Fetzer Institute Appoints Steven Harris as Vice President of Ecosystem Transformation
Kalamazoo, Michigan, July 8, 2024 — The Fetzer Institute announces the appointment of Steven Harris as vice president, ecosystem transformation, effective July 15. In this new role, he will lead the Institute’s work in select sectors or “ecosystems” to center...
The Research Behind StoryCorps’ One Small Step Initiative
Recently our partners at StoryCorps shared the research behind its One Small Step (OSS) initiative, which was born out of increasing concern about the growing political divides and contempt in society. On a Zoom call with funders (Fetzer is a...
Belonging, Bridging, Becoming: An Immersive Residency for Young Adults
Humanity and the planet are going through a rite of passage where we’re being compelled to learn to live in new ways and get a sense of what matters most to us. —M. Rako Fabionar, Program Director, Innovative Living and...
Addressing Toxic Polarization Requires Heart-level Spiritual Solutions
The results are in! Fetzer is excited to share news of 25 interventions that can help strengthen American democracy. This work, the Strengthening Democracy Challenge, took place over the past few years in a project we co-funded with our allies...
Toward a Spiritual Infrastructure of the Future
Spiritual innovation is happening all around us. From taking church to the streets of Skid Row to proclaiming rest as resistance within a productivity-obsessed culture, spiritual innovators are expanding the boundaries of how we access the divine and seek meaning...
Effective Philanthropy: Learning from Our Partners
In 2022 we took a big leap with our partners: We initiated a standardized survey of funded partner perceptions administered by the Center for Effective Philanthropy (CEP). Relationships are the bedrock of our work, and we wanted to deepen into...
It’s OK to Grieve
On a recent trip to Washington DC, I met with a dozen friends and colleagues in the philanthropic community. In these conversations, I heard the ways that many of us feel a deep sadness, a sadness compounded by these times...
Celebrating Boundless Love
After decades together, a member of my writing group announced she was getting married. It was the second gay wedding in our group in the last year and I was invited! On an overcast fall morning I joined friends and...
Cultivating Kindness from the Inside Out
I have a fierce inner critic who has shadowed me most of my life. While she still hovers, bit by bit she is relaxing her grip. That’s in large part due to finding Kristin Neff’s work on self-compassion. Whether your...
A Homily in the Church of Baseball
I love this game. I really do. For instance, I love the shape, the geometry of the game—so clean, so precise, 60 feet 6 inches exactly from the pitcher’s mound to home plate. I love the beauty of...