No. 10, 15 May, 2026
Dear readers,
It gives us great pleasure to bring you news of our first ever retreat, held last month in Oxfordshire. The three days were a success in ways we could not have imagined. So more about that below, and some more pictures, too…
We’re also delighted to feature the work of Rachel Musson and ThoughtBox Education. Rachel, a former grantee of Emergence Foundation, tells us about why and how she has overturned the norms of educational practice… and continues to do so. Norms, that is, which encourage a top-down, Western-centric approach.
As always, your contributions to this newsletter are very welcome. Additionally, our plan for the next edition (due July 15th) is to highlight the meaning and value of our retreat in the words of several of the participants.
This last weekend was our first extended meeting since the retreat. We come out of that, after the retreat’s very clear success, also very clear that we’d like to offer something along similar lines next year, probably around the same time.
In addition, we’re very keen to run a few shorter events as a follow-up, open to all who are interested. Initially, we’re planning a nature walk and meditation. You can find out more at the foot of the newsletter…
Very best wishes,
Caprice Jackson
(for Emergence Foundation)
Being Alone Together
“From meditation to inquiry to deep movement sessions… we travelled both alone and together. It was a space that allowed us all to let go, to listen, to be challenged, and to open up to the richness and diversity held in the gathering.”
These words capture something of the essence of Emergence Foundation’s first ever retreat. Just four weeks ago, from April 17-20, a group of thirty-two of us took part in giving ourselves over to exploring the depth and meaning to be found in meditation, conscious movement and dialogue.
And what a wonderful time it was! Trust formed quickly and easily, as did a willingness to go further… beyond the familiar. This in itself was very life-affirming, especially given the diversity of backgrounds and age spread of the participants.
For us at Emergence this retreat was breaking new ground. We had included some of the same elements in our previous events. Not before, though, had we brought together these three fields and made them the main focus. We sensed how complementary they could be and we knew the team had the depth of experience to facilitate and support this. However, although we’d set the template, it was very much a time of exploration for us, too…
Steve Murphy, a trustee and executive member, captured the essence of this powerful time together in his closing words:
“The timeless idea of a retreat is to remove ourselves for a time from the endless distractions of the mind, of our responsibilities, of the demands that life places on us, so we can remember and re-engage with the deepest parts of ourselves, and infuse our lives more with the qualities we find there – peace, joy and the knowledge that in that deep place we mysteriously are never truly alone, we’re always connected to something bigger.”
It has perhaps become a bit of a cliche to speak of antidotes to the chaos experienced in the world at large at the present time. Yet that chaos is real and real, too, the difficulties many of us face in its light. Our weekend together spoke of a different reality, a different way of being. Maybe a time away from, but by no means an escape.
It was, above all, a realisation of the potential that diverse human beings, with the right spirit and willingness, are capable of. This is something Emergence Foundation is very interested in continuing to support as our part in helping to create a more sane and loving world.
And a final word:
“The weekend was an open invitation to all of us, to remember that underlying our day-to-day experience, is a depth that is always present, always available, ever regenerative, always loving, always giving. It offers a way to come together in new ways with a fresh innocence, in true vulnerability, and with attention and care.”
Bringing the Inner and Outer Into Conscious Alignment
Rachel Musson
Our grant giving at EF has brought us into contact with some amazingly inspired people. People who, in many different areas of life, have found change is very much needed. And, typically, they see that change as meaning them. Rachel Musson is one such person… and her field is education.
What’s the point?
Rachel started out as a secondary school teacher, teaching English literature to young people. Not infrequently she was met with the response, “What’s the point?”
What indeed was the point, she thought to herself, when so much of the teaching was top-down, didactic and had so little reference to her students’ lives. Going on to teach in Nepal and Tanzania only confirmed how out-of-touch, culturally as well, conventional, Western-based teaching methods were.
Triple Well-Being
Rachel was very much on a journey of discovery and it was while she was in Tanzania she began to evolve a radical new approach. She saw that education needed to be meaningful to students in both their own lives and in terms of the world around: social and environmental, however that may manifest. And that education needed to fully engage the students emotionally, too.
At the time, in 2019, Rachel outlined her thinking in a book entitled ‘The Story of Triple Well-Being’. In it she laid out an education that was, at the same time, about “a healthier you, a healthier us, a healthier planet”. Rachel also describes this as being about bringing “the inner and the outer into conscious alignment”. Around the same time as the book came out, she formed her organisation ThoughtBox as a vehicle for making her ideas available. The ThoughtBox website expresses the Triple Well-Being philosophy thus:
“Triple WellBeing shows us that individual, community and planetary wellbeing are not just connected—they’re fundamentally dependent on each other. By fully embracing this relationship, we set in motion a cycle of wellbeing that uplifts every aspect of life.”
A Fellowship
From Tanzania Rachel spent time at Schumacher College in Devon where she was able to develop her resources in co-operation with others. ThoughtBox has gone on to make available worldwide 18 different free educational programmes with a full set of ready-made teaching materials. It also has formed a fellowship of 61 practitioners in 17 different countries.
Rachel attributes the support of Emergence Foundation as sustaining ThoughtBox in its early years. Naturally it is a source of pride that we have played a part in her realising her vision.
You can find out more about the work of ThoughtBox on their beautifully composed website at https://thoughtboxeducation.com/. The site is a treasure trove of education-related things, all born out of Rachel’s inspired methodology. It includes details of a free hour-long training you can do in the Triple Well-Being approach.
Also included is how to access the podcast she presents with collaborator Holly Everett called ‘Two Inconvenient Women’, covering themes such as How do we heal our broken world? and Why is singing so good for us? That’s at: https://thoughtboxeducation.com/tiw-podcast.
A Manifesto
It would be remiss not to mention how closely Rachel’s worldview parallels our own at Emergence Foundation, something which made speaking to Rachel doubly enjoyable. As the closing paragraph of the ‘Triple Well-Being Manifesto’ on the ThoughtBox website expresses it:
“Let’s harness our collective energy to enrich life at every turn. It’s not about getting weighed down by problems, but about focusing on the limitless potential to transform our world. When we shift our focus to what could be, we create a future brimming with life.”
Upcoming EF events
- A walk to and from Amaravati Buddhist Monastery near Berkhamsted in Hertfordshire on Saturday 18 July with lunch which the monastery freely offers. This will include a conscious nature walk guided by Sukhin Tye, who led these walks on the retreat. Amaravati itself is a beautiful, natural space, ideal for contemplation, created in the longstanding tradition of Thai forest monks and nuns. No particular religious belief or adherence expected or required!
- For quite a long time EF members have held an online half-hour meditation every Sunday at 10am, UK time. We would like to extend an invitation to anyone interested to join us on certain Sundays in the month. This wouldn’t be a led session and so would suit those who feel established enough to be able to meditate for 30 minutes. In terms of exact details, see note below.
- With both the walk and meditation, we are finalising the information you need. If you are interested in one or both, please look out for an email arriving soon!
