Today authors of Sacred Desire, Nancy Morrison and Sally Severino, will participate in an author reading/book signing at the University of New Mexico Bookstore. Additional signings include the following:
May 16, 2009: Barnes and Noble, 6600 Menaul Blvd NE, Albuquerque, New Mexico; Ph: 505-883-8200
August 2, 2009: Borders Book Store, 500 Montezuma, Ste. 108, Santa Fe, New Mexico; Ph: 505.954.4707
If you are in the area, stop by and hear them talk about their motivations for writing the book and how you can integrate compassionate living into your daily life.
According to In Character’s website, “Each issue will examine a single virtue from different perspectives, bringing together scholars and journalists versed in public policy, the humanities, religion, and the sciences.” There are three issues per year.
Its current issue addresses the virtue of “Courage.” It includes such topics as “Were the 9/11 Terrorists Brave?,” “Courage: Ten Great Moments,” “Is Courage a Masculine Virtue?” and more.
In the past, virtues such as “Loyalty,” “Generosity,” “Honesty,” “Compassion,” and “Thrift” have been addressed.
As you may have heard, we here at Templeton Foundation Press recently dropped the “foundation” from our name to become simply Templeton Press. As we make this transition, we’re also rolling out a new logo!
This new icon has been described as a sort of Rorschach test – i.e. everyone will see something different in it, but to us, it represents two specific symbols. The first person who can guess in the comment section what these two symbols might be, will win a free e-book of their choosing.
Here’s a clue to start you off: it’s not a stealth bomber.
Did you know that Templeton Press has a new website where we provide free resources on integrating health and spirituality? At Spirit-Health Connections visitors will find an expansive library of freely available excerpts from our books and opportunities to directly interact with some of the foremost experts in this emerging area of study. We designed the site to meet the needs of:
Health care providers like doctors, nurses, mental health experts, and so on
Spiritual care providers like chaplains, parish nurses, or palliative care providers
Researchers and educators in these areas who will be shaping the future of the medical profession
On Tuesday, April 14thTempleton Press, along with The King’s College and The Institute for American Values, hosted a panel discussion on the “paradox of thrift.” David Blankenhorn, President of the Institute for American Values and author of Thrift: A Cyclopedia, moderated the discussion. Justin Fox, author of Time magazine’s business and economics column, “The Curious Capitalist,” and Robert Frank, author of the New York Times “Economic View” column, devised the panel.
This “paradox of thrift,” first described by British economist John Maynard Keynes during the Depression era, has been resurrected as an argument for economic recovery today. Those who subscribe to it say that spending, not saving, is the key to economic recovery.The panel discussed as to whether or not this is a sound argument.
Check back later for clips from the April 14th discussion.
Our colleagues at the John Templeton Foundation recently held a fantastic forum at New York University on the many hidden pitfalls of well-intentioned aid efforts in Africa. It featured William Easterly, author of The White Man’s Burden: How the West’s Efforts to Aid the Rest Have Done So Much Ill and So Little Good, and Dambisa Moyo, author of Dead Aid: Why Aid Is Not Working and How There Is a Better Way for Africa.
Here’s one of several clips of their conversation that has been posted on Youtube:
Ms. Moyo raises some interesting and provocative points on everything from the G20 summit, to Bono, to the idea of empowering individuals rather than governments. It all gets to one big, fundamental question: how can we close the so-called poverty gap in developing countries (not just in Africa, but around the world)?
Here at the Press, we’ve got a fantastic book coming out later this month that addresses this very question, so this is something that we’ve been thinking about quite a bit lately. Our book, In the River They Swim: Essays from around the World on Enterprise Solutions to Povertygathers contributions from a fascinatingly diverse group of individuals working on the front lines of the global fight against poverty. Many of Ms. Moyo’s ideas — particularly her emphasis on the private sector as a positive force for change in eradicating poverty — would be right at home in its pages.
It is certainly heartening to see that there are several books rolling off the presses this season that echo this same important point (see also Jacqueline Novogratz’s The Blue Sweater). Hopefully this concurrence signifies some kind of broader zeitgeist that will ultimately lead to positive change.
In The New Flatlanders, Middleton challenges traditional ways of looking at reality by engaging readers in a “voyage of discovery starting with questions.”
During the first half of the twentieth-century, thrift was such an important part of our national heritage that there was a whole week devoted to celebrating it from coast to coast. The current financial climate presents us with a great opportunity to resurrect Thrift Week and the virtue of thrift in general, and we intend to do just that.
This year, Templeton Press created a campaign to revive National Thrift Week. If you want to learn more about our efforts, explore the history of thrift week, or learn what you can do to help make this lost American tradition a reality again, visit us at www.bringbackthriftweek.org.
Be sure to check out the contest section. Send us your favorite thrift tip from an earlier generation and you’ll be eligible to win a $100 savings bond. We’ll be running different thrift-themed contests throughout the year, so be sure to check back often!
Congratulations to Sally Severino, co-author of newly released Sacred Desire. Sally was recently recognized by Cambridge Who’s Who for showing dedication, leadership, and excellence in all aspects of psychiatry.
Posted by Templeton Editor 
