Integral City is a multi-perspectival view of the city. Simultaneously we consider the Lenses of I, We, He/She/It and Them. We remember the Knowing Fields deep within us of self, elders, family and ethnicity. And we stretch outside of our familiar Fields to appreciate the Knowing of authorities, work places and diverse communities. On Earth Day Integral City-zens are called to embrace Earth as the Planetary Field that has emerged our ecological and spiritual Home, source of all our interconnectedness and gateway to the Kosmos.

Earth Day: Celebrate With the Planet in Mind

 

As hourly news flashes tell us of war and rumours of war between nations, an Integral City  view can remind us of the vital function of cities to all nations. Within each city we can see how the clash of differences can separate people, goals, interersts and priorities. But an Integral City perspective lets us see these same differences as the source of fresh energy that we need to deal with the challenges of the 21st century. The very unpredictability of war that seems to threaten us, can generate evolving relationships that open the way for new learning communities and give new tools to the 4 Leaders of the City: Citizens, Civic Managers, Civil Society and Business. But it takes a Planetary Perspective to keep Integral City possibilities in focus.

WE Are Because Earth IS

The African tradition of Ubuntu – “I am because you are” holds the microcosm for the relationship of City to Earth. The City as the most complex human system yet created, exists only because of the infinite connections of body, mind and spirit are woven into the nexus point of each city from all our Earthly roots. And beyond every city nexus lies the Field of all cities connected not only within each eco-region, but now connected with every other city on Earth. Our Planet of Integral Cities is like Indras web, spread out as jewels across our Mother Planet.

As WE make our decisions within each City, we are called now to see the ripple effects those decisions have across a whole Family of Cities – our Planet of Cities.

With Earth Day as a reflection of the emerging concept of a Planet of Integral Cities, on May 8-11 we will be in Budapest, Hungary at the, Integral Europe Conference . Integral City (guided by Marilyn Hamilton) will create a Learning Lhabitat with the Integral City EU Team. We will explore how Budapest and the cities of Europe have unique roles to play in the evolution of our Planet of Cities. Join us and expand the Knowing City Field we started last year in Amsterdam.

Moscow and Izhevsk Russia will be our next stops in May. Marilyn will launch the Russian Translation of Integral City (see below) in Moscow May 16-19 and workshop a series of Integral City Learning Lhabitats. Then we will coalesce the 4 Voices of the City in Izhevsk at the Urban Fest, May 20-23, 2014. Send us an email for details russia@integralcity.com.

 

Learning From City Gamma Traps

A Gamma Trap is the stage in the Cycle of Change where no solution for the threat or disaster that we face is available or apparent. There is no way back and no way forward. As stressful as this is, these are the times when we are forced to find new solutions – or die. As individuals we have negotiated Gamma Traps many times in our lives – that is how we have learned and developed. At the scale of teams, organizations, communities and cities we also encounter Gamma Traps in many change cycles. They force us to find new solutions and cause us to discover new inventions, processes and designs for people, priorities and places.

September 30 – October 2: In Detroit, Michigan we will rejoin Meeting of the Minds 2014 . Integral City will return to engage the consciousness and culture with Big Data in the City. Meeting of the Minds has chosen Detroit as the site for its 2014 annual convening because Detroit, (as a city having to reinvent itself post-bankruptcy) offers a platform for the discussion of alternative urban futures – which are relevant for all cities.

Planet of Cities Connects

Earth Day – how did you celebrate it?  We would love to learn from you how we can share stories of celebration and connection. Tell us how you are working together to create a Planet of Integral Cities  – just visit us at Integral City Collective on Face book  and post a short update or a photo.

 

Meshful Blessings for Earth Day from

Marilyn Hamilton and the Integral City Core Team

PS

Do you speak Russian? Then we are proud to celebrate 2014 with the first translation of our book – the publication of the Russian eBook,  Integral City: Evolutionary Intelligences for the Human Hive .