Forming an Alliance for Economic DemocracyBy Shri Verrill and Alex JackimoviczIn Madison, Wisconsin a range of grassroots ac-tivists, intellectuals, and leaders in various move-ments for political, social and economic change cametogether to convene at the 2012 Economic Democ-racy Conference. The conference organizers desiredto connect various groups working in different fieldsof activity with one another and support their work toshed light on and popularize the values and goals oftheir work as necessary ingredients for changing theworld of corporate capitalism to an economics of thepeople. Examples of economic democracy in actioncentered on new visions that humanize and democ-ratize the economy. A few members of the loose coalition of activists andorganizers who made the conference possiblewanted to continue the momentum and move forwardwith other projects. Thus, the Alliance for EconomicDemocracy (AED) was briefly formed as a new or-ganization to carry this work forward. However, theenergy to continue quickly faded. We are pleased toannounce that in January, 2017 the AED has resur-faced in Maine with a new energy and voice.Continued on page 8

Women Proutists of

North America

R i s i n g S u nJuly 2017

More Inside:Gun Control

Cooperative GamesNeo-Humanistic Leadership

Recipe Corner

Union OrganizingBy Anna GirreschAfter being at the PROUT Institute in Venezuela in thesummer and fall of 2013, I moved to Atlanta, Georgia. Iwas in love with the power of workers coming togetherto organize unions and cooperatives. My own co-work-ers and I had successfully organized a union in my timeas a student at Marian University in Indianapolis. Thisexperience had me convinced that a union job was theway to go, so I figured I’d find one. I took a job at aunion food service company at the Atlanta airport. If you’ve ever had a layover there, you know that Harts-field-Jackson International Airport is one of the busiestairports in the world. With over 55,000 employees, it’sthe biggest employer in the state of Georgia. Many ofContinued on page 4

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What is Prout? PROUT is an acronym for the Progressive Uti-lization Theory which was propounded in 1959by Indian philosopher Prabhat Ranjan Sarkar.PROUT presents a viable alternative to the out-moded capitalist and communist socio-eco-nomic models. Neither of these theories hasadequately met the needs of humanity.Proutists are seeking to convey the compre-hensive and visionary goals of PROUT theory,which combines the wisdom of spirituality, thestruggle for self reliance and the spirit of eco-nomic democracy. As women who areProutists, in this magazine, we are attemptingto focus on the particular struggles thatwomen face in attaining self reliance in soci-ety. However, we also wish to present thecomplete vision of Prout as a new ideology fora new world.Toward the goal of being inclusive, we inviteProutists and others who are interested inproviding a platform for social change to submit articles, letters to the editor, poetry,blogs, and other writings to Rising Sun. Wewant to take the pulse of the 99 percent andto try to reflect in some small way the voice of the people.

Key Principles of PROUT and Neo-Humanism:Neo-humanism expands the humanistic love for all human beings to include love and respect for all creation - plants, animals and even inanimate objects. Neo-humanism provides a theoretical base for creatinga new era of ecological balance and planetary kinship.

Basic necessities guaranteed to all: In order to be ableto actualize their highest aspirations, people need to havetheir basic needs met. Access to food, shelter, clothing,education and medical are fundamental human rightswhich must be guaranteed to all.

Balanced economy: Prout advocates regional self-re-liance, cooperatively owned and managed businesses,local control of large scale key industries, and limits onthe individual accumulation of wealth.

Women’s Rights: Prout encourages the struggleagainst all forms of violence and exploitation used tosuppress women. Prout’s goal is coordinated coopera-tion, with equal rights between men and women.

Cultural Diversity: In the spirit of universal fellowship,Prout encourages the protection and cultivation of localculture, language, history and tradition.

Mission StatementWomen PROUTists are working togetherto create a world in which all people havethe opportunity to develop their full poten-tial. We educate and organize our commu-nities to resist oppression, exploitation anddiscrimination. Women PROUTists supportthe all-round physical, economic, intellec-tual and spiritual development of women.

Rising SunJuly 2017

© Women Proutists, July 2017Editor—Mirra Price Design—Jody WrightContributors— : Shri Verrill, Alex Jackinovicz, AnnaGirresh, Debra Wirth, Satya Tanner, Liina Laufer,Arunda Brattacarya, Nina Shapiro, Mary P. , andDoris Olivers.

Submissions:  We invite you to submit articles of 500-1000 words, poetry, photos, graphicsand news of your projects. Deadlines are six weeks before publication—May 15th for the July 1st issueand November 15th for the January 1st issue. Send to mirraprice@gmail.com. Content from this newslet-ter may be used in any Prout publication with credit given to Rising Sun. We suggest you contact the au-thors of articles for specific permission to use individual articles. Thank you.

