by Alanna Ketler, Collective Evolution

GROW FREE is a project started by Andrew Barker, from Victoria, Australia, who – by the way, also happens to be a writer here at Collective Evolution! This project was started with Andrew’s vision of a community where locally grown food is shared with one another… for free!

This project involves setting up carts around the city and offering any kind of food, but generally locally grown produce, to anyone who might need it, or just want it. Not everyone grows the same crops, so it’s a good opportunity for neighbours to share the fruits of their labour with one another, and with those who don’t have the means to have their own gardens.

As Andrew says: “The carts are a medium where people of the community can share with one another, they’re for excess homegrown produce, seeds and seedlings, preserves, eggs, etc.

by Will Hartfield, Collective Evolution

What comes to your mind when bacteria are mentioned? For most people, bacteria and microbes suggest disease. However, there are billions of very important bacteria that literally share the human body and help it function. These microorganisms are collectively known as the microbiome.

Microbes are found living in various parts of the human body. Although there has been limited research on the microbiome, scientists have begun to appreciate its role in human health. According to the United States National Library of medicine, there are more than 1 trillion microbes living in the body, with the largest colonies being harboured in the gastrointestinal tract. These microbes are associated with regulation of digestion, protection from disease-causing organisms, and the development of a strong immune response.

by Alanna Ketler, Collective Evolution

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), an estimated 250 million people of all ages suffer from depression, making it the leading cause of disability around the world and a significant contributor to the worldwide disease burden. More people are on antidepressant medication now than ever before, and the numbers keep rising.

Ayahuasca, the most powerful psychotropic known to man, is a brew of two different Amazonian plants, Banisteriopsis caapi and Psychotria viridis. This pairing has been used for centuries in healing ceremonies in the Amazon, but over the past decade or so, it has gained worldwide prominence, with thousands of people travelling across the globe to participate in indigenous healing ceremonies, typically in South America and most notably in Peru.

by Mark DeNicola, Collective Evolution

Thousands upon thousands of personal development and spirituality books fill the shelves of your local book store. While they all offer wonderful food for thought, here are 10 in particular that you shouldn’t miss out on. 

The world of literature is a magical one. Despite being equipped with only words, books have the incredible ability to make us think, feel, and imagine new worlds.

As an avid reader, I can think of a number of books that changed my life for the better. While many of these were works of fiction, I’d like to instead focus upon 10 largely nonfictional works devoted to personal development.

While most that I will be listing have topped several best-seller lists at one point or another, an astonishing number of us have still never taken the time to read them.

Here are 10 books that I believe have life changing potential:

by Joe Martino, Collective Evolution

You have seen his live videos all over Facebook about his time down at Standing Rock, the man has been a dedicated water protector, there on the front lines telling the world the story the mainstream media refuses to cover. And we love him for it.

But not everyone has warm feelings about Kevin it seems. Pro DAPL workers and locals of Bismarck, the closest major city where the pipeline is being constructed in North Dakota, have not been happy about the resistance to the pipeline’s construction. Water protectors have been peacefully and prayerfully protecting their land and water from the inevitable oil leaks that would destroy their drinking water and millions more. It is these people who have not taken liking to Kevin’s work in spreading the water protectors message.

I spoke to Kevin yesterday about a recent development. He has been receiving death threats and nuisance calls so frequently that he had to change his phone number. We spoke about what the nature of those calls were and he had a message to those sending him those calls that was incredibly touching and powerful.