodiment; a lifetime of working with systems and the body The dream: activating basic goodness in a time of disappointment Fragmentation as the core problem; why sectors cannot solve this alone Ecosystem leadership in practice; CEOs, activists, and indigenous leaders in one room Indigenous wisdom and design; listening to what the moment requires The vision council that changed at the last minute Humility and control; what leadership looks like when you let go We are fertilisers; a different orientation to being human Transformation starts close; relationships as the ground of change Closing seed; agency, trust, and beginning where you are ABOUT LAURA PASTORINI Laura Pastorini is Lead of Development and Learning at the Presencing Institute in Latin America. With a background in social anthropology, systemic therapy, and embodiment practice, she works across sectors to support leadership and systemic transformation. Her work integrates Theory U, indigenous knowledge, and social presencing theatre to develop ecosystem leadership across the region. She is based in Uruguay, often working from remote coastal communities. www.presencing.org [http://www.presencing.org]https://www.socialpresencingtheater.org [https://www.socialpresencingtheater.org] * Instagram: @laura_pastorini * Facebook: facebook.com/laura.pastorini.9 [http://facebook.com/laura.pastorini.9] * LinkedIn: Laura Pastorini ABOUT AMEL MURPHY Amel is the founder of Embodied Beings. She grew up between cultures, and it was the body, not the book, that first taught her what belonging feels like. For over twenty years, she has worked at the intersection of personal healing and collective change, supporting leaders, communities, and changemakers to come into right relationship with themselves, each other, and the world around them. This podcast was born from that inquiry, and from the belief that stories, told honestly, are medicine. www.embodied-beings.com [http://www.embodied-beings.com] https://www.linkedin.com/in/amelmurphy [https://www.linkedin.com/in/amelmurphy] STAY CONNECTED Share this episode with someone who needs it. Subscribe on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen. Know someone whose story belongs in this podcast? Tell us; we read every message. Music by HappinessInMusic from Pixabay