A bioregion is a coherent geographical entity—a landscape—not politically defined. It has coherent geology, landform types, fauna, flora, rainfall, and human history. So, there's a coherent story that runs through all these layers. When we think about the kinds of "islands of coherence" we need to move forward as a species, bioregions provide that cultural grounding—what was historically true and what we need for the future.
"Numerous reports and pictures of what’s happening in Haiti would have one believe that the Haitian people are incapable of running their own country and that an intervention from the “international community” is necessary. However, clarity comes by way of understanding history; history explains why, as Frederick Douglass said, Haiti has not yet been forgiven."
"Decades of conflict have left Sudan in a state of crisis, with millions displaced and facing starvation. The global community's indifference allows the war to persist. It impacts everything. Every waking moment of our lives is now just about this. There is a contrast between North and South Sudan. It’s not just about what happened during colonial times, or what happened during independence. It is this and more."
At both individual and societal levels, it’s possible to develop the cognitive, emotional, and relational capacities to better comprehend and navigate complexity. Wisdom traditions have long advocated the societal benefits of cultivating heart and mind, and contemporary research is beginning to catch up. Science shows that adults develop psychologically throughout life, that practice can dramatically alter brain structure and activity, and that inner development programs for individuals and teams can have profound positive effects on inner capacities.
Many years ago, in a wide-ranging conversation with environmental education students, I asked if the human species might have a particular purpose in the planetary ecosystem. The students puzzled for a few moments before one advised me that human beings have no purpose in the community of life. No purpose. Take a moment here.
What I love in the world is asking something of me—not only to reflect its beauty, but also to express its vulnerability, its potential demise. I notice fewer songbirds returning to my water fountain each season. I am observing an absence. How do I articulate the hole in the picture, the silenced voice?
In this crisis to which we’ve brought ourselves, we can only change what is happening through transforming the way we imagine things. That happens through art. This is why I think stories and images are crucial if we’re to cope with our impending fate with kindness and dignity. The story may not actually be about our own survival, but it has to be about how we fit in.
Daniel | To "do the impossible, because the probable is unthinkable" is only limited by our current frame of what reality is all about. If we dare to understand that our way of being in the moment and with each other and in relationship, actually matters—that it literally brings forth a different world—then we can work miracles.
“You can’t understand the universe simply through science—it is one way of knowing directed toward analysis and use. The intuition is another way of knowing through the heart—the song of the birds, the sky at night, the magnificence of mountains and seas.' - Thomas Berry
