Belden and Lisa Paulson Papers

The Belden and Lisa Paulson Papers primarily document the life of Belden Paulson, who began his varied service-oriented career resettling refugees in post-World War II Europe. As a maverick academic, his professional endeavors involved urban development, alternative futures, sustainability, and substantial, practical projects related to each of these fields. The records of the High Wind Association document a non-profit intentional community founded by Belden and Lisa dedicated to educating individuals about New Age values and sustainable living.

Located in Subgroup I, the professional and personal papers of Belden and Lisa Paulson mostly include correspondence, writings, and project related files. The historical materials primarily document Belden Paulson’s professional and scholarly activity from the late 1940s to the early 1990s.  The most comprehensive files are those related to his mission work in Italy from 1950 until 1962. Other prominent files include those focusing on “alternative” projects in the 1980s and 1990s that challenged the attributes of mainstream culture to address societal values and problems. Topics include new thinking about higher education, new models for public education and urban policy, alternative think tanks, and perspectives on building a sustainable world. Most of the files associated with Paulson’s tenure as a professor at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (UWM) focus on writings and research related to the Center for Urban Community Development (CUCD), which he chaired from 1968 to 1991. These files date mostly from the 1970s. There is little documentation of his UWM teaching career and service to the university-wide system.

Due to the crossover that exists among his many activities, Paulson’s life is best viewed as a sequence of interrelated events more so than a series of distinct careers. However, to understand the breadth of his involvement on both a local and global scale, his life’s work can be divided into three broader themes. These themes include his post-World War II service in Europe dealing with the aftermath of wartime destruction and helping relocate refugees; community development, and projects addressing urban poverty and racism; and “alternative” projects, many of which were related to the burgeoning New Age movement.

The files documenting Paulson’s service in Europe contain materials from the Italian Service Mission at Casa Mia in Naples from 1950 to 1953, the Homeless European Land Project (HELP) in Sardinia from 1957 to 1959, and project files from the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Rome from 1959 to 1961. Located in Series 7, these files include correspondence, publicity, reports, proposals, and writings related to a variety of projects involving rehabilitating and resettling post-World War II refugees. Paulson’s experiences in Italy are described in richly detailed letters to his parents, located in Series 3. Subseries I. Specifically from the Naples era, these letters reveal the life altering spiritual and intellectual growth that resulted from challenges he faced through his mission work. These experiences also formed the basis of his thesis and dissertation at the University of Chicago, which, unfortunately, is only loosely documented in Series 4. Subseries 3. Paulson’s research and experiences in Genazzano, an Italian communist village, are documented in his book The Searchers (1966), as well as in additional published and unpublished writings, all located in Series 14.

Upon accepting an appointment at UWM in 1962, Paulson’s initial activities continued to focus on international concerns. Located in Series 6, files related to projects in Northeast Brazil document his university-related research trips to the region. The first, in 1963, was funded by the Land Tenure Center at UW-Madison and involved researching the role of local leadership in facilitating economic and social development. The second trip, in 1967-1968, funded by a Social Science Research Council grant, involved studying the political obstacles to improve economic conditions in a developing region.

By 1964, Paulson’s main focus shifted to issues of inner city poverty and racism. Most of these files are associated with the Center for Urban Community Development (formerly the Center for Community Leadership Development). Series 8 mostly contains writings and talks related to his efforts in this arena. Many of these documents reference Milwaukee as a case study area, which Paulson and the CUCD used to develop national models to improve the quality of life in depressed urban areas. Paulson’s efforts also involved addressing ineffective schools in low-income areas. Two schools born out of courses Paulson taught at UWM included the Global Learning Center, a school that provided young people with skills for building a sustainable global community; and the Urban Waldorf School, the first public Waldorf school in the nation. Files related to these schools and the role Paulson played in establishing them in the 1990s are located in Series 13.

In the late 1970s, Paulson’s focus shifted to alternative projects that functioned outside the context of mainstream culture. The major themes associated with such projects include sustainable futures, new politics, and designing a new think tank rooted in holistic values. Many of the documents focusing on this phase of Paulson’s life are located in Subgroup II within the records of the High Wind Association. The most comprehensive files in Subgroup I include materials related to various think tank projects, located in Series 11. These include writings, interviews, conference presentations, and project files. Materials highlighting Paulson’s service on a number of councils and committees dedicated to sustainability issues are documented in Series 9. These files highlight his role on the President’s Council on Sustainable Development (1993-1997), the Milwaukee Coalition for Global Survival (1990-1991), and Sustainable Wisconsin (1994-1995). A few topical files related to alternative projects are located in Series 12, and contain documentation of Paulson’s involvement with the New World Alliance (1980-1983) and the World Future Society (c. 1982-2002).

