LoraKim Joyner, DVM, Certified NVC Trainer:
Around the world, people are experiencing a new paradigm that holds all species (humans, animals, insects, etc.) as equal and mutually interdependent. Take this fascinating webinar with LoraKim Joyner and investigate how merging science; the social and emotional intelligence of humans, animals and other species; and Nonviolent Communication can bring a greater sense of belonging and wholeness to your life, and care and justice to the lives of others.

Together we will ask, “How do we treat other species in a way that affirms their inherent worth, given that we have been raised in a culture of domination and oppression?”

You will learn how to use Nonviolent Communication as a mindfulness practice to grow your awareness and compassion and enrich your relationship with all life. In addition, we will explore the behavior, emotions, thinking and needs of various species, including our own, to improve your ability to empathize with yourself and others.

If you long to have deep and caring relationships with people, animals, birds and other species, this recording was designed for you. For instance, you might wonder how to understand and address your cat’s needs when she appears to not care about you; or how to gauge your older dog’s level of suffering when selecting treatment, palliative or euthanasia options.

Part 1: The Science of Compassion and Transpecies Emotional and Social Intelligence
Explore the wide repertoire of emotions and thinking within various species on earth. Think of this as an adventure you might be watching on the cable channel “Animal Planet,” except with three specific intentions and goals in mind. 1) to increase your multispecies competencies so that you may bring as much peace and compassion into the world as possible. 2) to learn a basic biologic and ecologic approach to understanding animals so you become better at gauging their needs independent of your own. 3) to increase your empathy for them and yourself. We will highlight resources and methods for continually growing your ability to understand the behavior of other species.

Part 2: Transpecies Empathy
Building on last session’s learning, we will explore specific situations and transpecies relationships in our lives to grow your ability to empathize. Transpecies empathy does not come from understanding the science of behavior, ecology, physiology, evolution and communication alone, but also by slowing down, being open and practicing. We will explore how we can observe and study other species, and ask if we have indeed guessed their feelings and needs. Science and observing our own body’s emotional resonance contributes to guessing the feelings and needs of others. Developing a practice of empathy for ourselves and other human beings is also imperative.

Part 3: Transpecies Requests
Building upon your sense of community and support in this class, we now turn to looking at how our relationships with other species consist of violence, oppression and demands. We realize that the human species harms to survive and that we have a long evolutionary history of being both prey and predator. We have also evolved to collaborate and treat others with compassion. We will seek to answer the question, “How can we understand that harm is inherent in life and also keep our hearts open to the beauty, worth and needs of others?”
By understanding all of who we are as humans, we find the spaciousness to reduce harm in the world by mourning the unmet needs of earth and her beings, and celebrating met needs. Keeping our hearts open to our needs and the needs of the many, no matter whether we experience a sense of tragedy or wonder, we leave behind demand energy as the core of our relationships with others. As we do so, we move forward to a life based on acceptance and love of one another, and ourselves.

Part 4: Transforming the World through Transpecies Communication
In this last session, we connect our inner and relationship work from the previous sessions with actions we can take to bring about greater justice and care for all life. We will share situations of transpecies harm and violence, and through empathy see how life requests, not demands, us to do what we can for one another. We will practice giving and receiving empathy for specific situations. Finally, we’ll discuss resources and next steps for how you may contribute to your community.

Keywords:

- consciousness
- needs
- observation
- strategies
- compassion
- healing
- intention
- values
- conflict resolution
- relationships
- social change
- spirituality
- peace
- power
- interdependence
- awareness
- responsibility
- animals
- LoraKim Joyner