The Sankofa Centre
Centre for Learning.
The Sankofa Centre for Learning
The word ‘sankofa’ from the Akan Twi and Fante Peoples’ languages is represented by the Bono Adinkra symbol of a mythical bird flying forward with its head turned backward, carrying a precious egg in its mouth.
Sankofa translates as ‘go back and retreive it’ (san – to return; ko – to go; fa – to fetch, to seek and take)- and in its essence, this is precisely what Earthrise seeks to do. Earthrise’s Sankofa Centre for Learning will host physical and virtual spaces for teachers, students and co-learners to collaboratively engage in the act of re-membering by drinking deep from the springs of ancient and evolving wisdom. The learning and growing at the Sankofa Centre is deigned to be an antidote to the dis-memberment wrought by the forces of colonialism and free-market capitalism.
The space offered by Earthrise has a threefold objective, through which we aim to embody the spirit of sankofa:
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To remember, revive and celebrate the wisdom that we and our ancestors have always known in our cellular memory (but may have recently forgotten).
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To break habitual patterns of thinking and acting by learning to abide in – and courageously act from – this wisdom.
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To allow for our visions of the future to emerge from an alignment with ancient wisdom – to “go back and retrieve it,” then live and create into the future from these profound understandings.
We are building Earthrise into a vibrant online space and a physical place where wisdom teachers, warriors for the Earth, spiritual leaders, and visionaries of brave new worlds can come together to learn, dream and plan. Earthrise’s Sankofa Centre for Learning will be a pluriversity teaching different Earth-centered wisdom traditions and Earth-centered activism. It will be an imaginarium within which we dream new ways of organizing, living and serving the planet with love, in alignment with the LifeForce/Wholeness of the Earth.
Full Moon Convenings
Each month on the full moon, a small group of activists and indigenous leaders from around the world gather in intimate, soulful conversation. These conversations are designed to spark both spiritual and intellectual exploration, joining our hearts with our minds. Each month, we explore a salient, urgent issue relevant to the current state of humanity and the planet, vulnerably feeling and thinking through new ways of being and doing. Our conversations have helped all of us to deepen our work and explore new ways of taking action in the world. The Full Moon convenings play a key role in Earthrise’s weaving together of activism, ancient wisdom and alternatives.
Courses and Offerings
The Earthrise Collective will soon begin offering a wide range of on-line and in-person courses on topics relevant to our mission. These courses will be designed to support radical new kinds of activism that spring from our spiritual connections and ancestral wisdom, with the goal of inspiring innovative and exciting paths forward that can create a more beautiful world for future generations.
Retreats at Earthrise
The Earthrise Mountain Lodge lies in a secluded, sacred valley at the heart of cherry-growing districts in the highlands of the Eastern Free State. Enveloped by the Maluti mountains and a quiet ensemble of birdsong, cicadas, cows, blesbok and other wildlife, the Lodge is a stunning place to dive deeply into the serious questions of our time, meditate in connection with nature, sit in ceremony, pray, or brainstorm and co-design solutions and plans of action. The lodge is open to both groups and individuals for retreat.