Hazel Henderson, co-author of Cosimo’s Book of the Month The Power of Yin invites you to submit nominations for the EthicMark® Award for advertising that uplifts the human spirit and society, which she founded in 2005 and Ethical Markets co-sponsors with the World Business Academy and University of Notre Dame. 2010’s winners, Annie Leonard and Free Range Studio for “The Story of Bottled Water,” have released a new video - The Story of Citizens United v. FEC. The EthicMark® 2011 Award will be presented again at the annual SRI in the Rockies Conference, October 24-25 in New Orleans.

View the Free Range Studio video below:

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This month Dr. Judy Griffin, renowned herbalist, aroma therapist, and author, has some advice about a common skin ailment: eczema. You can read her entire list of remedies in this month’s newsletter on her website, Aroma Health Texas, and you can also buy them at a discount.

Here’s some advice about the affliction:

Allergic eczema is the most common skin disease, often beginning early in life. One in 5 children of industrial countries is affected by this red, inflamed itchy skin. It is usually followed by a host of allergies to food, animals and the environment.

Recent research indicates a mutation of the filaggrin gene is often involved with children suffering with eczema. Filaggrin is a protein involved with the formation and hydration of a protective layer of skin. Mutations in the gene create dry, flaky skin unable to form an effective barrier from foreign irritants. These “allergens” pass through this porous layer of skin producing an allergic response and resulting in eczema. Afterwards, these same materials, or allergens will also produce an allergic reaction in the lungs or in the coryza skin of the nasal tissue only because the skin was unable to maintain a strong barrier during the initial exposure. The natural skin barrier must be repaused to avoid continuous allergic responses and more eczema.

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In her newest newsletter, Barbara Marx-Hubbard, co author of The Power of Yin, has this to say about the crises happening throughout the world, in Japan, Libya, the Middle East, and even here at home:

Dearly Beloved Conscious Evolutionaries,

As we suffer through the mounting crises in Japan, Libya, the Middle East, and the whole world, it is vital that we place the crises in the context of evolutionary drivers toward what is being born through us. For example, members of the Goi Peace Foundation in Japan sent out a letter to many of us saying that they have decided to invite visionaries, scientists, artists and environmentalists from all over the world to help them build a New City that represents the New Civilization.

As you know, we have known that “Our Crisis is a Birth.” Now I feel the hour of the birth is near. How will we make the shift in time, quickly enough to avoid ever greater destruction?

Here is what I know.

There are several keys. One is to link as quickly as possible what is already emerging. Another is to rapidly increase the field, the vibration of heart-coherence on a planetary scale.

In line with these essential elements, I am really thrilled to invite you to enroll in my Agents of Conscious Evolution Training (ACE) starting April 19 for those who want to embody the principles and practices of conscious evolution and to help form global teams to catalyze the Birth Day celebration on December 22, 2012. Never before in my life, or any of our lives could such an opportunity be offered to us.

Click Here for more information.

I invite you to enroll in the ACE twelve week course, and if you are so called, work together for the next 20 months midwifing and gentling the planetary birth, helping to build the Field of Resonance in which millions of us can align.

And as a special incentive, The Shift Network is offering an early-bird discount if you sign up by this Thursday, March 31st.

The Field Reveals What is Emerging. This is an opportunity to give your highest gifts in creating a Planetary Birth Experience that can shift our consciousness and evolve our world.

Love always,

Barbara

Be sure to check out the ACE Training Site for more information and to sign up to attend the conference on April 19!

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Good Business International, a company dedicated to creating a better world through socially-responsible investment and business practices, has long been a supporter of green business and groups that attempt to fulfill their mission and hold themselves accountable for their effect on the world. They provide news and support about and for these companies, as well as videos and radio streams for those interested in learning more about good business practices. They review books, and blogs, support various aspects of the green community, rate and list business that follow sustainable practices (including Cosimo!), and comment regularly on the financial situation in the U.S. through their blog.

