Charles Eisenstein

Charles Eisenstein (born 1967) is a public speaker, gift economy advocate, and the author of several books including The Ascent of Humanity (2007), Sacred Economics (2011), and The More Beautiful World Our Hearts Know Is Possible (2013).

Life

Born in 1967, Eisenstein graduated from Yale University in 1989 with a degree in Mathematics and Philosophy. He has lived in Taiwan where he worked as a translator. He married, had children, and later returned to the United States. Eisenstein currently lives in Asheville, North Carolina.

Eisenstein now frequently travels to speak and share his work at conferences and other events. Since 2010, he has spoken over three hundred times in over one hundred cities in the US and elsewhere. His events are held voluntarily, organized by others who invite him to speak. He generally charges people expenses but no fee, leaving it up to them to give him something if they feel the urge. This appeals to his ideal of generosity and "living in the gift."

Writings

Books

Eisenstein has written six books since 2001.

The Ascent of Humanity

The Ascent of Humanity, published in 2007, draws together Eisenstein's thoughts on many topics. The entire text is available online. It was read on the Unwelcome Guests radio show and the reading was later released as an audiobook.

Sacred Economics

Eisenstein wrote his 2011 book Sacred Economics as part of the New Economy movement. The book revolves around the theme of how the current monetary system based on interest and usury, along with the abandonment of the gift economy, has led to social alienation, competition and need for an economic system predicated on continuous growth. It has been either fully or partially translated into at least nine languages. Accordingly, his primary goal is the reestablishment of some form of gift economy as a means of strengthening relationships in contrast to money economies which commodify our relationships and renders people interchangeable. He asserts that money is created by the conversion of free human interactions into paid services. Eisenstein himself attempts to practice the gift economy in his own life.

The book explores additional economic proposals including a negative-interest currency following Silvio Gesell, social dividends, economic degrowth, and a personal emphasis on right livelihood over financial motivation. In other writings, he has also advocated for universal basic income. He describes and rejects what he describes as the myth of scarcity which he claims fosters greed and anxiety.

The book is optimistic, inspirational and motivational in tone.

The More Beautiful World Our Hearts Know is Possible

The More Beautiful World Our Hearts Know is Possible was published in November 2013. In it, Eisenstein says that many of the social, economic, political, and environmental problems covered in his earlier works can be traced back to an underlying worldview that he calls the "Story of Separation"—that humans are separate from each other and from the rest of the natural world. A new story that is emerging, the "Story of Interbeing," is a "story of the world that we really care about." This book describes this as a time of transition between these stories: "Internally, it [the transition] is nothing less than a transformation in the experience of being alive. Externally is it nothing less than a transformation of humanity's role on planet Earth." He deconstructs the old story while describing the new. For example, the best way to interrupt the story of separation is to give someone an experience of non-separation. Publishers' Weekly described it as "a revolutionary and interactive book—in the sense that it inspires the reader to think out of the ordinary," adding that Eisenstein "will be noted in antiquity as one of the seminal and pioneering storytellers of this new world."

Climate—A New Story

Eisenstein's latest book, Climate—A New Story, was published in September 2018. Described as 'flipping the script on climate change,' in it he addresses the framing, tactics and goals of our approach to environmental issues. He proposes that if we were to feel that the rivers, forests, and creatures of the natural and material world were actually sacred or at least valuable in their own right, then our response might be more wholesome and ultimately effective. He decries valuing the living world simply for its carbon credits or for preventing the extinction of one species or another.

Articles

Eisenstein occasionally writes for the "Comment is Free" section of The Guardian on topics including genetic modification and the patenting of seeds and debt. He is a contributing editor at the website Reality Sandwich.

In advance of appearing on Oprah's Super Soul Sunday on July 16, 2017, Eisenstein wrote "The Age of We Need Each Other."

Reception

In 2013, journalist and author Rory Spowers described Eisenstein as a "refreshing new voice", saying that he's young, fresh, well-informed, humble but articulate, with a very spiritual perspective. He added that Eisenstein is too intelligent to be confrontational but that, through his works, especially The Ascent of Humanity and Sacred Economics, "he's really moved the whole thing along in a number of ways." Eisenstein was influential in the Occupy Movement.

Further reading

• The Open Secret, 2001, Authorhouse. ISBN 978-0759655775
• The Yoga of Eating: Transcending Diets and Dogma to Nourish the Natural Self , 2003, NewTrends Publishing. ISBN 978-0967089720
• The Ascent of Humanity. Civilization and the Human Sense of Self, 2007, Panenthea Productions. ISBN 978-0977622207
• Transformational Weight Loss, 2007, Panenthea Press. ISBN 978-0977622214
• Sacred Economics: Money, Gift, and Society in the Age of Transition, 2011, EVOLVER EDITIONS. ISBN 978-1583943977
• The More Beautiful World Our Hearts Know Is Possible. The Vision and Practice of Interbeing, 2013, North Atlantic Books. ISBN 978-1-583-94724-1
• http://www.patheos.com/blogs/wildgarden/2013/11/the-more-beautiful-world/

External links

• Charles Eisenstein website