The Seed: Conversations for Radical Hope

How do we use art to dismantle colonial narratives and stay grounded in our cultural truth? In this moving episode, host Dwight Dunston is joined by mother-daughter "artivists" Anito Gavino and Malaya Ulan. Together, they explore the intersection of family-centered practice, Filipina identity, and the power of storytelling as a tool for justice and healing. The conversation begins with a...

In this intimate mini-episode of The Seed: Conversations for Radical Hope, the roles are briefly shifted as host Dwight Dunston shares his own Quaker journey with guest John Calvi. From an antsy teenager in a Quaker high school to finding his "spiritual home" as an adult, Dwight reflects on the power of silence, memory, and the "upper room" of communal worship. Dwight recalls t...

In this mini-episode, host Dwight Dunston returns to his conversation with Quaker healer J ohn Calvi. They explore the history of John’s seminal song, "The Ones Who Aren't Here," and the weight of carrying love across time and loss. John shares the song's origins, written in his 20s during a time of "personal exile". Reflecting on the "fierce closet" of the...

What does love look like when it moves beyond sentiment and becomes a force for healing, justice, and transformation? In this Season Six finale of The Seed, we welcome John Calvi , a Quaker healer, certified massage therapist, and longtime advocate for survivors of trauma. John began offering healing touch during the AIDS crisis in 1983 and has since worked with survivors of war, torture, sexual a...

In this mini-episode of T he Seed: Conversations for Radical Hope , we return to a Season Six conversation with Inaara Neal-Shiraz and , O —two people whose lives and work embody love as a healing force for justice. Inaara Neal-Shiraz served as the Inclusion and Belonging Coordinator for Philadelphia Yearly Meeting, supporting Friends across four states and nurturing communities of care, discernme...

How do we move beyond the "gatekeeping" of our institutions to practice a love that is truly transformative? In this soul-stirring conversation, host Dwight Dunston is joined by Zae Illo and Lisa Graustein to explore the intersection of spiritual practice and radical justice. Together, they challenge us to look beyond "market logic" and historical comfort to find a faith that m...

In this mini-episode of The Seed: Conversations for Radical Hope , we return to Season Three for a powerful moment from Dwight’s conversation with artist, facilitator, theologian, and mother Autumn Brown . Autumn reflects on fugitivity, freedom, and what it means to step into lostness so that belonging can find us. She explores how community, agency, vulnerability, and mutual care shape the condit...

How do we speak truth in love—and stay grounded in care, courage, and connection while doing so? In this powerful, heart-centered conversation, host Dwight Dunston is joined by two guests whose lives embody the practice of love as a healing force for justice: Inaara Neal-Shiraz and , O . Together they explore what it means to balance bold truth-telling with tenderness, to hold anger and compassion...

In this special mini-episode of The Seed: Conversations for Radical Hope , host Dwight Dunston reconnects with guest Lisa Graustein to explore how art, love, and power intertwine in daily life. Together, they reflect on the creative process as an act of resistance, connection, and renewal. Dwight shares his newest creative project—an emerging genre he calls “Anthropocene Hip-Hop,” a musical form t...

What happens when sacred stories are used to justify oppression—and when telling the truth feels like rebellion? In this episode of The Seed: Conversations for Radical Hope , host Dwight Dunston speaks with Sarah Ruden , an award-winning translator, essayist, and Quaker writer whose work exposes how language, power, and faith intersect. Known for her acclaimed translations of The Aeneid , The Gosp...

This mini episode of The Seed: Conversations for Radical Hope revisits our most downloaded conversation across six seasons, featuring visionary leader Niyonu Spann. Through excerpts from her full episode, Niyonu shares what it means to live with integrity—wholeness, surrender, and alignment with purpose. She reflects on the origins of her transformative workshop, Beyond Diversity 101, and offers l...

In this first full episode of Season Six of The Seed: Conversations for Radical Hope , host Dwight Dunston speaks with Lisa Graustein, a lifelong Quaker, educator, DEI facilitator, artist, and solo mom. Lisa reflects on the intersections of love, power, justice, and belonging. She shares stories of winding life paths, creating safer spaces, and the importance of daily recommitment to what matters...

Season Six of The Seed: Conversations for Radical Hope begins with Francisco Burgos, Executive Director of Pendle Hill. Host Dwight Dunston and Francisco reflect on this season’s theme—love and power—inspired by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community? Dr. King wrote:   “Power without love is reckless and abusive, and love without power is sentimental and anemic....

