Conference on Information, Silence, and Sanctuary
May 10
Evening		 Stating the problem, engaging in a public dialogue
  1. Opening keynote, "More, Faster,...Better?," by Bill McKibben (author of Enough: Staying Human in an Engineered Age and The Age of Missing Information ) listen here
  2. Panel: Additional reflections
    • David M. Levy, panel moderator (professor, UW Information School, author of Scrolling Forward) listen here
    • John Seely Brown (former Director of Xerox PARC, author of The Social Life of Information) listen here
    • Carla Pryne (Episcopal minister, cofounder of Earth Ministry) listen here
    • Kirsten Foot (assistant professor, UW Communication Dept.) listen here
  3. Q&A: keynote speaker, panelists, and audience
May 11
Morning		 Stress on stress: Exploring the physiological and psychological effects of stress created by overload and speed

  1. Live musical performance: “Om Shanti” by Janice Giteck

  2. Welcome: Mike Eisenberg (Dean, UW Information School)

  3. Keynote: "Overload, busyness, and stress,"by Sarah Speck (cardiologist, director, Swedish Heart Institute) listen here
  4. Breakout groups: What are the conference participants’ direct experience of the stress of overload?
Lunch During the breaks, including lunch, these activities were open to participants:
  • Interactive, digital art: works by Zack Booth Simpson and Mine-Control
  • Interactive, paper art: Participatory papercut designed by Alice Helen Masek
Afternoon Causes and conditions: Exploring various theories about why we are being overloaded and overwhelmed. Is it a technological problem? social? economic? political? spiritual?
  1. Stories told by Allison Cox (professional storyteller)
  2. Panel: Why is this happening?
    • Norman Fischer, panel moderator (poet, former abbott of San Francisco Zen Center)
    • Shelly Lundberg (Castor Professor of Economics, UW) listen here
    • David Loy (philosopher, Bunkyo University, Japan, author of Lack and Transcendence) listen here
  3. Group discussion
Evening Conference dinner at the Henry Art Gallery
  1. Banquet
  2. Dinner address, "The Arts & Crafts Movement: Its Response to Industrialization," by Ewan Clayton (calligrapher, author of Embracing Change: Spirituality and the Lindisfarne Gospels) watch here

Throughout the evening, the Turrell Skyspace in the Henry Courtyard  was available to conference participants.
May 12
Morning		 The possibility of balance: Exploring how we can achieve greater balance and harmony. What prior models exist and what do they suggest for the future?
  1. Papercut: “Sanctuary Tree” designed by Alice Helen Masek on display; introduced by Victoria Beatty
  2. Keynote: "Silence and sanctuary," by Mark Barrett (Benedictine monk, author of Crossing: Reclaiming the Landscape of Our Lives) listen here
  3. Panel: Silence and sanctuary in public space
    • Susan Leigh Star, panel moderator (sociologist, UC San Diego)
    • Elizabeth Brown (chief curator, Henry Art Gallery) listen here
    • Gary Tubbs (elementary school principal, The New School, Seattle)  listen here
Lunch  
Afternoon Where do we go from here? Examining cyberspace, exploring concrete next steps
  1. Silent meditation, led by Norman Fischer
  2. Panel: Sanctuary in, or from, cyberspace?
    • Geof Bowker, panel moderator (historian of technology, UC San Diego Communication Dept.)
    • Michael Joyce (hypertext fiction author, English professor, Vassar College) listen here
    • Bill Hill (software developer and manager, Microsoft) listen here
  3. Moderated discussion: Where do we go from here?
  4. Live musical performance: “R'tze Adonai Elohaynu” by Stephen Richards; performed by members of the Temple Beth Am Choir