the auspices
a self-paced learning journey
thank you for your interest in this program! below is a detailed description of the course, including info about instructors, course timing, tuition, and more. please read thoroughly, or, if you are ready, click ENROLL NOW to be taken to the registration page!
about the program
inspired by our summer 2021 course, the auspices self-paced learning journey is an experiential program rooted in online study and ecological practice with the earthscapes and biomes you find yourself in. the program includes recorded teachings and prompts from the original course, as well as newly curated videos and practices to support your journey across the elements of the astrological seasons.
“under the auspice(s) of…” is a phrase often used to describe benevolent guidance, perhaps a prophetic sign…though it’s earliest meaning traces back to augurs who observed birds’ flight and language to prophesy (often to some king somewhere tryna look for some omen for some war… boringgggg….this ain’t that!)
here, we’re not interested in utilizing bird language nor prophecy in service to the state! here we come to gather, reimagine and queer the auspicious — literally meaning “bird-seer” — deepening connections and relationships with the more-than-human world so that we might show up well for them, and with more care, tenderness, insight and commitment to our human kinfolk. we come to be intimate with the birds, the soil, the water, the fire, and one another so that we might strengthen our prophetic muscle for curiosity.
among the constellations those of us at Weaving Earth call home, we’re witnessing a revival and craving for mysticism1 and oracular arts2 so we can offer more livingness (Katherine McKittrick), to move in the elsewhen and elsewhere, beyond dystopia, and with a renewed orientation toward justice. through pattern awareness and practices that nurture the regeneration of our intuition, we seek to instigate a community of practice centered in enchantment, “attention liberation” (adrienne maree brown), and eco-social repair.
in the Summer of 2021, Weaving Earth hosted a course called under the auspices of summer. In this offering, we followed the sun’s transits across the sky as we “t[ook] root among the stars” (Octavia Butler, Parable of the Sower). guided by the elements hosted through this cosmic arc (air, water, fire and earth), we wove the wisdom of the skyfolk together through ecological, somatic, artistic, and liberatory oracular praxis.
the auspices self-paced learning journey, inspired by our summer 2021 course, is an experiential program rooted in online study and ecological practice with the earthscapes and biomes you find yourself in. the program includes recorded teachings and prompts from the original course, as well as newly curated videos and practices to support your journey across the elements of the astrological seasons.
much of our 2021 summer course was informed by the grace of what emerges through fellowship and discourse. that particular format of the course could not be included in this version because it is self-paced. however, we strongly encourage applicants to apply with a pod in heartmind! are there people in your life you long to do this work with? consider inviting your community, co-conspirators, family and friends to join you as a practice group so that the aspect of fellowship can accompany your learning journey!
Program arc and timing
the program is organized into 6 modules which we imagine taking 4-6 months to complete according to the flow outlined below. that said, we invite you to engage with the course creatively and in ways that support your particular schedule and timing needs.
here is a breakdown of how the course would flow should you follow the suggested outline:
each module will begin with a brief orientation video, followed by a group of practices broken into four categories:
the practices within these categories are designed to help us drop into earth intimacy, divination and mystic practices related to the element of that module. practices are rooted in radical astrology, critical inquiry, creative/ecological practice and encounters with guest facilitators who are working at intersections of eco-social co-liberation related to the element of that module.
the daily/weekly time commitment is truly customizable based on your flow, and we suggest putting in a few hours per week. these practices move at the pace of the earth and are body-based by design, so the more time we offer them, the more they will sink in.
we strongly encourage applicants to apply with a pod. are there people in your life you long to do this work with? invite them to join and create a practice group!
Program cost + payment Details
a prayer for balance & equity
we yearn to discontinue the horrors of capitalism. and we recognize that we remain entangled within that system (for now). so we aim to do what we can from within that paradox — recognizing that there is great opportunity and possibility that can emerge from engaging the tension between what is and what must be. our prayer is to make the exchange of resources for this program a part of the long arc of changing our way of being with money, resources, and wealth.
since its inception, the U.S. has been designed to privilege, prioritize and empower certain identities over others through the systems of white supremacy and racism, cis-heteropatriarchy, classism, ableism, and American exceptionalism (to name just a few). all identities that deviate from the “societal norms” created primarily by white, land-owning cis-het men, are targets of personal and structural discrimination, resulting in both individual pain and systemic inequity. therefore, the notion that wealth simply accrues to those who work hard is a cultural myth — a myth that upholds colonialism, white supremacy, cis-heterosexual male dominance and extractive capitalism.
we intend to interrupt ongoing systems of inequity and the resulting lack of access to programs and education for marginalized identities through providing access to this program through a number of pathways: sliding scale, payment plans, a Lifeways Back access fund, and a General Scholarship fund.
