Episodes

  • The Art of the Sacred with Sylvie Barbier of Second Renaissance and Life Itself

    The Art of the Sacred with Sylvie Barbier of Second Renaissance and Life Itself
    Jun 24 2026
    "We are a collective of artists making art to bring forth the second renaissance.We are alchemists. We create a new world through our work.We are the bridge between the dying past and the future unborn.Art is an expression of our consciousness and humanity, this is our path of transformation. Life as an art.…Our work is to create a space to be with all of it. To be with the joy, the darkness, the hope, the sadness, the unknown.Our work is to inquire about what would a world that works for everyone look like?"Thus begins the Manifesto on Art in the Second Renaissance, and this week we speak with its author, Sylvie Barbier, a French-Taiwanese performance artist whose work is some of the most powerfully raw, wild and beautiful I have ever seen. As well as being an artist and mother, she's an entrepreneur and educator and one of the two co-founders of Life Itself, which is designed to build a wiser future through culture, space and community. The Life Itself website says, 'We are pragmatic utopians, committed to practical action for a radically wiser, weller world. We create conscious coliving hubs, start businesses, do research and engage in activism to pioneer a wiser culture and plant the seeds of a second renaissance.' The Second Renaissance is an initiative of Life Itself which acknowledges that we live in a moment of potential crisis and collective rebirth and offers a home to the growing community of people who are working to make this rebirth happen. Sylvie is an artist of extraordinary scope and depth and so the role of art in that rebirth is the focus of this episode, but we ranged far and deep into the nature of healing our shadows so that we can heal the ancestral and descendant lines, so that we can become the ancestors our descendants are proud of; we explored the nature of ritual in building new beginnings and helping endings; as we did with the Brother from nearby Plum Village, we explored the nature of life and death and how we can meet our own deaths with grace and joy and hope. Above all, we explored how we can fall in love with living - with life itself - so that we might lay strong foundations for real transformation. And before we leap into our conversation, I want to remind you that there's an Accidental Gods online Gathering 'Walking the Path of the Inner Warrior' on Sunday 28th June - which is this coming Sunday if you're listening on or near launch day - 4pm - 8pm, on Zoom - we'll be exploring many of the ideas that we talk about in this episode, but anchoring them in your own life's experience. This follows on from our Gathering on Falling in Love with life, which, as Sylvie says in the podcast, is the key to working with our shadows. You don't have to have done that - if you're new to our work, we'll make sure you have secure grounding, but if you have been to other Gatherings, we'll build on the work we've already done this year. So - hope to see you there and then, and now, enjoy.... LinksSylvie's websiteLife ItselfSecond RenaissanceSecond Renaissance Manifesto—About Accidental Gods—We offer three strands all rooted in the same soil, drawing from the same river: Accidental Gods, Dreaming Awake and the Thrutopia Writing Masterclass Our next Open Gathering offered as part of our Accidental Gods Programme is 'WALKING THE PATH OF THE INNER WARRIOR' which will run on Sunday 28th June 2026 from 16:00 - 20:00 GMT - details are here. You don't have to be a member of Accidental Gods to come along - but if you are, all Gatherings are half price.If you'd like to join us at Accidental Gods, this is the membership where we endeavour to help you to connect fully with the living web of life. If you'd like to train more deeply in the contemporary shamanic work at Dreaming Awake, you'll find us here. If you'd like to explore the recordings from our last Thrutopia Writing Masterclass, the details are hereManda and Louise both offer one-to-one Mentoring Calls. Manda is writing a book just now, but if you'd like to contact Louise, details are here.
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    1 hr and 12 mins
  • Mothering the Future we'd be proud to leave behind - with author and activist Zineb Mouhyi

    Mothering the Future we'd be proud to leave behind - with author and activist Zineb Mouhyi
    Jun 17 2026

    "I have come to believe something that sounds simple and is anything but: if Mothering were the axis around which we revolved, we would liberate the world. By Mothering I do not mean the biological act of giving birth, or the domestic role that has been used to confine us. I mean the practice – available to all people, in all bodies – of tending to life with full presence: protecting it, nourishing it, teaching it to know itself, trusting it."

