Since 1991, Jim Ziolkowski & BuildOn.org have been transforming inner city schools in the USA and building schools - over 550 to-date - in the poorest countries of the globe.
Spirit in Action
Each week, Spirit In Action brings you stories of people living lives of fruitful service, of peace, community, compassion, creative action and progressive efforts. We will trace the spiritual roots that support and nourish them in their service. Above all, we will seek out Light, Love and Helping Hands, being shared between our many neighbors on this planet, hoping to inspire and encourage you to sink deep roots and produce sacred fruit in your own life.
Spirit In Action is an hour of interviews with those providing leadership in peace, justice and "good works", interspersed with relevant music. The theme music is "The Turning of the World" performed by Sara Thomsen (written by Ruth Pellham).
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Yosemite, Dumpster Diving, & Correcting Native History - Fiction Toward Truth
Peter Brown Hoffmeister's new book, Graphic the Valley, wraps readers in an adventure that connects us to the Earth (Yosemite in particular), replaces the official lies of history with the truth, and introduces us to useful skills like dumpster diving, all while thrilling the reader with human foibles and triumphs.
Practical Idealist & Advocacy for Africa
Focusing on the African countries of Burundi & Somalia, Alissa Wilson is AFSC's Public Education & Advocacy Coordinator for Africa. She has served in Americorps, was an election observer in Nigeria, and is co-author of Practical Idealists: Changing the World and Getting Paid.
Featured Music:
Sweet Mother - Prince Nico Mbarga
People Power Against Big Money, Corrupt Politicians, & Casinos - Strategy & Soul
Daniel Hunter vs The Casinos is a case of David vs Goliath, only more impressive. Daniel co-led that battle retold in Strategy & Soul: A Campaigner's Tale of Fighting Billionaires, Corrupt Officials, and Philadelphia Casinos. Ingenious, creative, & steadfastly principled, this is a tale of inspiration and adventure, and there's an immense amount of info about community organizing that is absorbed effortlessly!
QVS: Service Beyond Americorps
For folks seeking ways to change the world that are rooted in community & faith, consider Quaker Voluntary Service.
Stopping Mountains Into Molehills
Ingrid Lakey and Lola Georg are board members of Earth Quaker Action Team, doing their bit to fight Climate Change, featuring their campaign to get PNC Bank to eliminate its investments in mountain-top removal.
The End of Juvenile Prison
Burning Down the House: The End of Juvenile Prison, by Nell Bernstein, takes an unflinching look at the travesty we call juvenile prison. She has an unequivocal solution - get rid of them. With some 20 years of knowing the system and by telling the stories of the victims of it, Nell explores the history, reform, trends, and consequences of the "reformatories" which do the exact opposite of their supposed purpose.
Making Friends Among the Taliban - Jonathan P. Larson
Dan Terry did things that are unbelievable in many Western eyes - being welcomed among diverse peoples of Afghanistan, including some among the Taliban. After a life of aid, friendship, and living on the edge in the region, Dan was killed in 2010, and his story and stories are captured in Making Friends Among the Taliban: A Peacemaker's Journey in Afghanistan, written by Jonathan P. Larson.
Unexpected Journey of an Activist Entrepreneur and Local-Economy Pioneer
Judy Wicks is author of Good Morning, Beautiful Business: The Unexpected Journey of an Activist Entrepreneur and Local-Economy Pioneer and was owner of the White Dog Cafe in Philly for almost 30 years, pioneering business that was engaged, transformational, community-building, fun, and successful. On the cutting edge of local food, organic, humane, politically-involved, food & business.
The Business World as Spirit Work
Business can sometimes seem mostly exploitation and evil (though counter-examples abound, both current and historical). But how does one do good through business, instead of just doing well? Robert Pierson is an engineer who has seen small business from the inside, thoroughly. After years of diverse job positions, and rising to become a systems engineer, the spiritual side of that work led Rob to get a Master of Ministry degree from Earlham School of Religion.