The writings files are extensive, documenting Paulson’s authentic experiences in a variety of settings, specifically related to mission work, urban development, and sustainability. Both published and unpublished writings are located in Series 14, and further supplement the broader themes that encompass Paulson’s professional and personal endeavors.

Of interest to the Oberlin community are the education files from when Paulson was a student at Oberlin College (1946-1950). Located in Series 4. Subseries 2, these materials mostly chronicle his involvement in the Consolidated Relief Drive, the YMCA, and the 1948 mock convention. Paulson received the Oberlin Alumni Association Distinguished Achievement Award in 2004 for demonstrating success within his life that reflected Oberlin’s core values. Materials related to this honor are located in Series 1. At his 50^th class reunion, he presented a symposium talk, “Toward Learning to Build a Sustainable World,” which is located in Series 10. Belden’s service-oriented adventures, documented throughout the collection, may also serve as an inspiration to Oberlin College students seeking meaningful life experiences before immersing themselves in careers.

The most comprehensive source of biographical information on Belden Paulson is his memoir, Odyssey of a Practical Visionary (2009), shelved in the archives office. Additional materials such as biographical sketches, resumes, and documentation of his experience in the Navy are located in Series 2. Video of Paulson’s 1958 appearance on NBC’s This is Your Life and a 2010 television interview coinciding with the publication of his memoir, are located in Series 16.

Materials specifically related to Lisa Paulson in Subgroup I include a biographical file in Series 2, and files in Series 12 related to Psy-Bionics, a school she helped found in Milwaukee that taught classes on altered states of consciousness.

Subgroup II documents the establishment and evolution of the High Wind Association, an intentional community founded by Belden and Lisa Paulson in 1977. The records include documentation of the seed ideas leading to High Wind, process of the community’s organization, and materials related to its spiritual, technological, and educational dimensions. These documents mostly include meeting minutes, newsletters, correspondence, and a wealth of files related to High Wind’s educational outreach. Many of the files associated with High Wind coincide with Belden Paulson’s teaching career and his pursuit of alternative projects, specifically those related to sustainable living. As the community “vision-holder,” Lisa Paulson was a key force in the founding of High Wind. As a result, her contributions feature more prominently in this subgroup. Non-textual materials related to High Wind are filed at the end of Subgroup I.

In 1992, Belden and Lisa Paulson established the non-profit Plymouth Institute and the for-profit Silver Springs of Plymouth, which became closely associated with High Wind. The files for these entities are located in Series 14 and Series 19, respectively. Plymouth Institute, especially, became the focal point for many of the activities, outreach, and goals of High Wind in the 1990s, and includes most of the documentation of High Wind during this era after it shed its intentional community status.

The history of High Wind is mostly documented within Series 9, which details the early influence of both the Findhorn community in Scotland and new age thinker David Spangler. These files also include historical narratives and documents describing the relationship of High Wind to Plymouth Institute, Silver Springs, and the University of Wisconsin. Every issue of Windwatch, a journal of the High Wind Association, is located in Series 22. Edited by Lisa Paulson, Windwatch documents the philosophy and challenges associated with living in the community. Writings by Lisa Paulson, located in Series 23, provide extensive historical documentation of High Wind. Lisa’s books related to High Wind, Voices from a Sacred Land (2008) and An Unconventional Journey (2010), are shelved in the archives office.

A significant dimension of the High Wind Association mission included educational outreach. Located in Series 6, these files mostly document the seminars and workshops held on the grounds of High Wind, and include topics such as renewable energy, New Age spirituality, organic agriculture, Native American wisdom, the philosophy of Ken Wilber, and alternative futures. Though some of these files relate directly to seminars taught by Belden Paulson, they also include workshops conducted by David Spangler, Milenko Matanovic, Robert Theobald, and Dorothy Maclean. High Wind eventually evolved into a learning center and grew to include the educational offshoot Plymouth Institute in 1992, which is documented extensively in Series 15. These files, dating from 1992 to 2000, include additional information about High Wind’s educational outreach and document Plymouth Institute’s partnerships with Cardinal Stritch College, the Global Learning Center, and Milwaukee Public Schools.

Subgroup II also documents the struggles and benefits related to organizing and living within an intentional community. Extensive board minutes, mostly from 1980 to 1989, provide insight into this process and are located in Series 2. Goals, objectives, and proposals are located in Series 20, and detail the strategic planning involved in setting up and sustaining an intentional community. Additional documentation of the process of life within High Wind is located in Series 16 through member surveys, questionnaires, and internal conference files.