Accessibility Needs: there is also a space on the registration page to name any accessibility support that would make it possible for you to join (ie translation, audio voice-overs, etc.). again, once all needs are known we will do our best to accommodate!
Tuition for this program is offered on a sliding scale of $100 — $350 with 4 options available:
1) One-time Payment: for those who can afford it, please choose the “one-time payment” option from the drop down menu. note: you are enthusiastically encouraged to pay at or beyond the high end of the scale! paying at or beyond the high end of the scale supports participants to join via the Lifeways Back and General Scholarship Funds. anything beyond the high end of the scale will be considered a tax-deductible donation. look for this option in the financial section of the registration page.
2) Payment Plan: for those who cannot afford to pay in full, we offer a 4-month payment plan. on the registration page, choose the price point on the sliding scale that works for you between $100-$350 and it will be divided into 4 equal payments over four month.
3) Lifeways Back Access Fund: for Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC). we hold a prayer for the manifestation of the full expression of what reparations and land-back can and will mean in this country, and in the world. knowing that this full expression is not yet here, we highlight one aspect of that larger prayer: the return of lifeways.
“Many of the so-called ‘skills’ taught in the fields of nature connection and ancestral arts are not skills — these are lifeways — indigenous, multi-species pedagogy for time immemorial. We have the right to access and reclaim our Lifeways.”
~Pınar Sinopoulos-Lloyd
this quote from our dear kin and co-collaborators, and co-founder of Queer Nature, Pinar Sinopoulos-Lloyd serves to remind us that there is a difference between accessing lifeways and financial scholarship. this is not a scholarship fund, and we do not assume that individual BIPOC applicants do not have access to wealth. these funds are offered with a prayer for collective liberation. the “sliding scale” for Lifeways Back begins at $0, and does not need to go any higher — however, it includes the possibility of offering a gift of any size, should you so choose. anything you do choose to offer will go directly toward the Lifeways Back Access Fund, allowing us to offer our work to future BIPOC participants.
4) General Scholarship Fund: for those from other marginalized groups, for those in need, for those seeking respite from the pressures of supremacy culture. if financial assistance would be supportive for you in joining this program, check the corresponding box in the tuition section of the application. once we have a sense of the overall need we will do our best to accommodate everyone’s request.
please contact us if you have any questions, or need support in ways not articulated in the pathways above.
CORE TEACHING TEAM
tayla shanaye
(she/they) tayla shanaye holds a Masters in Psychological Studies with a concentration in Somatic Counseling Psychology from the California Institute of Integral Studies. Much of her research focuses on how racism, environmental destruction, and activism perpetuate embodied traumatization among marginalized communities.
tayla has forgone board licensure as a Marriage and Family Therapist and is pursuing her PhD in Women’s Spirituality, unearthing the expanded state of consciousness accessed through childbirth and revealing its role in Black maternal liberation.
Drawing on her experience as a mother, dancer, theatre performer, yoga asana instructor, folk herbalist, mystic, philosopher, social critic, educator, and activist, she works to facilitate self-awareness and meaningful engagement with the co-creation of reality. She lives in the occupied Anishinaabeg lands of the so-called Upper Peninsula of Michigan with her sun, partner, and elder 4-legged. She is committed to a loving relationship with the Living Earth, so that the land, waters, and seasons can do their good work of shaping her body and humbling her mind.
brontë velez
(they/them) brontë’s work and rest is guided by the call that “black wellness is the antithesis to state violence” (Mark Anthony Johnson). as a black-latinx transdisciplinary artist, curator, trickster, educator, jibarx and wakeworker, their eco-social art praxis lives at the intersections of black feminist placemaking, abolitionist theologies, environmental regeneration, death doulaship, and the necessity of comedy. they embody this commitment of attending to black health/imagination, commemorative justice (Free Egunfemi) and hospicing the shit that hurts black folks and the land through serving as creative director for Lead to Life design collective (leadtolife.org) and ecological educator for ancestral arts skills and nature-connection school Weaving Earth (weavingearth.org).
