Adults
Join us for a discussion as Leah chats with host Kimberly Penner about what led her to write about faith, leadership and a culture shift in the context of climate change. In Tending Tomorrow, Leah shares her own journey of meaning-making amid environmental and social upheaval with the hope that readers will use it to make sense of their own experiences, values and beliefs.
Attendees at the event will be encouraged to reflect on their own faith and wisdom traditions to think about what has sustained them to live in hope during times of adversity, and how they can share this with the young people in their lives during this of global change and upheaval.
This program is presented in partnership with Words Worth Books in celebration of 40 years.
About Leah Reesor-Keller
Leah Reesor-Keller is a speaker, writer, and leadership consultant who helps churches and nonprofits set vision and strategy for transformational change. She currently serves as transitional executive director of KAIROS: Canadian Ecumenical Justice Initiatives. During her tenure as executive minister of Mennonite Church Eastern Canada, she led a historic revisioning process for the largest conference in the Mennonite Church Canada denomination. She has nearly 20 years’ experience working with faith-based and social justice organizations in Canada, Haiti, Jamaica, and Nepal. Leah holds an MA in development studies and a BA in political science and peace and conflict studies. She lives with her spouse and children in Kitchener, ON, where she is rewilding her urban yard one dandelion at a time. Learn more at leahreesorkeller.com.
About Kimberly Penner
Kimberly Penner, PhD, is a scholar, teacher, and congregational minister. Kimberly teaches at the University of Alberta and University of Waterloo, and is a pastor in Kitchener, ON. Her academic interests currently include theories of power and intersectionality, as well as understandings of peace, violence, sexuality, and gender for ethics that seek the wellbeing of all people in relationship with each other and the natural world.
About Tending Tomorrow: Courageous Change for People and Planet
The future is uncertain. But flourishing doesn’t have to be.
We know without a doubt the power of humans to change the earth in lasting ways. Climate change is not a niche issue: it is the unfolding story of our embodied lives. As we join in with the groaning of creation, we wonder, How will we and coming generations make our home in an inhospitable future?
In the face of environmental and social upheaval, Tending Tomorrow lays out a path for those worried about our collective future and seeking courage and inspiration for the journey ahead. Drawing on metaphors from the natural world, author Leah Reesor-Keller offers foundational, transformative practices for leaders and communities to foster healthier cultures during a time of ecological devastation. When we dig into the roots of faith and culture, and envision new interactions and patterns, we plant seeds of change. Seeds that ignite courageous imagination. Seeds that repair injustice. Seeds that nurture a tomorrow where possibilities bloom and people and planet flourish.
Like mycorrhizal networks of fungi in a forest, we can build nourishing webs of connection to sustain ourselves and future generations. As we bravely and humbly cultivate healing and reconciliation, good, liberating, and flourishing things will emerge.
Programmer: Nancy
Photography Notice: Please note that photographs and video may be taken at this event and may be broadcast, reproduced and/or made available in print or online. For individual or small group photos, staff will make attendees aware of their presence and will ask permission before taking photos.
For larger public events, please note that by attending, you are consenting to the use of your appearance, image and voice in print or digital productions created by the Waterloo Public Library for promotional use only. Please speak to library staff at the event if you’d like to be excluded from any photo/video.
Located at the RIM Park Manulife Sportsplex, the Eastside Branch boasts specialized creative spaces, quiet study areas, a nature education space and lots of natural light.
