“Flourishing Kin: Loving the World in Complex Times”

with Dr. Yuria Celidwen

Thursday,  June 26, 2025 at 3:00 PM Eastern Time  

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Our world faces crises that require a focus on community and planetary health and well-being. Still, the Western emphasis on individual self-improvement has resulted in mental health struggles leading to isolation and environmental exploitation. How can Western and Indigenous sciences work together to recalibrate current practices in the service of global well-being? Dr. Yuria Celidwen shares insights from her recent book Flourishing Kin: Indigenous Wisdom for Collective Well-Being to cultivate sustainable collective well-being. Through poetic expression and authentic truth-telling, Celidwen invites a path that meets the world’s complexity with reverence and joyous participation in the flourishing of all living beings.

“From Indigenous scholar Yuria Celidwen comes a first-of-its-kind book about our aspiration for sustainable, collective flourishing through Indigenous wisdom, traditions, and practices that bridge Indigenous and Western knowledges and ways.”

Yuria Celidwen, PhD: I am a native of the Indigenous Nahua and Maya Bats’il K’op lineages from the cloud forests of Chiapas, Mexico. I am of Earth; my heart is on fire. My family comprises mystics, healers, poets, and explorers of the soil and the soul, embodying life’s strength, tenderness, and fragility. I grew up with one wing in the wilderness and another in the magical realism of Indigenous dreamlands and stories. My elders’ songs enthralled my childhood, enhancing my mythic imagination and emotional intuition: the fertile Lands where the seeds of reverence, play, and wonder dig their roots. I am a Truth-bearer, trickster dreamer, and culture-shifter. As a scholar, I research Indigenous forms of contemplation and the transcendent experience embodied in prosocial behavior (reverence, ethics, compassion, and a sense of awe, love, and sacredness).‎ I refer to my broader research statement as the “Ethics of Belonging,” which encourages awareness, intention, and relational actions toward planetary flourishing and a path of meaning and participation rooted in honoring Life.

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Upcoming Scholar Salon (at  3pm Eastern Time ):

August 21 2025:  “Inanna’s Descent: Re-wombing Menstrual Sacrality” with Dr. Annalisa Derr

Save these Salon dates: September 4, September 18

This Salon recording will also be available to members when processed after the event. 

 

“Rein Of Power: How the Mythological Horse Holds the Tension of Balance and Transformation”

with Dr. Heather A. Taylor

Thursday,  June 12, 2025 at 3:00 PM Eastern Time  

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Domesticating horses created a major shift in societies as humans climbed on top of the animal for a broader view of the physical world. Harnessing the horse’s power led to crossing boundaries, exploring new terrains, advancements in agriculture, technology, and service. Inevitably conflict arose as cultures clashed when riders ventured into expanding territories, leading to disputes and wars, especially for those who prioritized conquering or controlling people, livestock, and land. Sovereign powers and the wealthy created calvaries as a sign of military strength while individuals who excelled on horseback performed heroic acts, either in battle or as solo warriors. These actions infiltrated our stories, resulting in the rise of the hero archetype. 

 This shift in civilization created many advantages throughout history and into modern times but the pendulum has swung too far, leading to an overemphasis of the Cartesian mindset in which power over nature and humans is prioritized. Those who do not fit into a narrow definition of what constitutes the best, brightest, strongest, richest, and most powerful in society are often dismissed and disenfranchised. Money, conquering, and domination on a linear and hierarchical level have gained precedence in many aspects of modern daily life, including how we treat and interact with horses. Yet horses symbolize life force, spirit, and balance. Reflected in mythologies throughout time, horses accompany humans, gods, and goddesses, across the realms. Amplifying the physical traits and behavior of the horse can bring an archetypal and metaphoric quality to myth and story, potentially facilitating integration, relatedness, balance, nature, and embodiment.

In this presentation, Dr. Heather Taylor will highlight how Hades’ four immortal horses, who emerge from the ground in the abduction of Persephone, play a role in the goddess’s transformation where she reigns as Queen of the underworld. The images of the horse add movement to the myth illustrating their importance as a symbol of change at a time when we must rebalance, and re-story, our relationship to the earth and showcase different forms of power.

