How Do We Live in an Anti-Ecological Environment … Four Differences and One Answer

 

How Do We Live in an Anti-Ecological Environment … Four Differences and One Answer  

Sooner or later, wittingly or unwittingly, we must pay for every intrusion on the natural environment.  Barry Commoner

 

If Ecology rules in a certain environment, where does Anti-Ecology rule? 

On one hand, the broad rule of Ecology oversees the integration of variable ecosystems to exist and survive together by maintaining discourse among all of them including human interactions. The guiding ecological principles are manifested to help every organism at whatever level to function better through diversity, make connections, manage feedback loops to improve, adapt to changes and promote co-operation and self-governance, without ego.

The general laws of Ecology imply that everything is connected to everything else, everything has a place and purpose, there is no final waste, where matter and energy are preserved and there is no free lunch…what goes up must come down...what goes round, keeps cycling.   

On the other hand, what does it mean to be in a place that can be called anti-ecological with counter-ecological behavior. 

The most obvious and critical difference would be found in a capitalist environment.

Capitalism can be defined as an “ economic system based on the private ownership of the means of production and their operation for profit (rather than state). Private property and the recognition of property rights, capital accumulation, wage labor, voluntary exchange, a price system and competitive markets are all features. Wikipedia

In other words, MONEY becomes the most meaningful connection between things whether social relationships and/or nature. It’s all about the marketplace and consumer communications that know best and want more not less. 

There are four basic differences between commercial capitalism 

and ecological partnerships.  

One:  All Nature’s integrated processes are disconnected and reduced to one common denominator … 

...a revenue process to make profits on the kind of products the marketplace demands via culture and media. Do we want organic coffee, farm-raised mink furs, genetically modified wheat, more plastic doo-dads or finding more finite sources of fossil fuels?

For example,  "In today’s parlance we call this new kind of agroecosystem a monoculture, meaning a part of nature that has been reconstituted to the point that it yields a single species, which is growing on the land only because somewhere there is a strong market demand for it.” Donald Worster

Two: Nature’s encoded programs run on circular systems or cycles 

...but economic production runs on  a linear assembly line where waste is common as long as capital is the main key to protect. Utilize a resource with “no deposit and no return.”

In fact, if pollution happens, treat it as an external side effect that is not part of the production quota. Just consider air pollution caused by a factory is not an internal cost of production but rather an external cost to be borne by nature and society. Its OK if other people or communities or nature itself bear the cost.

To try and recycle can become difficult because of the degree of division of nature.  For example, animals raised in feedlots have natural waste that becomes a serious form of pollution rather than normal fertilizer. Think about plastics that have replaced wood, steel and other products but are not biodegradable for centuries.  

Three: Nature organizes every community for each other’s benefits 

...food, shelter and protection. Businesses are only concerned about manipulating market shares for themselves rather than equity or quality for everyone.  

For example, food becomes more valuable if it  can earn more profits through bulk production with increased nitrogen fertilizers. It doesn’t matter if the mineral compositions of the soil are unbalanced which in turn affects the mineral content of the vegetable grown on it.  Why not use more pesticides to protect the appearance of the produce? Why not use GMO seeds that work in the laboratory composition but may have unknown long-term human side effects? 

In the end, the quality of food is debased, birds and other species are killed, and food chains even for humans are contaminated. What affects one, affects us all.

 Four: the real value of natural wealth is grounded on generating profits 

....with high energy technologies and less labor inputs if possible. Larger corporations, ever-merging, seem to make the major decisions about the technology based on their profitability with the inherent drive to continue to grow on an ever-increasing scale.  Motive is about “mini-cars make mini-profits… we make more money on big cars.”  Non-renewable resources are more quickly depleted, and more wastes dumped into the environment.

My ANSWER

Do we need to continue to believe these statements?

"Nature only exists  because there is a market?

               “Nature’s bounty is a free gift to the property owner to use to make money.”

Part of the answer, I believe, is making an individual choice to adapt to a radically different environment. Commercial capitalism is a closed loop between business and consumer. Only the consumer can manage some of those links, modify social media hype, and adapt to a simpler lifestyle and economy. 

When human contact can become infectious in a global community of 7.5 billion people because of an organic element that may be from nature, then we must become more environmentally conscious citizens and respect ecology’s principles and succession.  

 "We can’t have healthy people on an unhealthy planet. The COVID crisis has shown us that nature, health, inequality and the economy are all interrelated and people are at the center."

 Nature’s bounty and conservation are everyone’s business and we must stand side by side with Nature that it cannot be bought or abused. There must be a bigger call for collective action to reverse nature loss and prevent an array of ecological problems. There must be greater awareness that ecology connects us all as a Big Picture that tries to unify and  broaden participation for everyone and everything. 

Perhaps, in the manner of Nature's ecological succession, we can also learn more about facilitating our own social succession in such changing unprecedented times.

What is your favorite part of nature that has no commercial value?

Comments are always appreciated: 833 471 4661 (leave the best time to chat). 

Annemarie

amarie10@gmail.com

https://helpfulmindstreamforchanges.com

..my pussy willows at the creek on the farm

Announcement: Special E-Book is Now Available on Kindle....What Do You Want to Know about The Water Sprite with Roots?

Announcement: Special E-Book is Now Available on Kindle...What Do You Want to Know about The Water Sprite with Roots? 

I wonder but I really don't know. I wonder if anybody knows, even humankinds who are probably too busy with no time to dig deeper into what the right connections can mean to us all. But I care. Is caring a cycle? If you care enough about something, is that caring returned to you? If responsibility is given or taken, is that responsibility respected and used well? Generally speaking, do humankinds believe in being responsible at least, if not appreciative, of how past, present and future actions are all connected?

