Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Apply Self Regulation and Accept Feedback



The tenants of permaculture came out of the 1960’s, a time when there were half as many humans on the planet, there were no GMO’s riding the winds decimating heirloom seed, and an awareness of the need for man to Self Regulate waste, chemical farming, reproduction and consumption were clearly identified. How brilliant would it have been if personal permaculture had been embodied by the masses in the 60’s? …If wishes were fishes…

“The fundamental truth of our time is that this culture is killing the planet.” At what point does this reality kick in and every fiber of our being, every action of a lifetime, law, religious doctrine all fall into alignment with our sustainable future? There are those for whom the bio-ethics took root, who have been living, designing, planting, creating, and prospering sustainably. But even with the most evolved beings I know there are gaps. Those funny little spaces when an aspect of self is not in step with the rest. The friend with the all Green-Home and fresh organic food who had a bug control company spraying Malathion quarterly under and around the house to keep the flea population down.  The person who owns the Prius to protect the environment but routinely dines on diet coke and fast-food.

Is there a psychological or biological resistance to owning personal responsibility, feeling one’s connectivity to everything, and integration of a sustainable life? Seemingly YES! The internal directive to CONSUME has become the vampire among us and the illusion of being independent autonomous beings a potentially deadly game.

When self regulation fails, traditionally laws and religious doctrines would fill in the gaps- “Thou shalt not kill”, “Don’t litter” come to mind. Sadly, preservation of resources and self regulation have not been in the short term interest of business and governments. Corporations that sell and earn billions of dollars, no matter how toxic or wasteful- are celebrated as successful. People would much rather hear their president tell them to go to the malls and spend money- as did Bush following 9/11, than to pay down their debt and save- as did Obama after the collapse of the Banks, even though the latter was in their best interest. The reality is religions lag and governments dally. This is an evolution of consciousness moving from ground to plant to person.

The embodiment of sustainability is as fundamental to the evolution and survival of the species as was learning to stand up-right, or a written language… It is our next frontier and our only future option. 

1 comment:

Laura De León said...

Human beings are the most dangerous life forms on the planet. We ignore the knowledge as fast as we read or see it...discover it. So few understand connection. I can look in my own life and see the inconsistencies in how I take care of my own health and I really do make an effort to go beyond my default responses and I still fall short. Imagine those that don't give it a moments thought. When I cannot find the answers in the earthly I go to spirit for understanding...this is a much longer conversation. Great BLOG! Thank you. <3 <3 <3