Dr. Heather A. Taylor has a Ph.D. in Mythology with an emphasis in depth psychology and a Masters in Producing film and video. Her award-winning documentary, Breaking Through The Clouds: The First Women’s National Air Derby(BreakingThroughTheClouds.com) earned top honors at many film festivals and continues to air on PBS across America. Dr. Taylor is the co-founder of the International Society of Mythology (ISMythology.com). 

Dr. Taylor was awarded the Kore Dissertation of Merit at ASWMs conference in April 2025 for Re-Storying A Sense of the Sacred With A Mythological Herd: An In-Depth Study of Horses in Mythology.

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Upcoming Scholar Salons (both at  3pm Eastern Time):

June 26 2025:    “Flourishing Kin: Loving the World in Complex Times” with Dr. Yuria Celidwen

August 21, 2025: “Inanna’s Descent: Re-wombing Menstrual Sacrality” with Dr. Annalisa Derr

Save these Salon dates: September 4, September 18, October 2

This Salon recording will also be available to members when processed after the event. 

 

Finding Ourselves “In Our Right Minds”

with Dale Allen

Thursday,  May 29, 2025 at 3:00 PM Eastern Time  

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“The way Dale educates is entertaining and so evocative that it bypasses the left-brain, over-thinking part of ourselves, and instead, we are touched in a very direct, very impactful way.”  –Vicki Noble

Dale Allen has for 25 years shared the healing energy of the sacred feminine through her work: “In Our Right Minds,” which has been widely acclaimed at universities, conferences, corporations, theaters, and expos across the US, Canada, from Kauai to Dubai, the UN Commission on the Status of Women, and the Parliament of World Religions. Her new book of the same name, is an Amazon International Bestseller, and the film version has been awarded in 19 Independent Film Festivals worldwide. 

“In Our Right Minds,” the film, is”a sweeping journey covered efficiently and clearly,” that in short order judiciously illuminates the history and relevance of the Goddess archetype, as well as its connection to our right-brain intelligence.  “In Our Right Minds” garners praise for being well-researched, organized, clear, level, balanced, without blame, and inclusive of all the human family.  Dale also presents “In Our Right Minds,” for book clubs, film screening events and as a 6-week course. The Dale Allen Podcast ranks in the top 10% globally.  Learn more here!

In this Scholar Salon with Dale, we talk about the many creative ways in which Dale has shared the sacred feminine and the wisdom of the right brain via theater, film, songs, art, humor, and poetry. Be inspired on your own creative journey with this fun and informative salon!

While this Salon is not a film screening event, you can see the film anytime at https://www.inourrightminds.net/

“In Our Right Minds,” lovingly lifts-up the feminine to restore humanity’s natural balance… coherently and elegantly synthesizing psychology, history, myth, anthropology, sociology, art and poetry into an eye-opening and life-changing alteration of our perspective and path forward. Dale is honored to share and promote the many seminal scholars listed in the bibliography of her book “In Our Right Minds” through her creative offerings that uniquely bring powerful information and energy to audiences worldwide.

“After watching your ‘Mom’ character, I can’t stop laughing. This is 100% my life. I have been told that a boss needed ‘more of [my] time. Don’t I have someone to watch [my] child.’  Funny enough, that person had lived with me for several months and saw firsthand what I went through.”  (Kirsten)

“So inspiring!!!!”(Tamis)

“I love the idea of Someday Isle! I think I have spent a lot of time there.” (Sid)

Dale Allen is a veteran of corporate, commercial, and creative communications. Her extensive resume includes hundreds of voice-over, on- camera, theater and live presentation projects. Described as having the energy of “a Cape Canaveral lift-off,” Dale thoroughly engages and inspires her audience, which ranges from highly educated corporate leaders to teenage girls seeking their place in the world.  “Dale’s warmth, empathy and knowledge inspires the wisdom within each of us. That seed is encoded with an intelligence, and we are each its sacred gardener, necessary to futurize our world.”

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Upcoming Scholar Salons (both at  3pm Eastern Time ):

June 12 2025:   “Rein of Power: Re-Storying A Sense of the Sacred with A Mythological Herd” with Dr. Heather Taylor

June 26 2025:    “Flourishing Kin: Loving the World in Complex Times” with Dr. Yuria Celidwen

Save these Salon dates: August 21, September 4, September 18

This Salon recording will also be available to members when processed after the event. 