they are currently co-conjuring a mockumentary with esperanza spalding in collaboration with the San Francisco Symphony and practicing pastoral care as a co-steward of a land refuge in Kashia Pomo territory in northern California. mostly, brontë is up to the sweet tender rhythm of quotidian black queer-lifemaking, ever-committed to humor & liberation, ever-marked by grief at the distance made between us and all of life.
Lauren D. Hage
(she/her) Lauren comes from Ashkenazi Jewish (Russian), Sicilian, and Scottish ancestry. She is Executive Director and co-founder of the Weaving Earth Center for Relational Education, an educational nonprofit that encourages the study and practice of Earth Intimacy, Co-Liberation, Embodiment and Prayerful Action as key approaches for addressing the social and ecological crises of our times.
As an educator, consultant, ecological designer, and creative, Lauren is dedicated to supporting people to pursue their passions and shape their actions from a foundation rooted in interrelationship. She is guided daily by spiderwebs, oaks, birds, music and family. Attention to magic and mystery is at the heart of her praxis. Lauren is also deeply committed to honoring the cycles of menstruation as a prayer for healing.
Lauren currently lives as a white settler on occupied Southern Pomo territory, a place whose original colonizers included Russian and Italian — two lineages which run through her body. She gives deep thanks and respect to the original peoples of this place, and carries the commitment to be in right relationship with the people, the land and the waters therein. And while this commitment isn’t enough to address the historic and present-day harm done on this continent — and globally by supremacy culture — she nevertheless believes it is her response-ability to walk humbly with this prayer while continuing to learn, change and do better along the way.
Support staff and guest facilitators
one of Weaving Earth’s co-founders, Dave Hage, will be in service to this program as administrators and support-facilitators throughout the program arc. additionally the program is gifted by an amazing host of guest speakers and facilitators!
David Hage (he/him)
Dave is a co-founder of the Weaving Earth Center for Relational Education and a member of the core Teaching Team for adult programming at WE. He carries a deep love of landscape he grew up in —and still calls home — in Southern Pomo territory, and is passionate about serving others in creating/deepening their own relationship to place.
Dave is a Wilderness First Responder and has been guiding nature connection experiences for youth and adults since 2006. He brings his love of the natural world and his care for humanity into this work, with a particular fire for drawing out creative expression. He is grateful for the privilege to be in a process of co-liberation alongside participants and guides, and he remains a humble student to this collective effort.
Naike Swai (they/them)
Naike Swai is a healing arts practitioner, musician and astrologer of Tanzanian and German heritage. Their interest in studying the vibratory imprint of nature’s forces on our mind and body led them into the practice of classical acupuncture, sound healing and astrology.
Whereas acupuncture provides a somatic map of how our bodies digest the experiences of life, astrology lays out a wondrous fabric of the cosmic clock and how the planet’s resonant influences shape our individual and collective lives – each thread representing the planetary patterns that dress and move us. In their readings and workshops Naike weaves these strands together. A graduate from the Portland School of Astrology, their focus lies in decolonizing astrology and connecting to the transformative liberation inherent in our natal charts.
liz kennedy (she/they)
liz kennedy is an artist & environmental justice organizer based in Detroit (occupied Wawiyaataanong, Anishinaabe territory). She is Program Coordinator for the Detroit-based Allied Media Conference and is committed to creating spaces for artists and organizers to strategize, celebrate, and cross-pollinate across movements and mediums.
They also alchemize with Lead to Life, a trans-local collective of queer artists, healers & ecologists bridging racial and environmental justice through ceremony and art practice to provoke radical imagination toward justice. Her work is to queer systems of oppression through joy, ritual, abolition, black feminism, decolonization, and relationship with the more-than-human world.
Niria Alicia (she/they/we)
Niria Alicia is a Xicana Indigena human rights advocate, climate justice organizer, educator, storyteller and social impact strategist dedicated to protecting the sacredness of Mother Earth and the dignity of historically oppressed peoples.
