Wild Goose
At Wild Goose, Festival in North Carolina, we asked, “What do you want the world to understand?” Continue reading Wild Goose
Author: johnnoltner
John Noltner is a photographer, author and activist. He is the founder of the multimedia arts project A Peace of My Mind, created to rediscover the common humanity that connects us.
The Montana Institute
Last week, we worked with the Montana Summer Institute in Big Sky. Their work centers on fostering positive community norms and switching our narrative from a problem-centered process to a solution-centered process. It all resonates with A Peace of My Mind’s approach to the world. We don’t ignore the challenges of the world. In fact, we face them honestly and directly. But we also choose … Continue reading The Montana Institute
Everwood
I pulled into the drive for Everwood Farmstead on a warm afternoon, feeling the luxury of time at the start of a week-long artist’s retreat and the self-imposed pressure of wanting to use it well. In my backpack was a partially finished manuscript. The first two hundred pages were pretty well crafted, the last hundred trailed off into notes and incomplete thoughts. The bones of … Continue reading Everwood
Belonging
Over the past six months, I’ve been spending time with San Pablo / St. Paul’s Evangelical Lutheran Church in Minneapolis. It was established in 1888 and for much of its history, served a community of Scandinavian immigrants. But over time, the demographics of the neighborhood shifted and now many of its members have Hispanic and Latin-x roots. The pews are populated with first and second … Continue reading Belonging
NCORE
There’s so much to share from this conference I attended in New Orleans last week. NCORE is the National Conference on Race and Ethnicity in Higher Education. Thousands of DEI professionals, practitioners, and activists convened on the edge of the French Quarter to learn, connect and compare notes. It’s an interesting time to be doing this work. In some ways, more people than ever are … Continue reading NCORE
Forty Days
Forty days is a long time. And it goes by quickly. On Easter morning I set out to walk through the sunrise every morning for forty days in an effort to get reconnected to this place. To get used to life off the road. And to get a good start on our next book and exhibit. Mission accomplished on all fronts. I finished those forty … Continue reading Forty Days
Impact
A Peace of My Mind visited North Central College and worked with the Leadership, Ethics & Values program. We asked students and staff, “When have you made your greatest impact?” And here’s what they said. How would you answer that question? Continue reading Impact
Jan Selby
Jan Selby is an award-winning filmmaker whose work has been screened internationally in settings ranging from film festivals and art museums to university classrooms and on Public Television. BEYOND THE DIVIDE premiered at Montana’s Big Sky Documentary Film Festival and won Best Feature Documentary at the Peace on Earth Film Festival. After a year of traveling to festivals world-wide, BEYOND THE DIVIDE was broadcast on Twin Cities … Continue reading Jan Selby
Duncan Gray
Duncan Gray is a retired Episcopal Priest and was the 9th Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Mississippi. I met him at St. Peter’s Episcopal church in Oxford, Mississippi, where he was rector, like his father before him. His father served from 1957 to 1965 during the turbulent era when James Meredith was the first Black man who was allowed admission into the University of … Continue reading Duncan Gray
Day 9
It was an abrupt interruption of a sound sleep when my alarm went off at 5:30 am today. I had worked hard at the farm for the weekend and my 56-year-old achy body wanted to stay in bed. But that wasn’t the deal I had made with myself. This is the ninth day of a 40-day journey. Waking up before dawn and walking for an … Continue reading Day 9