    These are the words of our guest this week, mother, writer, scholar and activist: Zineb Mouhyi in her forthcoming book series, on 'Mothering Liberation'. She defines mothering as the everyday politics - available to all people in all bodies - of tending to life and making every child ours. The book series will be made of three books. The first on mothering ourselves, the second on mothering our children, and the third on mothering the world.

    Zineb has been an advocate for social change through education, notably through the charitable organizations she co-founded — YouthxYouth & the Weaving Lab — and through her PhD research on the role of education in the Palestinian liberation struggle. I've been privileged to read the early chapters of her books as she is writing them (a courageous act in its own right) and can safely say that this is one of those life-changing works that could move us all to the collective tipping point we need. At a time when the world feels increasingly unstable, making a commitment to the flourishing of all life is central to the way forward. Enjoy!

    Links

    Zineb's website
    Zineb on LinkedIn
    Episode #141 of Accidental Gods

    —About Accidental Gods—

    We offer three strands all rooted in the same soil, drawing from the same river: Accidental Gods, Dreaming Awake and the Thrutopia Writing Masterclass

    Our next Open Gathering offered as part of our Accidental Gods Programme is 'WALKING THE PATH OF THE INNER WARRIOR' which will run on Sunday 28th June 2026 from 16:00 - 20:00 GMT - details are here. You don't have to be a member of Accidental Gods to come along - but if you are, all Gatherings are half price.

    If you'd like to join us at Accidental Gods, this is the membership where we endeavour to help you to connect fully with the living web of life.
    If you'd like to train more deeply in the contemporary shamanic work at Dreaming Awake, you'll find us here.
    If you'd like to explore the recordings from our last Thrutopia Writing Masterclass, the details are here

    Manda and Louise both offer one-to-one Mentoring Calls. Manda is fully booked just now, but if you'd like to contact Louise, details are here.
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    1 hr and 15 mins
  • Grown Up Politics: A Chance for Change - Round Table with Neal Lawson of Compass and Rupert Read of the Climate Majority Project

    Grown Up Politics: A Chance for Change - Round Table with Neal Lawson of Compass and Rupert Read of the Climate Majority Project
    Jun 10 2026

    We're at a pivotal moment in world geopolitics. Increasingly the masks and the gloves are both off - but it's not a binary choice any more between two sets of suits in slightly different coloured ties: now we have the right showing its true colours - and a chance for the progressive majority in this country to find its feet and lead us towards a genuinely thoughtful, emotionally literate, high-bandwidth politics that ditches the toxic tribalism and instead lays the ground for a future that could actually work.

    We're joined this week by Neal Lawson, co-founder and Executive Director of the progressive pressure group, Compass; and Rupert Read, Co-Director of the Climate Majority Project. Neal is a member of the Labour Party, and Rupert of the Green party and we came together to discuss the forthcoming by-election in Makerfield, where Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester is standing as a candidate, with a view to standing for leadership of the Labour Party if he wins. His main challenger is the Reform party led by Nigel Farage. The Greens are newly invigorated after their recent win in the Gorton and Denton by-election in Manchester, so there has been a lot of conversation in progressive circles as to whether the Greens should step away to give Burnham a clear run. This seemed a good moment to have a vigorous conversation - to explore the possibilities and potential and the routes forward should Burnham win.


    Compass
    The Climate Majority Project
    UK Government National Security Assessment on Global Biodiversity Loss and Ecosystem Collapse
    Andy Burnham in the Observer committing to PR
    Jamie Driscoll's post in The Canary - There's Nothing Pragmatic About Centrism
    The Fraud by Paul Holden

    —About Accidental Gods—

    We offer three strands all rooted in the same soil, drawing from the same river: Accidental Gods, Dreaming Awake and the Thrutopia Writing Masterclass

    Our next Open Gathering offered as part of our Accidental Gods Programme is 'WALKING THE PATH OF THE INNER WARRIOR' which will run on Sunday 28th June 2026 from 16:00 - 20:00 GMT - details are here. You don't have to be a member of Accidental Gods to come along - but if you are, all Gatherings are half price.

