Educational institutions could place a higher value on the inner life of young people by supporting a culture of contemplation.

"Picking up son from school, as usual he wanted to play in the schoolyard with the other kids. Game was tag, sort of. You get immunity if you assume lotus position and meditate, complete with ommmmm. And then you run around like a ninja. At one point there were 6 kids meditating in a circle. Portland public schools? Or just generic left coast? 'YOU CA-AN'T GET ME; I AM ENLI-IGHTENED; NEENER NEENER NEENER'". - Todd Fahrner

"Gaining fluency with the contemplative practices – like becoming an artist or athlete – requires not only time and attention, but social and institutional support. Where do we learn and refine the skills to be an artist or an athlete? We go to school. An intellectual education alone does not nourish the whole person. For that, schools additionally provide resources to train in creative and athletic skills – but very few other life skills, and fewer that promote flourishing and transcendence in the way contemplative practice can." - Michael R Sheehy

ARTICLE: What If We Learned Contemplation Like We Do Arts or Sports?

Educational institutions could place a higher value on the inner life of young people by supporting a culture of contemplation.

Motivation, curiosity, and values are not add‑ons to learning; they are its engine.

The greatest danger we face is psychic numbing—the impulse to shut down our capacity to feel grief, fear, and outrage about what is happening to the Earth.

"The thread running through every phase of our development is relational."

We are a lot smarter together.