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Neohumanist LeadershipWhy Leaders Need to Have a Basic Under-standing of Systems and Social ScienceA regular column by Satya TannerIn the wake of the London Bridge attack, I have beendisturbed by the number of ‘leaders’ within my net-work who have been quick to jump to short term solu-tions, such as suggesting carrying of concealedweapons (CCW) as being the immediate solution toterrorist attacks. Now I understand that people needto feel like they can protect themselves, but oftenshort term policies have long term consequences thatyou don’t see until it’s too late. In Systems Theorythis is called ‘Fixes that Fail’. The basic premise ofSystems Theory is that everything is connected, andthat if you make changes in one part of the system,there will be a flow on effect of changes whose out-come is determined by a series of complex interrela-tionships and interdependencies. In order to be aleader who helps to make the world a better place,it’s very important to understand the impact of vari-ous social policies on the ‘social organism’ (i.e., soci-ety) you are applying it to.For example, if the problem is what to do about therise in terrorist attacks in the UK, and a rebalancing isrequired to reduce terrorist attacks, then to introduceCCW policies might initially make people feel safebecause they can fight back an attack with somethingother than their bare hands. But there are unintendedconsequences to such a ‘rebalancing’ action. Basicsocial science tells us that allowing citizens to bejudge, jury and executioner on a day-to-day level,takes the responsibility away from police and puts itin the hands of citizens without the same level oftraining. This has further impacts if those citizenshave unconscious bias (most people do), and societycould see an increase in vigilante action, racially mo-tivated deaths or manslaughter cases such as theTrayvon Martin case in the US where an armed citi-zen (George Zimmermann) shot and killed an un-armed Trayvon Martin after following him because he“looks like he is up to no good.” This would result inlarge portions of the community being more worriedabout racists with guns than terrorists, and lead toless overall social cohesion., e.g., the problem justgets worse.Although the causes of home grown terrorism are stillbeing discovered, there have been some successfulmodels around the world that use proactive, longerterm policies. For example the Aarhus Model fromDenmark*, anti gang strategies and community en-

gagement** These may take longer to see resultsand so while it won’t in itself provide a quick fix (un-like increased police presence on the streets), itmust be a part of the long term solution. Good lead-ers do their best to understand social science andthe consequences of the policies they establish.Without this basic knowledge, leadership is reducedto a series of band aid solutions with unintendedconsequences. Thus the onus is on you, as a leader,to get educated and introduce policies that make thefuture bright again.*https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/feb/23/home-jihadi-denmark-radical-islamic-extremism-aarhus-model-scandinavia**https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/may/26/jihadis-muslims-radicalisation-manchester?CMP=Share_iOSApp_OtherFixes that Fail Archetype:

By B Jana - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://com-mons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=6893321For further reading:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/System_archetype

Satya Tanner had a 16-yearcareer as a pilot and aero-space engineer in the RoyalAustralian Air Force, leadingpeople and managing proj-ects. She has studied Prout ata post graduate level and hasa passion for helping organi-

zations and communities that are in search of innova-tion, leadership, healthy cultures and consciousbusiness principles.

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these workers belong to the “working poor”—lowwages and no benefits. From a strategic standpoint,organizing any significant portion of workers at theairport would mean improving conditions for a seriousblock of people in the state. The vast majority of air-port workers in Atlanta are Black—both African-Amer-ican and African immigrants. So the airport struggleis also the racial justice struggle in Georgia. In my two years at Hartsfield-Jackson, I worked as aprep cook, busser, food runner, and server. I immedi-ately joined the union, but I struggled to convince myco-workers to do the same. My idealism from the pre-vious experience of organizing a new union wore off.Many workers saw the $16.40 in bi-weekly union duesas money they just couldn’t spare, and others fearedthat joining the union meant they’d be targeted for ha-rassment. The union was weak; only 30% of workerswho were covered under our contracts at the airportwere actual dues-paying members. Right-to-Worklaws in states like Georgia make it so that workers canenjoy the benefits of a contract without paying. Thisdrains the unions of funds and morale. The turnoverrate at airports is ridiculously high, which means thatthere is a constant race just to sign up new employeesfor the union. With such a high turnover rate, andsuch low participation, the contracts weren’t being en-forced. This just added to the frustration – why shouldworkers join a union that’s seemingly powerless to ad-dress their issues on the job?It became clear that if we wanted to improve condi-tions, we had to strengthen the existing membership.A rag-tag group of organizers and shop stewards metweekly to make plans to get more of our co-workersto join, to learn their contract, and to strengthen its en-forcement. At first we struggled a lot, but once we re-ally started to dig into how contract violations wereaffecting our co-workers’ lives, we began to see thingsstart to turn around. We focused on finding issuesthat met certain conditions: widely and deeply felt byworkers, and winnable within the confines of the con-tracts. Membership grew and the overall belief in theunion got stronger. At my particular restaurant, wewent from below 30% membership to over 70%. This story may seem small or insignificant, given thebig picture of low wages and the ever-increasingpower of corporations in this country. The labormovement is in serious danger. Union membershiphas declined steadily in the last 30 years—in 2016,only 10.7% of all U.S. workers belonged to unions. Inthe private sector alone, only 6.4% were union mem-bers. Things are bad, and given the regime of 45,

