The last two gatherings of the Circle took place in Manchester, NH in October 2011 and in the Canton de Vaux Switzerland. Both gatherings were devoted to questions of the natural environment. The meeting in Manchester gained the interest of UN secretariat officials concerned with NGO work on sustainable development and harmony with nature. The exchange of views was lively and subsequently 13 members contributed to the effort of the UN to collect as much input as possible for the Zero draft initial negotiation document for Rio + 20 in July 2012. This Triglav document is on the website and effectively substitutes for the report of that meeting. The July 2012 meeting in the Canton de Vaux was well attended and generously hosted by Barbara and Martin Robra with the help of Konrad and Elisabeth Raiser. After a comprehensive report on Rio +20 By Arthur Dahl, this gathering was essentially devoted to issues of water. The discussion ranged from the lack of access to clean water by the poor in Africa, social justice in the distribution of water, to its metaphysical nature as a reactive life force. The Circle was honored by the presence of Professor Joan Davis from Zurich who made a major presentation to the Circle. The substance of her contribution to the world of water can be found on internet. To begin with see for example: http://link.springer.com/article/10.1023%2FA%3A1017003612887?LI=true.k
Related to the work of these meetings, members of the Circle have continued to consider the question of “harmony with nature.” Following the contribution made by the Circle to the principal negotiation document draft for the “Rio plus 20” conference, the Circle made a contribution to the General Assembly’s Dialogue on Harmony with Nature, held in April 2012, and wrote an article entitled “Approaching Harmony With Nature, which was published in the book “Future Perfect” published in England by Tudor Rose Co. on behalf of the UN. We are now working with the Secretariat for the preparation of the forthcoming Interactive Dialogue on Harmony with Nature organized by the 67th session of the General Assembly.
In February 2013, a statement was delivered on behalf of the Circle by Charles Courtney, at the United Nations Commission for Social Development on the issue of “empowerment” of the poor. This Commission is, as you may recall, responsible for the follow-up of the World Summit for Social Development, which, was held in Copenhagen in 1995.
In the fall of 2012, our Chairman Tu WeiMing, indicated that there should be possibilities for the Circle to contribute to the initiatives of the Institute for Advanced Humanistic Studies at Peking University and the newly established World Ethics Institute at Peking University, both directed by him. These institutes are dealing with Dialogue among Civilizations and global economic ethics. Also, WeiMing expressed his interest in the preservation and use of the important research work on cultural patterns undertaken by our now deceased member Joseph Doherty. Helping the Circle with this matter is Stephen Gorman.
On the administrative side, the Circle maintains its status of the Circle as an NGO with the UN and as a non-profit organization incorporated in Delaware. It has a small office in Hollis NH and in Cuy/ Chougny 58110 France. We are now officially registered as a non-profit organization in France. Recently the Circle has gained new members. These include Nouna Kettaneh, Svante Vold, Katrien Beeckman, Maike Gorsboth, Stephen Gorman, Toby Tarnow, Richard Kalins and Arthur Dahl.