    If you'd like to join us at Accidental Gods, this is the membership where we endeavour to help you to connect fully with the living web of life.
    If you'd like to train more deeply in the contemporary shamanic work at Dreaming Awake, you'll find us here.
    If you'd like to explore the recordings from our last Thrutopia Writing Masterclass, the details are here

    Manda and Louise both offer one-to-one Mentoring Calls. Manda is fully booked just now, but if you'd like to contact Louise, details are here.
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    1 hr
  • Breaking open the Story of Bread: How stories of food can change the future with Abby Rose of Farmerama

    Breaking open the Story of Bread: How stories of food can change the future with Abby Rose of Farmerama
    Jun 3 2026

    Good podcasts are part of an ecosystem of ideas that have the potential to change the world - to shift us into the new system we so badly need. For a long time, Farmerama Radio has been at the leading, radical edge where food, farming and activism meet. In the early days, it was all about fostering the voices of grassroots, small-scale farming with monthly episodes featuring stories from the field. Then, in 2019, the co-founders, Abby Rose and Jo Barratt worked with Katie Revell to produce their first in-depth series Cereal, which looked at the process of creating bread, from seed to loaf.

    It was a huge hit, and building off the success of Cereal – which won two Guild of Food Writers Awards – they went on to produce several more series, including their most downloaded, Landed, a powerful exploration of land ownership and colonial legacy in Scotland.

    In April of this year, Farmerama launched a new project Cereal Revisited, looking at the real-world impact of their podcast, and how Farmerama's stories helped listeners take action, both big and small. This is a story of Thrutopia in action and we are really delighted to welcome one of the co-founders, Abby Rose to this podcast.


    Abby continues to lead the podcast today (the team is all women) and is both a farmer and soil health advocate. She was named one of 50 New Radicals by The Guardian and Nesta in 2018 for her work developing simple apps that help build ecology, profitability and beauty on farms around the world, and then in 2020, she was named in Code Hospitality’s Top 100 Influential Women in Hospitality. Farmerama Radio itself was named Best Investigative Work and Best Food Podcast at the Guild of Food Writers Awards 2020 and won Best Environment and Natural World podcast at the Independent Podcast Awards 2024.

    So for a story that really gets to the heart of the power of story, please do listen and enjoy.

    Links

    Farmerama website
    Farmerama Radio podcast on Apple Podcasts

    Wakelyns Farm in Suffolk
    Nottingham Mill Co-op
    Hodmedod's
    YQ Grain at Hodmedod's
    UK Grain Lab

    —About Accidental Gods—

    We offer three strands all rooted in the same soil, drawing from the same river: Accidental Gods, Dreaming Awake and the Thrutopia Writing Masterclass

    Our next Open Gathering offered as part of our Accidental Gods Programme is 'WALKING THE PATH OF THE INNER WARRIOR' which will run on Sunday 28th June 2026 from 16:00 - 20:00 GMT - details are here. You don't have to be a member of Accidental Gods to come along - but if you are, all Gatherings are half price.

    If you'd like to join us at Accidental Gods, this is the membership where we endeavour to help you to connect fully with the living web of life.
    If you'd like to train more deeply in the contemporary shamanic work at Dreaming Awake, you'll find us here.
    If you'd like to explore the recordings from our last Thrutopia Writing Masterclass, the details are here

    Manda and Louise both offer one-to-one Mentoring Calls. Manda is fully booked just now, but if you'd like to contact Louise, details are here.
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    1 hr and 11 mins
  • Trust like the Web (of Life) trusts - Biomimicry for Social Innovation with Toby Herzlich

