Event: Day Conference: Spiritualities, True Professionalism and Aligned Action:
Discerning the True, Good and the Beautiful 21st Century Professional.
Venue: Sanctuary, Augustine United Church, 41 George IV Bridge, Edinburgh, EH1 1EL.
Date: Saturday 26 October 2019.
Time: Registration: 9.30am-10am. Day Conference: 10am-5pm.
Event Description: ‘The true professional is a person whose action points beyond his or herself to that underlying reality, that hidden wholeness, on which we all can rely’.
Parker Palmer, 1999, The Active Life: A Spirituality of Work, Creativity and Caring
Where is spirituality in contemporary professionalism? Might it be part of the reconciliation of the personal and the professional in our everyday practice? Might a more pluralistic perspective – spiritualities, rather than spirituality - open up possibilities? Or are we essentially in territory beyond our ken, implicating a bridge too far to contemplate?
By way of a possible response, Parker Palmer invites us to undertake some inner work, discerning the call of the true professional, engaging in consciously aligned action pointing beyond his or her self… to that underlying reality, that hidden wholeness, on which we can all rely. How true, how good, how beautiful, is your professing? What wholeness might you want to profess, and seek to enact?
There is an implicit call to action in play - a special form of action, what Margaret Wheatley has represented as ‘right action’. She has provided a poetic meditation on Parker Palmer’s offerings that might stimulate some conferring around the combination of spiritualities, professionalism and aligned action. Perhaps it can help underpin some collective ethos-making work, around the contours of the true, good and beautiful 21st Century professional. What might we discern together?
These contributions might include reflections and commentary on:
Wheatley’s ‘found poem’ on Palmer’s Active Life offerings;
meshing the personal, the professional and the spiritual;
the challenge of ‘joining up’ spiritual activism and being professional;
contemporary professional ethics imperatives - across professions;
the interface of contemplation and action, of ‘contemplation-and-action’
a refreshing of any associated servant-leadership implications;
and/or other nominated perspectives, stimulated by the combination of themes.
Spiritualities, True Professionalism and Aligned Action:
Discerning the True, Good and the Beautiful 21st Century Professional.
Date: Saturday 26 October 2019.
Time: Registration: 9.30am-10am. Day Conference: 10am-5pm.
Venue: Sanctuary, Augustine United Church,
41 George IV Bridge, Edinburgh, EH1 1EL.
Organised by
Edinburgh International Centre for Spirituality and Peace, EICSP,
Scottish Charity, SC038996, www.eicsp.org
Conference: 9.30am-5pm.
9.30am-10am: Arrival and Registration.
10am-10.10am: Introduction and Welcome: Dr Ian Wight.
‘The true professional is a person whose action points beyond his or herself
to that underlying reality, that hidden wholeness, on which we all can rely’
Parker Palmer, 1999, The Active Life: A Spirituality of Work, Creativity and Caring
https://margaretwheatley.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/TheTrueProfessional.pdf
10.10am-10.30am: Plenary address: Prof Bart McGettrick.
Freedom in Professionalism.
Whatever we do in professional practices has to be based on an informed conscience. This means that it is our duty to use what research there is, and what insights we gain from our professional reflections in the service of others. In doing this we ought to take account of evidence, and have it mediated through professional reflection. Professional practitioners need the freedom to do what is right.
That concept of freedom has strong roots in the notion of doing what we ought to do and what we wish to do for the benefit of others. It becomes a deep personal freedom that allows us to escape the clutches of the temporal world, the marketplace and the dominance of “the other.” It is essentially based on the spiritual and ethical principles that flourish in the pursuit of truth and the mystery of the goodness of each person.
This is not just any freedom, but a freedom born of order - of doing what is right for our fellow human beings, with the courage that permits us to risk the criticism of those who believe in the more utilitarian outcomes of professional practices as the main aims of the professions. Some attention will be given to the professionals who have to give voice to the voiceless and create a world of justice, in a hope-filled society.
BIO: Professor Bart McGettrick was Principal of St Andrew’s College, Glasgow; Dean of the Faculty of Education at Glasgow University, and Dean of the Faculty of Education at Liverpool Hope University. He is Professor Emeritus of these universities. He is currently Chairman of the International Board of Regents of Bethlehem University, Palestine, and President of The Holy Land Commission. He lives in Glasgow and is actively engaged in a wide range of projects in Scotland and internationally.
10.30am-10.40am: Discussion.
10.40am-11am: Plenary address: John Sturrock QC.
Aligning Professional Life with the Spiritual: A Journey without Destination?
John will talk about his journey, which is characterised by a quite conscious shift in what he does, and has done, as a professional. He will explore what this might mean more generally for those of us in professional life. He will also talk about his work as a mediator and, more fundamentally, the shift from an adversarial, binary world view to something more nuanced, paradoxical, non-dualist – as reflected in the work, for example, of Richard Rohr.