they are only going to get worse. Unions are alreadyslashing their budgets in anticipation of how hostilethis administration is going to get. But being a personof faith, I look to my organizing stories to remind my-self that even as corporate greed consolidates itspower, Spirit is coming alive in the people to resist.My co-workers in Indiana won union recognition just afew months after the state passed Right-to-Work leg-islation. In Georgia, we were able to inspire hope in aworkplace that felt very hopeless. I have very seriousfears about what is going to happen to many targetedgroups of people under this administration, especiallypoor people, people of color, and immigrants. But myfaith compels me to believe that we have to organize,anyway. I believe that we have to actualize our faithby forming coalitions that will protect one another—bethey unions, cooperatives, mutual aid networks, orsanctuary networks. We have to build communitiesof resistance and love that are stronger than the politi-cal powers that oppress us. Annie worked to build the labor movement as a rank-and-file union member in Indiana and Georgia from2012-2015. She has also supported racial justicework. She will be starting this fall at Eden TheologicalSeminary in St. Louis and loves living at the intersec-tion of faith and social justice.

From page 1

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Contact Women Proutists of North America

Recipe CornerA regular column by Liina Laufer

Veggie Tofu Pancit

Ingredients:1 8 oz. pack rice or bean noodles1 14 oz. package of tofu, cubed1 tsp chili pepper1 Tbs. ginger¼ cabbage, sliced into strips1 large carrot, sliced into strips¾ cup diced celery, bell pepper, or green beans2 Tbs. of toasted sesame oil½ cup vegetable broth (make your own!)½ tsp sugarblack pepperspices – cumin, cayenne, turmeric3 Tbs. soy sauceSalt and pepper to taste1 lemon, sliced

Please see Liina’s blog atrecipesdeliina.wordpress.comfor more of her tantalizing recipes. She writes:I am a lifelong vegetarian, and Iove to cook fromscratch. I prefer simple, all natural ingredients, thefewer the better. I go for local, seasonal, and organic. Iwas raised on a yogic diet, avoiding not only meat andfish, but also eggs, mushrooms, onions, garlic, and allother alliums, so my recipes reflect this preference.

Instructions:• Soak the noodles in hot water to soften for 10 min-utes.• Grease a large pan or wok with oil. Sauté half thechili and ginger.• Fry tofu until golden brown. Season with soy sauceand spices such as cumin, cayenne, turmeric.• Remove tofu and add more oil. Sauté remaining chiliand ginger.• Add the broth and all the vegetables and stir fry untilcooked.• Mix in the noodles and cooked tofu and add the soysauce, sugar, and pepper.• Cook for about 5 minutes or until the noodles aresoft.• Salt and pepper to taste.• Serve hot, squeeze lemon on top.

Women Proutists of North AmericaPO Box 733

Florence MA 01061Call us at: 828-274-1683. Visit us online at:

www.proutwomen.orgEmail: womenproutists@gmail.com

Facebook: Women Proutists of North America

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Gun ControlBy Debra WirthI know that everyone is familiar with the SecondAmendment, which gives us the right to bear arms forhunting, sport and defense. However, the weaponsof today are greatly more powerful and easier to usethan the heavy, difficult to load muskets of the 1700s. Over the years we have written a range of laws to main-tain safety. Currently we have federal laws that requirelicensed gun dealers to submitdata for a federal backgroundcheck on the buyer. However,multiple studies have reached aconclusion that about 40% of oursales go through without a check.This has been called the gun showloophole. Below a certain numberof sales—Internet, individual, andso called “parking lot sales”, gunsellers are not required to do back-ground checks.This has given us what the Amer-ican Medical Association hascalled a public health crisis ofgun violence. Urban areas areespecially hard hit. Chicago getsthe most national attention, butper capita in losses to firearms,Chicago was only eighth amonglarge cities, losing 693 people tofirearms last year.Many states have passed their own laws on requiringbackground checks for all sales, registration offirearms, and a range of other regulations. However,former Boston Mayor Menino for one, has com-plained that he can’t keep his city safe from gun vio-lence with guns so easily obtained in Vermont andNew Hampshire. There is what has been called aniron pipe line of gun trafficking stretching up Northfrom southern states with looser laws. Research on solutions has pointed to universal back-ground checks as a very moderate, key requirement.Studies consistently report that approximately 90% ofthe public want universal background checks, also.And this includes many National Rifleman’s Associa-tion (NRA) members. We came close to passing strong background checksin the Senate in 2013 in the Manchin-Toomey bill,sponsored by a team of socially conservative Democ-

rats from West Virginia and a socially conservativeRepublican from Pennsylvania, after the elementaryschool tragedy at Newtown, Connecticut. It was justfour votes short of passing, with four Republicanscrossing party lines. And last June after the Orlando tragedy, we saw alarge sit-in in Congress, joined by 170 members ledby John Lewis, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s protégé. A common pattern here is a lot of nationwide horrorand pain after the large tragedies, a push for change,and moving closer to change. Missing here is that

