Book Study Group

Register here for 2026 Book Study Group sessions.

After registering, Zoom will send you a confirmation email with your personal link for joining the meetings. Please do not share that link; it is yours alone. 

Share the fun of the Book Study Group by encouraging others to register with the link above.

Currently reading:

Presencing: 7 Practices for Transforming Self, Society, and Business
By C. Otto Scharmer and Katrin Kaüfer (2025)

Schedule:

March 2 through April 13, 2026

Every other Monday for 90 minutes 

9:00 am PT / 10:00 am MT / 11:00 am CT / 12:00 pm ET

March 2: Introduction, pp. 1-10; Chapter 1, pp. 11-22; Chapter 2, pp. 23 - 30, Chapter 3, p. 31 - 54

March 16: Chapter 4, pp. 55 - 92

March 30: Chapter 5, pp. 93 - 139

April 13: Chapter 6, pp. 139 - 162; Chapter 7, pp. 163 - 174

A set of Personal Reflection and Dialogue Question is available on p. 175. More information about Presencing is available at presencing.org.

The Book Study Group has an online group where between-meeting discussions, further resources, and commentary about reading and issues of the day appear. You can post to the online discussion group by addressing an email to bsg-online-discussion@googlegroups.org.

If you have any questions about the EAN Book Study Group, please contact Carl Lashley.

Book Study Group guidelines are simple:

  1. Read the chapters and bring your thoughts to the next meeting.

  2. Register for the meetings via Zoom (using the REGISTER button below). After registering, Zoom will send you a unique link to join the series of meetings. Do not share the link, it is unique to you.

  3. Contact Carl Lashley with any questions

About the Book Study Group

Since 2018, between 20 and 30 avid readers meet every two weeks via Zoom to discuss. We choose books with depth and relevance to issues of the day.

List of previous books read by the Book Study Group.

Vision for the Book Study Group

  • We participate in in-depth discussions and share ideas on books that speak to our ecological integrity, social and economic justice, and peaceful coexistence.

  • We educate ourselves about ecological, social, economic concerns so that we have better and more effective ideas about how to co-create change, and act from knowledge and insight gained through our reading and our dialogue.

  • We attract diversity.

  • We have facilitators trained in helping diverse groups of individuals with different approaches and ideas to have discussions where all can be heard.

  • We can act as a possible educational resource for other action groups within EAN

  • We continue to select books by having members offer suggestions, and then choose by majority vote/agreement

  • We encourage the formation of smaller groups from within the book group who want to chat, discuss, and just enjoy each other’s company

  • We hold an annual BIG READ for all members of EAN

  • We conclude each meeting with an action step to reduce GHG in the atmosphere.

The Way Forward Regenerative Conversations Podcast

What Needs to Change Now: – A Conversation with Otto Scharmer and Katrin Kaufer

Have you ever felt powerless to change the system—wondering if one person's actions can truly make a difference in a world overwhelmed by complex challenges? In this provocative and inspiring episode of The Way Forward Regenerative Conversations, we confront the limiting belief that individual actions don't matter—a mindset Otto Scharmer and Katrin Kaufer describe as the "illusion of insignificance." Joined by hosts Dr. John Izzo and Alain Gauthier, we directly address elders and regenerative activists, empowering listeners to reclaim their agency and become active participants in reshaping our collective future.

In this deeply insightful conversation, Otto and Katrin share transformative concepts such as "islands of coherence," the essential "social soil" that nurtures societal change, and "fourth-person knowing," a profound form of collective intelligence. Drawing practical connections from their new book Presencing, they illuminate how aligning attention, intention, and agency can empower individuals and communities to break free from outdated systems. You’ll discover how your small yet intentional actions can create powerful ripples of change, building on ideas explored in previous episodes such as intergenerational collaboration, climate adaptation, and regenerative elderhood.