In this episode, Laura sits down with Isa Gucciardi, Ph.D. for a timely and deeply reflective conversation about hope—not as a passive wish, but as an active state and a conscious choice. Together, they explore what it means to live hope as an action in times of collective uncertainty and social fracture. Drawing inspiration from the Bhutanese government's radical commitment to policies that prioritize the happiness and well-being of its people, the conversation opens into a broader inquiry: What if healing and consciousness were central measures of progress?

Laura and Isa examine how the deep fractures within our society mirror unresolved splits within the individual psyche—and how healing personal wounding becomes a powerful act of social and spiritual transformation. Rather than bypassing pain, they speak to the necessity of meeting it directly, integrating disowned parts of the self, and allowing this inner work to catalyze a revolution of consciousness. This episode invites listeners to consider spiritual evolution not as an abstract ideal, but as a lived, embodied process—one that begins with healing, deepens awareness, and restores our capacity to imagine and enact a more whole, compassionate world.

For more information about Isa, Laura, and the classes they teach at the Sacred Stream, visit isagucciardi.org, laurachandler.net, and sacredstream.org.