Women Elders Offer Their Vision for Our Planet

Grandmothers Counsel the World is a wonderful collection of teachings and stories from the International Council of 13 Indigenous Grandmothers.

We are thirteen indigenous grandmothers ... We are deeply concerned with the unprecedented destruction of our Mother Earth, the atrocities of war, the global scourge of poverty, the prevailing culture of materialism, the epidemics that threaten the health of the Earth's peoples, and the destruction of indigenous ways of life.

We, the International Council of Thirteen Indigenous Grandmothers, believe that our ancestral ways of prayer, peacemaking, and healing are vitally needed today ... We believe that the teachings of our ancestors will light our way through an uncertain future.

In some Native American societies, tribal leaders consulted a council of grandmothers before making any decisions that would affect the whole community. What if we consulted our wise women elders about the problems facing our global community today? This book presents the insights and guidance of thirteen indigenous grandmothers from five continents, many of whom are living legends among their own peoples.  The grandmothers offer wisdom on such timely issues as nurturing our families; cultivating physical and mental health; and confronting violence, war, and poverty. Also included are the reflections of Wester women elders, including Alice Walker, Gloria Steinem, Helena Norberg-Hodge, and Carol Moseley Brown. 

"What Grandmothers have to say at this critical time in human and planetary history is fascinating." -- Jean Shinoda Bolen, MD, author of Goddesses in Everywoman

"Wise women from around the globe stand strong together on behalf of all of life. Their stories are amazing, their message to us is strong and inspirational." -- Sandra Ingerman, author of Soul Retrieval

Carol Schaffer is a writer, editor, journalist, and photographer who has appeared on Good Morning America, CNN, and MSNBC. She is the author of The Other Mother, and lives in New York City. 

"A fascinating collection of stories and wisdom told as if the future matters." -- Rachel Naomi Remen, MD, author of Kitchen Table Wisdom