She graduated Cum Laude from the University of Oregon with degrees in Environmental Studies, Latin American Studies, Nonprofit Administration and was inducted into the Phi Beta Kappa honor society. She was accepted as an outstanding masters candidate and awarded a scholarship to pursue her studies of Human Rights at Columbia University. In 2019 her climate justice and environmental education work earned her the national ‘Emerging Leader Award’ from GreenLatinos’ and the internationally recognized ‘EE 30 under 30’ award from the North American Association for Environmental Education and this year, the United Nations has named her the Young Champion of the Earth for North America giving her the highest honor the UN gives to young people under the age of 30.
Hadassah Greensky
Hadassah GreenSky is a Anishinaabe (Chippewa) multidisciplinary artist living in Detroit, Michigan. She is a tribal member of the Little Traverse Bay Band. She works in the traditional mediums of fabric, leather, copper, beads and paint. She is also a proficient illustrator and photographer. Her style is described as indigneous futurist, blending the styles of two worlds- the Native and the colonized experience. Her passion is culture revitalization in urban spaces where gentrification and other forms of colonization have replaced Native practices, lifeways and community.
Within these rooted ancestral ideologies, Hadassah studies the land and plants, the stories and language, and weaves this precious knowledge into every aspect of her artistic practice. She is the premier female Native jazz vocalist in the Detroit area, having attended The New School for Jazz in NYC and performed in top jazz clubs in and out of the NYC and Detroit metropolitan areas. She is a community organizer, traditional dancer and model, having modeled for a photo taken July 1st, 2020 at the base of the old Christopher Columbus statue in Detroit, Michigan. The photo was picked up by Vogue Magazine, featuring an interview with Hadassah and highlighting her art and her community work. She is currently making and selling her art, working on a new music project and, for the second year, launching Michigan’s First Indigenous Music Festival with her partner.
Richie Reseda (he/him)
Freed from prison in 2018, Richie Reseda is an abolitionist-feminist producer and organizer. He founded Question Culture, the social-impact record label who coexecutive produced the Defund The Sheriff Album in 2020 featuring Vic Mensa, Lauren Juaregui and more; Success Stories, a transformational feminist program for incarcerated men chronicled in the CNN documentary “The Feminist on Cell Block Y;”
Richie also cofounded Initiate Justice, which organizes people directly impacted by incarceration to change laws to end it. He works closely with Black Lives Matter, Inspire Justice and more, to transform narratives and upend systems of oppression.
Dr. Koko Zauditu-Selassie (she/her)
Dr. Kokahvah Zauditu-Selassie, “Mama Koko” holds the Master of Science degree in Reading,
the MFA degree in Creative Writing and the Doctorate of Arts degree in the Interdisciplinary
Humanities. Recently retired as Professor of English at Coppin State University in the
Humanities Department, she was a 2009-2010 Fulbright Scholar at the University of Cocody,
Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire, a National Endowment for the Humanities fellow, a National Council for
Black Studies fellow at the University of Ghana, Legon, a Fulbright-Hays fellow in Cairo, Egypt,
a New York University Scholar-in-Residence, a Mellon fellow at the Gorée Institute in Dakar,
Senegal, and a Fulbright-Hays Scholar in the Republic of South Africa.
She is an accomplished author with a literary imagination peopled by sex workers, women adept
in making poison, root women, stargazers, astral travelers, shape-shifters, abandoned children,
maroons, and lonely widows in search of sexual satisfaction. She writes the words that her
ancestors whisper bringing those otherworldly interactions alive. She is a priest of Obàtálá in the
Lukumi Yoruba tradition and a descendant of a matrilineal group of Hoodoo believers from New
Orleans, Louisiana.
Jeanette Acosta (she/her)
Jeanette is an indigenous Permaculture specialist and a certified permaculture teacher and designer who specializes in maritime culture, herbalism, ethnobotany and biodynamics. Her experience dealing with indigenous peoples, international business people, world diplomats, heads of states, renowned artists/celebrities, and politicians gives her a very unique perspective on various cultures and customs.