Their most recent blog posts, written by Executive Director and Editor-in-Chief of Good-B Monika Mitchell, rages against the banking system in the U.S. and the foreclosure and housing collapse situation that jump-started our economic fiasco. These posts tie in well with a new Cosimo Report, The Financial Crisis Inquiry Report, originally published earlier this year by the U.S. government and forthcoming from Cosimo with an added Foreword from Danny Schechter the News Dissector. You’ll have to wait for the book is published to read the whole thing, but here’s just a taste of what Danny has to say:

Very little of the discourse about the FCIC report referenced the victims—the millions of families now without breadwinners and homes. Most of the commentary still looks up at CEOs, not down at the people whom they robbed by design, as folk singer Woody Guthrie put it, not with a six-gun but “with a fountain pen.”

When most of us think of crime, we think of gangsters with guns, not banksters with elaborate schemes designed to transfer other people’s wealth to their accounts. Graydon Carter, the editor of Vanity Fair, a publication more at home with Groucho Marx than Karl Marx, said of the meltdown: “[This] may well turn out to be the greatest nonviolent crime against humanity in history … never before have so few done so much to so many.”

Looking at a January 13th post from Good-B, titled “The Yellow Brick Road to Foreclosure,” Ms. Mitchell’s comments sound awfully familiar:

Hundreds of thousands of mortgage documents were “robo-signed” by one “Linda Green” in an equal number of handwriting styles. The prolific Green appears to be a bank officer at dozens of firms across the nation leading to the breakdown of the foreclosure process and the scrutiny of all legal documents. (To date: Ms. Green has not returned calls for comment.)

Banks and their armies of crocodile-shoed lawyers shedding crocodile tears are mad as hell and not going to take it anymore. Well boys (thankfully not too many girls)… according to recent court rulings in New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts and Florida – the jig is up. Last week a New York judge dismissed a bank’s case and rebuked the plaintiff’s attorneys by stating, “Swearing to false statements reflects poorly on the [legal] profession as a whole.”

In a perfect world, if a borrower defaults in a secured creditor relationship, the lender looks for ways to collect on the collateralized debt. The seemingly limitless fraud on the part of mortgage brokers, lenders, underwriters, “securitizers” and servicers over the past few years, reveals that Dorothy, er.. I mean, Senator Negron—we are definitely not in Kansas anymore.

If you’re in agreement with the righteous anger over the misdeeds of top bank employees and CEOs (and the U.S. government treatment of the debacle), go check out more at Good-B.com, and read the newest Cosimo Report next month!

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Good news has been coming from the authors of The Power of Yin! Hazel Henderson and Barbara Hubbard both have conferences and events coming up, and Hazel Henderson has some updates from her company, Ethical Markets Media. Read more below:

The Hazel Henderson - E. F. Schumacher Library has been catalogued in collaboration with the E. F. Schumacher Society (now the New Economics Institute), and we are also making it available to my longtime associates at Schumacher College (UK) where I am still teaching. Available online, most of the 5000 volumes deal with what’s wrong with economics, systems approaches, science, technology, policy and multi-disciplinary facets of sustainability, as well as sub-categories of war, peace and elections thanks to the work and contributions of Alan F. Kay, Ph.D., internet pioneer and Ethical Markets Advisory Board member. Over 1000 periodicals and reports will be added in the future, as well as the books reviewed regularly at www.ethicalmarkets.com. We hope students of sustainability will take advantage of this resource. The Library in St. Augustine is open to Schumacher College students and E. F. Schumacher researchers by appointment.

Today we released our February 2011 report of the Green Transition Scoreboard® (GTS). The GTS represents time-based, global research of non-government investments and commitments for all facets of green markets. This update of the GTS totals $2,005,048,785,088 from 2007 to the end of 2010, significant because many studies indicate that investing $1 trillion annually until 2020 will accelerate the Green Transition worldwide. The updated 2010 finding puts global investors and countries on track to reach the $10 trillion in investments goal by 2020. The press release went out this morning via CSRWire, and the full report is available online. Please link, repost, blog, forward or otherwise send out as appropriate. As you can see, we’ve moved the icon’s barometer to the $2 trillion mark, right on schedule!