    Trust like the Web (of Life) trusts - Biomimicry for Social Innovation with Toby Herzlich
    May 27 2026
    Life has been evolving on our planet for the past 3.8 billion years. The ecosystems that thrive now have had a lot of practice at getting things right - particularly the complex web of inter-relations that allows us all to flourish. And yet, we're on the edge of the sixth mass extinction largely because we humans have forgotten how to inter-relate and inter-be with the rest of the web of life. At an intellectual level, we know we're integral nodes in the web, but we still behave as if it were other, and out there and not - yet - as if it were a source of wisdom and wonder and wholehearted support: an ancient mentor that has tried and tested enough options to know what works. So how can we bring the astonishing, creative insights of Biomimicry to the field of human inter-being? How can we shift our sense of self and other, our communities of place, purpose and passion, our businesses, our governance structures…everything that we are and do onto a different trajectory using the web of life as our template? Biomimicry for Social Innovation asks exactly these questions and in this episode, we're talking to its founder, Toby Herzlich. Toby is a facilitator, trainer, executive coach, and organizational consultant. She is a Certified Biomimicry Specialist and Founder of Biomimicry for Social Innovation, which exists to translate ecosystem intelligence and Life’s Principles into leadership and social change strategies. As you'll hear, she's part of the team that developed The Nature of Trust, and its 8-principle framework for building and maintaining trust, which is so essential in any network of sovereign individuals whether they're bees, or penguins, elks or geese - or people. Living in northern New Mexico, Toby dedicated 20 years as a Senior Trainer with the Rockwood Leadership Institute and continues to support leaders and organizations through coaching and consulting inspired by nature. Her clients include Executives at National Geographic Society, The Sierra Club, and The Cultural Conservancy. She is passionate about creating innovative approaches to collaboration, building, and guiding diverse networks including the Biomimicry Professional Certification two-year training cohorts, the Volgeneau Climate Initiative, North Carolina’s statewide progressive voter network, and the Indigenous Mycelium Gathering of 2025 - there's a link in the show notes and you will definitely want to explore that. Toby is the founding co-facilitator of the Living Systems Leadership Retreats for Women and has supported the capacity-building of women leaders in war-torn countries of the Balkans and the Middle East. There are so many richly inspiring pathways that Toby has opened as a result of bringing a social change and leadership development branch into Biomimicry - collaborating deeply with that larger movement and, at heart and core, with the Web of Life. This was one of those conversations that could have gone on forever. It didn't, we stopped at a reasonable time and are definitely planning to cycle back with each other. And the cats visited—Toby's and mine—which always makes a podcast flow with extra energy. Enjoy! BSI Website The Nature of Trust toolkit (free and online)Living Systems Leadership Retreat for Women- in NM Aug 31-Sept 5 - open for registration!Intro to Biomimicry for Social Innovation - virtual 4-week workshop, starts in OctoberNature of Trust Co-Lab - virtual 10-week deep dive training, starts in SeptemberToby on LinkedIn (funny, when I open this, it asks me to join LinkedIn, rather than taking me to the page)What would Nature Do? Toby's Talk at Festival of Faiths (27 min video) Indigenous Mycelium Gathering 2025 (8 min video)Other BSI resources:Life’s Principles Leadership Cards - a deck of 52 cards for learning and Nature Tarot!Nature Positive Practices - delivering Nature’s genius to your inbox twice a week!—About Accidental Gods—We offer three strands all rooted in the same soil, drawing from the same river: Accidental Gods, Dreaming Awake and the Thrutopia Writing Masterclass Our next Open Gathering offered as part of our Accidental Gods Programme is 'WALKING THE PATH OF THE INNER WARRIOR' which will run on Sunday 28th June 2026 from 16:00 - 20:00 GMT - details are here. You don't have to be a member of Accidental Gods to come along - but if you are, all Gatherings are half price.If you'd like to join us at Accidental Gods, this is the membership where we endeavour to help you to connect fully with the living web of life. If you'd like to train more deeply in the contemporary shamanic work at Dreaming Awake, you'll find us here. The next Foundation Course is in October and currently has spaces. If you'd like to explore the recordings from our last Thrutopia Writing Masterclass, the details are hereManda and Louise both offer one-to-one Mentoring Calls. Manda is fully booked just now, but if you'd like to contact Louise, details are here.
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    1 hr and 24 mins
  • Thoughts from the Edge: Manda explores Thrutopian narratives, the building of intent and the paths to a future we'd be proud to leave behind

    Thoughts from the Edge: Manda explores Thrutopian narratives, the building of intent and the paths to a future we'd be proud to leave behind
    May 20 2026

    What are Thrutopian stories and why do we need them? How do they work? And most importantly, how can we craft them to land most effectively with ourselves and each other at scale and in time?

