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SASM 052 – Why Simple is So Complex with Duane Elgin, Vicki Robin, John de Graaf, Cecile Andrews, and Jerome Segal
Note: Don’t miss the special written recap section below for all the great stuff you didn’t get to hear in the audio.
*****
Do you ever try to chase a rabbit back up a hole?
I rewind conversations all the time to double back on where they started or branched off. But answering how I rounded up Duane Elgin, Vicki Robin, John de Graaf, Cecile Andrews, and Jerome Segal – five simple living all-stars – for a casual conversation took some time.
Before my story, let me give you the tip of the iceberg on each of these amazing people:
* Duane Elgin: Media activist, author of best-sellers like Voluntary Simplicity, andGoi International Peace Award winner.
* Vicki Robin: Co-author of the internationally popular Your Money of Your Life, relocalization movement champion, and co-founder of The Simplicity Forum.
* John de Graaf: Best-selling author of Affluenza, challenger of social norms through Timeday.org, and recipient of more than 100 regional, national, and international awards for film-making.
* Cecile Andrews: Local community leader who has been featured on CBS, NPR, PBS and many other places for the themes of her acclaimed slow/simple living books.
* Jerome Segal: Director of the University of Maryland’s Peace Consultancy Project and President of the Jewish Peace Lobby.
How, here’s a brief timeline showing how persistence and follow-up plays out:
* In December 2013, I asked my pal Joshua Becker if he could connect me with anyone on a list of folks to help shape the vision for SimpleREV.
* Joshua emails Duane Elgin on my behalf in January 2014.
* I follow-up with Duane in early February 2014 and we strike up an email correspondence.
* Duane and I hop on Skype in mid-February to discuss SimpleREV and our collective missions. He recommends I speak with Vicki Robin, a fellow member of The Simplicity Forum, and I keep emailing Vicki until we arrange a chat for mid-April.
* Vicki and I have a lovely phone conversation. She also floats the idea of having me facilitate a conference call reunion of sorts with some members of The Simplicity Forum. Of course, I say, “Yes please!”
* Vicki introduces me to “the gang” via email on April 17 and, after lots of emails, many of them agree to have me coordinate a recorded call.
* On May 14, I host a conference call with Duane, Vicki, John, Cecile, and Jerome. Their experience and intellectual firepower blows me away.
As I continue to follow the simplicity rabbit down, sideways, and up a bunch of holes, I marvel at one fact: I had never heard of any of these dynamic people until December 2013.
Unfortunately, you won’t hear Vicki or John’s voice in this episode because of some audio issues while recording. And except for when Jerome and I were speaking, everyone had some level of echo that we couldn’t do anything about.
So I’ve added a special section to these show notes below recapping the entire conversation. Don’t let the manageable audio issues stop you from listening to this one all the way through.
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By Joel Zaslofsky: Community Animator, Connector, Multipotentialite, and Spreadsheet Guy
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Note: Don’t miss the special written recap section below for all the great stuff you didn’t get to hear in the audio.
*****
Do you ever try to chase a rabbit back up a hole?
I rewind conversations all the time to double back on where they started or branched off. But answering how I rounded up Duane Elgin, Vicki Robin, John de Graaf, Cecile Andrews, and Jerome Segal – five simple living all-stars – for a casual conversation took some time.
Before my story, let me give you the tip of the iceberg on each of these amazing people:
* Duane Elgin: Media activist, author of best-sellers like Voluntary Simplicity, andGoi International Peace Award winner.
* Vicki Robin: Co-author of the internationally popular Your Money of Your Life, relocalization movement champion, and co-founder of The Simplicity Forum.
* John de Graaf: Best-selling author of Affluenza, challenger of social norms through Timeday.org, and recipient of more than 100 regional, national, and international awards for film-making.
* Cecile Andrews: Local community leader who has been featured on CBS, NPR, PBS and many other places for the themes of her acclaimed slow/simple living books.
* Jerome Segal: Director of the University of Maryland’s Peace Consultancy Project and President of the Jewish Peace Lobby.
How, here’s a brief timeline showing how persistence and follow-up plays out:
* In December 2013, I asked my pal Joshua Becker if he could connect me with anyone on a list of folks to help shape the vision for SimpleREV.
* Joshua emails Duane Elgin on my behalf in January 2014.
* I follow-up with Duane in early February 2014 and we strike up an email correspondence.
* Duane and I hop on Skype in mid-February to discuss SimpleREV and our collective missions. He recommends I speak with Vicki Robin, a fellow member of The Simplicity Forum, and I keep emailing Vicki until we arrange a chat for mid-April.
* Vicki and I have a lovely phone conversation. She also floats the idea of having me facilitate a conference call reunion of sorts with some members of The Simplicity Forum. Of course, I say, “Yes please!”
* Vicki introduces me to “the gang” via email on April 17 and, after lots of emails, many of them agree to have me coordinate a recorded call.
* On May 14, I host a conference call with Duane, Vicki, John, Cecile, and Jerome. Their experience and intellectual firepower blows me away.
As I continue to follow the simplicity rabbit down, sideways, and up a bunch of holes, I marvel at one fact: I had never heard of any of these dynamic people until December 2013.
Unfortunately, you won’t hear Vicki or John’s voice in this episode because of some audio issues while recording. And except for when Jerome and I were speaking, everyone had some level of echo that we couldn’t do anything about.
So I’ve added a special section to these show notes below recapping the entire conversation. Don’t let the manageable audio issues stop you from listening to this one all the way through.