The journey of the universe is the story of everything. It is the science-informed and culturally-coloured story of how our universe began, how it continues to grow in complexity and how it eventually produced human beings who have the ability to realise that we are the universe reflecting back on itself.

The point of Journey of the Universe is to cultivate a new societal narrative – The Universe Story – that reminds human beings that we are not separate to nature, we are as much a part of nature as anything else in the universe and how we go about treating the natural ecosystems around us ends up having a huge impact on our own general wellbeing and standard of living… as we are now increasingly seeing in the ramifications of the climate crisis.

The Universe Story was originally developed by Thomas Berry, a cultural historian and world religion scholar, and later gained wider recognition and momentum by two of his colleagues, Brianne Swimme and Mary Evelyn Tucker, who produced a book and later a film that told the Universe Story. It was also Swimme and Tucker who produced the Coursera Journey of the Universe MOOC specialization that comprises this module.

As acknowledged here, the specialization was originally made up of four courses, three being teacher led and one being a capstone. However, the capstone was later removed from the specialization sequence (probably because it had a low completion rate, even I did not fully complete it).

Ultimately, I found the Journey of the Universe a hugely enriching experience because it very much epitomises what I want to achieve with my MTA Portfolio and because it is an inclusive means by which to ensure that the protection of the environment (which includes us) becomes part of our standard human narrative and belief systems.

Nothing engages the human spirit like a good story. The story of the journey of the universe is the greatest story ever told and it is our story.