UPCOMING WORKSHOPS & CONFERENCES
• The Sacred Way of Conscious Evolution: April 15 - 17, 2011
  A Weekend Workshop with Barbara Marx Hubbard
  THE SOPHIA INSTITUTE, Charleston, South Carolina
• Real Time in the Chrysalis Retreat: April 29 - May 1, 2011
  A weekend retreat with Barbara Marx Hubbard, is being held for all students and developers of conscious evolution.
  SANTA BARBARA MISSION RETREAT CENTER, Santa Barbara, California
• Renewable Energy Finance Forum: Canada, April 5-6; Wall Street, June 21-22
  Timothy Nash, MSc, will be reporting on the REFF-Canada and Martha Shaw will be reporting on the REFF-Wall Street, co-organized by our friends at the American Council on Renewable Energy (ACORE).
• The Future of CSR Leadership: March 14 - 17, 2011
  Good Business IS Good Business, Featuring Hazel Henderson
  FAIRFAX, Virginia

Find out about more conferences and events at their websites, ethicalmarkets.com and barbaramarxhubbard.com.

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Danny Schechter, author of the Cosimo Book Plunder, The Crime of Our Time released a new blog post at the beginning of this month about the goings-on in Libya, Wisconsin, and of course, Wall Street. You can read all about it on Danny’s blog.

If you like reading about the financial crisis, you can also check out the new Cosimo Book, which will be released at the beginning of April, The Financial Crisis Inquiry Report, the official government report from the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission, with a Foreword by Danny Schechter. Keep an eye out on the Cosimo blog for updates.

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February 23, 2011
By “The Publishing Guru” Todd Rutherford

This is a must read for anyone interested in the origins of UFO’s!

This review is for: Flying Saucers over the White House: The Inside Story of Captain Edward J. Ruppelt and His Official U.S. Airforce Investigation of UFOs, by Colin Bennett

Colin Bennett’s Flying Saucers Over The White House is a tribute to U.S. Air Force officer Captain Edward Ruppelt and his findings in the field of “Ufology.” Edward Ruppelt is credited for having invented the term “unidentified flying object,” which replaced the term “flying saucer.” The book focuses on UFO research, UFO culture and history, alleged military coverups, Project Blue Book, and the Condon Report. Edward Ruppelt is considered to be one of the founding fathers of Ufology. He is renowned for his contributions in the investiga

Ruppelt often encountered difficult circumstances and doubters on his job of explaining UFO sightings and reports. Working with the Pentagon, Ruppelt established the new Project Grudge and authored the Report on Unidentified Flying Objects, which was based on his findings. Ruppelt states, “We found out that the UFOs frequently visited Washington. On May 23 fifty targets had been tracked from 8:00PM till midnight.” Unfortunately, Bennett concludes that Ruppelt’s brainchild, Operation Blue Book, “is verbally and, hence conceptually, erased in an operation that any hard-line Soviet commissar of the time would have admired. Names and faces disappear, the stories come apart, hanging together as threads and webs as little bits go missing.” This is, perhaps, the reason why so many people have heard of the term “UFO” but have never heard of U.S. Air Force officer Captain Edward Ruppelt. The Air Force investigations revealed that the UFOs posed no threat to national security. Although people like Chieftain Samford are prepared to do almost anything to prove that the UFO is a figment of the imagination, Edward Ruppelt works tirelessly to establish credibility
for Ufology.

Ultimately, Flying Saucers Over the White House sheds light on the life of one man who single-handedly changed the way the government looked at concepts like security. Colin Bennett’s purpose in writing the book is to present Edward Ruppelt’s information to a newer, more open generation–to let it decide what it wants to believe. There is certainly
enough evidence to warrant revisiting the issue. This is a must read for anyone interested in the origins of unidentified flying objects (UFOs), or in the reaction of the government toward what has become a respectable area of study.

A great read for anyone who desires to make a difference–large or small–for a better tomorrow!

