Dr. Sundiata is an Independent Educator, Anti-Oppression Activist, & Social Sustainability Facilitator. He is the co-creator of GROW, a network of people and initiatives designed to promote and create social, economic, and political systems centered on Liberation, Sustainability, and Unconditional Love. He is passionate about helping people discover the power of Authentic Dialogue, a communication framework that leverages complex issues in personal relationships and organizations to help them generate solutions that foster deeper understanding, cohesiveness, freedom, and trust. Dr. Sundiata is also the host of the Theory of Indivisibility Podcast which analyzes the evolutionary origins, current complexities, and future of our social, economic, and political systems, and serves on the board of Heartwood Agile Learning Center, a K-12 independent school that facilitates Self-Directed Education in the metro Atlanta region. Here is an excerpt of his 2019 conversation with a Self-directed Education Center in Durham, North Carolina, about the connection between self-directedness and a socially-just, sustainable world.
A few Mad Question Askin’ Moments:
Has your awareness of sustainability, climate change, etc. gone up significantly?
How did we get to this point and why are we having this conversation?
What is nature?
What is the intent/design of nature?
What is the systems theory and how did it originate?
Is everything a system?
What is the “natural” system and how do plants play a part in the natural system?
Is there any special training that is needed for us to have that relationship with plants and for them to have that relationship with us?
What is the symbiotic give-and-take relationship and what are some examples of it?
Do all plants give off the same amount of oxygen?
What are the most important life-sustaining processes?
What is nature’s economy and how does it work?
Is anything considered a “waste” in any of the systems?