 

“Sharing the Himdag Perspective: Tohono O’odham Values of Land, Water, and the Stars”

with Dr. Jacelle E. Ramon-Sauberan

Thursday,  February 20, 2025 at 3:00 PM Eastern Time  

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Long before our urban centers and city lights lit up the dark desert skies, the Tohono O’odham were cultivating and shaping the land with abundant agriculture—from squash and beans to corn and cotton. For generations they passed down their rich knowledge and culture grown from their connection to the desert. Join us for a program with Dr. Jacelle Ramon-Sauberan as she shares her knowledge about current Tohono O’odham issues of water rights, food production, and right relationship to the national observatory which is located on a sacred mountain. 

“We were, as O’odham, as Indigenous people, the first astronomers, but that’s not what we called ourselves,” she says. “We were looking at the night sky, we were reading the constellations. My great-grandfather did that as a farmer. When I talk to Observatory staff, I offer the Himdag side.” The Himdag incorporates “the culture, way of life, and values that are uniquely held and displayed by the Tohono O’odham,” according to the Tohonoho O’odham Community College website.

Dr. Jacelle Ramon-Sauberan is from the San Xavier District of the Tohono O’odham Nation. She is the Tohono O’odham Nation Education Development Liaison for NSF NOIRLab-Kitt Peak National Observatory and an adjunct instructor within the Tohono O’odham Studies Program at Tohono O’odham Community College. Dr. Ramon-Sauberan earned her PhD in American Indian Studies with a minor in Journalism from the University of Arizona in 2023. As part of her dissertation work, she created a living-document on the history of land and water in the San Xavier District, as told from a Tohono O’odham perspective. She has written for news publications across the US including Indian Country Today and is part of Arizona Humanities’ AZ Speaks Program providing presentations on Tohono O’odham History, Culture, and Foodways across Arizona. Jacelle also serves on several boards and committees including Wecij U’uwi Hemapai (Tohono O’odham Young Women’s Gathering), Friends of Tucson’s Birthplace-Mission Garden and Friends of Saguaro National Park.

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Our next Salon: To be announced, following our 2025 Conference

This Salon recording will also be available to members when processed after the event. 

 

“Belonging as Radical Revolution: Navigating the Care Crisis with Ubuntu“

with Andrea Fleckinger and Simone Plaza-Finis

Thursday,  February 6, 2025 at 12 NOON Eastern Time  

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Amidst the acute care crisis destabilizing almost all spheres of contemporary Western patriarchal societies, the need to explore alternative societal models has never been more urgent. This salon invites scholars and interested participants to delve into the potential of applying ubuntu: “I am because I belong.” This principle, as practiced by the Khoisan of Africa, sharply contrasts with the deceptive ideology of independence, portrayed as the elusive pursuit of happiness in patriarchal rhetoric. The ongoing application of the patriarchal principle of divide et impera affects nearly every facet of life, demanding a profound shift. In a world that values so-called independent individuals, addressing dependency as an inherently human quality becomes a revolutionary act.

In this salon, we invite participants to engage in an in-depth reflection and discussion on the principle of belonging, examining societies where individuals do not long for external validation or possessions because they inherently be-long. Insights from matriarchal societies will be connected to Joan Tronto’s concept of homines curans, exploring the multifaceted dimensions of care. The discussion will further consider how these matriarchal insights can illuminate pathways to fostering abundance and wholeness in Western contexts. By understanding what is necessary to nurture a care-centered society and exploring ways to establish these conditions consciously, participants are encouraged to reflect on how lessons from matriarchal cultures can support a transition from a mindset of scarcity to one of fullness and interconnectedness, aimed at creating future-oriented solutions.

 

Simone Plaza-Finis is one of the four founders of the Matriforum and a certified lecturer in Modern Matriarchal Studies. She holds a degree in Philology and is a translator and simultaneous translator. She has a son and grew up in Barcelona, influenced by German, Spanish, and Catalan cultures, though she has been living in Berlin since 2017.

Dr. Andrea Fleckinger is a research fellow at the University of Trento (Italy). She is also one of the four founders of the Matriforum and a certified lecturer in Modern Matriarchal Studies. Currently, she teaches alongside Dr. Heide Göttner-Abendroth at the International Akademie Hagia.

The Matriforum is an organization that aims to encourage constructive dialogue between science and the public at large regarding alternative, egalitarian forms of society supported by the latest findings in the scientific fields of modern matriarchal research.

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Our next Salon: To be announced

This Salon recording will also be available to members when processed after the event.