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Dignity Letter — February 2023

Dear Friend, Our hearts go out to all who are struggling through traumatic catastrophes and violent conflicts occurring in the world right now. Our community is dedicated to supporting and strengthening the dignity of all people, especially those who are suffering. In this edition of our Dignity Letter, please allow us to share highlights from our First Workshop on the World Dignity University Initiative (WDUi) followed by the latest developments on this project. Please also find encouraging news from esteemed members of the Human Dignity and Humiliation Studies (HumanDHS) community. Contents: Celebrating Our Annual WDUi Workshop The World Dignity University Project: Latest Developments Join Us for a Dignity Seminar Good News from Our DigniCommunity! Dignity Press Publications Thanks to All Sharegivers! Please note: Rather than sending numerous Dignity Letters throughout the year, HumanDHS sends fewer, longer letters. We warmly welcome your feedback about this approach.

Celebrating Our Annual Workshop!

We were thrilled and inspired by all who contributed to our first Workshop for the World Dignity University Initiative (WDUi), titled "For People and the Planet: Learning for a Future of Dignity," December 9, 2022. The WDUi project aims to become a global role model of excellence in scholarship, dignifying dialogue, and intellectual cooperation across disciplines, institutions, communities, and national boundaries. It will put dignity at the heart of learning while cultivating ongoing conversations and ideas for action in the world. We wish to express our deepest appreciation to Peter Coleman, Danielle Coon, and the Morton Deutsch-International Center for Cooperation and Conflict Resolution (MD-ICCCR), Teachers College, Columbia University, in New York City. The MD-ICCCR has been our visionary institutional partner since our first workshop in 2003. Please enjoy the following video highlights:

You can read more or order the book here. You can also learn more about the Way Out Challenge here. The Way Out of Toxic Polarization with Peter Coleman We were honored and delighted to have Peter Coleman introduce his multifaceted approach to overcoming toxic polarization, described in his important book: The Way Out. Peter Coleman is the director of the Morton Deutsch-International Center for Cooperation and Conflict Resolution (MD-ICCCR), and was graciously introduced by Associate Director Danielle Coon.

The Dignity Anthem: A Musical Gift to Our Entire Community! by Michael Boyer This amazing Dignity Anthem was kindly created by Michael Boyer. Michael is a creative artist who is a member of the Dignity Now group in the city of Hamelin in Germany. He hopes the song will inspire more adaptations and translations. Michael has generated a spectrum of social media channels with his Digniworld initiative since 2019. Please read more here.

Please visit the WDUi website here. Non-Degree Higher and Adult Learning to Advance Dignity WDUi Director David Yamada Director David Yamada facilitated a highly engaging "Workshop Within a Workshop" that allowed participants to explore a wide range of online learning platforms. This session, under David's leadership, ignited many conversations for continued collaboration.

Rediscovering the Wonders of Learning through Dignity with Board Director Michael Britton What a pleasure to listen to HumanDHS Board Director Michael Britton's inspirational message to conclude the workshop! He highlighted how "deep listening leads to deep learning," opening new pathways to "learn our way into a new future."

In addition to lively conversations and collaboration throughout this workshop, please enjoy these video contributions: Danielle Coon, MD-ICCCR's Associate Director, introduced MD-ICCCR's foundational efforts that also inspire the work of HumanDHS and the WDUi. Janet Gerson, HumanDHS Board Director, welcomed everyone to "Meet and Greet" in "Small Group Dignilogues." These community-building groups have been a cornerstone of our collaborative workshops! Creative contributions included: Ella Autti singing a beautiful rendition of "Over the Rainbow"; Bonnie Selterman reciting "Ways of Learning," a spoken poem written for the workshop; Francisco Gomes de Matos kindly composed a rhymed reflection; Beth Boyton invited everyone to participate in energizing creative movement. Uli Spalthoff, Director of Operations, introduced the new electronic platform that he has created for the WDUi! It will by used by instructors and students as learning programs unfold. Howard Richards was congratulated on his new book, Economic Theory and Community Development: Why Putting Community First is Essential to our Survival! To read more or order, please visit Dignity Press. Evelin Lindner, HumanDHS Founding President, and Linda Hartling, Director, framed the workshop in a dialogue on "Learning for a Dignified and Dignifying Future."

