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But up in Canada, they do things a bit differently. And so, for the 6th Gaining Ground Summit, this one focused on Resilient Cities, Chief Bill Williams of the Squamish First Nation, on whose tribal land the Vancouver Convention Center was built, led opening ceremonies with a traditional drum chant.

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Don’t get me wrong, magic has been made and minds blown with just Powerpoint and a good presentation. I don’t know about you, but how many times do you find yourself thinking, “I have something to add to what they’re saying,” or “Gah! I wish they’d do a session on *this* topic!”

Green Business Camp, done for the first time a few weeks back in South San Francisco at the Green V Sustainable Center, a creative reinvention of a former car dealership site, may be just the antidote you’re seeking. It’s what they call an “unconference.” As in the opposite of all the trappings of your usual conference.

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What’s to know about it, from an insider’s perspective? Let me tell you, it was a tremendously beneficial experience, on an educational, personal and professional level. I gained confidence, learning extensively how to give a great presentation, even enjoy the experience, from a starting point of utter terror. I learned how to work in teams, of varying strengths, skills, and personalities, and how to manage when things become, well, unmanageable. I got a broad and deep understanding of what’s going on in the realm of sustainability, in terms of business, government, and society as a whole. And beyond that, I saw how the emerging sustainable business paradigm overlaps with the existing, and how to bridge between the two.

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Paul Hawken spoke in San Francisco last Friday on the final stop of his book tour, as a part of the Long Now Foundation seminar series. In his new book, Blessed Unrest, Hawken describes the global movement, which he declines to give a name, toward environmental and social justice. In a 60 minute speech and Q&A session, Hawken proffered an explanation for what is transpiring.

Hawken told a story of how Ralph Waldo Emerson was inspired by Antoine and Bernard Jussieu in Paris and subsequently wrote Nature. He then told how a college-aged Henry David Thoreau was inspired by Emerson and wrote Civil Disobedience, and how Rosa Parks then read Thoreau's essay the summer before she refused to give up her seat on an Alabama bus in 1955. He was describing the networking and the roots of the collective conscious that he calls the “curriculum of the 21st Century”.

Hawken observed that the common thread between the literally millions of organizations in the movement is that, although they all have different ways of expressing their goals, none have contradictory values. They are all, in unique ways, exhibiting moral opposition to an unjust state. He quoted Thoreau: "If the government is unjust, the just man is in jail." Hawken described an atomized, bottom-up collection of organizations working to put down the injustice that permeates every institution, everywhere. He told of how the movement, like the immune system, categorically identifies and destroys disease (or the disease destroys it).

Next came the exciting part as Hawken explained that in the last five to ten years, as a result of the Internet and new ways of communication, the connections among groups and people in the movement have accelerated with unprecedented speed, causing a shift in the balance of power. He used the example of how text messaging technology is disrupting the censure control of the Chinese government, leading to growing unrest and protests the government can't control. A once subdued and contained environmental and social justice movement is now gaining rapid ground the world round.

Over years of collecting data and conducting research on social movements Hawken has come to the conclusion that this is a movement of its own kind, and more powerful and larger than any other. It's not an ideology or an “ism”, but, rather, ideas and solutions to the problems of injustice. It is a movement for “what is right”, and one that can't be broken apart, because it was atomized from the beginning. It's a movement that is dispersing conglomerations of power. Finally, it's a movement that no one saw coming, and that is manifesting in new resources, swift action, and real change.

Hearing Paul Hawken's words solidified the feeling that there is value in our time. It made up for feeling isolated and overwhelmed in the face of mounting consumerism and environmental pressures. He refused to predict what would happen, but instead relayed an image of the scale of the movement and the power that it holds. Hawken offered a beacon of entry to the long, extended green consciousness that will span well into the future, with or without us.

The first chapter of Blessed Unrest is available in an adapted version at Orion Magazine. A videocast of the lecture is available online for Long Now members.

His newest book, Blessed Unrest: How the Largest Movement in the World Came into Being and Why No One Saw It Coming is Hawken’s first title in eight years. Billed as an “…examination of the worldwide movement for social and environmental change” the author explores the movement based on a decade’s worth of research into those involved. Personally, as if Hawken’s reputation isn’t enough, the book’s promise to “inspire and delight” those who despair the fate of the world makes me want to read it. After all, who among us has not felt this despair on occasion?

In support of his new work, Hawken has integrated a cross-country book tour into his already crowded speaking schedule. Fortunately for those in the So Cal region, there are three opportunities to hear him speak from May 13th – 15th in the Pacific Palisades, Santa Barbara, and Pasadena. The events also feature a book signing.

Though perhaps most easily recognized as the founder of Smith & Hawken, the catalog and retail company that specializes in gardening products, Hawken’s involvement in social activism is long and varied. He worked as a Press Coordinator for Martin Luther King, Jr.’s staff before establishing the country’s first natural foods company in 1966.

Hawken went on to author books and articles numbering in the dozens, and lead several companies. Since 2003, he has served as the CEO of The Pax Group, sister companies that, among other things, provide quieter cooling systems for PCs, while using less energy. Hawken also heads the Natural Capital Institute, based in Sausalito, California, and has served on many boards, including that of The Natural Step.

Details on speaking dates can be found at: www.paulhawken.com

Photo credit: www.paulhawken.com