In part 12 of this series, Host Michael Lerner talks with author Jeffrey J. Kripal about his book Comparing Religions: The Study of Us That Changes Us, a comprehensive guide to the comparative study of religion in the 21st century.
Part of the The Secret Body Series
As an Anishinaabe ecologist, Commonweal New School’s fall Visiting Scholar Melissa Nelson is working to find ways to return to and revitalize the Indigenous and feminist roots of science. Meet Melissa and find out more about her worldview at this event—first in conversation with Host Jaune Evans, and then in an experiential process around her new work.
As an Anishinaabe ecologist, Commonweal New School’s fall Visiting Scholar Melissa Nelson is working to find ways to return to and revitalize the Indigenous and feminist roots of science. Meet Melissa and find out more about her worldview at this event—first in conversation with Host Jaune Evans, and then in an experiential process around her new work.
Join New School Host Susan Grelock Yusem for this conversation with Zaya Ralitza Benazzo and Maurizio Benazzo—the amazingly prolific filmmakers and founders of SAND (Science and Non-Duality)——the amazingly prolific filmmakers and founders of SAND (Science and Non-Duality)—about their award-winning film The Eternal Song, the first in a documentary series that explores the devastating impact of colonization on indigenous people, lands, and cultures. Explore how our collective future depends on remembering the eternal song of existence which calls us back to our original sense of belonging.
In part 11 of the Secret Body series of conversations, Michael Lerner talks with author Jeffrey Kripal about his book How to Think Impossibly.
Part of the The Secret Body Series
As an Anishinaabe ecologist, Commonweal New School's fall 2026 Visiting Scholar Melissa Nelson is working to find ways to return to and revitalize the Indigenous and feminist roots of science. Meet Melissa, join the conversation, and find out more about her worldview in this course.

As a founder of terrapsychology—the study of how the things of the world live in us—The New School’s Spring 2025 Visiting Scholar Craig Chalquist is interested in how imagination, story, and creativity let us tune in on the Greater Conversation unfolding continually around and within us. With the podcasts, videos, writings, and exercises gathered during Craig’s visit, you can join the exploration: growing a more resilient and earth-honoring worldview.
Throughout our 50 years of work healing people and the Earth, Commonweal has always embraced the power of arts and creativity in bringing inspiration, vision, and healing in our bodies, souls, and communities. In this course, join in our exploration of how art and creativity bring healing, connection, and hope—through conversation, writing, poetry, music and sound, film, visual arts, and more.
Jeanine M. Canty is a visionary scholar whose groundbreaking work illuminates the profound connections between consciousness, thought, and our relationship with the natural world. Her teaching weaves together social justice, ecological wisdom, and transformation. By reading her writings and watching or listening to recordings of her time in residence, you can explore how mind and spirit intersect with ecological healing in your own life.
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