the horror at the daily losses acrossour country, is not shared as widely,but felt painfully locally. And inAmherst in the autumn we had aloss of a young father, by a manwith a gun reported by the Gazetteto be illegally carried.In 2016 the thought was that afterthe election—we would pass univer-sal background checks. Do we re-ally want to wait for possible changein four years? There is a new spiritof activism and dissatisfaction na-tionally with the status quo.In 1994 Congress passed the 10Year Assault Weapon Ban, as partof a large anti-crime bill, but, unfor-tunately, it was allowed to expire in2004. There is some controversyamong hunters about that ban, butthere is an overall consensus that

the AR-15 automatic rifle, in particular, is appropriatefor military use, but not in the civilian market, with itsrapid fire, multiple high velocity founds, short muzzleand pistol grip. The designer of that weapon intendedit for military use only, and the New York Times re-ported that he was shocked to see it being used out-side the military.I hope that here in our town and in the larger areas ofthe state and country that we can remind our federalrepresentatives that we’re still concerned about theseissues. And despite all the issues right now, that guncontrol must be addressed as well, to end the dailytragedies and the inevitable larger ones brought onby gun violence in this country.Debbie Wirth was an elementary school nurse at thetime of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shootingin Newtown, Connecticut, in which twenty firstgraders and six staff members were fatally shot. Shebegan researching how we could change our gunlaws to prevent such tragedies in the future.

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Dev

elop

men

ts M

etho

ds a

nd T

echn

olog

ies Devices today are no longer passive terminals

Linked to a central system – MotherThey are computers in their own rightEquipped with diverse hi-tech systemsWith countless apps and can even Show us the way around the earth.

These devices take photos tooAnd also create video footageStoring, modifying and transmittingDigital images then and thereSteering human societies awayFrom the written word towards imagery.

This forms new semantics new languagesAnd new frameworks of understandingBringing in a rapidly rising social network The biggest change in social behaviorEnabling the people to socialize freelyAnd privately with others at low cost.

That too with varying degreesOf commitments as long as they wantCompletely restructuring social relationshipsCreating clash and cohesion whereLegitimate is considered more important than legalA social revolution pointing towards the future!

From paper and pencil to computersAnd two dimension to three dimensionFrom analogue to digital technologyAnd databases to knowledge basesPublic and private boundariesAre fast merging over the horizon.

From such technological springboardsAnd rapidly changing social settingsWould rise the fountain head of spiritualityA creator connect and man realizes his true originsIn waves and waves of dreams real time A universal family might still have a chance.

- Arun Prakash Brattacharya of New Delhi, India

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Continued from page 1.Central to the effort is inspiration from the work andwritings of P.R. Sarkar. He recognized the urgentneed for a new vision to democratize the national andinternational economy.

Sarkar’s vision is inclusive of disparate elements, such as community collabora-tion, self-sufficiency, and environmental sustainability. Special emphasis is given to economic decentralization,which entails shortening the food, energy, and productionsupply chains. This moves us away from profit-centeredproduction and toward production based on collective ne-cessity, which meets the desire for an economy that mini-mizes opportunities for economic exploitation, andmaximizes the all-around welfare and development of allpeople, and which is in harmony with the Earth.Sarkar’s vision of society embraces four key pillars ofEconomic Democracy:1) Fundamental requirements for life must be guaranteedto all (such as housing, access to nutritious food andclean water, health care, and education);2) An increased access to purchasing capacity as themeans through which people acquire their needs, guar-anteed to every individual;3) The power to make all economic decisions must beplaced in the hands of the local people;4) Outsiders must be strictly prevented from interfering inthe local economy, and the outflow of local capital mustbe stopped.

These four requirements for economic democracy em-brace the prosperity of all beings, including animals,and plants. This expanded view differs significantly andis contrasted with conventional ideas of economicdemocracy because it develops concepts embedded inethical and social responsibilities of how the economyshould perform and how it should and can be designed.In Maine, we recognize there is a distinct group that suffersperhaps more than any other from the lack of economicdemocracy, Indigenous People. In order for economicdemocracy to have value and be meaningful, the move-ment toward it must assist the economic liberation, self-de-termination, and independence of Indigenous People. Ourfirst project highlights the issues surrounding the strugglefor sovereignty in an effort to raise awareness of the condi-tions facing Indigenous People in Maine and to help actual-ize their economic sovereignty and a localized economicdemocracy.Maine has four federally recognized tribes: The AroostookBand of Micmacs, Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians, Pas-samaquoddy Tribe, and the Penobscot Indian Nation. To-gether with the Abenaki, they comprise the WabanakiConfederacy. Wabanaki translated means “People of theFirst Light” or “People of the Dawnland”.To build solidarity with the Wabanaki and educate thecommunity, the AED hosted an event called “Healing inthe Dawnland: An Introduction to Struggles for Indige-nous Sovereignty in Maine”. Three short films were screened. The first highlightedthe continuing effects that the disproportionate removalof Wabanaki children from indigenous communities and

