Society Builders

Duane Varan
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Explores the application of Baha'i principles towards society building.

  1. 4 JAN

    Episode 39: UHJ Message of December 31 2025

    An exploration of the Universal House of Justice's message to the Conference of the Continental Board of Counsellors on December 31, 2025.   The episode explores progress in the Plan as it approaches the end of its first phase and provides an exciting glimpse of new patterns as clusters move beyond the third milestone.  This includes new patterns of collaboration with wider society. The episode concludes with a song summarizing themes in the message: "Bright Horizons Beckon." Contents 0:00 Introduction3:12 Third Milestones12:09 No Fixed Formula19:14 Beyond Third Milestones26:07 Collaboration with Society31:23 Implications for Administrators36:08 Inspiration41:38 Closing Thoughts43:10 Song: "Bright Horizons Beckon"

    47 min

  2. 22/04/2025

    Episode 38: The Ridvan Message of 2025

    An exploration of the Universal House of Justice's Ridvan message for 2025.  Includes an exploration of the construct of 'hope' - a summary of key achievements over the past year - and an appeal based on the urgency of the hour.  The episode concludes with an original song, "Ridvan 2025", exploring key themes in the message. Contents: 0:00 Introduction1:28 A dark, dark world3:56 A focus on hope15:57 Achievements of the year24:09 Urgency of the hour26:00 Closing thoughts27:25 Song: "Ridvan 2025"

    32 min

  3. 05/04/2025

    Episode 37: The Bahá’í Home

    An exploration of two key messages by the Universal House of Justice exploring Bahá’í  family life: The message of March 19th, 2025 and its Naw Ruz message (2025) to the Baha'is of Iran. We explore the evolution of a new construct in our new Society Building aspirations: 'The Bahá’í Home' - focusing on marriage, family, community and the role of family in elevating conditions in wider society. The episode concludes with an original song summarizing the theme: "The Bahá’í Home". Note: The close of the episode made reference to a collection of new songs produced by Duane and his new virtual AI band "The Society Builders".  The lyrics were composed by him, but the musical composition, instruments and vocals were AI-generated.  You can find this collection of songs at:  BahaiTunes.org You can also find it on Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music and other leading music platforms.  Just search for: THE Society Builders (don't forget to include the THE).  Or here: Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/artist/0QEeUb5QRnyTCy0UYzenHjApple Music: https://music.apple.com/us/artist/the-society-builders/1800068934Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/artists/B0DZ85P2BG/the-society-builders CONTENTS: 0:00 Introduction2:15 Overview6:14 Urgency of the hour17:34 New patterns23:14 Marriage25:37 Family29:02 Community31:54 The Bahá’í Home37:26 Closing thoughts39:52 Song: "The Bahá’í Home"

    44 min

  4. 19/03/2025

    Episode 36: Bahá’í Approaches to Social Action (Part Four - Learning in Action)

    An exploration of Bahá’í-inspired approaches to social action, one of the key pillars of 'society building'.   In Part Four, we explore how our approaches need to facilitate learning in action across four stages: Action, reflection, consultation and study which is framed by application of the Creative Word and scientific analysis. The episode concludes with the original song "Learning Together in Action" which summarizes the theme of the episode. CONTENTS 0:00 Introduction1:49 Learning in Action11:41 Learning from Mistakes22:26 Closing Thoughts25:46 Song: "Learning Together in Action"

    29 min

  5. 15/03/2025

    Episode 35: Bahá’í Approaches to Social Action (Part Three - Capacity Building)

    An exploration of Bahá’í-inspired approaches to social action, one of the key pillars of 'society building'.   In Part Three we explore the power of capacity building - and how even impossible dreams can be met as we cultivate this capacity.  We explore this on three levels of capacity building: for the individual; for institutions; and for the community.  This episode sets the stage for the final episode in our sequence on social action which will explore learning in action.  The episode concludes with an original song summarizing the episode: "Capacity Building". CONTENTS 0:00 Introduction1:43 Building Individual Capacity17:58 Building Institutional Capacity24:39 Building Community Capacity28:35 Closing Thoughts31:07: Song - "Capacity Building"

    35 min

  6. 19/02/2025

    Episode 34: Baha'i Approaches to Social Action (Part Two - Participation and Agency)

    An exploration of Bahá’í-inspired approaches to social action, one of the key pillars of 'society building'.   In Part Two, we explore how our approaches should be participatory, giving agency to all.  We discuss how this builds on the construct of 'universal participation' and frame agency as both right and responsibility.  We conclude by focusing on the change each of us can make in our lives and in the lives of the communities around us. CONTENTS 0:00 Introduction2:19 What is Agency?6:45 Universal Participation10:17 Agency as Empowerment17:48 Agency as Responsibility19:47 Personal Action22:35 Concluding thoughts25:04 Song: "Break Free"

    29 min

  7. 07/11/2024

    Episode 33: Bahá’í Approaches to Social Action (Part One - Organic Growth & Coherence)

    An exploration of Bahá’í-inspired approaches to social action, one of the key pillars of 'society building'.   In Part One, we explore two key principles: Organic Growth (that initiatives should start small and grow over time) and coherence (finding balance between our material and spiritual needs). CONTENTS 0:00 Introduction5:10 Organic Growth20:13 Coherence29:06 Closing Thoughts

    32 min

  8. 01/08/2024

    Episode 32: Bahá’í Approaches to Depolarization (Part Three)

    The third and final episode in a sequence exploring Bahá’í-inspired approaches to depolarization. Part three explores how to break false binaries and how to optimize conditions for contact between antagonistic groups, including a strong positive-to-negative ratio, facilitating synchronicity, empowering participant agency, dialog over debate and the role of theories of change.

    41 min
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About

Explores the application of Baha'i principles towards society building.

Information

  • Creator
    Duane Varan
  • Years Active
    2022 - 2026
  • Episodes
    39
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Duane Varan 2022
  • Show Website
    Society Builders