Join Us in Applauding Our DigniGardeners! Please meet the HumanDHS team who made this workshop possible! In order: David Yamada, Linda Hartling, Sharon Steinborn, Chipamong Chowdhury, Beth Boyton, Peter Pollard, Janet Gerson, Anna Strout, Mara Alagic, Uli Spalthoff, Evelin Lindner, Ella Autti, and Michael Boyer.

Please visit the workshop website, to see all of the contributions to this memorable workshop!

World Dignity University Initiative: Latest Developments

Dear Members of the HumanDHS and WDUi Communities, Message from Director David Yamada:  We are excited about growing the World Dignity University initiative! The December workshop was an important springboard for sharing ideas and exploring promising possibilities for realizing our vision of putting dignity at the heart of higher education. Here comes some of the latest developments:

WDUi Forums — Our new Forum platform created by Uli Spalthoff is starting to become a more active site (Thank you, Uli!). This activity is a hint of what we hope it will become in the months and years to come. If you would like to register to use the Forum, please go here.

Key Forum Topics: Partnering and Co-Sponsoring with WDUi and Proposing Learning Programs — Several folks on this list have raised interest in creating programs in collaboration with WDUi. If you are interested in doing so, we are attempting to gently systematize the process by asking folks to submit a short proposal. The brief details are described in the Forum here. Resource Library — Kim Eriksen, a member of our community, has volunteered to be the point person on the creation of a WDUi Resource Library that will gather, link, house, and reference core resources on the theme of human dignity, consistent with the broad focus of Human Dignity and Humiliation Studies. This will be a deliberate, piece-by-piece project at the beginning, so we're not in a position to issue an open call for folks to share suggestions, but we are now getting this off the ground. (Many thanks to Kim!)

Emerging Forum Topics: Introduction to the Forum — Welcome to the WDUi Forum, netiquette, invitation to introduce yourself. Our Concept of a University — Ideas on reinventing the university. WDUi Activities — The creation of events for 2023 is definitely a work-in-progress at this point, but you can go here to see workshops that I'll (David Yamada) be offering. News and Events Forum — For future updates I have used this e-list to provide periodic updates on our progress. Yes, this is a nudge to bring people to the Forum and to visit it regularly!

To participate in our WDUi Forums: Register here We are looking forward to advancing dignity through learning, listening, and scholarship that turns ideas into action in the world! Director David Yamada

Join Us for a Dignity Seminar!

Click Here to Register Registration is free. Please visit the WISR website to see more learning opportunities. Dignity, Honor, and Humiliation in the Home and in the World Join Us for a WISR-WDUi Seminar Saturday, February 25, 2023, 10:00 am to Noon (Pacific Time) Humiliation is one of the most powerful forces disrupting relationships in our homes and in the world, triggering acts of traumatic retaliation, aggression, and violence. In this online seminar, Evelin Lindner, Linda Hartling, and Sharon Steinborn invite you to explore how therapists and others can encourage helpful responses that prevent and repair humiliation while moving all relationships toward mutual dignity. Many thanks to our co-hosts and friends at the Western Institute of Social Research (WISR) for joining with us to convene this seminar.

Good News from Our DigniCommunity!

Can Human Rights Law Protect Against Humiliation? Psychology Today Article Recognizes the Efforts of HumanDHS A new article written by Deepa Kansra, Ph.D., published in Psychology Today, describes the importance of human rights laws designed to protect vulnerable populations from humiliation (January 5, 2023). It highlights the work of HumanDHS and integrates the research of scholars contributing to our dignity community. Read the article here.

Evelin Lindner is Cultivating Encouraging Global Connections for HumanDHS As our Global Ambassador, Evelin Lindner has been connecting with a remarkable number of HumanDHS friends in Jordan, Israel, and India since December. Most recently she contributed to the 9th World Parliament of Science, Religion, and Philosophy conference, February 9–11, 2023. To read more about this talk, please visit this webpage.

