The Original AI
A series of conversations dedicated to reclaiming our sacred & innate human gifts
SESSION 1
Possibility vs Inevitability: How Attention & Imagination Create The World
with Kendra Cunov
Friday, October 16, 2026 • 10:30am-12:00pm PT
My whole life I have been a disciple of the present moment.
Every part of my path of study & teaching has been about coming into deeper & deeper relationship with the present moment.
I do not dwell in either hope or despair — because I know that both hope & despair come from the same place of attempting to control the future.
To truly live into a future of possibility rather than inevitability, we must be willing to let go of our need to control — for either positive or negative outcomes. We must be willing to sit in the unknown.
People often think being in touch with reality limits our imagination — but, far from being about what is ‘realistic’, I know that a deeper relationship with current reality actually widens our capacity to imagine into the unknown.
Our attention & imagination are our most essential human gifts & skills.
We are at a crossroads, and I believe it is vital that we protect & cultivate these human gifts.
Come to this session ready to step outside of the dichotomy of utopian or dystopian thinking, and free your wild imagination through inquiry, movement, and awareness.
SESSION 2
Reclaim & Re-Wild The Original & Sacred AI (Attention & Imagination)
with Brooke McNamara
Tuesday, October 20, 2026 • 9:00-10:30 am PT
I recently heard Brooke introduce herself as a ‘student of wonder’ & I think this is the most true description there is. Brooke was the person who introduced me to the idea of Attention & Imagination as the original AI.
When I first read that line, it woke me up like jumping in a mountain lake & sparked a fire in my belly that hasn’t let up since. I reached out to her immediately & said, “This is so important in this exact moment; we need to do something with this.”
And thus began the inception of the Attention & Imagination: The Original AI conversation series, co-created between Brooke & myself.
I first met Brooke over 15 years ago at an Integral Spiritual Experience conference, and we both knew immediately that we would become friends & that we had work to do together.
Brooke is my favorite writing guide & brings a soft firmness to Buddhist practice that is rare in the Zen lineage. Her words often sneak up on me & shift my perception in the most delightful way —effortlessly showing me new ways of seeing things.
Brooke is a fierce defender of our attention & imagination as sacred human skills.
Come to this session ready to write, play & find yourself in awe at what seemed mundane only moments before. I cannot recommend the space Brooke creates highly enough.
SESSION 3
Creating The Future Through Reporting From Imagination
with Noah Fischer
Tuesday, October 27, 2026 • 10:15am-12:15pm PT
I’ve known Noah my whole life. Born one year before me, we grew up together at Tassajara Zen Mountain Center. Noah has always been one of the most interesting & creative people I know.
Noah has never been content to let life just happen — diving deeply into activism in the early 2000’s and more recently refusing to accept the doom & gloom future-world predicted for our children.
In 2024, Noah launched Project 2044, a radical collaboration between art, imagination & news reporting that offers tangible visions of possibility for our near future.
Recently, I sat in on a class Noah was teaching on creating the future from co-created imagination in a way that was so deeply rooted in real life & deep relationality that I knew immediately I wanted to bring him into this conversation series.
Noah brings a deep attentiveness to the present moment in a way that opens more space to imagine.
Come to this session with an open mind & a willingness to engage with others on the call. Every conversation I have with Noah enlivens my sense of what’s possible & leaves me feeling more inspired & capable.
SESSION 4
Attention & Imagination: The Keys to Uncovering Your Truest Desires
with Marcia Baczynski
Friday, October 30, 2026 • 10:30am-12:00pm PT
Marcia is masterful at guiding people to discover what they want — beyond all the limitations of what they believed might be (im)possible — in large part because her methods don’t involve going ‘out there’ to make something up, but rather going deeper into the relationality of the present moment to discover what’s already there.
As someone who works with people around desire myself, it is high praise that Marcia is one of the people whose work I respect the most in this area — in large part because her work is deeply grounded & practical.