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into the state foster care system has on Wabanaki peo-ple today (at a rate over five times greater than “non-Native” children). The second film described thePenobscot’s struggle to maintain their centuries' oldstewardship of the Penobscot River in terms of waterquality standards that ensure a healthy ecosystem thatsupports sustenance fishing, hunting and gathering. Fi-nally, a short clip was screened to let Maine citizensknow about the role the Maine Attorney General’s officeis playing in the attempted territory theft, a literal ‘landgrab’ of the Penobscot River from the Penobscot Peo-ple in an ongoing law suit, Penobscot v. Mills.The AED is also developing a document to expand thediscussion around divestment from the Dakota AccessPipeline (DAPL) toward divesting from the speculativeeconomy altogether and reinvesting locally in the peo-ple’s economy. In short, activists can and must take thenext step and put our collective financial energy intoforming the world we want to see, and decouple fromcorporate capitalism to the extent we are able. We mustmove our money (MOM) from Wall Street to MainStreet. How do we do that?

The major obstacle is that 99% of the 30+trillion dollars that U.S. Americans have in-vested is in long-term savings, i.e., stocks,bonds, and pension funds etc., and less thanone percent is invested in our local commu-nities. This isn’t by chance.Securities laws were designed for the benefit of largepublicly traded firms, and until very recently, regulationsmade it nearly prohibitively expensive for small busi-nesses to provide financial disclosure in order to 'gopublic' and acquire capital.Until 2016, it was nearly impossible to invest even anickel in local ‘mom and pop’ businesses without spe-cial legislation for 'carve-outs'. In 2012, PresidentObama signed the Jumpstart Our Business Startups(JOBS) Act, which allows companies to acquire fundingthrough online portals from non-accredited investors(~97% of the U.S.). This was finally enacted in 2016and opened the doors for crowd-sourced funding, mak-ing it possible to invest in the neighborhood bakery,farmers’ market, or food co-op, the people’s economy,more directly.New opportunities to invest locally in Maine reflect na-tional opportunities to strengthen local economies andsmaller businesses. In Maine, prospects include crowd-source funding, and local investment clubs that are con-nected to the Slow Money Maine movement, whichconnects local agriculture to investors in Maine. TheSlow Money movement aims to redirect capital in thestock market into the sustainable, local food economy,

thereby strengthening the local food supply chain offarmers, fisherman, and the food industry through lowinterest micro and small loans. The Slow Money move-ment and other innovations to localize and decentralizethe economy are incremental steps moving in the direc-tion of a stronger, more balanced agricultural system. Nationally, conversations that bring activism such as DAPLdivestment together with funding the new economy haveyet to make a strong connection. The AED intends tospread the word about these opportunities to put our moneywhere our values are and shed light on the steps towardseconomic democracy and sovereignty, not only for the well-being of the tribes, but for all sentient beings. For more in-formation, visit aedmaine.org.

Alex Jackimovicz is an activist, spiritualist, and small busi-nessman living in Boothbay,Maine. A licensed master elec-trician, he is also a co-founderof the Alliance for EconomicDemocracy and a volunteer or-ganizer with a variety of socialand economic justice cam-paigns and organizations, in-cluding the Maine People'sAlliance, the Maine Small Busi-ness Coalition, and the MaineFair Trade Campaign.

Shri A. Verrill co-foundedAED-Maine with her partnerAlex, and works as an envi-ronmental conservation ac-tivist and organizer withinthe Society for EcologicalRestoration and the MaineAssociation of Wetland Sci-entists. She holds a Masterof Science degree in Biologyand owns a small business,offering ecological landscap-ing and environmental consulting.

Contact Us!Online at: www.proutwomen.orgWomen Proutists of North AmericaPO Box 733Northampton MA 01061Call us at: 828-274-1683Email: womenproutists@gmail.comFacebook: Women Proutists of North America

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Cooperative Games:A New Book by Dada MaheshvaranandaBy Mirra Price

