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Ukraine, Sarajevo: Healing Trauma of War. The host for this show is Phyllis Blees. The guest is Laurie Marshall. < Back Unity Through Creativity, Not Force (The Creative Life) Envisioning positive futures together is a key skill to surviving and thriving in the 21st century. Creativity is a birthright. We each need to use our genius to heal our heartbreak. With a clear vision, like Harriet Tubman’s, we can achieve the goal of communities that work for all. Unity Through Creativity Foundation, founded by Laurie Marshall, developed the Singing Tree Methodology – A Peace Building Through Art program. Youth, adults and elders, and schools, businesses, and NGOs create a mural together. This taps into the neurobiology of peace and the principle of peace literacy. The collaborative mural envisions success to community challenges, heals heartbreak and sparks innovative action while connecting the participants to an international network of Peace Leaders. 21,000 people from 52 countries have co-created over 100 murals that use the mutualism of trees as inspiration. The goal is to demonstrate that profound collaboration is possible, visible, and powerful. The ThinkTech YouTube Playlist for this show is https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLQpkwcNJny6koOuEfnRgs0d5aPeLJKJXJ Please visit our ThinkTech website at https://thinktechhawaii.com and see our Think Tech Advisories at https://thinktechadvisories.blogspot.com . ThinkTech Hawaii streams live on the Internet from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm Hawaii time most weekdays, then we stream our earlier shows all night long. Check us out any time for great content and great community. Our vision is to be a leader in shaping a more vital and thriving Hawaii as the foundation for future generations. Our mission is to be the leading digital media platform raising public awareness and promoting civic engagement in Hawaii. Previous Next

25724b4a-b785-469a-88c0-64bbe2ea44e9 < Back Grant Grover Mural 1/1 “What Kind of World Do You Want to Live In?” was the driving question of the 8' x 4' mural. A team of wise and thought-provoking college students at Grant Grover School, part of College of Marin shared their responses: A world where everyone can give their gifts, where people walk the city in peace, where there’s more Nature, butterflies and horses, where there is safety for people and animals and clean water, where there is no alcoholism or drug use, no name calling and fighting, a place where there are smiles and laughter, where people learn how to fix breakdowns and where Love = Life without Limits. From this conversation, 8th grade Novato Charter School student Gabriella Borges and Laurie Marshall made a black and white study. The students colored the studies. Laurie put together their color ideas into a master design and facilitated the students painting the mural. San Rafael, CA, USA Previous Next

4f13843f-57b7-4e75-846e-44b6b8af94f8 < Back Education is the Handmaiden of Democracy 1/1 ”Education is the Handmaiden of Democracy” 8’ x 4’ made by Advanced Art Students at Rappahannock County High School, 1998. When water was spilled in the sky, a student transformed it into a UFO. Another student came up with the subtitle when she described the high school as “A Place of Possibilities.” The border is made up of images that honor each subject taught at the high school. The State of Liberty was painted by Natasha Payne-Brunson, who has become a librarian and an artist/illustrator. Rappahannock County, VA, USA Previous Next

