We had such a wonderful time with the Montana Internet Team! Not only were we gifted with spectacular weather by Mother Nature, we also got to enjoy talking and spending time with an inspiring and lovely group of people!
Led by David Nowakowski, our group enjoyed a delightful conversation about the principles of ecology…and what sorts of things it might be able to teach us about how to flourish and thrive in both our personal lives and the workplace.
In the world of the ancient Greeks, this flourishing was synonymous with “virtue” — i.e., excellence, a paradigm, an example or model to aspire to. What would it mean for us to look for this kind of model, using the tools of modern ecology? We explored several questions, including:
- How do the patterns of nature provide a guide for living?
- How can an ecological perspective help us to focus and direct our lives—not only as we engage with plants and other animals, wild places, or “the environment,” but especially in our human relationships, and in cultivating ourselves?
- How can the tools of ecology help us to understand ourselves, and to live a virtuous (excellent, flourishing) life?
- What does it mean to think about human life, and about virtue, as an ecologist would?
- And more…
The Montana Internet Team is comprised of an amazing group of individuals dedicated to providing the best service possible to Montanan’s, the best work environment for their employees, and to personal growth & development, community service, and education!! We are honored and grateful to have them as Corporate Sponsors of our organization and to be able to provide unique opportunities like these for their team.
About Our Walk Guide
David Nowakowski serves as a Philosophical Advisor for Merlin CCC & Senior Mentor for scholars in the Merlin Fellowship Program.
A lover of philosophy and the great outdoors, David began studying ancient philosophies and classical languages in 2001, and has continued ever since. A scholar of the philosophical traditions of the ancient Mediterranean (Greece, Rome, and North Africa) and of the Indian subcontinent, reading Sanskrit, Latin, and classical Greek, he earned his Ph.D. in philosophy from Princeton University in 2014. His work has appeared in a variety of scholarly journals, including Philosophy East & West, Asian Philosophy, and the Journal of Indian Philosophy; as well as in presentations to academic audiences at Harvard, Columbia University, the University of Toronto, Yale-NUS College in Singapore, and elsewhere.
After half a decade teaching at liberal arts colleges in the northeast, David chose to leave the academy in order to focus his energies on the transformative value of these ancient philosophical and spiritual traditions in his own life and practice, and on building new systems of education and community learning that will make this rich heritage alive and available to people of all ages and backgrounds.
A hermit by nature and by committed choice, he balances contemplative solitude with his active work in teaching, counseling, and the healing arts.
About Montana Internet
Montana Internet was Helena’s first Internet service provider in 1994. A leader in technologies and premier internet service, they offer a variety of account types and services, including broadband via wireless microwave technologies to provide broadband to subscribers in areas which have very few (if any) broadband options. Their services areas range from Greater Helena, Great Falls, and Lewistown, as well as Boulder, Townsend, and Ulm. They also provide DSL service in numerous areas in Western Montana including Missoula, Butte, Hamilton, Havre, and Dillon.