I first encountered cooperative games when I was a the-atre student at Indiana University in the 60s. Some of mydrama instructors used exercises from Improvisations forthe Theatre by Viola Spolin, who is often called the“Grandmother of Theatre Games”. I remember playing TheMachine, in which students built a machine with our bod-ies, vocalizing machine noises and miming moving ma-chine parts, as we piled on to one another to make oneliving, moving machine. We also played The Mirror Gamein which two players faced each other, and one person ledmovements which the other followed. These games servedto warm us up and created a sense of community amongour class members.Later, in the 70s and 80s, I taught these games to mydrama students on the Navajo Reservation in Arizona. Stu-dents, who refused to go onstage and recite their parts inplays, had no trouble playing these cooperative games to-gether. Often we played a follow the leader type game,modeled on the childhood game many had played as smallchildren. My formerly reticent Navajo (Dineh) students be-came more comfortable performing for others. We per-formed original, traditional Navajo plays, which studentsand their families appreciated as an affirmation of their cul-ture and language.Continuing in this tradition of encouraging people to learnto work together through group games, Dada Mahesh-varananda has published a new book, Cooperative Games

for a Cooperative World: Facilitating Trust, Communication,and Spiritual Connection. In the book’s Foreword,renowned author and activist, Bill Ayers, says: Dada Maheshvarananda invites readers to play games, butthese games unlock the magnitude: we begin to imaginethe future we would like for the generations to come; weunleash our spiritual and social imaginations. We are play-ing games, and so we turn to the children and grandchil-dren, and we think of the grandchildren’s grandchildren.Anyone can play these games; anyone can learn to teachthem to others, as well. In that way, a chain of love, trust,and solidarity will grow from person to person, group togroup, and community to community. Playing thesegames is a start in building that better world we all want tosee. The book may be purchased at: www.cooperativegamesworld.com.In May, 2016 at the PROUT Strategic Planning Seminar atPrama Institute near Asheville, NC., Nina Shapiro, a master-s level counselor with a bachelor’s degree in art, music anddance therapy, co-facilitated a workshop with PrakashLaufer, a master’s level dance therapist. They have led work-shops together and independently for the past 40 years.Using pre-recorded new age music they led a group ofabout sixteen participants in a creative process usingmusic, dance, poetry, chanting and song. In Nina’s words:We allowed each participant to express their spiritual andcreative selves, while simultaneously experiencing a col-lective group flow. There was a warm and loving energy inthe room throughout the hour-long event and the feedbackwe received was very positive. Exercises included The Di-vine Dance*, in which each person took a turn leading thegroup as The Divine while the others mirrored the leader’smovements. We then chanted while dancing improvisedmovements to an ancient chant, meaning ‘Let Us Move To-gether’. We ended witha song which we allsang together called“Light Is Returning”.Once more we werereminded of the im-portance of usingboth left and rightbrain capacities forfull learning and theenergizing capacityof group movementfor experiential inte-gration. In today’s world ofuncertainty andrapid pace in oureveryday lives,sometimes it is es-sential to take abreather, to getout from behindour screens and

The Divine Dance (God Dance).

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Collage by Doris Olivers.

One P.M., Florida State PrisonBy Mary P.

Concrete energy inside of a jail;All the useless information in the world;My cup runneth over.Children going to sleep hungry at night,And we sit and argue who’s a little moreright.And I’m powerless behind concrete.And black men are still gunned down by Police in the street.They sign all their petitions with X’s andO’s.And women still call each other bitchesand Ho’s.And all this shit weighs heavy on my soulBut here I sit Behind concrete,Feel nothing but disdain for every chickthat I meet.Guess I’m not as smart as I think I am‘Cuz I’ve come full circleRight back to where I began.

Society RejectsBy Mary P.

The forgotten lepers,Underclass dregs,The lowest of the low,We rub elbows and opinionsBut seldom uniteHedonism and narcissism doing a tangoThe temperature ever risingWallowing in fleshExisting for sustenance onlyWe dream of violence and talk in circlesNever knowing righteousnessEver seeking greed

Reaching Out Behind the Bars: My New Friend, MaryBy Mirra PriceFor several months I have been writing to an inmate in a DadeCounty, Florida prison. Lawrence Huff, asked for copies of Ris-ing Sun a year ago to pass out to the prisoners in his yogaclasses which he teaches at several Dade County prisons. Oneof the inmates, after reading the newsletter, reached out, askingthat someone write to her. That began our correspondence. I amnot listing Mary’s last name as I am unsure if it is appropriate.She has given permission to use some of her poetry here. Ihope we can expand and start a letter writing project with otherinmates. The exchange has been instructive and fun for me tolearn about prison life and one inmate’s hope and courage intransforming her life in a positive direction.

interact with others in a way that enhances our mutualsupport. These games are face-to-face encounters withour friends, neighbors, and sometimes strangers, who alllearn to cooperate and grow together through active in-volvement in these innovative, educational games. Mirra Price, M .Ed., (Northern ArizonaUniversity) Ed. M. (Harvard) a retiredEnglish teacher is currently a writer,editor, copyeditor and activist. She hasworked in several cooperatives, pro-moted many social justice causes, andhas advocated for women’s rights andgender equality since the 1960s.www.mirraedits.com,womenproutists@gmail.com.

