Greetings!
Thank you for inquiring into the Eco-Philosophy Center.
The following briefly describes our activities, and extends to you an offer to become a Friend of the Eco-Philosophy Center. We hope you will join us in actively promoting ecological awareness and ecological values throughout the world.
First, a little background on the EPC. It was established in 1981 by Dr. Henryk Skolimowski, who was at the time Professor of Philosophy at the University of Michigan (now Professor Emeritus). The EPC was established to serve as a focal point for the development of a new field of philosophy known as "eco-philosophy", which emphasized the importance of the relationship between mankind and the environment. In 1990 the EPC took a step forward by becoming registered as a non-profit organization in the state of Michigan (501c3), and now, via the World Wide Web, we hope to expand our activities through contacts with people and organizations worldwide.
The stated mission of the EPC is "to further ecological awareness, ecological values, and all other means which are necessary to heal the Earth, and find meaningful and sustainable lifestyles." In keeping with this vision, we have a variety of on-going activities:
In our role as ecological consultant to businesses and schools, we offer a series of workshops and seminars that will examine the nature of our environmental crisis, analyze its causes, and propose constructive steps we can take to begin ecological renewal.
The EPC continues to participate in local, national, and international events dealing with the environment. These events range from our attendance at a variety of local Earth Day fairs, to our organizing of international lectures.
Henryk has been organizing week-long retreats each summer on the island of Thassos, Greece. This provides an in-depth study of eco-philosophy, including lectures, meditation, artistic expression, and eco-yoga.
The EPC is firmly committed to maintaining an active role in national and global discussions on environmental policy. In support of this, we have been continuing efforts to reach public consciousness through letter writing, publishing op-eds and articles in local newspapers, and giving speeches at public events.
One of the key goals of the EPC is keeping its members both well-informed about the latest events in the world of eco-philosophy and keeping them involved with the process of healing the Earth, and ourselves. One way we hope to do this is through the journal New Gaia. This is a publication of essays, news items, poetry, and other information relevant to the furthering of eco-philosophy. In the past we have distributed New Gaia in print form, but costs of layout, printing and mailing have made publication less frequent than we would have liked. As a result, we will be issuing New Gaia only via the web, at least for the foreseeable future see the "New Gaia" button on our Home Page.
We also can now more easily share thoughts and comments from you, our friends and supporters. If you wish to publish an article or poem in New Gaia, just contact the editor, Ken King (see below). Also, we will now have a 'Letters to the Editor' section, for those who have brief comments or thoughts they wish to share.
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We now invite you to become a Friend of the Eco-Philosophy Center. Access to our web site is of course free, but we still need donations to support our on-going activities. None of our officers are paid, nor do they receive travel expenses; money goes only toward direct expenses, including web site costs, materials for lectures and seminars, conference fees, postage, advertising, and so forth. We operate with a very small budget, and the fact of the matter is: the more resources we have, the more we can do.
We ask for a $20 (US) annual donation, in order to be considered as an active member of the EPC. Larger donations are of course welcomed. Donations are tax-deductible for US citizens. For details see MEMBERSHIP & DONATIONS at the Home Page.
FRIENDS OF ECO-PHILOSOPHY
We are all friends of the Earth. Yet we also need to be friends of other human beings, of other beings, and of ourselves. As we think, so we are. As we are, so we affect others. As we create the world with others, so this world affects us. The law of Karma is universal.
In our very complex world, we cannot limit ourselves to the physical environment. Working on the environmental problems is important but not sufficient. To heal the world, we need to heal ourselves; we need to resonate harmoniously with all beings; we need to make our minds compassionate; we need to follow the values which assure justice for all.
Eco-philosophy maintains that the world is a sanctuary, while we are its reverential guardians, responsible for its well-being. Eco-philosophy maintains that the ecological and the spiritual are one. We need to work simultaneously on healing ourselves and on healing our external environments.
Friends of Eco-Philosophy is a network of people of good will who are aware and convinced that they can contribute positively toward the healing of the world, who also know that by participating in the common cause of healing, they empower themselves and heal themselves.
Friends of Eco-Philosophy is not a revolutionary brigade which promises to cure all our ills tomorrow, or a day after tomorrow. But it is a group of determined people who take destiny of the planet into their hands, and who are mindful of Ionesco's conviction that revolution is a change in the state of our consciousness. This change is to be accomplished by going deeper into ourselves and by realizing that the ecological and the spiritual are one.
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We invite like-minded people worldwide to join us and support our efforts. If you would like to become a member of this group, please contact:
Ken King, Deputy Director
11811 Beech Rd.
Brooklyn, MI 49230
USA
Email: kingcm@dmci.net
A better world lies ahead, and you can be a part of it. We look forward to your response.