Requesting Support for Doing Research on "Living Well Future"

Supporting People to “Live Well”

My various activities so far

I have been developing and offering educational and training programs, engaging in civil movements, and writing and translating books under the overarching theme of “Living Well” based on what I have experienced and learned in my own life.

To be more precise, I have been offering programs such as “Create Your Meaningful Work” and “Living Your True Self” which are geared toward supporting individuals to live well, “Coaching” and “Leadership” which are about how we can relate to others in an empowering way, and “Transition Town,” “Change the Dream” as well as “Active Hope” which are about how we can live well in our own community and with the planet Earth.

All of these activities are in line with my Life Purpose of “empowering people to live well” and I have no regrets whatsoever toward what I have been doing.

A sense that “something is missing”

However, since a few years ago, I began to feel a strong sense that “something is missing.” As the devastating effects of climate change became more and more apparent, and as the world became increasingly chaotic with the prolonged global pandemic of Covid-19 since the beginning of 2020, it was getting ever more difficult for me to envision a future in which all beings can live well simply by continuing with what I have been doing.

Compounding Global Crises

Being with the question

So, since September of 2021, I have suspended all my previous activities to be with the question, “How can humanity overcome the compounding global crises it is currently facing and build a future in which all beings can live well?”

The “compounding global crises” here refer not only to the climate crisis and the pandemic of Covid-19, but also to the more recent crisis such as the Russian invasion of Ukraine that is shaking the entire world simultaneously.

The need to learn about social change

In order to find the answer to this big question, I began to think that it is necessary to deepen my understanding of why these crises are happening from a structural point of view, and then to explore how to overcome these crises by learning from the history of social change in the past.

Therefore, I worked diligently to read books, participate in online courses, and attend lectures at universities in the genres of political science, economics, sociology, anthropology, history, philosophy, history of ideas, and social movement theory, which I haven’t had much contact so far.

The Systemic Problem Created by our Consciousness

These crises were meant to happen

What I have realized through this year-long exploration is that these compounding global crises are not separate crises at all, but have the same root, and that they are not accidental, but rather structural crises that were meant to happen.

This is not to suggest that there are specific “bad guys” who are intentionally bringing the world to these crises, but rather that it is a matter of the consciousness of humanity as a whole and the systems that are created by this consciousness.

In a way, I feel that these compounding global crises are giving humanity an opportunity to wake up to who we are as a species and to choose who we want to be.

Re-examining the “three systems”

The “systems” I mentioned above mainly refer to the following;

The political system such as sovereign states and representative democracy
The economic system such as capitalism and market economy
The invisible cultural system of narratives that underpins these two.

I believe that all three of these systems need to be fundamentally re-examined in order for us to overcome the compounding global crises that humanity is currently facing and to build a future in which all beings can live well.

Going as Far as I Can

Taking on a new challenge

In the course of my exploration, I also realized that in order to find satisfactory answers to the above issues, I would need to commit myself to go deeper and further in my research, and that it would be difficult to do so on my own.

Therefore, I have decided to take on a new challenge and enroll in the doctoral program in Anthropology and Social Change at the California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS) in San Francisco starting from September 2022.

Reconnecting with my alma mater

As a matter of fact, this is the same graduate school where I earned my master's degree in Organizational Development and Transformation when I was still in my 30s. It is an interesting coincidence that I have this opportunity to reconnect with my alma mater after more than twenty years. For various reasons, however, I will not be moving to the U.S. this time, but will basically be participating from Japan remotely using online.

Uncontrollable curiosity and a challenging spirit

To be honest, I am not necessarily looking for a doctoral degree at this point in my life, and I am not without anxiety and doubts about whether I can keep up with this level of study at my age, whether I can continue for a long period of time, which is said to take at least five years, or whether I should be doing such a thing at a time when the world is becoming more and more chaotic.

However, I have decided to go as far as I can following my uncontrollable curiosity and the desire to take on a new challenge that is welling up inside me.

Toward a Living Well Future

Through my study and research at CIIS, I hope that I would be able to envision a “Living Well Future” in which all beings are respected and utilized to their fullest, and to find a way to realize this vision as much as possible.

In a sense, I feel that this will be the culmination of the research on “Living Well” that I have been devoting my life to.

A Sincere Request

I would like to make a sincere request to all of you who are reading this website. I would like to ask for your support in the form of donation to cover part of the research expenses (including the tuition for doctoral program) necessary to continue my full-scale research.

The amount of books that I have to read and the assignments that I have to submit in a doctoral program is quite staggering as you can probably imagine, and in order to devote as much time and energy as possible to my research activities, I feel it is necessary to keep my professional activities (income producing activities) to a minimum.

Under these circumstances, I have decided to conduct a crowdfunding campaign mainly amongst people with whom I already have connections, because it is a big challenge for me to continue to finance the rather expensive tuition fees in addition to living expenses for a long period of time.

Crowdfunding is, in a sense, an “investment,” and I hope that you will see this as an investment in a “Living Well Future” through me, rather than an investment in me personally. In response to your support, I will be offering the following two types of returns, depending on the amount of your donation;

1.Distribution of Newsletter

Once a month, I will write and send you a newsletter in the name of “Living Well Future Report” which summarizes what I am learning at CIIS and what I am thinking and feeling as a result. The newsletter will be delivered around the 10th of every month unless otherwise noted.
I would like to ask 2,500 yen per month for this option which is roughly 20 USD/20 EUR/125 RMB/25000 KRW

For your reference, I have posted the first issue of the “Living Well Future Report” here, and I invite you to read it.

2.Distribution of Newsletter & Participation in the "Sharing Session"

Once a month, in addition to sending the newsletter “Living Well Future Report,” you will be entitled to participate in a 1.5 hour online session that includes a brief explanation based on what I wrote in the report, Q&A, and dialogue among participants (if you are unable to attend due to scheduling conflicts, a recording will be shared later).
The session will take place at 2pm Japan Standard Time on the last Saturday of every month unless otherwise noted.
I would like to ask 5,000 yen per month for this option which is roughly 40 USD/40 EUR/250 RMB/50000 KRW

How you can Support

If you feel called to support me in this challenge, please choose one of the two options listed below and click on the corresponding button.
You will be led to a different page where you will be asked to fill in your personal information as well as the information regarding the payment. Please understand that the payment method will be by credit card only.

You are also welcome to make a one-time donation of any amount you like other than what’s listed above, although there will be no particular return (if you wish to receive one of the two returns, please also complete the above steps separately). If you would kindly like to do so, please fill in the amount in the space below and click the "Donate" button.

Finally...

In fact, I actually came up with this scheme of collecting donation through publication of newsletters when I studied at CIIS last time. I still remember how deeply encouraging it was to know that so many people were interested in what I was learning and wanted to support my learning, in addition to the financial support they offered me.

For the time being, I would like to commit to continuing this crowdfunding scheme through publishing a newsletter and offering a sharing session once every month for the first two years, and I will decide whether or not to continue at that point. In addition, if you know of anyone who might be interested in this kind of topic, it would be great if you can let them know what I’m up to and forward the link to this page.

Thank you in advance for your kind consideration.

Living Well Institute
Hide Enomoto

*For those of you who have decided to support me after September 10th 2022 onward and wish to receive back issues of the newsletters, I will be able to share them with you for 2,500 yen per month (5,000 yen if you also wish to receive recordings of Sharing Sessions).

Please check the theme of each issue here and send us your request of which issue you would like and also whether you would like to receive only the newsletter or both the newsletter and the recordings of Sharing Sessions to the following e-mail address:

A new challenge to get a PhD