Episode Summary Today, we share an episode from a sister podcast, Refugia hosted by Debra Rienstra. Refugia are places of shelter where life endures in times of crisis. From out of these small sanctuaries, life reemerges, and the world is renewed. In this episode of Refugia , Debra speaks with theologian Ruth Padilla DeBorst. She describes life in Casa Adobe, an intentional Christian community in...

Episode Summary Pendle Hill has just released its very first audiobook for our pamphlet series! Listen to the audiobook of Pendle Hill Pamphlet #371, Members One of Another: The Dynamics of Membership in Quaker Meeting by Tom Gates, here . In this episode, we first hear Tom share a little bit of the background to his pamphlet before listening to a sneak preview of the new audiobook. Episode Resour...

  Episode Summary This episode features a condensed version of the recent First Monday Lecture, “ The Exponential Impact of Historical and Ongoing Injustice: A Call To Action for Quakers ,” that Dr. Harold Weaver delivered alongside Nozizwe Madlala-Routledge at Pendle Hill on February 3rd. Hal’s message is a call for reckoning and retrospective justice around Quakers’ historical participation in s...

This episode features a condensed version of the recent First Monday Lecture, “ Towards a Just Democracy: Spiritual Grounding and Principled Action ,” that Alicia McBride delivered alongside José Santos Moreno at Pendle Hill on November 4th, the eve of the presidential election. Alicia’s powerful message about how we can transform ourselves and our political system by acting with love continues to...

Dwight Dunston speaks with Alexx Temeña , a somatic minister, ceremonial artist, and experiential educator, about the transformative power of rest and embodied practices in world-building. Alexx shares insights from her work with the School of Embodied Praxis and her interactive public sculpture, House of Kapwa , which honors Rest, ecological grief, and Filipino indigenous wisdom. Alexx explores h...

For this episode, we’re sharing a clip from the Quakers Today podcast featuring our recent guest, Keil Trois, who also uses the pseudonym Jeff Walburn. Hear Keil describe the creative campaign he organized with The Yes Men collective against the Mattel corporation. In the summer of 2023, Keil and The Yes Men pulled an elaborate hoax on the media and the Mattel corporation, timed to coincide with t...

Dwight Dunston speaks with filmmaker and activist Keil Troisi about the transformative power of art and culture in world-building and social change. Keil shares his experiences with The Yes Men , an art-activism group that creatively disrupts corporate power to inspire long-term hope. They explore how humor, trickery, and creativity can drive real-world impact, especially in environmental and soci...

In this episode, Dwight Dunston and eppchez yo-sí yes delve into the transformative potential of art. Drawing from experiences in reparations work and Quaker business settings, eppchez’s art seeks to disentangle integrity from perfection, instead calling for transmutation processes. This excerpt comes from The Seed Season Two Episode Three, “ Integrity & Transmutation: Moving Beyond Cultures o...

Dwight Dunston brings listeners into a reflective discussion with two Irish writers, Manchán Magan and Shirley Anne McMillan, as they explore Ireland's divided history, cultural resilience, and visions for a more harmonious future. As Manchán and Shirley explore their different experiences growing up in Ireland, they find common ground in their hopes for a peaceful future that honors Ireland&...

In this mini-episode, Francisco shares the inspiring journey of the Pendle Hill online worship community , which emerged during the COVID-19 pandemic to provide a spiritual connection and inclusion space. Beginning as a simple idea born out of necessity, Pendle Hill’s virtual daily worship grew into a thriving, radically inclusive online community. Reflecting on nearly 94 years of daily worship at...

Dr. Riyam Kafri AbuLaban, a former principal at Ramallah Friends School and a writer from Palestine, shares her insights on world-building amidst conflict and the complexities of raising children under occupation.  Joining Dwight is Steve Tamari, a Palestinian-American Quaker and historian who offers reflections on the ongoing genocide in Palestine as part of a larger history of colonialism. Steve...

Episode Summary In our first mini-episode of Season 5, Dr. Riyam Kafri Abu Laban, a writer and educator from Ramallah, explains how Palestinian cuisine is a powerful expression of identity rooted in the land and traditions of the Palestinian people. Forced displacement and cultural appropriation have posed significant challenges to preserving this culinary heritage. Food is nourishment and a bridg...