The Environmental Crisis Within You

Humans are beginning to change their relationship with the Earth, and realizing the problems are internal, rather than external.

by Ben Cohen

“The land is sacred. These words are at the core of your being. The land is our mother, the rivers our blood. Take our land away and we die. That is, the Indian in us dies.” —Mary Brave Bird

Over time, I have begun to understand our environmental crisis in a completely new light. I used to believe that our destruction of the biosphere was a technological issue that could be fixed by advances in alternative energy and more awareness of science. While these are important, I believe it is the nature of our relationship with our Mother Earth that needs fixing. Until then, there will be no end to global warming, species destruction, and the pollution of our planet.

The Mother Earth

When I used the term ‘Mother Earth’ I do not mean this figuratively. I mean this literally, and for good reason. Despite the New Age connotations, we must remember that all life on this planet is quite literally birthed from the Earth. The Earth is a self regulating system that works incredibly efficiently to maintain conditions for life on our planet. Through various ingenious strategies, the Earth’s bio systems help regulate the chemical makeup of the atmosphere to make the perpetuation of life more predictable and stable. Sun, water and soil feed the plants, the plants feed the animals, the animals die and feed the soil, the soil feeds the plants, and so on an so forth. It is a circular, self contained system that we rely on for all of our needs. Everything we eat comes from the Earth. Our medicines come from the Earth, as to the materials for our houses, offices and schools. We are as connected to the Earth as an embryo is to its mother.

The problem is that in modern society, we do not feel this on a day to day basis. Our food comes neatly packed in plastic packaging. We do not see the animals we eat die. Our fruits and veg are selected to look a certain way, and the rest are thrown away. We spend most of our days in offices looking at computer screens, then go back home to concrete houses, neatly manicured lawns tamed with pesticides, and little nature to remind us of where we come from. Furthermore, human interaction is being reduced to texts on social media and messaging apps, occasional coffee dates, and hours of watching television together. Our society venerates material wealth, the ultimate disconnect from the reciprocal systems of life our ancestors relied on. When you have enough money, you are not reliant on community for your survival, and you can extract whatever you need from the Earth, whenever you want it.

Capitalism is broken

Our system of extreme capitalism has increased our material wealth, but it has severed us from the systems that generates it. Indigenous belief systems are based on a reciprocal relationship with nature and a reverence for the Mother Earth. These belief systems are not naive or primitive, they are based on reality and the laws of ecology. Our belief system on the other hand, is based on an economic model that does not take the Earth’s eco systems into account. Toyota’s objective is to build and sell more cars. Coca Cola’s is to produce and sell more Coke. They do not calculate the environmental cost, because consumer capitalism is predicated on perpetual growth at all cost. When the entire economic system is built on this premise, environmental destruction isn’t just a byproduct, it is fundamental to its continuation.

A cause for hope

I do not want to paint an overly bleak picture here, because I see much to be hopeful about. From the explosion of organic and regenerative farming to huge international environmental agreements and the replanting of the earth’s forests, humans finally seem to be getting their act together. The alternative energy industry is booming and anger at the oil and gas companies is increasing. While CO2 levels are still rising dangerously, grassroots movements all over the world are taking unprecedented actions to raise awareness and stop their governments participating in the destruction of the planet.

As our population explodes and our interconnectivity increases, we have no choice but to confront our impact on the environment. We can see and feel it happening, like frogs in warm water that is beginning to boil. As a result, we are beginning to think differently about the Earth and our relationship to it. Politicians around the globe are talking about new green deals, divesting from fossil fuels, and declaring a climate emergency. Even Republicans accept global warming is happening (although not that it is our fault of course).

At the same time, there is a healthy eating movement growing at an equally astonishing rate. From probiotic drinks to vegan meat alternatives, humans are beginning to heal themselves from decades of terrible eating. Red meat and soft drinks are out, while kale and sustainably caught fish is in.

What does this mean? From my perspective, this is a shift in consciousness. We are beginning to recognize that our environmental problem is an internal one — that we can only be truly healthy and happy when our planet is healthy and happy.

The advances in green technology are happening because we are beginning to understand that we must work with the planet rather than against it. Our healthy eating habits are increasing because we are beginning to understand that we are a part of planet earth, not apart from it. Because when we heal ourselves, we heal the earth.

There is no technical fix for our environmental crisis. There is only a spiritual fix, and that is a reverence for what indigenous people have always known: that the Mother Earth is sacred, and we ignore her at our peril.

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