Keith Runyan is the General Secretary of QEW, that's Quaker Earthcare Witness, and among his duties in that role was as a participant of the 30th COP session. You likely know of several earlier COP conferences, including COP3 in Kyoto in 1977, COP21 in Paris in 2015, and so last year, 2025, was the 30th United Nations Climate Change Conference. We'll learn a bit about COP30 and Keith's role there, but also about the kind of work we all can do, individually, and as part of organizations, to stop and reverse the damage we are doing to the Earth, and the kind of strength and skill we need, personally, to do such work. We sat down now with Keith Runyan at the University of Vermont in Burlington.
John-Michael Field, initials JMF, is mostly known as JAMOOF, but I think an even better name might be Big Love's Dowsing Rod, because his music is so powerfully aimed at the Big Love; not just the personal romantic connection but the thing that also gets called by the Light, the Tao, and many other names. There is naked soul and gritty mountain climbing in JAMOOF's songs, with reflections of Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen, and other rich folk fodder. His guitar and voice are compelling, solid, and completely real, with no artificial sweetener or illusions mastered over by studio gimmicks. You'll sometimes see him on stage with the likes of Claire Dacey, but often solo. And best of all, he joins us here, in person, in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, instead of via Zoom from Massachusetts, which he calls home.
John Scardina has worked in multiple fields, including as a teacher, and as a psychologist, but his passion for decades has been around AVP - the Alternatives to Violence Project, Men's work, and the work of the Friends Peace Teams., where John is co-clerk of Peacebuilding en las Americas. John has amazing talent to accompany his deep passion, and is therefore willing and able to work places and with people that too many ignore. Whether it's in Sing Sing Prison, in Central America, or in Palestine, John works at making this world better with a rich bag of tools and a caring heart. John Scardina joins us in person in Burlington, Vermont before a live audience at the 2026 FGC Gathering.
Today's guest-host, Peterson Toscano, is bringing us an incredible creative gift to us today, and it's clear to me that he's not just showing off his writing gifts, which are considerable, but he's hoping to inspire you to develop and use similar gifts, hopefully for the kind of world-growing, world-healing, purposes that are at the core of Peterson's work. So, on one level, you'll hear some of the steps that he goes through to hone his writing, but on another level you're going to be diving deep into the ideas, emotions, visions, and concerns that Peterson has for the world.
Doug Gwyn was our guest for Spirit In Action about his book, A Sustainable Life, back in 2015, but he joins us today to share from the music he's been creating & sharing for decades. Doug retired in 2018 from his work as a Quaker pastor, which freed him up to produce & remaster songs he's had for years. Doug grew out of the music of the 60s and 70s, but he's got a take all-his-own in his songs. Perhaps his best known song is, "That of Odd in Everyone," a take-off on the common Quaker expression, “That of God in Everyone”. Find Doug's writings at DouglasGwyn.life. Doug Gwyn joins us from Richmond, Indiana.
Past/present religious/spiritual influences: Methodist, Quaker
A visit with Ahmed Quereshi, the executive director of the Interfaith Conference of Greater Milwaukee, a wide variety of 22 judicatories, large and small, working to build “a strong, peaceful, and sustainable community where all are treated with justice, mutual respect, and dignity”. Founded in 1970, the organization includes representatives of Hindus, Jews, Sikhs, Moravians, Catholics, Baptists, Quakers, Episcopals, Unitarians, Lutherans, Mormans, and many more, all aiming to find mutual understanding & connection. Ahmed is an almost retired attorney who has been active with the Interfaith Conference for decades, and has served as its executive director for 3 years.
Past/present religious/spiritual influences: Muslim
P.J. Hoffman was a musician, performer, songwriter, & social justice worker in his youth, playing violin, French horn, tuba, guitar and piano, including 4 years with a group called The Mystics. But one day he woke up without the gift of music which he had always had within, and he ended up on a different path for decades. Retirement brought him back to his gift and his roots, born out of 1960's folk music and activism, resurrecting & updating his slate of music. We had him on NSR previously for an interview he did with George Lakey for the Everyday Nonviolence Podcast. P.J. Hoffman joins us from Minnesota's Twin Cities.
Past/present religious/spiritual influences: Methodist, Quaker
Our guest-host today is Jan Spencer, and in this episode of A Primer For Paradigm Shift, Jan Spencer describes several examples of "push back" to the System. We will have a look at nuclear power, the iconic book Your Money or Your Life, message music from the 1960's, the Black Panthers, a new report about the Global Justice Project from the Paris School of Economics and more. Paradigm shift is all about thoughtful and positive pushback to capitalism and the consumer culture.
I've seen mentions of the music of Bettman & Halpin for years, but it took running into a video of a new song by Stephanie Bettman to lead me into the wealth of music she's written and performed. Just recently Stephanie released her own album, Out of the Darkness. Stephanie's range is astonishing in oh-so-many ways. Certainly in terms of vocal range, genre range, and the range of themes & ideas, but also in that she's also been an actor and a trapeze artist! Whether tracing the steps of the Trail of Tears or seated in a lounge, crooning a torch song, Stephanie invites you to the heart's center. Stephanie Bettman joins us via Zoom from Denver, Colorado.
Past/present religious/spiritual influences: Seeker, Yoga, New Age, Course In Miracles
We're back today with Part 2 of our Song of the Soul visit with Arielle Silver. If you missed part 1 last week, it can be easily found on our website, and it was a visit steeped in song, story, and Arielle's silky-soaring voice. We finished just as she was explaining some of the riches & wonderings that were gifts of her Jewish upbringing, including her deep dive into Eastern and Earth-based inspirations. We'll continue today, exploring some of the fruits of her 2 more recent albums, as we magically continue our visit with Arielle Silver, near Los Angeles, California.
Past/present religious/spiritual influences: Jewish, Earth-based Spirituality, Pantheism, Yoga, Meditation