Ukiah High students work on the Singing Tree Mural of Climate Solutions. (Chris Pugh—Ukiah Daily Journal) < Back Students at Ukiah High working on mural focused on climate change Ukiah High students work on the Singing Tree Mural of Climate Solutions. (Chris Pugh—Ukiah Daily Journal) Students at Ukiah High School are finishing work on an art mural called “The Singing Tree Mural of Climate Solutions,” which seeks to raise awareness through art about the growing effects of climate change to the environment. The students in the classes of Biology and French for Ukiah High teacher Eveline Rodriguez are researching and depicting the top 10 solutions to climate change in a mural with the help of artist Laurie Marshall, who works to help students in schools across the Bay Area bring attention to social issues through art. Climate change is of grave concern right now for life on the planet, and most solutions need humans to bring down carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. CO2 levels just reached 415 parts per million for the first time in Earth’s history earlier this month, and scientists say there is a correlation between higher temperatures on Earth and rising CO2 levels. According to a recent United Nations report, humans are putting around 1 million species of plants and animals in danger of extinction in the coming decades. Food and water security, human health, and economic instability are all likely to become more significant issues as the effects of climate change occur. The top 10 solutions represented in the mural are based on the recommendations of Project Drawdown. Project Drawdown, a nonprofit founded in 2014 by environmentalist Paul Hawken, is a climate advocacy organization that offers solutions on its website to different aspects of climate change. It lists the top 10 solutions as refrigerant management, more wind turbines, reducing food waste, plant-rich diet, tropical forest restoration, education for girls, family planning, solar farms, the farming practice of Silvopasture, and more solar rooftops. The nonprofit also provides solutions based on sectors like electricity generation, food, women and girls, building and cities, land use, materials and transportation. The mural is not the first that Marshall and students from Ukiah High School have worked on together. In 2017, students worked on the Manzanita Singing Tree of Kindness mural, which explored ways that students could provide acts of kindness and how it could help improve relationships. The new one will go next to the Manzanita mural and will be made using the same techniques. The students learned about techniques like three-dimensional painting, how to paint the background of the mural first, adding different layers on top of each other, and how to design and complete a mural art project. “We had these great conversations, and then the kids came up with a design that contains both the grief of this time and the hope,” Marshall said. When the students finish the mural, kids from other science classes at the school will glue renderings of leaves and birds onto the final layer. The leaves will have answers to the question of what solution to climate change captures your imagination, or what action are you going to take. The birds will include answers about what the students wish for in regard to climate change. Around 350 kids will participate in total. “They are very worried, and they want ideas for action. They don’t want what’s politically possible; they want what needs to be done,” Marshall said. As part of the mural design, it will include an oak tree, redwood tree, willow tree and the Pacific madrone tree. They are also honoring the monarch butterfly and will have a pregnant woman with the Earth inside her as well as a gas mask to represent education for girls and family planning. The Singing Tree Mural will also address issues of pollution, the lack of time left, and the hope for the future of the Earth. The students hope to be finished by the end of next week and possibly have an unveiling ceremony on May 28. Their goal is to have the project completed over a short stretch to demonstrate that many people can work together quickly to achieve something. Eveline Rodriguez says that her goal is to try and have her classes next year also get the opportunity to create new murals if she can find the funds. The Manzanita Singing Tree mural focused on kindness while this mural message deals with citizenship and the different effects of climate change. She hopes that working together to create art and the themes of the murals will stay engrained with students for the rest of their lives. “I think it’s important because it leaves a memory, and it stays there,” Rodriguez said. “Some of these students who are freshman are going to see it for four years and are going to have an investment in it. So I’m hoping that it will be a reminder of what we talked about in class and what we can do.” By Curtis Driscoll | cdriscoll@willitsnews.com | Ukiah Daily Journal
PUBLISHED: May 18, 2019 at 4:08 pm | UPDATED: May 18, 2019 at 4:10 pm Previous Next

< Back Inner Landscapes of Laurel Dell Elementary Inner Landscapes and I Am poems at Laurel Dell Elementary School in San Rafael. A project of Artists Teaching Art. Previous Next

8debadc9-3cf1-414c-9949-ecdf0bb1c65d Back to Gallery Mural # 18 Sycamore Singing Tree of Success 1/1 The Sycamore Singing Tree of Success was made with art teacher Dawn Weickum from A.P. Giannini Middle School and art students in preparation for San Francisco’s Earth Day in 2011. The students designed and painted the background, plus cut out leaves and birds. The project was sponsored by the Institute of Noetic Sciences in conjunction with their Worldview Literacy program , directed by Dr. Katia Petersen who had the vision for the display at Earth Day . We also partnered with 350.org , an organization dedicated to bringing down carbon dioxide emissions. By putting 350 on the mural, we share the information that we need 350 parts per million of carbon dioxide in the air for life to thrive on the planet. There were 390 parts per million in 2011. As of 2023, there were 424. Date: April 24, 2011 Facilitator: Laurie Marshall Partners: Institute of Noetic Sciences Dr. Katia Petersen A.P. Giannini Middle School Location: San Francisco, CA, USA Previous Next