Human Dignity and Humiliation — Stories from Israeli Schools New book by Avi Shahaf Congratulations to Avi Shahaf on his new book! The book is based on narrative research with principals, teachers, educational counselors, and students who shared their stories about dignity and humiliation. Avi Shahaf is an organizational consultant whose expertise is helping organizations advance the value of human dignity.

The Massachusetts Healthy Workplace Bill Moves Forward Thanks to the efforts of David Yamada and others, the anti-bullying Healthy Workplace Bill (HWB) in the State of Massachusetts has been reintroduced in the 2023-24 session of the Massachusetts legislature. The HWB permits targets of severe workplace bullying to seek damages in court and creates liability-reducing incentives for employers to act preventively and responsively toward bullying behaviors at work. Please read more...

Gender & Human Rights Global Ambassador Honoring Hayal Köksal On January 7, 2023, Associate Professor Dr. Hayal Köksal was presented with a "Gender & Human Rights Global Ambassador" certificate by the founder of the Federation of International Gender and Human Rights (FIGHR), Dr. Ameena Ali. She was also the highly esteemed convener of the 15th Annual HumanDHS Conference in Istanbul, Turkey.

Year of the Earth Serpent Changing Colors New Novel by Hall Gardner Hall Gardner's first novel, as a work of historical fiction, represents over 30 years of reflection upon the events and protests that took place on Tiananmen Square in China and in the world before, during, and after June 4th, 1989. Evelin Lindner acknowledges this novel as an "extraordinary illustration of the dynamics of humiliation that delivers a lesson the world needs to learn." Hall Gardner is an international relations theorist, editorialist, TV commentator, poet, and novelist. To order the book, please visit this website or your preferred book distributor.

We love sharing news that grows out of the global efforts of our HumanDHS community! If you would like to share your dignity news — positive progress, courageous action, promising practices, and alike — we warmly invite you to send it to our attention: humandhs@humiliationstudies.org.

New Dignity Press Publications

Dignity Press books explore the dynamics of human dignity and humiliation from diverse standpoints and global perspectives. Contributing authors are from all over the world. In addition to the books below, we invite you to visit dignitypress.org for a complete list of publications.

Now Available in Print and Digital! Economic Theory and Community Development: Why Putting Community First Is Essential to Our Survival Congratulations to Howard Richards, with assistance from Gavin Andersson, on his new book that is now globally available in print and digital form! HumanDHS Board Director Michael Britton celebrates the publication of this book, stating: "The book not only walks us through economics, it is a walk up the mount to transformative vision, transformative for readers and for the world as it is." Please read more. This book can be ordered through Dignity Press.

Coming Soon! From Humiliation to Dignity: For a Future of Global Solidarity Even as we watch cascading crises unfold around the world, our shared hope is for an exponential change of heart so that global unity — rooted in respect for diversity — becomes possible. Evelin Lindner's soon to be released book asks the question: How must we, humankind, arrange our affairs on this planet so that dignified life will be possible in the long term? We invite you to read a downloadable preview of this book. Please also visit the Dignity Press website for its upcoming release.

Dignifunding: Thanks to All of Our Sharegivers!

We are grateful to all who sustain HumanDHS with action gifts and economic support! HumanDHS does not have a paid staff, administrative assistance, or IT services. We are an "extreme, lean, green, but not mean" community, essentially a "do-it-together-with-dignity" community. We do not charge registration fees for events, yet we appreciate thoughtful contributions (according to one's ability). If you would like to contribute, we warmly welcome your kind support: Please accept my gift in support of the World Dignity University initiative. Please accept my donation to the HumanDHS community. Please accept my gift in support of Evelin Lindner's global efforts.

Wishing You a World of Dignity!

Evelin Lindner, MD, PhDs, Founding President Linda Hartling, PhD, Director David Yamada, PhD, Director, WDUi Uli Spalthoff, PhD, Director of Project Development and Systems Administration  Michael Britton, EdD, PhD, Board Member  Richard Slaven, PhD, Director of Dignifunding Jane Hilken, MA, Publication Advisor HumanDHS Board of Directors

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