Understory Project

Evolving consciousness through a virtual 12-week psycho-metamorphic journey of re-defining the self as part of healthy living systems through community, education and nature-based experiential practice.

A hand with a ring touches moss-covered tree bark with small plants growing on it.

What you’ll get

  • ✺

    12 weekly live sessions
    1 community session per month

  • ✺

    Dynamic resources to further your understanding and embodiment of a healthy living systems consciousness

  • ✺

    A companion journal

  • ✺

    Private space on Sutra.co for community, connection and ongoing discussions

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    Experiential body-mind exercises

  • ✺

    Personal and collective transformation

Who is it for

A person with gray nail polish gently holds a black and white butterfly in their hands.

Our vision for this project is to empower individuals to thrive in a future characterized by resource constraints, climate change, and shifting societal norms. We believe that by understanding human behavior, social dynamics, and cultural narratives, we can foster resilience and adaptability in the face of unprecedented challenges.

We welcome and invite people from all walks of life concerned about the current state of the world and interested in new ways of thinking and being human in a more-than-human world. In the spirit of interdisciplinary collaboration, we encourage participation from anyone interested in looking beyond the apparent polycrisis and its fundamental drivers. For example, what happens when we question the unexamined dominant notions of self, identity and purpose, and how these shape our lives, communities and the larger world?

Our intention is to provide an iterative learning experience, informed by what is unfolding during live sessions and within the group itself. Each module includes two live sessions, the first being an introduction to the topic, and the second diving deeper into the material. We hope this workshop speaks to those called to cultivate a more joyful and holistic experience of being alive in our complex and often challenging world.

Phase 1: Roots
Phase 2: Mycelium
Phase 3: Compost
Phase 4: Branches
Phase 5: Canopy
Phase 6: Seeds

Phase 1:
1/12/26 (2pm-3pm ET) & 1/19/26 (2pm-3:30pm ET)
Phase 2:
1/26/26 (2pm-3pm ET) & 2/2/26 (2pm-3:30pm ET)
Phase 3:
2/9/26 (2-3pm ET) & 2/16/26 (2pm-3:30pm ET)
Phase 4:
2/23/26 (2-3pm ET) & 3/2/26 (2pm-3:30pm ET)
Phase 4:
3/9/26 (2-3pm ET) & 3/23/26 (2pm-3:30pm ET)
Phase 5:
3/30/26 (2-3pm ET) & 4/6/26 (2pm-3:30pm ET)
Phase 6:
4/13/26 (2-3pm ET) & 4/20/26 (2pm-3:30pm ET)

Dates & Times

Investment
Early Bird $425 ($1200 value)
(register by November 15th)
Includes course + companion journal

$625 (after November 15th)

Cover of a journal titled 'The Understory' with a photograph of a dense forest with tall, slender trees and green foliage.

Click here to register if paying in U.S. currency.


*If outside the U.S., you can register by emailing mjuliano@livingsystemspsychologies.org. You will then be directed to pay in your own currency via Wise.com using this link.

Not sure if the program is right for you…

Join us for a free taster session!
When: Monday, November 17, 2025, 12-1:30 pm ET.
To register, click here.

What You’ll Experience

  • A guided embodied arrival to settle the nervous system

  • A short teaching on the psyche as a living ecosystem

  • A forest-floor visualization to access the imaginal layer of self

  • Creative reflection: What is alive in my understory now?

  • Optional small-group sharing held in a field of gentle presence

  • A closing invitation into The Understory Project 12-week journey

No prior experience is needed.
Sharing is always optional.
You are welcome exactly as you are.

This Session is For You If…

  • You’re longing for deeper groundedness or belonging

  • You sense more is happening inside you than thinking or talking can reach

  • You feel emotionally or spiritually “in transition”

  • You want to approach healing in a relational, ecological, non-pathologizing way

  • You’re curious about The Understory Project and want to experience its tone, pacing, and pedagogy

Why the Understory Matters

In forests, the understory is where decomposition becomes nourishment, where new roots take hold, and where the next growth cycle begins.
The same is true for us.

✺ Frequently asked questions ✺

  • What is an understory? The understory is the layer of trees and shrubs that grow between the forest floor and canopy.  The understory is a metaphor for the bridge or layer between the forest floor (those of us understanding that change is necessary) and the larger tree canopy (a future healthy living systems consciousness).  The understory supports the bottom up evolution of a new forest canopy or healthy living systems consciousness.  

  • No. The Center for Living Systems Psychologies seeks to create the conditions for a collective healthy living systems consciousness. The first step toward psychologies aligned with healthy living systems is to shift individual and collective consciousness. Mainstream consciousness and the resulting dominant worldview was born out of fear, unresolved individual and collective trauma, as well as the perception of humans as separate from nature. 

  • We will not be recording the weekly live sessions to encourage full participation, which allows for emergence within the group. However, we will hold a monthly community session for anyone who missed the live course sessions.

  • Completion of the course entitles you to an initial 12 months of membership in the community and access to all onsite workshop material.

  • The initial community membership can be renewed for a small fee.

  • We aim to provide unique thought and ongoing discussion, as well as catalyzing experiential exercises designed to instill deep reflection and change.