Tell us about one exciting project, program, or other offering you are currently working on.
A recent initiative that profoundly embodies the Three Tenets is the ECOS de Bauru project, a research-intervention developed by our spiritual leader for his doctoral thesis at the University of São Paulo (USP). The project's most significant and lasting impact is its evolution into the "Círculos Ubuntu" (Ubuntu Circles) initiative, launched in 2025.
This new phase trains a cohort of faculty and staff as "guardians" of circles, aiming to build a sustainable, university-wide culture of care. The project embodies the tenets as follows:
Not Knowing: The Círculos Ubuntu are designed as spaces where participants suspend judgment and expertise to listen from the heart. The entire facilitator training is built on this principle, preparing guardians to hold space for emergence rather than directing outcomes.
Bearing Witness: The project is deeply grounded in Council Practice, a methodology designed for Bearing Witness and one of the core practices of the ZPO. Through the use of a talking piece and ritualized structure, circles become safe containers for authentic sharing and deep listening. The training explicitly cultivates mindfulness and compassion, drawing on the work of Joan Halifax to prepare guardians to be present with the diverse and often difficult experiences shared in the circles.
Taking Action: The Círculos Ubuntu are a direct Compassionate Action addressing the need for belonging and care within the university. A core component of the training is developing "literacies for diversity and inclusion," equipping guardians to facilitate dialogues on systemic issues like racism, gender diversity, and neurodiversity. The project is a strategic initiative aligned with USP's official mental health policies, with plans to scale across the institution. Its impact is the creation of a resilient, distributed network of care that empowers the community itself to transform its culture from within.