On this episode of Nonviolence Radio, we explore Active Hope—the practice of choosing a direction and moving toward it, even when the future feels uncertain.

We begin with Chris Johnstone (co-author of Active Hope with Joanna Macy), who shares a grounded, non-sugarcoated view of hope as something we activate: by naming what we love, honoring our pain for the world, and building the emotional and communal skills that help us keep going. Johnstone’s “thrutopian” lens offers a way through crisis that refuses both denial and despair.

The episode then turns from inner resourcing to urgent reality on the ground. In a powerful Nonviolence Report, Michael speaks with Mel Duncan, co-founder of Nonviolent Peaceforce, who has just returned from the occupied West Bank to what he calls the “occupied Twin Cities.” Mel draws a direct line between what he witnessed under settler and military impunity in Palestine and what he describes as ICE activity and intimidation in Minnesota—naming the shared dynamics of fear, disappearance, and the erosion of accountability. But he also brings a crucial through-line of connection: nonviolent protective presence. From villages and school routes in the West Bank to neighborhoods and high schools in St. Paul and Minneapolis, Mel describes the same essential practice—trained civilians showing up, documenting, accompanying, de-escalating, and organizing community care—to interrupt harm and protect the vulnerable. The conversation makes a compelling case that the “distance” between global conflict zones and our own streets can collapse quickly—and that nonviolence is a practical discipline we can strengthen now, together.

Transcript Available at nonviolenceradio.org

In this first episode of 2026, Nonviolence Radio welcomes visionary scholar Riane Eisler for a spacious and deeply human conversation about the cultural shift our world is being asked to make—from systems of domination toward cultures of partnership. Drawing on Eisler’s lifelong work, including The Chalice and the Blade and Nurturing Our Humanity, we move through memory, trauma, economics, education, and story, discovering how nonviolence is not just an ideal but a lived, relational practice.

Together, we explore what it means to build a world rooted in care, courage, and connection—and how a “new story” of who we are and what we’re capable of can help guide us through this time of profound transition.

As we come to the close of the year, we’re offering two reflections from Michael Nagler’s Nonviolent Moment—previously aired pieces brought together as a single, contemplative year-end offering. We’ll return with new recordings in January. Until then, we invite you to pause, listen, and carry these moments gently into the turning year.