The Flood of Kindness written by De'Ante Webster, 8 years old We hope this book will help there be more kindness in the world. It’s for kids who are going through big weather events. It’s also for kids who have lost someone close to them. This story is about what happened after Hurricane Katrina. In it, a boy’s memory of his best friend, who died in the flood, helps return the magic of Kindness to New Orleans after anger, division, and mistrust had taken over. Let’s work together, De’Ante Webster and Laurie Marshall get the book De'Ante Webster, Author I want kids to learn how the power of kindness can change your life and the life of others. I want to bring to light the story of Hurricane Katrina and how devastating it was to the people who lived in New Orleans at the time. I feel like this story can reach out to people around the world. If it reaches New Orleans, I would be very proud and honored. The world today needs more kindness right now. The world is in the state of anger and hate, like it was in my book that was written several years ago. I hope that all Americans can start the healing process. Laurie Marshall, Illustrator I am Dee’s godmother. I met his grandmother, Jackie Webster, in 1963 when I was 14 at a Quaker Summer Workcamp. It was run by the American Friends Service Committee. I stayed at her house for the next two summers. She was the star softball player, a person of authenticity, steadfastness and courage. I learned about segregation and the impact of racism on people I loved. Jackie's high school counselor told her she shouldn’t take college prep classes because she was only going to clean houses. She went to college and became an educator. Jackie became a part of our family and my sisters and I became a part of hers. Jackie and I camped with a group of young people on two-month Quaker trip to the Soviet Union in 1967. We travelled through American wilderness and a Navajo reservation in 1973. We camped in Canada and Maine with my family. She has been my teacher and dear friend for over 50 years. We have both devoted ourselves to the well-being of young people. get the book back to shop >

8c41e6d6-3f33-43a3-9e63-c0be6baa7dfa Back to Gallery Mural # 55 The Juniper Singing Tree of Diné Traditions 1/1 The Juniper Singing Tree of Diné Traditions made with teens from Rez Refuge in Arizona . Date: August 20, 2021 Facilitator: Rez Refuge Partners: Rez Refuge in Arizona Location: Arizona, USA Previous Next

4572c73f-6f19-44e1-b2f7-9e7e44e5ebc9 < Back Tree of Community & Simple Balance 1/1 This mural was facilitated by Kathleen Brigidina with 15 participants gathered at the Simple Balance Holistic Healing Center. They began with a guided visualization remembering we are part of Nature we not seperate. The participants used Earth pigments and Elements foraged from Nature. They set the canvas on a table and began painting in a revolving circle from one area to the next. Feeling into their interwovenness with Earth and each other as they blended and overlapped their own art with each other’s art. Previous Next

0e81b8f7-7f1d-45fd-8545-3cc1bccad02a Back to Gallery Mural # 138 The Singing Tree of Ms. Rivera 1/1 Ms. Maya Rivera, 33, was a 4th grade teacher at Monterrey Elementary School in Roswell, New Mexico. She lived a beautiful life that ended way too soon. Her friends and family know her as their “Little Teacher” with a big personality. Often found scooting around in her chair making others laugh, she was much loved by her family, students and fellow staff members. Her love of dairy cows, coffee, Door Dash and her students was known to the community, where she had taught for seven years. She was recently celebrated as a “Teacher of Character”. The Singing Tree ® of Ms. Rivera seeks to capture these qualities. Tamra Gedde , head of Roswell’s Creative Learning Center , responded immediately to the tragic untimely loss of Ms. Rivera by facilitating a Singing Tree® mural as a tribute to her and as a way for the students and community to grieve together. The universe in the background represents all that connects the children, families, staff and community of Monterrey. The oak tree represents Ms. Rivera. Her roots are deep within the Earth. Ms. Rivera is also honord by the heart with a black and white cow pattern, a yellow Monterrey banner and a red “R”. She will always be in the hearts of the community. The painting is a reminder of the sweet memories of the beloved educator. The 4th graders drew their memories, love and prayers on the birds. They are the birds. Teachers contributed their memories on the leaves, as did some students. Ms. Rivera’s unstoppable sense of humor appears as the cow peeking out from the tree. Date: July 18, 2024 Facilitator: Tamra Gedde, Executive Director, Creative Learning Center Partners: Monterrey Elementary School Location: Roswell, NM, USA Previous Next