    In this solo episode, Manda walks us through the middle way between the dystopia of now, towards the utopia of a future in which humanity flourishes as an integral part of a thriving planet. What could it and would it be like if each of us woke up every morning feeling safe, feeling confident in our ability to meet the challenges of the day in ways that would leave the world a better place? How would we feel if every moment of life was alive with a sense of meaning and purpose, of connection to all parts of ourselves, each other and the web of life?

    We ask these questions regularly of our guests, but once in a while, it's useful to unpick them in detail, to give ourselves the Motivation, Agency, Direction and Empowerment we need, so we can open doors for others in our communities of place, purpose and passion.

    Link to the Thrutopia website - what is Thrutopian thinking?

    —About Accidental Gods—

    We offer three strands all rooted in the same soil, drawing from the same river: Accidental Gods, Dreaming Awake and the Thrutopia Writing Masterclass

    Our next Open Gathering offered as part of our Accidental Gods Programme is 'WALKING THE PATH OF THE INNER WARRIOR' which will run on Sunday 28th June 2026 from 16:00 - 20:00 GMT - details are here. You don't have to be a member of Accidental Gods to come along - but if you are, all Gatherings are half price.

    If you'd like to join us at Accidental Gods, this is the membership where we endeavour to help you to connect fully with the living web of life.
    If you'd like to train more deeply in the contemporary shamanic work at Dreaming Awake, you'll find us here.
    If you'd like to explore the recordings from our last Thrutopia Writing Masterclass, the details are here

    Manda and Louise both offer one-to-one Mentoring Calls. Manda is fully booked just now, but if you'd like to contact Louise, details are here.
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    1 hr and 4 mins
  • Playing the (New) Money Game - how to recreate sustainable money with Stef Kuypers of Happonomy

    Playing the (New) Money Game - how to recreate sustainable money with Stef Kuypers of Happonomy
    May 13 2026

    If the death cult of predatory capitalism is based on money as the commodification of suffering (which it is) - how do we create a monetary system that encourages people to help each other, to create communities of place, purpose and passion that are genuinely supportive and to invest where trust and hope lead, rather than simply the hoarding of ever-increasing amounts of value?

    Stef Kuypers is an astonishing individual. He taught himself coding at age 14 and moved into a career in IT - but he's a complete polymath and, after working the fields of creative thinking, improvisation, and business interventions, he took a deep dive into economics, monetary systems, complexity theory and human behaviour. Today he researches how monetary systems influence both our individual behavior and how it affects the way we organize our society. He's creator of the Sustainable Money Model and works for Happonomy in Belgium.

    He's also aware that we don't just need a system that will work differently, we need to find ways to help people transcend the inner blocks that tell us the existing system is the only one that can work and anything else is unrealistic. So, as an avid gamer online and on tabletops, he's devised board games that help people to experience what it's like to live in worlds that work differently. And if you or anyone listening is associated with any kinds of games companies, please let us know - because regenerative gaming that models regenerative ways of living has to be one of the ways forward.

    That apart, we explored many routes to money and how we might handle it differently - enjoy!

    Links
    Stef on LinkedIn
    Stef's Tedx Antwerp Talk
    Stef's Tedx Youth Talk
    Stef on Economy 2.0

    Papers on ResearchGate.net
    Paper on the Sustainable Money Model
    Paper on Computational Analysis of post-keynesian monetary systems
    Paper on decoupling economic health from growth

    —About Accidental Gods—

    We offer three strands all rooted in the same soil, drawing from the same river: Accidental Gods, Dreaming Awake and the Thrutopia Writing Masterclass

    Our next Open Gathering offered as part of our Accidental Gods Programme is 'FALLING IN LOVE WITH LIFE' which will run on Sunday 17th May 2026 from 16:00 - 20:00 GMT - details are here. You don't have to be a member of Accidental Gods - but if you are, all Gatherings are half price.