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First Annual EDAConference May 26-29, 2017by Jacelyn Eckman

Our world is entering a period ofresource scarcity, which promisesto add pressure to an alreadywidening income/purchasing gap.Economic Democracy Advocates(EDA) held its first annual confer-ence at the Prama Institute out-side Asheville, NC the last weekend in May, to address how we can begin to identify, measure and responsiblymanage and advocate for our common resources, to satisfy today’s growing needs, while assuring there will beenough for the generations that come after ours.EDA is a new group, coalescing around its members’ mutual interest in developing a commons-based economicsystem that can answer to the needs of all people -- an alternative to our current corporatist, consumer-based struc-ture. This new system will take into account the whole human being, as does PROUT (Progressive Utilization The-

ory). In fact, we look to PROUT as a natural andinspirational partner in these efforts. The first morning of the conference was devoted to Proutistteachings. Our first speakers were Howard Nemon (Hiran-maya) and Roar Bjonnes (Ramesh), of the Prama Institute,who spoke on “Meeting Essential Human Requirements“and “The Three-Tiered Economy of PROUT” (respectively).Their talks provided a base for discussion and a solid foun-dation for the next three days’ presentations and break-outsessions. Prior to the conference, a dozen members of the group hadspent several months on a research project developed byeconomist James Quilligan on Carrying Capacity. With asimple formula using data derived from the U.S. Census Bu-

reau, anyone can begin to understand whether the county where they live (or any county within the U.S.) is capableof serving the food needs for its citizens. Ultimately, EDA plans to develop increasingly sophisticated measures andproposals that can be taken to our elected representatives and others to advocate for wiser land use planning. Thisapproach to sustainability will also be extended to water and energy needs. The point is to make sure basic com-modities and essential resources are sufficient for current and future needs, based on the world’s increasing popula-tion, demand for resources and declining resource yields. EDA is taking a commons-based approach to its own structure and development as an advocacy group, at the sametime it’s encouraging a restructuring of our broader-based economy. Many readers areprobably aware that the cooperative structure advocated by P. R. Sarkar is very similar tothat of the commons movement. They are mutually supportive, both leading in the samedirection. The conference explored some of the impediments standing in the way of thismore equitable and efficient system of economic governance, as well as some of the suc-cess stories found around the world and some steps we can take toward building abroader acceptance for and application of the principles shared by PROUT and EDA.EDA is deeply grateful to Prama Institute for opening its doors to our first conference.You can find us at www.EconomicDemocracyAdvocates.org and on Facebook. Jacelyn Eckman is a board member with Economic Democracy Advocates, and a rela-tively new but avid student of PROUT. After a career with the U. S. Department of State,she currently lives in Asheville, NC.

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Prout Strategic Planning Seminar – Phase Two September 29 - October 1, 2017

Prama Institute, Asheville, NC

“When the whole property of this universe has been inherited by all creatures, how then canthere be any justification for a system in which someone receives a flow of huge excess, while oth-ers die for lack of a handful of grain?” (P. R. Sarkar, Problem of the Day).

Growing populist movements around the world are a product of the unsustainable status quoand its fundamental failure to serve even the basic needs of the majority of people. That trendwas reflected in the United States with the election of Donald Trump by disenfranchised peoplewho were hoping for a change that would better their lot in life. The inevitable failure of theTrump administration to deliver on campaign promises will leave many even more desperate andlooking for real solutions. Theory will appeal to some people, but practical working models willcatch many more people’s attention and provide examples that they can copy.

The P2 Seminar will focus on the following areas:1. Review the successes and challenges of efforts initiated during the May, 2016 ProutStrategic Planning Seminar to ensure the best possible outcomes with P2 initiated projects.2. Optimize the various tools for communications, planning and decision making to provide afully integrated network that supports, tracks, and helps build P2 projects.3. Develop educational/promotional materials, e.g., film experts’ presentation of Prout topicsthat can provide a library of such materials for future use.4. Identify “shovel ready” or near-ready projects and set timelines leading to full implemen-tation of P2 projects in the near term.5. Talks and discussions on relevant topics which integrate Prout concepts with current is-sues and movements.

WHO SHOULD ATTENDMany experienced U. S. Proutists will be in attendance; however, anyone interested in gettinginvolved in P2 project roll-outs is encouraged to attend. This will be the ground floor of making areal-world, practical difference in the lives of people.

TRANSPORTATIONThe seminar will begin Friday, September 22nd at 4 p.m. and will end Sunday, September 24that 2 p.m. Please make your reservations for either the Asheville or Greenville/Spartanburg Air-ports. There are shuttles from the Greenville/Spartanburg Airport, and pickups and drop-offsfrom these airports are more easily arranged, as well.

REGISTRATIONEarly bird discount (before August 1st): $120 Regular cost (after August 1st) $140

To register, please go to prama.org/proutusa-seminar (PayPal or debit/credit card) or send checksto the Prama Institute, P.O. Box 232, Alexander, NC 28701, earmarked “Prout Seminar”.

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move. Finally they hoisted me up and I took my placewith the others. Taking slow, closely spaced steps,we marched, tightly bound together along Constitu-tion Avenue, headed for the Washington Monument.For over an hour as the girls walked, they passed mearound, and I held myself up high.This is what I said:

KELLYANNE, SHAME ON YOU!

