When we hear stories of the “rise and fall” of civilizations, the perspective is usually of ancient civilizations such as Mycenaean, Persion, Roman, or Carthagenian civilizations.  Joseph Tainter, in his great book “The Collapse of Complex Societies” evaluates the historical reasons for how these complex societies collapsed.  He covers the Roman Empire and Mayan civilizations in depth.  The advantage of also studying Jared Diamond’s book “Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed” is that Jared includes newer societies like the Vikings, and the Chinese.  The book also discusses societies that succeeded and why.  How do we define collapse?  What are the signs prior to the collapse?  What are the differences between chiefdoms versus state complexity?  We will study theiores of how the state arose,  ten of the conventional explanations of collapse, and the shortcomings of each.  We will probe marginal productivity and its decline along with the increasing cost of informational processing.  It is unfortunate that theories of collapse do not include industrial capitalist societies in either of these books.  For conservative and liberal historians alike, the thought of industrial capitalist societies collapsing is very uncomfortable.  What is the place of capitalism in social collapse?  Does it slow the process or amplify collapse?  We will apply Tainter’s criteria of collapse to the U.S. today as we together ask, is the U.S. in the midst of collapsing?

Your Instructor: Bruce Lerro has been a night-school college teacher for 27 years. He has taught in alternative college settings, in prisons, the Air Force, Navy and community colleges in the San Francisco Bay Area. Bruce has written eight books, including three on the application of Russian Lev Vygotsky’s work on word history. He’s also a pen-and-ink- artist.

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Science, spirituality and mindfulness meet in Part 3 of this series on integration.  Our goal will be to explore topics such as non-duality, formlessness, impermanance, and the human connection to mystery and the divine--without getting too woo-woo or frustratingly abstract.  We’ll take a practical look at studies of brain anatomy showing the human capacity to dissolve mental boundaries of separation and connect us to a greater whole, where meditation practices of open awareness and the “self-transcendent” emotions of compassion, gratitude, and awe help us find integration outside of ourselves, beyond the limitations of our fixed identities.  In addition to discussion and sharing, we’ll have a variety of guided meditations designed to relax, heal, and energize us as we dissolve old patterns of thought and access this greater realm of integrated consciousness.

Your Instructor: Margo Benedetto is a certified mindfulness instructor and veteran classroom teacher in Washington State. She was a leader in bringing mindfulness education to Centralia School District from 2015-2020 and continues to provide personal and professional development on mindfulness for individuals and groups.She enjoys the variety of classroom setting she finds for her work, including Thurston County Dog 4-H, Olympia Senior Services and North Thurston Public Schools.

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Conga drumming in community enhances cognitive, social-emotional and physical wellness. In this dynamic, hands-on class, you will explore simple techniques for creating different drum timbres and world percussion, improvise based on traditional rhythms and explore interlocking patterns in a community circle format. Cultivate energy, joy and connection through the magic of drumming! Class limited to 12 participants.

Your Instructor:  Kerri Lynn Nichols, MA Music and Arts Education, has 35+ years experience teaching voice, percussion and movement to all ages. She privately studied percussion in the Afro-Latin tradition and in tandem with music and dance at the Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria. Ms. Nichols has presented percussion workshops for state, national and international conferences. She is the founding Artistic Director for The Olympia Peace Choirs and a published author through Beatin’ Path Publications.

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The Pyramids of Giza, King Tut’s Tomb, mummies, the “gift of the Nile”; these are just some of the images we associate with Ancient Egypt.  This class will take us on a journey through more than three millenia of pharaohs, monumental architecture, art, mythology, religion, and the daily life of the Egyptian people.  If you have been to Egypt or are contemplating a visit, or you are simply interested in the ancient world, this class is for you!  During the class we will try to examine both the reality of, and the layers of myth and misconception that surround Egypt.  The class will be lecture based with considerable time for questions and lively group discussion.

Your Instructor: Tony Usibelli is an avid student of the ancient world and has a B.A. in classical archaeology and art history from the Univ. of Missouri and the Intercollegiate Center for Classical Studies in Rome. He is an active member of the Puget Sound chapter of the Archaeological Institute of America, the Puget Sound Ancient Numismatic group and has taught classes at Evergreen and SPSCC. Tony has taught Ancient Italy since Fall 2022 and Ancient Greece since Spring 2024 through the Senior Academy.

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