UTC Gallery Singing Tree Forest Inner Landscapes Collaborative Murals Singing Tree™ Mural Forest Click image to see murals made each year. 2025 2024 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 2014 2013 2012 2011 2010 2007 2006 2005 2003 2002 2001 Singing Trees Inner Landscapes In face of unprecedented challenges, there is a tool we can give ourselves and our children that is an important source of protection: Finding strength within . That’s what art allows. Exploring inner space – the place to get in touch with the endless flow of ideas and deepest values, the place to focus on the miracle of existence that connects all living things - this is the space of Peace Building. Inner Landscapes are a way to express the knowledge and wisdom that lies in our hearts and souls. It can be used with any age and any type of community, allowing people to focus on inner strengths, passions and dreams. Compass Academy Inner Landscapes More El Paso Art Teachers Inner Landscapes More Boys and Girls Club Inner Landscapes More Laurel Dell Elementary School Inner Landscapes More See All Inner Landscapes Inner Landscapes Murals Collaborative murals bring joy and empowerment while making a lasting and uplifting transformation to the environment. Our signature Arts Integration process takes many ideas and folds them into one original mural. We make Shared Visions of Success – an essential element for Peace Building – and reinforce your community’s values and mission. Crows with a Cawse More Camp Fire Five Year Memorial More Lighting the Way More More Murals Murals

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< Back Sonda Cheesebrough Certified Singing Tree Mural Facilitator Sonda is an artist who is passionate about bringing out the best in people through community and art. Sonda received her BFA in Painting from West Virginia University and her MA in Art with a concentration in Art Education. Growing up in West Virginia, Sonda started her journey with art as a two year-old night owl, drawing her “peoples” around her nightlight while everyone else was asleep. Her childhood connection to art fed her ever growing imagination that led her to a lifelong dedication to the healing powers of art. Her 30+ years as an educator has been instrumental in curating her deep insight into compassionate communication and the powerful need for relationships across all ages, genders, and cultures. Sonda received her BFA in Painting from West Virginia University and her MA in Art with a concentration in Art Education. After graduating with her BFA, she pursued studies in Lucca Italy through Indiana University of Pennsylvania under the direction of John Delmonte. Part of her education at this time was a self guided trek around Europe, jumping on trains and go in city to city, visiting museums, and galleries wherever she went. She later went on to pursue studies in ceramics as a non-degree graduate student at the University of California Irvine. While attending her first National Art Education Association in Chicago, Sonda was inspired by the many city murals made in collaboration with youth artists. She has received rewards from WVAEA for Art Educator of the Year and Elementary Art Educator of the Year. Since that time, Sonda has worked on public murals around West Virginia and beyond, including several Singing Trees. In 2012 she was chosen as Fulbright first alternate to create a Singing Tree Mural in South Korea. She has co-created a mural in Fiji and with international artist, Isaiah Zagar, that included 75 + children, ranging in age from kindergarten through high school, along with community members, local art teachers and artists. For Sonda, creating art with children is always about relationships - with the children, with the community and with the Earth. The process, the communication and the development of confidence and leadership in children is the purpose behind every creation that Sonda leads. Sonda is a NBCT - National Board Certified Teacher. The Monongalia County Singing Tree of Patience and Acceptance While Branching Out Into the Future More Singing Tree of Diversity II More

af82eed8-4cf6-43a0-9602-682e2ff1e8bb Back to Gallery Mural # 69 The Singing Tree™ of Spirit and Nature 1/1 The Singing Tree of Spirit and Nature made by the Living Wisdom School in Palo Alto . Date: October 29, 2020 Facilitator: Sunanda Peters Partners: Living Wisdom School in Palo Alto Location: 456 College Ave, Palo Alto, CA 94306, USA Previous Next