In the summer of 1845, Henry David Thoreau moved to a cabin along the shores of Walden Pond. His two-year retreat at Walden helped launch the modern environmental movement. What most people don’t know is that just one year earlier, Thoreau nearly destroyed the very ecosystem he would one day call home. As we face the climate crisis, Thoreau’s story offers us a parable for how we might repair the damage we’ve done, process our grief and guilt, reconnect with the Earth, and cultivate hope and resilience moving forward.

The Rev. Dr. Robert M. Hardies is a preacher, teacher, and an experienced leader of retreats and pilgrimages. From 2001 to 2020, he was Senior Minister of All Souls Church, Unitarian in Washington, DC, a large, dynamic multiracial congregation. While at All Souls, Rob founded award-winning justice ministries that advocated for marriage equality and for voting rights.
Rob’s own spiritual life has been deeply influenced by this twenty-plus year study of the spiritual practices of our Unitarian and Transcendentalist ancestors. He has incorporated his training with environmental activist and deep ecology teacher, Joanna Macy into his work with groups on responding to the climate crisis.