Village Building Webinars
Exploring practices and principles for building a connective culture together.
Peace Principles
Wed, Apr 15, 2026, 18:00 UTC, 2hrs Live on Zoom
Even though challenges naturally arise in any group, they can be opportunities to explore growth, innovation, and healing.
The bad news: we all carry echoes of historic trauma, some thousands of years old. The good news: we can empower ourselves to heal it, and we are not the first to have done so. The four Peace Principles support groups to co-create shared intentions, agreements, accountabilities, and pathways for returning to peace; to optimize the conditions for peace, creativity, trust, cooperation, and connective relationships.
Life Stage Transitions
Wednesday, May 20, 2026
10am PDT, 2 Hours Live on Zoom
(1pm EDT, 18h BST, 19h CEST, find your time)
image by macrovector on Freepik
Life stage transitions are found in all human cultures and have the potential to impact or change people's lives forever. They include birthday parties, graduations, anniversaries, marriages, or having your first child.
These transitions have the potential to honor changes large and small, internal and external, marking big moments where life is different afterwards. Life stage transitions are more powerful and connected when your community witnesses and acknowledges you. In this webinar, we will identify 10 distinct life stage transitions, throughout the human life span, and discuss how Village Building can support them.
Join All Four & Save
Get 20% off when you sign up for all four of our Summer 2026 Village Building Topics
Missed a previous webinar?
No problem - you'll receive the recording, links, and resources of past webinars.
Creativity, Genius, and Intuition
Wednesday, June 17, 2026
10am PDT, 2 Hours Live on Zoom
(1pm EDT, 18h BST, 19h CEST, find your time)
image by John Hain
All humans can naturally access genius, creativity, and intuition, especially if you focus on awakening your neurobiology.
When you receive support to have a connective experience, you can activate many more aspects of your perceptual systems. When you strengthen those systems, you may start to perceive things, more and more often, that once seemed unfamiliar. Nature connection helps to activate intuition and creativity, putting you into closer communication with the web of all the beings around you.
The 8 Handshakes (Group Agreements)
Wednesday, July 15, 2026
10am PDT, 2 Hours Live on Zoom
(1pm EDT, 18h BST, 19h CEST, find your time)
image on Freepik
The 8 Handshakes support groups to practice connective cultural elements while also achieving the group’s aims.
Groups transitioning toward a more connective culture can create their own agreements for how to work together effectively and respectfully. This typically involves some questions: What is the purpose of the group? What are its core values? How are decisions made? What are the group's ground rules, processes, and policies? Answering such questions together can contribute to a shared understanding of group culture: who group members are, and what is appropriate group behavior and conduct.
Join All Four & Save
Get 20% off when you sign up for all four of our Summer 2026 Village Building Topics
Missed a previous webinar?
No problem - you'll receive the recording, links, and resources of past webinars.
Peace Principles
Wednesday, August 19, 2026
10am PDT, 2 Hours Live on Zoom
(1pm EDT, 18h BST, 19h CEST, find your time)
image from Pixabay
Even though challenges naturally arise in any group, they can be opportunities to explore growth, innovation, and healing.
The bad news: we all carry echoes of historic trauma, some thousands of years old. The good news: we can empower ourselves to heal it, and we are not the first to have done so. The four Peace Principles support groups to co-create shared intentions, agreements, accountabilities, and pathways for returning to peace; to optimize the conditions for peace, creativity, trust, cooperation, and connective relationships.
Note: for those of you who attended the Peace Principles webinar in April, we will be exploring similar themes and also expect, because it is a new group, there will be new learning that emerges.
Facilitator Bios
Root Cuthbertson
Root designs experiential opportunities for learning by creating strong containers for the graceful facilitation of group energy. He holds a Master’s Degree in Environmental Education, and certificates in Sustainable Curriculum Design, Participatory Facilitation, and Ecopsychology. He has co-led short courses on regenerative cultures and cultural mentoring for Schumacher College, Findhorn College the ALT program in Thailand, and is a certified trainer in Gaia Education eco-social design. With his wife Deborah Benham, he has delivered trainings on Sociocracy, Positive Leadership, Social Entrepreneurship, and Culture Repair. Former Training Coordinator for Transition Network, he is the co-author and curator of Transition resources on Personal Resilience, Conflict Resilience, Group Culture, and Social Justice. He has been part of teams in the UK offering programs introducing the Connection 1st framework, and has co-led the Connection 1st online courses: “Introduction to Regenerative Community Building,” “Designing for Peace,” and "Pathways to Village Building.” With Jon Young and Deborah, he is co-authoring a series of e-books on regenerative community design. With his ear to the ground, Root’s guiding question is: “What is most needed here now?”
