Ritual Studio, one of the Governance Futures Network’s (GFN) greenhouses, was formed with the belief that rituals — the intentional, repeated practices that connect us — have the power to strengthen our bonds with each other, the Earth, and future generations. The group, formed of a collection of individuals from around the world, meets monthly to explore how to meaningfully embed ritual into our governance processes to create cultures of care that can help us tackle complex problems in a more sustainable, inclusive, and holistic way.

In addition to exploring “proofs of possibility” — pockets of groups around the world that are living the future we imagine — the group is experimenting with different forms of expression, especially the connection between ceremony, ritual, and the arts. The process of sensemaking in not just cognitive but also includes sensory elements that are felt by the body and elicit other aspects of feeling. This can be seen in the connection between sense and sensory that emerges in many rituals that include soundscapes, pace, and rhythms as well as visual and material elements such as smoke, artefacts, and grasses. As such, this year, the group is trying to support forms of expression that are authentic for all speakers and sharing lessons of “proofs of possibility” in ways that allow others to sense it, see it, feel it, and hear it.

This all came together delightfully in the February meeting when the group was joined by Laura Webber and John Caulker from Fambul Tok to discuss how rituals, rites and ceremonies — including some that involved singing, dancing, and drumming — were instrumental to social healing, reintegration, and reconciliation in the aftermath of the civil war in Sierra Leone. During the meeting, two artists from the Accra-based frayedjacket creative agency joined us to try and capture the essence of the session in song and sound. The magical combination of Ritual Studio members and the frayedjacket team produced the following piece that traces the journey from chaos and confusion to harmony and transcendence, aided by the community-based ritual spaces that Fambul Tok facilitated.

The session also yielded a lot of key insights that are detailed in Jesse Eaves’ foreword to the case study, “Fambul Tok: A Case Study of Reintegration, Reconciliation, and Cultural Practices in Sierra Leone”, that inspired our meeting. We hope that both the sound and written mediums allow you to embody the lessons from our experience.