He may also speak about his recent report for the Cabinet Secretary for Health in Scotland, reviewing allegations of a bullying culture in NHS Highland. The report, which is suffused with ideas about compassion, kindness, and relationships, has resonated in public sector leadership in Scotland.
BIO: John Sturrock QC left practice as an advocate in 2002 and is founder and senior mediator at the mediation business, Core Solutions. He also acts as a mediator with Brick Court Chambers in London. As a pioneer of mediation throughout the UK, with an international reputation, his work extends to the commercial, professional, sports, public sector, policy and political fields. He is a Distinguished Fellow of the International Academy of Mediators and a Visiting Professor at the University of Edinburgh.
John also specialises in facilitation, negotiation and conflict management training and coaching for public sector leaders, civil servants, politicians, and sports and business leaders. For many years, he has worked with various parliamentary bodies throughout the UK on effective scrutiny of policy. He is founder of Collaborative Scotland (www.collaborativescotland.org), which promotes non-partisan respectful dialogue on difficult issues.
He recently conducted a review of allegations of bullying in NHS Highland and has acted as facilitator of the Scottish Leaders Forum Strategic Leadership Group over the past year. He also facilitated the 2020 Climate Change Delivery Group in Scotland from 2009 to 2013.
11.00am-11.10am: Discussion.
11.10am-11.30am: Tea/coffee break.
11.30am-11.50am: Plenary address: Johanna Holtan.
Practicing Service and building communities of transformative leadership with young people.
I grew up in a family which placed a great deal of value on service, transformative leadership and the concept of the hidden wholeness mentioned by Parker Palmer. In looking back, these strands have woven their way through my life and, professionally, I have found great joy in building communities of young people practicing, challenging, and embodying the active life. I believe strongly in being our products – what we profess in our lives and what we practice through our work – and will talk about this in the context of the Mastercard Foundation Scholars from Sub-Saharan Africa supported through our scholarship and leadership programming at the University of Edinburgh.
BIO: Johanna has spent over 15 years designing and building programmes and businesses for social good across a variety of sectors including higher education, active transport, sport & culture, international development and social enterprise. In addition to being one of the co-founders of CycleHack, Johanna has created and curated four TEDx events, two creative and cultural festivals, and the global phenomenon Penny in Yo’ Pants. Johanna also served as a Peace Corps volunteer and USAID programme consultant in Georgia, working with a network of local women’s health organisations. Johanna is currently Director of the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program at the University of Edinburgh. A $27 million 7 year project, the Scholars Program provides full scholarships and leadership programming to African students with high potential but few educational opportunities.
11.50am-12.00pm: Discussion.
12pm-12.20pm: Plenary address: Dr Elizabeth Drummond-Young.
Clarity and Simplicity: the spiritual importance of style (A tribute to Bryan Magee 1930 - 2019).
Magee’s essay Sense and Nonsense (Prospect, 2000) is a short but valuable comment on the importance of style in philosophy. Its implications, however, go beyond the bounds of philosophy. Magee hints at this; I both discuss his essay and develop this theme.
BIO: Dr Elizabeth Drummond Young is a Teaching Fellow in Philosophy at the University of Edinburgh. She currently teaches a foundation course for international students, applied ethics and a short course on women in philosophy. She is interested in crossing the analytic/continental divide in philosophy and bringing the idea of spirituality back into professional philosophy.
12.20pm-12.30pm: Discussion.
12.30pm-12.50pm: Plenary address: Dr John Gillies OBE
Professionals and Professionalism - Reflecting and reshaping the 21st century zeitgeist.
We are in a state of major global change economically, politically and culturally which sometimes seems to be approaching chaos. This talk will raise the issue of what the roles of professionals should be in these turbulent and dangerous times, and suggest how they could change to help us move to an era which is more equal, just and peaceful.
BIO: John Gillies OBE, MA (Ethics & Law), FRSE, FRCGP, FRCPE: Dr Gillies is an Edinburgh graduate who has worked in Malawi and as a general practitioner in rural Scotland, latterly in Selkirk for 16 years. He has been an undergraduate tutor, a GP educational supervisor and a training programme director with NHS Education Scotland. He was Chair of the Royal College of GPs in Scotland from 2010 to 2014. During this time, he focused on leadership and quality improvement in healthcare. He has published on rural healthcare, medical ethics, philosophy of medicine, medical humanities, heart disease and primary healthcare policy. He co-directs the Compassion Initiative within the Global Health Academy, which works across disciplines to use the growing evidence for compassion in workplaces including healthcare. He is an Honorary Professor of General Practice at the University of Edinburgh and Deputy Director of Scottish School of Primary Care, which works nationally and internationally on developing evidence for practice and policy. He was on the editorial board for a book of poetry for new doctors Tools of the Trade, gifted to all new doctors in Scotland, published jointly by Scottish Poetry Library and Polygon Press in June 2019.
