The Garrison Institute Presents: The Common Good

In this episode, Jonathan F.P. Rose speaks with Otto Scharmer, founder of the Presencing Institute, senior lecturer at MIT, and creator of Theory U, a leadership and systems-change framework for sensing and shaping emerging futures. Drawing on his journey from his family's regenerative farm in Germany to pioneering global transformation initiatives, Scharmer explores how deep listening, awareness, and collective action can help leaders move beyond outdated patterns and respond to today’s social, economic, and ecological challenges. Together they discuss the practice of “presencing,” the shift from ego-system to ecosystem awareness, and why the future often emerges first at the edges of systems. Scharmer also shares his vision of a “Second Axial Age,” where humanity must cultivate new forms of consciousness, collaboration, and leadership to meet planetary challenges and serve the common good.

We’d love to hear your thoughts about the podcast, please send us a note at podcasts@garrisoninstitute.org to let us know what you think.

Produced by The Garrison Institute and The Podglomerate.

In this 10-minute guided meditation, Sharon invites you to gather your attention and energy toward the practice of loving kindness. Through the use of select phrases, you'll have an opportunity to direct your heart's energy toward those around you, toward yourself, and ultimately toward all creatures and beings.

You can find more meditations and contemplative resources like this at GarrisonInstitute.org, along with information about our Contemplative-Based Resilience initiative and other programs supporting those who serve our communities.

You can find more meditations and contemplative resources like this at ⁠GarrisonInstitute.org⁠, along with information about our Contemplative-Based Resilience initiative and other programs supporting those who serve our communities.

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Buddhist teacher Josh Korda of Dharma Punx NYC joins Steve Varley for a wide-ranging conversation on addiction recovery, meditation, neuroscience, and the search for meaningful community in modern life. Josh reflects on his own path to sobriety, leaving a successful advertising career after 9/11, and helping build a contemplative community for outsiders and seekers. Together they explore the overlap between Buddhist practice and modern psychology, the dangers of “corporate mindfulness” divorced from human connection, and how nature and spiritual friendship are essential for breaking the repetitive cycles of the mind. A powerful conversation about healing, purpose, and what genuine spiritual practice looks like today.

We’d love to hear your thoughts about the podcast, please send us a note at podcasts@garrisoninstitute.org to let us know what you think.

Produced by The Garrison Institute and The Podglomerate.

In this special in-person conversation recorded at the Garrison Institute, Cynthia Bourgeault and David Frenette explore the transformative practice of Centering Prayer, nondual consciousness, and the spiritual legacy of Father Thomas Keating. Drawing from decades of teaching, retreat leadership, and personal friendship with Keating, Bourgeault and Frenette reflect on prayer not as escape, but as a path toward compassion and deeper participation in reality. Intimate and searching, yet grounded, this conversation offers a rare opportunity to hear two influential contemplative teachers thinking together in real time about what it means to awaken, let go, and fully inhabit the world.

We’d love to hear your thoughts about the podcast, please send us a note at podcasts@garrisoninstitute.org to let us know what you think.

Produced by The Garrison Institute and The Podglomerate.

Cultural ecologist David Abram explores the “more-than-human world,” challenging the human-centered mindset of the Anthropocene and calling for a return to ecological humility. In this rich conversation, Abram weaves philosophy, indigenous wisdom, and lived experience to reveal our deep reciprocity with Earth—from the air we breathe to the bodies we inhabit. He unpacks concepts like consanguinity, mutuality, and the ethics of interdependence, offering a powerful critique of modern disconnection. Drawing on his journey as a sleight-of-hand magician and encounters with traditional healers, Abram highlights the lost role of mediators between human and nonhuman realms.

We’d love to hear your thoughts about the podcast, please send us a note at podcasts@garrisoninstitute.org to let us know what you think.

Produced by The Garrison Institute and The Podglomerate.