    If you'd like to join us at Accidental Gods, this is the membership where we endeavour to help you to connect fully with the living web of life.
    If you'd like to train more deeply in the contemporary shamanic work at Dreaming Awake, you'll find us here.
    If you'd like to explore the recordings from our last Thrutopia Writing Masterclass, the details are here

    Manda and Louise both offer one-to-one Mentoring Calls. Manda is fully booked just now, but if you'd like to contact Louise, details are here.
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    1 hr and 25 mins
  • Brave Containers: Sharing stories, pushing boundaries & creating trust with the Generative Journalism Alliance

    Brave Containers: Sharing stories, pushing boundaries & creating trust with the Generative Journalism Alliance
    May 6 2026
    When we talk about building community, we often get stuck trying to bridge tribal divides, particularly in a media landscape designed to monetise division, amplify hatred, and draw us into cycles of righteous anger.But what if there was a different approach? One that creates a sense of individual and collective agency, that centres the gifts and strengths of everyone in the room in a way that lets everyone feel heard and so sweeps beneath the tribal divisions to the heart of things, where we all care about a future that feels safe, and open, where we all feel confident and heard and seen, where we can bring our soul's growth to the table and be taken seriously. So how do we achieve this social sculpting? This week, we're talking to three members of the Generative Journalism Alliance to find out how they bring these very skills to disparate people in disparate places, to bring about real world changes. Tchiyiwe Thandiwe Chihana was born in Bradford to Zambian born parents, and her existence is a tapestry of migration through generations. She is a public-interest broadcaster & moderator, building civic storytelling platforms that connect institutions & communities. Managing Director, African Voices Platform (TV & DAB) and Co-Founder, Generative Journalism AlliancePeter Pula has been exploring the pathways to social evolution since founding the Grassroots Review in Canada in 1992. Since then he has been actively involved in federal politics, led a corporate communications firm and established the practice of Generative Journalism in an international arena. Jack Becher is a systems change facilitator and story weaver with a background shaped by social-ecological movements. They are the Co-Founder and Steward of the Generative Journalism Alliance, Beyond Patriarchy, Sideways, Foundations Earth and the Kinstead.This conversation opens doorways to a future where we have the wide, deep skills to move through the tribal divisions that our current system stokes so effectively, towards a place where we discover what matters to us most, and find ways to give everyone a sense of agency, of meaning and purpose, of being and belonging. This is how change happens, one conversation at a time and the Generative Journalism Alliance is hosting those conversations with deep integrity. Tchiyiwe on LinkedInPeter on LinkedIn Jack on LinkedInGJA on LinkedInGJA SubstackGJA Just Transition Field Report pdfUpcoming GJA Workshops (Next series starting 4th June)Axiom News Media Sovereignty Petition —About Accidental Gods—We offer three strands all rooted in the same soil, drawing from the same river: Accidental Gods, Dreaming Awake and the Thrutopia Writing Masterclass Our next Open Gathering offered as part of our Accidental Gods Programme is 'FALLING IN LOVE WITH LIFE' which will run on Sunday 17th May 2026 from 16:00 - 20:00 GMT - details are here. You don't have to be a member of Accidental Gods - but if you are, all Gatherings are half price.If you'd like to join us at Accidental Gods, this is the membership where we endeavour to help you to connect fully with the living web of life. If you'd like to train more deeply in the contemporary shamanic work at Dreaming Awake, you'll find us here. If you'd like to explore the recordings from our last Thrutopia Writing Masterclass, the details are hereManda and Louise both offer one-to-one Mentoring Calls. Manda is fully booked just now, but if you'd like to contact Louise, details are here.
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    1 hr and 11 mins