The Work That Reconnects

"The Work That Reconnects helps people around the world discover and experience their innate connections with each other and the self-healing powers of the web of life, transforming despair and overwhelm into inspired, collaborative action." - Joanna Macy

The premise of the Work that Reconnects is that we humans have lost connection to ourselves, each other, and to the natural world. We have dis-connected from the reciprocity that invites humans and nature to flourish together and through each other. It is best experienced in groups, using time-tested activities that foster insight, compassion and connection. Through learning the vocabularies and practices in this evolving web, we can convert the helplessness and fear brought on by disconnection into courage, compassion and action on behalf of All Life.

The Work That Reconnects invites us to take a fresh look at what we see happening around us. The model of “Three Stories of Our Time” helps us do this. Each of these stories assists us in making sense of what we see and experience, and also in choosing how we want to live our own lives and engage in the work of change. These stories are:

Business as Usual
The Great Unraveling
The Great Turning

To learn more about the Work That Reconnects Network click here.

Joanna Macy teaching at Marlboro, Image: Joan Beard

Joanna Macy: Originator of the Work That Reconnects

The founding teacher of this work, Joanna Macy, laid the pattern for WTR with fellow activists in the anti-nuclear movement, offering what were then called Despair and Empowerment Workshops. This early work, enriched by Macy’s studies in Buddhism, systems theory and deep ecology, established in WTR complex thinking, complex feeling, and a deep belief in the potential for all beings to independently co-arise. A beloved and respected voice in the movements for peace, justice, and ecology for over five decades, Joanna died July 19, 2025 at the age of 96. Find out more on her website.

Active Hope

"Active Hope is something we do rather than have. It is about finding, and offering, our best response when facing concerns about our world situation. It offers tools that help us face the mess we’re in and find our role in it." - Active Hope Website

The journey through the stages of the Active Hope Spiral has a strengthening effect that deepens with every repetition. It is the process of determining the future we want and taking actions that contribute to that future, thus becoming part of what Joanna Macy calls the Great Turning. The Twin Cities Work That Reconnects uses the the Active Hope Spiral in our workshops and practice gatherings to:

Ground ourselves in GRATITUDE
To be able to HONOR OUR PAIN FOR THE WORLD
Which opens us to SEEING WITH NEW AND ANCIENT EYES
In order to GO FORTH, creating the future we want.

Members of the Work That Reconnects Network have developed additional steps to the Spiral that account for self and social position, and for concerns of history and justice. TCWTR facilitators incorporate these steps in workshops 3 hours and longer.

See our Events page for upcoming TCWTR events.