ABSTRACT

In this chapter we relate our experience with the system of Consciousness-Based Education (CBE) at Maharishi University of Management to the Knowing dimension of the sustainability mindset model. The three components of Knowing according to CBE are the knower, the process of knowing, and the known. In CBE all three are handled in distinctive ways which contribute to Systems Perspective, Spiritual Intelligence, and Ecological Worldview. In the knower section, we discuss how CBE, including the practice of Transcendental Meditation, develops mental maturity, which research has linked to capacities for Systems Perspective. Next we consider how CBE can help further Ecological Worldview by making connections to transdisciplinary principles for understanding how nature functions in our lives and in the world around us. In terms of the process of knowing, CBE includes specific pedagogical tools which connect parts of knowledge to a holistic context and to one’s self to strengthen Spiritual Intelligence, a sense of oneness and interconnectedness. Together, the knower, process of knowing, and known components of Consciousness-Based education constitute an integrated approach of educational practice which can be adapted to diverse organizations for profound mind change to address global sustainability challenges.