Edgy Ideas By cover art

Edgy Ideas

By: Simon Western
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  • Summary

  • Welcome to Edgy Ideas, where we explore what it means to live a ‘good life’ and build the ‘good society’ in our disruptive age. This podcast explores our human dynamics in today's networked society. Addressing topical themes, we explore how social change, technology and environmental issues impact on how we live, and who we are - personally and collectively. Edgy Ideas podcast aims to re-insert the human spirit, good faith, ethics and beauty back into the picture, offering new perspectives and psycho-social insights. We pay particular attention to how the ‘unconscious that speaks through us’, entrapping us in repetitive patterns and shaping our desires. Each podcast concludes by contemplating what it means to live a ‘good life’ and create the ‘good society’. Enjoy! Edgy Ideas is sponsored by the Eco-Leadership Institute A radical think tank and developmental hub for leaders, coaches and change agents. Join our community of practice and work live with many of our podcast guests Discover more here: https://ecoleadershipinstitute.org (https://ecoleadershipinstitute.com/events) Contact simon@ecoleadershipinstitute.org
    Simon Western
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Episodes
  • 82: Reimagining Humanitarianism Using Systems Thinking with Kate Moger

    82: Reimagining Humanitarianism Using Systems Thinking with Kate Moger
    Jul 16 2024
    Kate Moger is the Global Director of Pledge for Change, an NGO representing a mutual commitment towards building a stronger aid ecosystem based on the principles of solidarity, humility, self-determination and equality. Kate shares her journey in the humanitarian sector and her vision for transforming it. With over two decades of experience in various leadership roles, Kate reflects on how she entered the field somewhat accidentally and how her perspective has evolved over time.

    Kate discusses the changing landscape of humanitarian work, from her early days as part of the "last of the salvationists" to her current role in driving radical change. She candidly shares her experiences in South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo, highlighting both the challenges and profound connections she found in these contexts.

    The conversation delves into the complexities of power dynamics, feminism, and decolonizing aid. Kate emphasizes the importance of intersectionality and understanding power imbalances in her approach to feminism and humanitarian work. She explains the origins and goals of Pledge for Change, an initiative aimed at transforming the humanitarian sector through equitable partnerships, authentic storytelling, and influencing wider change.

    Kate and Simon explore the tensions within the humanitarian system, questioning whether reform is possible or if a complete dismantling is necessary. They discuss the importance of nurturing emergent systems and leadership at the edges, while acknowledging the geopolitical complexities surrounding humanitarian work.

    The podcast concludes with Kate's reflections on what it means to live a good life and create a good society, drawing on the concept of Ubuntu and the importance of speaking truth to power with kindness. This conversation offers a thought-provoking look at the challenges and opportunities in reimagining humanitarian work for a more equitable future.
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    44 mins
  • 81: Social Movement Activism with Eleanor Moore

    81: Social Movement Activism with Eleanor Moore
    Jun 25 2024
    Eleanor shares her experiences and reflections on working closely with social movement activists for over 20 years. She lives in a Catalonian mountain village, where the Ulex Project she works for runs training and capacity-building events for a wide range of social movements. Eleanor reflects on the changes she has witnessed in social movement activists over time, such as how the hope for big social change has decreased due to the poly-crisis and complexity of the world's challenges.

    Simon and Eleanor discuss how the ideology of neo-liberalism presents itself as TINA, ‘there is no alternative’, which has been very effective in reducing expectations and diminishing the hope of change. Activists need to sustain and energise themselves, and Eleanor shares how Buddhism has helped her decenter her individualism, and expand her relationality to all beings.

    She shares how rock climbing provides her best leadership model, as when climbing there is total reliance on the leadership-followership relationship, and how the best plans get undone usually by nature intervening, forcing an emergent mindset.

    Bio

    Eleanor Moore is part of the Ulex Project core team that provides pan-European capacity-building support for social movements. Her role bridges facilitation, developing partnerships, governance, strategy, and programme evaluation.

    She is embedded in practices of distributed leadership, solidarity economy, and mutual care—a daily exploration of prefiguration.

    Before Ulex, Eleanor spent 10 years working across diverse social projects in the UK, such as housing, legal, and horticultural projects. These experiences and an immersion in critical theory in her early 20s led to an ongoing life exploration of the connections between the personal, the interpersonal, the socio-political, and the ecological.

    A climber of many years, she finds respite, sanctuary, and sense-making on high exposed ledges, hanging out with lichen and vultures, and connecting with the perspectives of the non-human world.
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    44 mins
  • 80: Lacan and Coaching with Leslie Goldenberg

    80: Lacan and Coaching with Leslie Goldenberg
    Jun 11 2024
    Leslie is a student at the Lacanian School of Psychoanalysis of San Francisco and shares an interest with Simon about how Lacan’s work can be very useful in our coaching practice. Leslie shares how Lacan’s psychoanalytic approaches show up in her work saying the most important thing is that “it changes the way I listen”.

    She shares how this listening picks up on words and other speech acts that are often missed, such as repetitions, and sounds such as um and ah, and how these tell us something about our unconscious relationship to ourselves and others.

    Simon and Leslie share experiences of psychoanalysis and how it is used in coaching. Leslie talks of how the body holds so much of our unconscious experience, and how she might ask a client about any body symptoms they are experiencing as a way to engage with the unconscious.

    This fascinating discussion meanders through many experiences and thoughts, ranging from how Quakers and Buddhist practices are connected with psychoanalysis, and the overlaps between Leslie’s ceramic artwork and the unconscious. We hope you enjoy this podcast and it enriches your day!

    Bio

    Leslie Goldenberg is a Coach and an award-winning ceramic artist. Over the past several years, her work has increasingly come to address the unconscious at work in organizational life. Leslie earned her M.A. from UCLA and is currently a student at the Lacanian School of Psychoanalysis of San Francisco.

    She holds a PCC credential from the International Coaching Federation, has a Master Coach certification from the Hudson Institute of Coaching, and was trained in our own Eco-Leadership Institute Coaching approaches.
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    40 mins
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