We sense ustawi. Ustawi, a Swahili word that has a rich meaning. Yes, it means well-being and welfare but more than that, it means that which is overflowing with life.
One feels Ustawi – it's the flowing of the life spirit. Walk in a garden that is verdant and flourishing, overflowing with life – that's ustawi.
We have struggled in English to name this spirit. Christopher Alexender gave up, simply calling that which he sensed bringing architectural space alive as the 'quality without a name'.
We sense joy when classrooms and schools come alive with learning, where it overflows in Joyful Sandboxes. As we seek to explain this experience to others, we feel the need to name this essence.
We understand the importance of practicing Deep Work to cultivate ustawi.
Work that is pointing us in the direction of new practices of Dancing at the Edge, that include 'yarning' which draw from the deep wisdom of our indigenous cultures.
DOT FROM preview-next-diagram