I’ve known Marcia for over 20 years, and as soon as I began thinking about this conversation series, I knew I wanted Marcia to be part of it. Although I might call her a relationship & intimacy coach for simplicity, I know that at its core, all of her work is actually based in deep attentiveness & the ability to imagine in response to the present moment.
I wanted to include Marcia’s teaching to remind us that attention & imagination aren’t just ideas for creating the future, but practical skills for getting what you want & need in relationships right here & now.
I love geeking out with Marcia on All The Things: desire, relationship, place, community…
Come to this session willing to let go of any preconceived ideas & ready to experience your own true desires more clearly.
Meet the Speakers
About Kendra Cunov
Kendra is a truth-speaker & a magic-maker…
Fiercely devoted to the earth, and deeply caring for all beings, Kendra has a profound love for the human experience in all its forms.
She has been walking the path of authentic expression, embodied leadership, and devotional practice for over 20 years.
Kendra founded The Collective: A Global Web of Women Devoted to Embodied Wholeness. She also co-founded Authentic World, as well as The Relationship & Intimacy Training Salon and The Art of Fearless Intimacy (with John Wineland), and pioneered the practice of Integral Circling and the Authentic Relating Movement.
Kendra has worked with thousands of men, women, and couples in the areas of embodiment, authenticity, leadership, and full self-expression.
Kendra brings a deep and genuine care for people, as well as an extraordinary depth of insight, in service of people living truly fulfilling lives.
About Brooke McNamara
Brooke McNamara, MFA, is a poet, dance-theater artist, teacher, and Zen dharma holder. She has published two books of poems: Bury the Seed (2020) and Feed Your Vow (2015). For her poetry, she is the recipient of the Charles B. Palmer prize from the Academy of American Poets.
Brooke has taught at Naropa University in Yoga Studies and at the University of Colorado, Boulder in Dance, and she is co-director with Lauren Beale of Eunice Embodiment, an organization that offers cutting edge performances, embodiment education, and creative practice workshops and retreats.
Brooke is creator and instructor of the online courses Write to the Heart of Motherhood, Summoning the Unseen, Cultivate: Creative Practice (with Lauren Beale), and Women’s Ritual of Renewal (with Lisa Gibson). She is a long time Zen student of Diane Musho Hamilton, Roshi, and empowered as a dharma holder.
Brooke lives with her husband, Rob, and their two wild, adorable sons, Lundin and Orion.
About Noah Fischer
Noah Fischer is a Brooklyn-based artist whose drawing, writing, and organizing have contributed to public discourse on the role cultural institutions play within capitalism and the structural debts shaping creative communities. His work has appeared in major international biennials including the Whitney Biennial, Berlin Biennale, and Venice Biennale—both with and without permission.
As a founding member of Occupy Museums, a member of Gulf Labor Coalition, a longtime collaborator with Berlin-based theater collective andcompany&Co, and more recently a co-editor of The Siren and Labor Art Review, Fischer balances collective and solo practice. He is currently engaged in New York 2044, an ongoing public art and publishing project that “reports from the imaginations” of New Yorkers to reimagine the city’s future.
Fischer is a unionized part-time Assistant Professor at Parsons School of Design and a Lecturer at NYU.
About Marcia Baczynski
Marcia Baczynski is a sought-after coach, writer, and internationally-known facilitator who helps people talk about the things they were told never to talk about—sex, boundaries, consent, and desire. Her work sits at the intersection of embodiment, consent culture and unlearning “good girl” conditioning, supporting people to reclaim agency, self-trust and relationships that feel deeply aligned—even when it’s off the beaten path.
She is the co-author of Creating Consent Culture: A Handbook for Educators, a widely used resource for teaching consent with nuance, care and integrity. Since 2003, Marcia has worked with tens of thousands of people through private coaching, transformative workshops, and immersive programs. She has served as faculty with the School of Consent, Shakti Shiva Academy and the Esalen Institute.
Known for her warm, playful and deeply ethical approach, she blends straight talk with compassion and humor—inviting people to get honest about what they want and build lives that feel deliciously, unapologetically their own. She lives and works on unceded Ohlone land, also known as Oakland, CA.