Jeanette was raised in a household visited by traditional indigenous healers who imbued in her the respect of these sacred traditions. Her experience dealing with international business people, world diplomats, heads of state, renowned artists, celebrities and politicians gives her a unique perspective on various cultures and customs. She has extensive experience in herbology, ethnobotany, flower essences, diet and nutrition, yoga and meditation, creating supportive lifestyles for living addiction-free and life purpose cultivation. She elevates the value and versatility of all souls she encounters.
Redbird Willie (he/him)
After graduating from UC Berkeley with a degree in Native Studies, Redbird Willie has worked in various fields of education, while at the same time continuing to enrich his personal education – an education fueled by his desire to uncover and rekindle the cultural earth based knowledge of California Indians. Edward is an artist, native ecologist, graphic designer, basketweaver, regalia maker, permaculturist and budding herbalist. He has 4 grown children.
Will Scott (he/him)
Will is a member of the Teaching Team for WE adult programs, and one of Weaving Earth’s co-founders. His lineage comes primarily out of Ireland, Scotland, Wales, Great Britain, Italy, Germany and France, and he currently lives as a white settler on Southern Pomo territory. His passion resides at the intersections of ecological health, human development, social justice, and community resilience.
Since studying ecopsychology, social change, and wilderness experiences in college, Will has committed himself to a focus of healing the division between humans and the more-than-human world. This focus includes actively expanding his understanding of how the concept of wilderness itself reflects a human- and euro-centric frame of reference with roots in the colonization process. He has grown and learned over the years through deep relationships with a variety of teachers and organizations, each exploring how we can re-member and revitalize our relationships to self, others, and earth as a response to the crises we face. This journey led him to Prescott College where he pursued a master’s degree that explored the importance of, and possibilities for nature-based, relationally-focused education in these complex times.
Sam Edmondson (he/him)
Sam is the Associate Director at Weaving Earth. He was born and raised in Washington, D.C. (Nacotchtank territory) and currently resides as a white settler on unceded/occupied Southern Pomo territory. His lineage is northern european—scottish, irish, british, german, and french. He is dedicated to a future in which human beings live beyond separation and domination and is continually examining with humility what that asks of him today.
In addition to his role on the Executive Team, Sam has worked on the Teaching Team for the WE Immersion and as a guide for youth and teen programs. He is a certified Wilderness First Responder and a devoted student of birdsong, animal tracks, and fire-making. He also maintains a deep personal commitment to racial justice, which has evolved over the years into a responsibility to understanding how interlocking systems of oppression shape his reality and societal advantages, and what to do about it. Additional passions include martial arts (Aikido), music-making (guitar), writing, and figuring out how things work.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS and futher musings
who is this program for?
this is first and foremost for the weirdos (as in the origins of the word wyrd…you know, those who have the agency to guide destiny, notice synchronicities, and perform miracles!). this is for those who seek to be idle, blessed and relieved in the wake of so much grief. for those who seek ritual to interrupt rhythms of time decided for us by capitalism, patriarchy and white supremacy. For those who want to interrupt the attention economy, and those who feel the earth longing for our attention. it is for those who are looking to devote themselves to enchantment, to fall deeper in love with the places and communities we seek to protect.
for those who want to heal from bible camp but still believe in being enchanted by the divine. for folks who want to witness the sun stand still and the night grow short and the days grow longer together. for those who want to know their tears and the watershed that provides them.
for those who trust in the stars and want to come to know them closer. for those who care about stories and believe they can change shit. for those who believe “loitering is delightful” (Ross Gay) and gratitude a reliable keel. for those who want to laugh, clown and fortify silliness as necessary. for folks who want to get lost together and be found by the wisdom of birdsong. for those unenamored with wtf is going on in this world; who want to reconnect with the mysticism of dreams and the earth — not to spiritually bypass but to show up informed to your bioregion with a prophetic lineage guiding you.
for those who want to wander, want to bring myth into the waking, want to study with people who believe in god and say yes to prayer and ceremony. for those who wanna enjoy the heck out of life and be led by the brilliance of awe. for those who wanna ground their liberation work between and among the earth; between and among the stars ~
will the program meet in person?
there is an online “folx forum” that serves as a community space for all those enrolled. this will be a place for us to share stories, to witness others and to be seen. we will not meet as a full cohort in person, however for anyone signing up with a group, there is encouragement to meet in person for practices and story swapping.
