by Allie Stark, Collective Evolution

Presence is the powerful practice of being in the moment.

It is created through an acute awareness of one’s thoughts, feelings, and emotions, and in our modern day society, being present doesn’t always come easily. The overstimulation and distraction that come from technology, social media, work, family life, social engagements, and the never-ending “to-do” lists regularly take us out of the now and into a memory from the past or a fear about the future.

Cultivating the power of presence comes from creating the space to observe one’s mind and one’s self. This skill of observation allows us to look at our own lives and the lives of others without attaching judgment or analysis. Using this awareness, we become mindfully attuned to all that is around us through our five senses (smell, touch, taste, sight, and sound) as well as our physical sensations — you know, those signs from our bodies that we often tend to ignore.

by Alexa Erickson, Collective Evolution

Native American tribes across the country continue to march in their respective cities to show their dedicated support of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe. Media outlets have covered the ongoing protest exhaustively, which makes it interesting that, when a prominent pipeline in the Southeast broke, major media outlets didn’t cover the news nearly as thoroughly or frequently.

While some outlets did report on the spill on their websites, the focus remained on the forthcoming gas shortages and the resultant spike in gas prices residents could expect. It’s another testament to the fact that mainstream media would rather focus on how news will affect consumers than how it will affect the environment.

The Colonial Pipeline has main lines running through roughly 10 states. Having broken in Shelby County, Alabama, the rupture caused a leakage of 250,000 gallons beginning on September 9th, forcing workers to close the pipeline.

by Alanna Ketler, Collective Evolution

According to newly uncovered documents, in the 1960s the sugar industry began funding research to cast doubt on sugar’s role in heart disease, mainly by pointing the finger at fat instead.

A recently published analysis based on correspondence between a sugar trade group and researchers from Harvard University clearly demonstrates how food and beverage makers actively shape the public’s understanding of nutrition for their own financial gain.

The Evidence

In 1964 a group known as The Sugar Association went over a campaign to address any “negative attitudes toward sugar” after studies linking sugar with heart disease began to emerge, according to documents that were dug up from the now public archives. The following year the group approved a project called “Project 226,” which involved paying researchers from Harvard the equivalent of todays $48,900 USD for an article reviewing scientific literature, supplying the materials they wanted reviewed and reviewing drafts of the article prior to publication.

by Alexa Erickson, Collective Evolution

The battle between the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and the Dakota Access Pipeline Company continues. In fact, mere hours after lawyers representing the tribe filed evidence in federal court revealing that some of the pipeline’s planned route would infiltrate a sacred burial site, the company shockingly began work there.

Bulldozers broke through the land as hundreds of Native Americans from a plethora of tribes feverishly fled to the scene as a means for protecting the sacred site-turned- construction zone.

The company’s security forces fought back, attacking the Native Americans with dogs and pepper spray. The tribe’s lawyer requested an emergency temporary restraining order in order to keep construction from commencing on the sacred site.

Jan Hasselman, staff attorney with Earthjustice, who is representing the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe in Federal Court, and Dave Archambault, the Chairman of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe, spoke with Democracy Now! regarding the situation.

You can read the transcript from Democracy Now, or watch the video below.

by Kalee Brown, Collective Evolution

Every day, millions of people suffer from cancer and the harmful effects that stem from conventional treatment methods. Many of these people are told by their doctors that their disease is “incurable,” comparing their lives to an hourglass whereby their time on Earth is quickly running out. Cancer patients are led to believe that they only have two treatment options: chemotherapy or radiation, which are often coupled with surgery. Both chemotherapy and radiation negatively impact the body’s natural ability to heal itself as it harms healthy tissues. One study even proved that chemotherapy is ineffective more than 97% of the time (watch Dr. Peter Glidden discuss these findings here). What if I told you that a cure for cancer not only exists and is proven to be effective, but that you can also make this all-natural remedy yourself (here’s how)? For decades, cannabis has been studied and used to treat and kill cancer cells. There have been numerous medical studies performed and countless examples of people consuming cannabis oil to completely heal themselves from cancer.