This review is for: Earth Fever: Living Consciously with Climate Change, by Judy McAllister, Erik van Praag, and Jan Paul van Soest

Earth Fever: Living Consciously with Climate Change, by Judy McAllister, Erik van Praag, Jan Paul van Soest, is an environmental awareness book that adamantly calls for change. Discussing key issues such as poverty, the energy crisis, economic recession and climate change, the authors argue that our world is teetering on the precipice of disaster. Earth Fever is a fascinating read that asks thought-provoking questions and enlightens the reader about changes that can be made now and in the future.

Combining their diverse experiences, the authors convey a pertinent message: “Of course there are other global environmental problems, all of which are interwoven: the loss of biodiversity and livable biotopes, erosion, water shortages, food scarcity, desertification, and more. If we attempt to solve all these problems at the same time, it will definitely have consequences for the growth of our income.”

One main concern they express is that a sense of urgency and the willingness for reform do not seem apparent in our modern society. Ultimately, the mindset of our leaders needs to change–or the leaders need to be replaced– and conscious decisions regarding the welfare of the world must be made in earnest.

The social dilemma we see that seems so crippling for improvements to the climate inevitably involves self-sacrifice and lifestyle change. The authors describe this dilemma as, “the person who changes his behavior experiences the burden him- or herself, whereas the benefits (lower CO2 emissions, lower climate risks) are enjoyed by everyone now as well as later generations.”

Ultimately, the authors seek to ignite a transformation of consciousness, one person at a time. Significant collective and structural change is also necessary to make a difference in the environment. Using Buddhism’s Eight-Fold teaching, the authors encourage individuals to become loving, compassionate and satisfied with their own lives. They vehemently shoot down any thought of passive tolerance. When individuals don’t speak about the “little” things that are disturbing, then the larger problems will never be overcome.

Overall, Earth Fever presents a unique way to look at the world, with a list of ailments and problems and ways we can initiate change for a healthier planet. In a nutshell, the authors’ mantra for the book is, “We call for a leadership that radiates vision, courage, and a love for Gaia, this glorious planet, and everything on it.” A great read for anyone who desires to make a difference–large or small–for a better tomorrow.

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Cosimo’s March “Book of the Month” is an oldie but a goodie. The Power of Yin, by Hazel Henderson, Barbara Marx-Hubbard, and Jean Houston, edited by Barbara DeLaney, is a “magnificently feminist, grandly humanist, rousingly hopeful approach to the myriad challenges facing planet Earth and her people today.” It uses a uniquely feminine point of view and way of thinking to invite others to use the attributes they already possess “to join together in spirit and in action to help evolve the human community on planet Earth.” Published by Cosimo Books in 2007, this important call to action is just as important now, if not moreso, than it was four years ago, as humans begin to realize ever more clearly how desperately we need to change.

HAZEL HENDERSON
Partial bio taken from Hazel’s website

Hazel Henderson is the founder of Ethical Markets Media, LLC and the creator and co-executive Producer of its TV series. She is a world renowned futurist, evolutionary economist, a worldwide syndicated columnist, consultant on sustainable development, and author of The Axiom and Nautilus award-winning book Ethical Markets: Growing the Green Economy (2006) and eight other books. She co-edited, with Harlan Cleveland and Inge Kaul, The UN: Policy and Financing Alternatives, Elsevier Scientific, UK 1995 (US edition, 1996).

Her editorials appear in 27 languages and in 200 newspapers syndicated by InterPress Service, Rome, New York, and Washington DC. Her articles have appeared in over 250 journals. She is currently a full-time television producer and has served on the Boards of many investment forums.

She holds Honorary Doctor of Science degrees from the University of San Francisco, Soka University (Tokyo) and Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Massachusetts (USA). She is an active member of the National Press Club (Washington DC), the World Future Society (USA), a Fellow of the World Futures Studies Federation and a member of the Association for Evolutionary Economics.

Hazel can be found online at her two websites, hazelhenderson.com and ethicalmarkets.com.

BARBARA MARX HUBBARD
Partial bio taken from Barbara’s website

Buckminster Fuller has called Barbara Marx Hubbard “the best informed human now alive regarding futurism and the foresights it has produced.” Widely regarded as his philosophical heir, Barbara is a social innovator, speaker, author, educator and leader in the new worldview of conscious evolution. […] Through her books, DVDs, educational programs, TV appearances, interviews and speaking engagements, her message continues to bring answers and comfort to global audiences seeking answers to today’s most pressing issues.