12.50pm-1pm: Discussion.
1pm-2.15pm: Lunch.
2.15pm-2.35pm: Plenary address: Liza Horan.
Driven from Within: How today’s workforce is switching from achieving goals to achieving alignment.
The 21st Century workforce is no longer seeking only the highest paying role with the best job title – today’s professionals are weighing the fit of a company’s culture with their own lifestyle and values. More and more of these workers are finding they’d prefer to pursue the risk/reward of going solo, rather than enjoying the security that corporate ‘golden handcuffs’ offer. I’ll present evidence that morality is making a comeback and modern workers are increasingly being driven from within to find fulfilment in their work. This will include trends in corporate culture and the independent workforce, and sharing of original research into the incentives and challenges for professionals whose work is creatively and intuitively led.
BIO: Liza Horan is the founder of Mindstream Ventures, which is dedicated to helping people improve their quality of life by discovering and adopting mind-body-spirit practices for greater health and happiness. As editor of MindstreamConnect.com Liza hosts a podcast and blog covering holistic wellness therapies, and the full digital platform is set to launch in early 2020. Mindstream melds Liza’s personal lifelong interest in health, spirituality and the mystical, and her career as a journalist and digital strategy leader for such companies as The New York Times Co., Reuters, ESPN (The Walt Disney Co.), Informa, Incisive Media, and others. Liza, an American who now calls Edinburgh ‘home’, earned her Masters of Science degree in strategic communications from Columbia University (NYC).
2.35pm-2.45pm: Discussion.
2.45pm-3.05pm: Plenary address: Alastair Wyllie.
Action: Aligned to whom, aligned to what?
Some reflection on the individual and collective leadership challenges posed by Illusion, Action and Surrender – Margaret Wheatley’s observations on The True Professional. Illustrated by stories and realisations from his own practice, Alastair will suggest that it is not the reconciliation of the personal and the professional in everyday practice that may be enlivening or dispiriting, but rather how our humanity and true professionalism play out within the operating environment of our organisations and their corporate accountabilities.
BIO: Alastair Wyllie lives in Fife, and has over 20 years’ experience of facilitating leadership and organisational development through action inquiry, executive and team coaching, and whole systems collaborative learning. Much of his work has been with Oil & Gas and public-sector organisations in international and multi-cultural contexts. He has an eclectic background as a professional actor, European network and project manager, and trainee psychotherapist. Throughout, his evolving career has been sustained by a passionate curiosity and interest in the dynamics of human communication, interaction and relationships, and how people make sense of their experience of forming and being formed by the families, cities, organisations and cultures of which they are a part. Alastair is currently completing an action research professional doctorate in organisational change.
3.05pm-3.15pm: Discussion.
3.15pm-3.30pm: Tea/coffee break.
3.30pm-3.50pm: Plenary address: Dr Marilyn Hamilton.
Professing a Spiritual AQtivation.
I will “profess” the story of my Spiritual AQtivation through the journey to wholeness that my Spirit has guided me in the last 7 decades. I will bring the fresh insights from my October 2019 journey home to Canada (on an Integral and Eco City mission) and back again to Findhorn Ecovillage Scotland. I will use the AQtivating workbook, Journey to Wellness: A Workbook to Discover Personal Paths to Wholeness, (Hamilton, Stevenson, 2005) to chart the self-organizing seasons that have alternated with the structuring cycles of my life. I will share how my Spirituality has awakened a Gaian Consciousness with a Master Code of Care through AQtion Learning infiltrated by the “perfect timing” of unexpected revelations, strong nudges from the Still Small Voice and inspiring encounters from multiple dimensions.
BIO: Marilyn Hamilton PhD, CPA (ret.) is founder of Integral City Meshworks Inc. Author of the Integral City Book Series: Reframing Complex Challenges for Gaia’s Human Hives (2018); Inquiry and Action: Designing Impact for the Human Hive (2017) and Integral City: Evolutionary Intelligences for the Human Hive (2008), she has created multi-media resources, several communities of practise and a range of discovery tools. Designer of the Beyond Smart, Beyond Resilient & Beyond Complexity Trainings delivered through Findhorn College, Guest Editor of Integral Leadership Review, Canada Issue 2015, and Producer of the Integral City 2.0 Online Conference 2012, she co-creates conditions for learning laboratories in multiple modes. She has held the position of CEO, COO, CFO and CIO in the private sector. Formerly of Abbotsford, BC, Canada, she now resides in Findhorn Ecovillage, Scotland and is Faculty at Findhorn College, Royal Roads University (Victoria BC, Canada), and keynotes at conferences and universities around the world.