do I need to sign up with a group?
signing up with a pre-existing group is optional, though strongly encouraged. and regardless we hope that you can find ways to weave your community into the process, perhaps by sharing your stories with them along the way or inviting them into practice with you in some way!
do you have payment plans or scholarships?
yes! the payment plan makes it possible to pay monthly over the course of the program, and we have two access funds in place as well. read more about this in the “payment details” section above.
do you have personal mentoring services available?
yes! at Weaving Earth, we hold mentoring as a sacred, foundational area of our work and we know that additional support through a program like this can deepen the experience in wonderful and surprising ways. We believe mentoring to be an essential ingredient to the transmission of skills and perspectives, between generations and across spectrums of difference. At its best, mentoring is collective and reciprocal, whereby the hats of “teacher” and “student” are ever in flux and shared by many. Mentoring is at least a two-way street, if not an entire ecological network. Perhaps most importantly, we hold nature as the bedrock of all our mentoring work, and recognize our interrelationship with the natural world as the original mentoring container.
Weaving Earth provides both personal mentoring and organizational consulting services.
To find out more and set up an initial informational call — free of charge — fill out the contact form on our consulting and personal mentoring webpage.
reasons for applying
of course there are a million reasons folks will want to apply, and here are some of those that crossed our heartminds as we created this course:
perhaps you’re applying to conjure – maybe you’re working on a creative project (a book, a dissertation, an album, a film, some paintings, a business etc.) and are seeking an ecological, mystic container and pace to support you to realize and ground that work ~
perhaps you wanna ground your work in eco-social liberation – maybe you been organizing for your kinfolk in your city or town but wanna strengthen your attention muscles to the earth so that you might re-weave with the land as source. or perhaps your work been in the land and you long to deepen a liberatory relationship to how you are connecting to the earth ~
perhaps you’re applying cuz you tryna rest! – maybe you’re just tryna chill! it has been a lot lately… you’re tired and seeking respite; you long to be enchanted again, to not have to do jack shit but be in awe and behold, to release, to receive, to be poured back into, to revive the well ~
perhaps you’re applying because you wanna study with your people – maybe you have been longing to study with your colleague, your best friends, your pod, your parents, your chosen fam, your partner/s. maybe you miss the people you love and want to cultivate a rhythm to be in a shared practice together across distance where you can be close through offering your shared attention — and perhaps you all want to apply together (!)
on the ecological role of longing
our friend, WE alumni, and one of Weaving Earth’s board members Justine Epstein has a beautiful essay in Loam Magazine called “Longing as Compass” where she speaks to the ecological role of longing; the erotics of yearning; what it is to crave belonging and to be met, to be known, to be received, to be felt, to be witnessed; and how the earth’s health is predicated on our longing.
in the spirit of Justine’s scholarship, WE is holding what it is to name our longing as a radical act. the auspices self-paced learning journey is a practice in calling out our longing, naming our desire, sharing the vulnerability that this is the study and practice we too long to receive and be conjured by.
and in that transparency is the truth that we can’t deliver on this offering alone as Weaving Earth. we seek to create a container that can behold the longing between us while humbly knowing it can’t all be fulfilled here. we will be courting our longing, not quelling it. we hope those who apply will feel a similar tug in them, will come with an understanding of the gift of longing itself, and will join with us to draw down this offering’s prayer so we might realize it together!
on the complexity and tension between grief and enchantment
in the midst of so much collective and personal strife, and as we face the real time effects of climate collapse, there is an over abundance of anxiety, nervous system disregulation, earth inflammation…it is so so much. and the more we pay attention, the more we will open to the pain and immensity of the complexity of oppression.
we believe that wonder is essential, not as a bypass to this pain, but in assisting us to protect and defend the earth and their most vulnerable. this program is for people who seek to protect their wonder so they can protect themselves, others around them and the places they love.
FOOTNOTES
- Eco-Mysticism for Apocalyptic Times
by So Sinopoulos-Lloyd with Pinar Sinopoulos-Lloyd, Originally published in Loam Magazine (July 2020) ^back - Deeply inspired by the work of Lead to Life. Click here to watch a trailer for their ritual film, “between starshine and clay” (May 2021) ^back