She is currently the producer and narrator of an award-winning, on-going DVD series entitled “Humanity Ascending: A New Way through Together.” Part One: Our Story, now translated into seven languages, has been selected for the prestigious Spiritual Cinema Circle. Part Two: Visions of a Universal Humanity, brings together cutting-edge scientific, social and spiritual visionaries to create a positive vision of our future equal to our new capacities.

In 1990 she co-founded the Foundation for Conscious Evolution through which she developed the Gateway to Conscious Evolution, a global educational curriculum enrolling participants in the developmental path toward the next stage of human evolution. […] She was instrumental in founding many major organizations including the World Future Society, New Dimensions Radio, Global Family, Women of Vision In Action, The Foundation for the Future, and the Association for Global New Thought.

She remains a leader on the growing edge of the women’s movement, supporting the emergence of the Evolutionary Woman, the Feminine Cocreator who is calling for the next level of creativity and partnership between women and men to guide our world through our current challenges and opportunities.

Barbara can be found online at her website, on her blog, and on Facebook.

JEAN HOUSTON
Partial bio taken from Jean’s website

Dr. Jean Houston, scholar, philosopher and researcher in human capacities, is one of the foremost visionary thinkers and doers of our time, one of the principal founders of the Human Potential Movement. A powerful and dynamic speaker, she holds conferences and seminars with social leaders, educational institutions and business organizations worldwide.

Jean Houston has worked intensively in 40 cultures and 100 countries helping to enhance and deepen their own uniqueness while they become part of the global community. Her ability to inspire and invigorate people enables her to readily convey her vision–the finest possible achievement of the individual potential.

In 1965, along with her husband Dr. Robert Masters, Dr. Houston founded The Foundation for Mind Research. She is also the founder and principal teacher since 1982 of the Mystery School, a school of human development, a program of cross-cultural, mythic and spiritual studies, dedicated to teaching history, philosophy, the New Physics, psychology, anthropology, myth and the many dimensions of human potential. She also leads an intensive program in social artistry with leaders coming from all over the world to study with Dr. Houston and her distinguished associates.

She is a prolific writer and author of 26 books including A Passion for the Possible, Search for the Beloved, Life Force, The Possible Human, Public Like a Frog, A Mythic Life: Learning to Live Our Greater Story, and Manual of the Peacemaker.

Dr. Houston holds a B.A. from Barnard College, a Ph.D. in psychology from the Union Graduate School and a Ph.D in religion from the Graduate Theological Foundation. She has also been the recipient of honorary doctorates.

Jean can be found online at her website, on Twitter, and on Facebook.

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The Power of Ridicule vs. an Uncomfortable Truth: Why We Need to Take UFOs Seriously

When: Saturday, March 5, 2011
Where: The Edgar Cayce Research Center (ARE), 241 West 30th St, New York, NY. Between 7th and 8th Aves on the north side of the street, Second floor, buzzer 102. Just a block down from Penn Station.
Time: 1:00 to 3:00 PM
Cost:$10.00 ARE members, $15.00 non-members

The subject of UFOs and their implications have been ridiculed and laughed at since the summer of 1947, the advent of our so-called modern age of sightings. How and why did this pattern of behavior come to exist? What were the actual events which set it in motion, and why is so important for us to grasp the reality of and implications surrounding this historically distorted and derided subject? In this illustrated presentation, investigative writer Peter Robbins guides us through the birth and growth of the ridicule factor, the strategies which govern its effectiveness, and how it serves the interests of government repression and the tabloid press and broadcast media. Time allowing, Robbins will then examine some of the most significant and best documented UFO cases and events. An excellent introduction to the dynamics surrounding this extremely serious and profoundly important area of study.

Peter Robbins is the co-author of Left at East Gate: A First-hand Account of the Rendlesham Forest Ufo Incident, Its Cover-up, and Investigation, Cosimo Books, 2005

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