Six Weeks of Tonglen

I’m inviting you into a practice designed to overcome our own fear and suffering. A method for awakening our own compassion even in the hardest of times. We are calling it “Six Weeks of Tonglen.” We will each practice individually, for at least six minutes every day. And we will all come together as a group, once a week for six weeks..

I’ll show you how to do it!

Read More
Gibran Rivera Comment
Psychedelics Today

I was interviewed by the Psychedelics Today Podcast. It is a little scary to be speaking so openly about this work. But we are in the midst of a psychedelic renaissance, and I find it important to share some of what I’ve learned.

I am thrilled that we are reclaiming such powerful gifts for individual healing. But I think we are missing half the coin. Our ancestors did these practices together, held in sacred ceremony.

Read More
Gibran RiveraComment
Psychedelics, Healing & Emergence

I was recently interviewed by Psychedelics Today. The podcast will come out in a couple of weeks. So I want to prime you with some of my thoughts on this Psychedelic Renaissance. It is an exciting time. And it’s not just about Silicon Valley entrepreneurs microdosing their way into greater productivity.

We are opening new doorways to profound and lasting healing. We are becoming aware of pathways to deal with anxiety, treatment-resistant depression, all sorts of trauma and even end of life care.

Read More
Gibran RiveraComment
Building Leadership Networks

I have devoted my professional life to building networks of leaders. These are leaders who are already passionate about what they do. Committed people. Skilled and brilliant. My job is to bring them together and help them turn towards the power of their collective intelligence. The work hinges on the depth of authentic relationships that these leaders build with one another.

The idea is to help them re-connect with their own sense of meaning and purpose. We want these leaders to access their interior resources, connect with one another, and become better able to turn towards the challenges of our time. Becoming a network gives them a greater sense of what it takes to thrive in times of VUCA - volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity.


Read More
Gibran RiveraComment
What About Hierarchy

We have a complicated relationship with hierarchy. We tend to think they are a form of oppression. But there is an important distinction between dominant hierarchies and “nested” or developmental hierarchies. We learn things. We grow. We get better at doing the things that we practice.

We go from not knowing, to novice, to apprentice to master. This does not mean we exert dominance over anyone. But it does mean that we have ascended up a developmental hierarchy.


Read More
Gibran RiveraComment
Being Black in Colombia

My last work trip before this pandemic was in February of last year. I went to Nuqí, in Colombia’s Pacific Coast. I had the privilege of facilitating Skylight’s AfroColombia SolidariLabs. It was magical. It was transformational work among people devoting their art and passion to a more just and inclusive society. It was an effort to face racism and right past and current wrongs.

Read More
Gibran RiveraComment
Adaptive Change

On March 30th we invited you into a call to talk about what adaptive change looks like in this moment. You brought your hearts and your wisdom. This is a synthesis of our conversation. This post brings together the reflections that you shared using zoom’s chat function during the call.

We sang, we moved, we shared, we prayed. We turned our gaze to what is possible now that was not possible before. Let us cull from what is being learned about how and what to practice now, in these days.

How do we breathe and live our way into the future that wants to emerge?

How do we do all of this while also holding space for grief, and opportunities for mutual care?

Read More
Gibran Rivera Comment
Boost Your Practice

2020 has been quite the year. Today is the winter solstice and it’s time to turn our face towards the light. We want to get our bodies and our minds ready for what is new. We want our hearts and our souls to align with our highest intentions. This is a time to align. And to create.

Read More
Gibran Rivera Comments
Adaptive Change: Pre & Post-Election Gathering

Join me and others who believe in the power of connection, of community, of people, of movement, of song and of prayer.

Let’s gather this coming Tuesday, October 27, 3PM to 4:30PM EST. Register here.

This is not a campaign rally. It is not a get out the vote effort. This is an “our care” session. It is an opportunity to ground and connect and get perspective. It is a way to bring our attention to who and how we are being in this moment. AND it is a way to take the long view. A way to practice how to be better ancestors for our descendants.

Read More
Gibran RiveraComment