Shore Charnoe
Shore has dedicated her life to helping others understand the value of community, of peace-tending, of deep connection to the natural world, and of living in service to the needs of future generations.
Homeschooled, Shore holds an extended Bachelor of Arts in environmental studies, ecosystem restoration, anthropology, sociology, the philosophy of education, and developmental psychology from Guelph University. She also holds an Indigenous Social Work degree from First Nations Technical Institute and has, since 1994, run a private counseling practice for special-needs and at-risk populations.
Mother of eleven adopted and biological children and grandmother of six, Shore has fostered many special-needs children and been a child welfare consultant.
A practicing social worker, Shore founded The Circle for Change to heal damaged relationships and communities. She also co-created Manitoulin Eco Park and Dark Sky Preserve, where people can build relationship with the natural world.
Shore serves as a director for Earth Path Forest School, and for WWOOF Canada. She serves as a co-facilitator and sits on several advisory councils for Connection 1st.
Visit https://www.thecircleforchange.net/ to learn more about Shore.
Aidan Young
Aidan is a musician, naturalist, and mentor. Over the past 20+ years, he has mentored hundreds of musicians, including over a dozen that went on to top music schools, performed on stage over a thousand times, mentored youth and adults in nature connection, including Kamana services, and guided people on their creative paths as a personal mentor. He is a graduate of the Kamana Program and experienced in the Shikari Tracker Training Program, has served on several Art of Mentoring acorns, helped produce The 512 Project, plays guitar, bass, piano, and mandolin, sings, and writes songs. He currently offers music lessons and personal mentoring and lives in Los Altos, CA with his wife Mystical and their three children.
Regenerating Connection Circles Webinar
March 18, 2026 - Video Recording
How can we design gatherings to be more balanced and healthy, to align with the ancient history of the nervous system, to better meet our basic needs as human beings?
In modern times, due to the disconnective breakdown of social fabric, gatherings can often bring up unresolved grief and trauma. How might we apply regenerative, cooperative, and collaborative practices and principles so that gatherings promote healing in individuals, families, and communities?
Cultural Elements Webinar
February 18, 2026 - Video Recording
Join us to explore the Cultural Elements, practices and principles that help facilitate a healthy and connective culture.
Jon Young has spent over four decades distilling universal practices that help us create a supportive and regenerative social environment. These practices activate our brain and nervous system for deep connection, and teach us to embrace and empower the best in ourselves and others.
Free Cultural Elements Resources
This free text and audio course explores the 10 Foundation Stones - a group of cultural elements that we have identified as essential for creating a connective culture.
Free 512 Project Video - Greeting Customs
In this video, Jon shares about the cultural element of Greeting Customs as part of the 512 Project series.
Acorn-Acacia Teams
January 21, 2026 - Video Recording
Like a seed, an Acorn-Acacia team has the potential to grow a connective culture in a larger group by role-modeling connective practices and cultural elements.
An Acorn-Acacia team is a way to distribute leadership in a group, typically used short-term for events and programs. Each team member holds a different role, embodying an archetypal energy, and taking responsibility for various tasks and aspects. Such a team can support a transition in leadership away from a competitive model toward one that shares power and works together well.
Renewal of Creative Path
December 17, 2025 - Video Recording
A two-part process for looking back in order to move forward.
First, reflect on the past and notice emerging patterns in your life. Then, discerning what is supportive and connective, map out some next steps that will allow you to move forward with clarity.
A popular addition to many family gatherings during the winter holiday period, ROCP can involve time together to celebrate achievements, mark milestones, grieve losses, and articulate resolutions.
Cultural Elements
November 19, 2025 - Video Recording
Learn about connective cultural elements, some of the essential building blocks of Village Building.
As these elements become normalized and habitual, they support the emergence of a connective culture. How does connection to nature inform a connective culture? View a map of the cultural elements here.
Includes a free download to begin exploring the ‘10 Stones:’ ten cultural elements that are foundational for any connective culture.
Seasonal Celebrations
October 29, 2025 - Video Recording
Each season presents opportunities for beginning again, renewing connections both to people and place. How can you invitingly and respectfully mark each season, connecting with the rhythms of nature and with your community? How can celebrations uplift both universal themes and locally specific traditions that help to make meaning while encouraging a connective culture?
Receiving Anchoring
September 17, 2025 - Video Recording
Beneficial both for folks who are just starting out and those with plenty of experience, ‘anchoring’ refers to setting up regular mentoring sessions with someone you trust. Why is it important for someone you trust to ‘catch your story’ and support your journey on an ongoing basis? How do you initiate anchoring relationships? As a regenerative approach to preventing burnout and promoting resilience, anchoring is highly recommended for anyone involved in Village Building.