At the beautiful Terra Luminous, we found deep nourishment, inspiration and community at our 2023 Annual Regional Gathering in Brazil. A celebration of the people in our network and the incredible work they do, this was a place to forge new connections and ignite creativity towards manifesting the changes we want to see in the world.
For three days in October 2023, we invited Be The Earth’s Fellows, friends and partners based in Brazil to Terra Luminous, a regenerative culture hub in Juquitiba, São Paulo, to spend time together in nature and in deep community with one another. Part of the way Be The Earth works towards regeneration is by creating space for the emergence of the whole human, building trust and solid relationships that allow our professional personas to intertwine with our full selves as human beings.
"It's really nice to be here for a few days at Terra Luminous, with all these people who are part of other projects supported by Be the Earth, the BTE team, together with other funders and friends … it ends up becoming a whole network that we don't really know, but it's a lot of connection with people who are committed to making the world better and reducing inequalities." Claudia Visoni, Fellow on Be the Earth's Giving Circle and Blooming programmes
We take a holistic approach to our events, and the programme was balanced between more cerebral, brain-centred activities and bodywork, and included both group activities and free time. From network-mapping and ‘speed-dating for activists', to the sound bath and cacao ceremony, this event aimed to deeply nourish our guests both professionally and personally. The breathing space and free time between sessions was just as important as the activities, facilitating self-led adventures and spontaneous connections – and this is really where the magic happens.
It's a space for a lot of self-care and you can see that care has been thought out down to the smallest detail … we're seeking inspiration and aspirations from other people, who have been through what we've been through, or have had a completely different past to ours. They have a lot to teach us, so it has been very inspiring, sharing stories here… We felt a peace, a tranquillity of being who we are in this space and being welcomed for it. Tay Dias, Fellow on Be the Earth's Blooming Programme
We brought together 17 people from our Brazilian network; past and current Fellows on our programmes, Investees, funders, as well as some friends from local activism networks. We took this opportunity to review our work together so far, share our missions and goals, and plan collaboratively for the future, contributing different perspectives and finding ways to align strategies across all the different types of relationship we nurture.
"Be the Earth opened doors for us, for other networks, learning networks, where we learnt about the culture of giving, about philanthropic practices, but we also have possibility to have an active process of exchanging projects, partners, of telling each other what we're doing. … Here in a space where we have both the people running the projects, and me, as a funder, we can have a real exchange as people. We can be here as a whole." Felipe Russo, co-founder of Instituto Meraki and part the Community of Practice.
Now entering our fourth year, we are seeing more and more that Be The Earth's role in the ecosystem, in this change that we want to generate, is to be the mycelium: the underground fungal network which is essential for the balance of any biome. Our Regional Gatherings are a meeting place where the mycelium network strengthens and mushrooms can sprout. In the rich cycle of nature one thing leads to another...
We’re so grateful for everyone that joined us, and we honour all of our Brazilian friends that for any reason couldn’t make it.