Climate change, you make me feel like a "natural" woman
Hello you breath of fresh air.
I am home in New Brunswick this week, and amid the people-centered family visiting time, I have also spent a good swath of the week walking on the beach and in the woods, marveling at the tides, the deer, the oh-my-god-did you-see-that-eagle, and generally been staring slack-jawed at the beauty of this tiny corner of the world. I know that a big part of this enthusiasm comes from the change of season-- my eyes/ soul have been starving for that deep saturated color-punch of a breezy, sunny ocean-side afternoon: the buttery late-afternoon light oozing off the electric-green spring shoots and jewel toned sprays of reds and pinks and purples as the flowers burst on to the scene. GAHHHHHHK! But when I reflect a little, I feel like this love-in I am having with nature right now is also tinged with nostalgia. Because it is becoming more and more clear that the climate is changing (and quickly), and these may be the last few decades-- or years-- in which we can enjoy the world around us as we currently experience it.
While the ecological state of the planet is often simmering away on one of my many brain-burners, as I am surrounded by some pretty spectacular environmental eye candy (seriously... if you have not visited the Bay of Fundy yet, I insist you add it to your bucket list-- check out the high-tide/ low tide pic next to our house, to the right) I have been thinking a bit this week about the state of the biological/ ecological world and how we are (or aren't) going to make it through this moment in planetary history.
As a caveat before we begin, I want to make clear that I have a very limited understanding of biology and ecology, and have no academic background in climate change or the climate crisis. So this is very much an arm-chair rumination on something I know very little about (which goes for much of what I write about in these dispatches). Please feel free to get in touch and correct any misunderstandings.
And with that caveat stated, LET'S GET READY TO SPECULAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAATE! (instead of rumble... you get the reference)
Our lizard brains are viscerally drawn to immersing ourselves in the natural world. It is true that my social self loves living in a city-- but when I come home to NB, I am reminded how nourishing it feels to be 'in nature'. Or perhaps more accurately, being closely connected to nature... I think it is interesting how we talk about the importance of spending time in nature (now apparently called ecotherapy?), like it is not what we are doing 24 hours a day as human beings and earthlings. But by framing it in this 'otherness' way-- as a destination, a vacation, a trip we take, a moment we seek out to help us be happier-- we instrumentalize the natural world and disconnect ourselves from it.
In short, we seem to forget that we ARE nature. The bald truth that is that we are a species of animal that survive on a planet, and we are impacted by-- and of course have an impact on-- the biospheres in which we live. Human beings are 'nature' as much as the forests in which we bathe and the venues in which we 'connect' with nature. I am not trying to diss those of us (myself included) who love spending time tromping around outside. What I am trying to say is that we often talk about the natural world as if we are not part of it. Honestly, I think this false sense of separation and otherness from what we think of as 'nature' (and the vulnerability and non-specialness of human beings that this implies) lies at the heart of our collective impotence in addressing the environmental crisis.
Whatever the reasons for our lack of action, I was drawn to this recent article about 'regeneration' which is a design principle that works to ensure that all inputs and outputs, upstream and downstream, people and planet, feed in to the health of the whole system. The reality is that even "if we stopped emitting carbon from every tailpipe and smokestack on the planet today, it would not solve global climate change. We’re in a crisis, and it’s only the beginning. We need to reverse course, not just hold the line." This feels terrifyingly daunting given the level of inaction at present, but the article also gave me hope. "There is a broad, growing global movement “beyond sustainability” that is informing fields from agriculture to architecture, ecology to economics. I like to think, optimistically, that it points to a path through our current civilizational crisis, and offers some hope for the permanent flourishing of people and planet."
One of the newer technologies that hold promise is blockchain. While it was initially developed to manage cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, it has a lot of other potential applications including environmental innovation (and also more human-centered things like contracts, supply chain management and even the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs, or the Global Goals)). I can't tell you how really, but I am interested in learning... which brings me to:
SPECIAL OFFER FOR EARNEST PLATYPUS READERS: If you understand blockchain beyond the basics (which I sort of get conceptually), and can teach me more about its potential for future applications, please sit down with me and help me understand. I will buy you as many drinks as it takes for me to understand. (DISCLAIMER: the Earnest Platypus is not responsible for any hangovers that result from this special offer)
Special offer aside, I have been wondering lately if we are going to be able to innovate our way out of this mess, or whether getting back in touch with our integrated relationship with 'nature' will prove more useful. As humans scurry around trying to ingeniously figure out how to clean up our messes, the natural world has evolved systems that we often only begin to recognize once we have started understanding how to navigate the complex problems we are confronting. Did you know, for example, that plants actually have an 'internet' (charmingly referred to as the "Wood Wide Web" or less charmingly as the mycorrzial network). And did you know that the physical structure of shark skin is being replicated to develop antibacterial surfaces for hospitals? While the concept has been around for a while, Biomimicry is a relatively new and growing field, and I am super excited about it. And so, to come to the innovative solutions humans are pursuing to tackle climate change, there could be a blockchain proxy out there (perhaps we should be checking out swarm mechanics in bees?) that we can learn from instead of trying to reinvent the wheel, along with tons of other systems and tactics already playing out in the biosphere.
I know I am sounding a little hippy-dippy, but the point I am trying to make is that while political solutions are terrifyingly hard to come by right now, I am heartened by some of the technological advances we are pursuing to address the climate crisis, as well as holding out hope that the complexity of the natural world might hold insights and possible solutions if we can get out of our own way and recognize them in time. Maybe, in the end, this is what all the forest bathing is good for-- reminding ourselves that human beings ARE nature. And the resources at our disposal to help solve this crisis can extend beyond what we can imagine with our limited brains. The biosphere is doing its thing, which is OUR thing too. And it can help us find a way through this crisis.
So there you go. I will sit here and sip my freshly harvested (fungus) chaga tea from the birch trees around our home, and dream of all the innovative resources that surround us as we face mass planetary extinction. Sometimes I wish I had studied science...
Other recent articles that piqued my interest:
Speaking of mushrooms, did you know the world's largest organism is a fungus
My city-dwelling self enjoyed this rundown of some of the best systems for growing a garden indoors
Since we are talking about cities too, NYC has passed a law requiring all new buildings to have green roofs
As a reminder of how humans ruin everything, I enjoyed this ugly-history-of-beautiful-things installment on pearls
In final random rabbit-hole news, video games are a great way to imagine what could be and interact with that reality. While I do not play video games myself, I like to watch a YouTube series called "Monster Factory" by Justin and Griffin McElroy. I am less interested in game play and more interested in the monsters they create with the character customization functions of different games. However, one of my favourite episodes called Final Pam is both funny, and also captures a bit of the existential dread of an apocalyptic scenario here on earth. I get that this is not everyone's cup of tea, but I thought I would share it in case others find it a light bit of fun amid the desperate tragedy of our planet.
But wait! Is all this talk of environmental devastation and the annihilation of earth as we know it just too overwhelming for your relaxing Sunday morning? Then please enjoy this video of a Where's-Waldo-finding AI machine... the irrelevant-but-temporarily-charming robot-assisted future is HERE!
From one part-of-nature person to another, I am glad that we can contemplate our existence together. I hope you enjoyed this dispatch, and have a ecosystem-filled week!
Until next Sunday,
The Earnest Platypus