Excerpt: The Incredible Journey of The Water Sprite with Roots.

I am pleased to announce the Kindle publication of my e-book, The Incredible Journey of a Water Sprite with Roots on his mission to discover Cyclical Truths for all ages who care about Earth's ecosystems.  

Here is the Kindle blurb:

There is nothing more powerful than creative writing which mixes science to express facts and feelings about our Earth’s ecology.  Welcome to a powerful credible first-person narrative about a living, feeling, talking water sprite with roots so you can share his experiences on his water cycle and discovery of several crucial natural cycles we may not talk about but cannot be taken for granted.  

His story combines imagination and fantasy with scientific reality.  Because he shares an affinity with any organic life form derived from carbon and hydrogen, he can communicate with other beings and express their stories from their realities. He empathizes with all habitats and inhabitants from microorganisms to hydrocarbons of all forms. He connects the dots between climate, pollution and food production.

He is a living, feeling, talking water drop who narrates his experiences in present tense as he discovers several important cycles to maintain a healthy ecosystem, a healthy biodiversity and a healthy humankind society. Most importantly, he helps to explain the Cyclical Truths that are very real and essential to the Earth's ecology as he embodies the words ‘sustainable development’ and ‘ethical consumerism.’

There can be no more precious bonding than to consider water as a valuable friend, as a person and necessity for survival? You wouldn't hurt or bully a good friend, right?

In the end, science and imagination weave a fascinating story that only a water sprite with roots can tell; that in order to survive, we need to balance our Earth’s Cyclical Truths  and protect the diversity found in ecological ecosystems from the smallest to the largest.

Most importantly, the hope is for children of all ages to accompany him and respect our natural environment even more around every chapter. At the end, we should all  care deeply for his manners, fears and hopes. 

What an amazing friend especially for children to get to know.

 

Check it out today ...read the first two chapters. Let me know what you think. 

Sincerely,

Annemarie 

amarie10@gmail.com

833 471 4661 (leave a message)

https://helpfulmindstreamforchanges.com

As well, I am always interested in podcast interviews to discuss our Earth's ecology, problems and solutions. Our footprints matter. 

See list of 12 questions...two have been answered.

Who Am I? Who Really Cares? Why Bother?

Who Am I? Who Really Cares? Why Bother?

...every Content lives in Context

NOTE: these 3 blogs outline the background and reasons for creating new personal website called Helpful Mindstream for Changes.

Until you reach this 70 year plateau, it is hard to manifest these strange new feelings of I am getting old. What do I have to show for my long years? Will my remembrances have any value? For me, this dawning seemed to happen on my birthday waking up to face a dark curtain behind which were my remaining years as few or many as they may be. The sense of mortality was awakened as well as any tangent of immortality after my life ends. No fear, no worry, just possible regret that my work, my thoughts, my spirit would be buried without cogency mixed in with the rocks and dirt.

So I have decided to take this virtual space to share my mind streams. My life's journey so far has been both average, different and beyond comprehension why I would spend so much of my youth in libraries rather than at parties. Therein, perhaps, there may lie some lessons for future generations.

I was raised in a pioneer home within a homesteading family with four brothers where electric power and rotary telephone service were experienced in my teen years. Core values of hard work, discipline, cooperation, pride and gratitude were as deeply engraved as the wood grain in the logs in our small house. I earned my Education degree and taught for 24 years both in big cities and rural communities. I was able to take early retirement in order to pursue my passion of entrepreneurship in the only venue open to me, mainly the network marketing home business. Believing that any strong work ethic would succeed, starting with the right goals and answers, and making all the mistakes and misconceptions have also garnered some valuable lessons to share in future blogs.

So what are the particular peculiarities I uniquely wish to share with others on such a powerful and interactive platform like this? Is there something I can teach from my experiences having lived the pioneer mindset to the technological meshing of electronic data dispersed in bits and pieces where tweets are mere pebbles skipping across a vast knowledge base…

"A little learning is a dangerous thing; drink deep, or taste not the Pierian spring."

In my shortened timeline, I need to plot some definite intentions.

Here are some realistic objectives of what I would like to accomplish with my new  website and blogs:

...compile some reports on internet marketing for those who need to market their brands on the world wide web with personal insights and one recommendation.

...write an  e- book about shattered dreams of teenage girls in this Selfie Age that ends with a well defined strategy to make better choices at the right time. Include hands on exercises to explore developing mind patterns.

... review and improve a children's book about the Adventures of a Water Sprite together with a activity book that invites children to explore the intricacies and balances of natural cycles…time to take a break from wild games and Disney World caricatures.

... rework the theories behind exercises for Adventures with Ideas and implement Brain Cards ( vs Brain Bags) where you don't have to stay within the lines. Early in my career I became fascinated with Visual Literacy as a mode of communication and will revisit again the difference between percepts and concepts (Perception before Cognition)...makes for some good debates way beyond the flicker of tweets.

...and, of course, have some creative thinking fun to share ideas and transformations along the way.

Finally, if you hear a common refrain in this introduction, feel free to introduce yourself. If you feel Age has increased your trudging but not your value of experience please share your impressions, mindful unsung contributions and your particular peculiarities. Imagine how our accumulated wisdom can transform our way of thinking and help others enjoy the Bigger Picture or Vision of Life.

PS: Here are some quick examples of mind streams based on my objectives. Do you prefer the verbal outline or visual diagram still very open-ended?

I look forward to your comments, ideas and suggestions.

Sincerely,

Annemarie Berukoff

Blog 2: Is There a Better Way to Open the Mind?
Blog 3: New Beginning for an Old, Tired Network Marketing Story

It certainly makes your heart feel good to rummage around in former studies...to think that maybe your wrinkles and lapses may not have been in vain.

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