Marilyn’s current ‘professing’ is as a city (or Human Hive) evolutionist, PRAQtivist (practical, integrally informed AQtivist), author and researcher. As a city (town & village) futurist, she blogs, keynotes and workshops the roles of Placecaring and Placemaking in the community, city, region, nation and globe. She links integral, evolutionary and living system insights to design frameworks, research, practices and tools, for generating courageous community inquiry, action and impact. She helps people discover invisible options for complex issues and aspires to the evolution of humans becoming ‘Gaia’s Reflective Organ’ so that we can care for ourselves, each other, our places and our planet.
3.50pm-4pm: Discussion.
4pm-4.20pm: Plenary address: Louie Gardiner BA (hons), MBA, FRSA, PhD researcher.
Regenerating Nature’s Inclusional Dance Through Presence-in-Action.
While the earth keeps spinning, we as human beings find ourselves flailing and roiling in self-made messes that threaten not only our own extinction but the potential destruction of a planet that sustains all of life. We have separated ourselves from it, and elevated our species to a god-like status under the mistaken illusion that we are grand masters who control the world. How can this be possible when most of us can barely control what happens in our own lives and relationships?
Earth responds in her own way to the ravages we inflict upon her. But what can we do to revert the degenerative cycling we have catalysed into one that can once again become regenerative for her and for each and all of us? Re-incorporate our full Selves in all we do wherever we are.
“We are here because there is no refuge finally from ourselves; until we confront ourselves in the eyes and hearts of others, we are running. Until we suffer them to know our secrets, we can know no safety from them. Afraid to know ourselves, we can know no others…” (Phoenix House)
Through Presence in Action, we can release ourselves from our own destructive patterns by re-connecting to our Selves, each other and our wider world. Presence in Action as a praxis opens us up and brings us back into relationship, moment-to-moment; day-to-day; interaction-by-interaction. It illuminates and frees us from the delusions that knock us to our knees, and the reactivity that break us apart.
In this talk, I hope to provide a glimpse of the potency of Presence in Action through our simple Acuity Practice and the P6 Constellation framework – and through this, to seed the recognition that whatever befalls you, you can engage coherently in each next step you take - if you want it enough.
BIO: Presence in Action Practitioner (Founder), Executive Coach-Confidante, Coaching Supervisor, Systemic change catalyst and facilitator. Louie is a pioneer practitioner and writer, contributing creatively to both academic and practice-based journals. Irrespective of the diverse roles she has undertaken throughout her working life, Louie has consistently generated new ways of unleashing learning and catalysing personal and systemic transformation - enabling people within organisations and communities, and across cultures and generations, to navigate complexities in life, work and relationships with greater integrity, joy and artistry. Her life-long learning has found coherent synthesis in several systemic frameworks that support mutual contextual learning through interaction. The emerging Community-in-Practice galvanising around Presence in Action is testament to the integrity, accessibility, applicability and generativity of the approach.
4.20pm-4.30pm: Discussion.
4.30pm-4.50pm: Plenary address: Dr Ian Wight FCIP GTB.
Discerning the True, Good and Beautiful 21st Century Professional.
Where is spirituality in contemporary professionalism? Might it be part of the reconciliation of the personal and the professional in our everyday practice? Might a more pluralistic perspective – spiritualities, rather than spirituality - open up possibilities? Or are we essentially in territory beyond our ken, implicating a bridge too far to contemplate?
By way of a possible response, Parker Palmer invites us to undertake some inner work, discerning the call of the true professional, engaging in consciously aligned action pointing beyond his or her self… to ‘that underlying reality, that hidden wholeness, on which we can all rely’. How true, how good, how beautiful, is your professing? What wholeness might you want to profess, and seek to enact?
There is an implicit call to action in play - a special form of action, what Margaret Wheatley has represented as ‘right action’. In a poetic meditation on Parker Palmer’s offerings Wheatley offers possible stimulation for some conferring around the combination of spiritualities, professionalism and aligned action https://margaretwheatley.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/TheTrueProfessional.pdf Perhaps it can help underpin some collective ethos-making work, around the contours of the true, good and beautiful 21st Century professional. What might we discern together?
BIO: Ian Wight is a former Canadian professional planner and educator of planning professionals. He retired from the University of Manitoba in 2014 but is now happily re-firing in his native land, pursuing a range of inquiries – in this case around transformational professional learning. Influenced by integral framings, and the work of Parker Palmer on spirituality in higher education https://www.spirituality.ucla.edu/docs/newsletters/5/Palmer_Final.pdf he is particularly interested in ‘evolving professionalism beyond the status quo’ and in ‘contemplating the education of the agents of the next enlightenment’ i.e. the making of future ‘true, good and beautiful’ professionals.
4.50pm-5pm: Discussion/Closure.
NB: There will be no refund if you cancel your booking.
Cost: £10/£8 (Concessions)/£3 (Students). For a Registration Form:
Contact: Neill Walker, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it., 0131 331 4469.