Every few steps I was stopped! “What agreat sign! Can I take your picture?” I posedfor selfies, one after another, group por-traits, thumbs up, broad smiles. I felt vindi-cated. The March took a turn, then another. More cell phonephotos of me! They didn’t stop. The crowd keptmarching. Columns of people from different avenuesmerged with one another at the intersections. Thecrowd found new routes to take. By four o’clock, the girls were exhausted; they could-n’t keep me in the air, their arms too tired to carry me.Up ahead we saw a large swath of the marchers stopand turn toward the façade of an out-sized sand-col-

ored building. Was anyone home behind its windows,all closed behind tightly drawn curtains? The beauti-fully groomed building seemed deserted, almosthaunted.Aha! It had a sign of its own, in golden letters:TRUMP INTERNATIONAL HOTEL. People startedbooing loudly. Outside on the sidewalk stood a lowfence of what could have been bike racks in a moreenvironmentally conscious neighborhood, but wasprobably just a moveable security barrier. Someonein the crowd got an idea: Deposit Your Sign Here.One by one, those who passed by the entrance tothe Hotel lobby dropped off their messages, manyhand-drawn, and others with bold press-on letters. Iwas the best. After all, I was printed professionally inNorth Carolina by a sweet young clerk who wishedhe could have gone to Washington with me. As thegirls dropped me off at the fence, I gave my last fullmeasure of devotion in service to God and country. Ellen Landau received degrees in Anthropology fromthe Pennsylvania State University (1969) and theUniversity of North Carolina (1972) and studied in thecreative writing programs of the University of NewHampshire and UNC-Chapel Hill. She was active inthe 1960s in both the Women’s Liberation and CivilRights Movements. A teacher and school administra-tor, she has helped develop Ananda Marga schoolssince 1975, including the New Day School in Port-land Oregon, and most recently, the Mountain BreezePreschool in Marshall, North Carolina. She currentlylives in Greensboro, North Carolina, and serves astreasurer of Ananda Marga Gurukul.

Ellen and her daughter and freinds. From page 16

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Contact Us!Online at: www.proutwomen.orgWomen Proutists of North AmericaPO Box 733Northampton MA 01061Call us at: 828-274-1683Email: womenproutists@gmail.comFacebook: Women Proutists of North America

Journey of the SignBy Ellen Laundau’s SignThis is a brief account of my trip north to Washington,DC, and how I ended up a day later, part of a memo-rial heap in front of theTrump International Hotelin Washington’s old PostOffice Building.

My journey beganwith my creation at anOffice Depot store inGreensboro, NorthCarolina, on Friday,January 20. The next morning, after anearly morning drive up In-terstate 95, I arrived at aMetro station just outside ofthe capitol city. I was car-ried by a group of fourwomen: a silver-hairedgrandma, her daughter,and her daughter’s twoyoung friends. A large gath-ering of women, some withhusbands and children,had converged at the entryway to the station. Thecrowd formed a line, branching out along both sidesof the “Kiss and Ride” lane. Every 12 minutes, thedoors to the station would open and a loud cheerwould erupt from the crowd, and the station’s securityforce would move hundreds of people inside the sta-tion to purchase their Metro tickets. They descendeddown onto the subway platform to wait for the nexttrain bound for city center, as hundreds more swelledthe lines outside the station.Each time the subway platform reached its capacity,the authorities would close the station’s outer doors.The crowd standing outside would settle in to wait forthe doors to open again. Strangers passed the timeby sharing with others what was needed: hand warm-ers and snacks, introductions, and the port-a-potties.Most carried signs like me, raised above the heads ofthe crowd. Someone had even created an assort-ment of signs and left them on display at the head ofthe line for anyone to pick up and convey to theMarch. Looking at all the signs in our path, I suffered the ter-

rible fear of inferiority. Most of the messages aroundme were smart and amusing – “#Free Melania,”“Leave it to the Beavers,” “Sorry World, We’ll FixThis,” “We Shall Overcomb,” and “I Can’t Believe IHave to Protest the Same Old S**t,” the last sign car-ried by a delegate of the “over ‘60s” crowd.

My message, sadly, was aserious one. Had I miscal-culated? I worried, Willanyone understand me?Who would care? No men-tion of Donald Trump atall. Or, Mike Pence forthat matter. No clever art-work.One of the girls finally carriedme under her arm into the sta-tion, where we were put on acrowded train and taken awayinto the city. After an hour-and-a-half ride which on any otherday would have taken thirtyminutes (lots of extra trains ranthat day and clogged thetracks), we emerged from theMetro station at the Smithson-ian Institute into a shifting seaof bodies. We were lost.

Where was the stage? The speeches, the mainevent? We were trapped in a crowd of people wearing pink“pussy hats” and chanting, “This is the way Democ-racy looks!” “We want a leader! Not a creepytweeter!” At 1:15 the crowd in front of us began toContinued on page 15