Symbiotic Living with Nature
We have been living in a crisis of erasure, oppression, and destruction of Nature, since the feudal systems of Europe dating back to the 5th century where Land was only for a ruling class and was meant for profit, leaving little consideration for the health of Land. This in turn exhausted the soil and the people that worked the land, making them vulnerable to disease.
In other words, the spread of feudalism ran in parallel to poor health outcomes and poor Planetary health.
Feudalism was then exchanged for capitalism which has taken a similar line and relationship to Nature.
For sixteen centuries Planet Earth has had to endure being owned, destroyed, and degraded.
The result is what we are living right now, the dysregulation of a wide range of Natural systems, including climate, food production, biodiversity, and microbiome.
It is important to understand that many Indigenous societies, who lived in kinship with Nature, resisted a feudal relationship with Nature.
They also continue to lead in the conservation of Nature to this day, protecting over 80% of the Planet’s biodiversity.
Therefore, Indigenous knowledge must be equitably platformed and listened to if we are to achieve Planetary and Human health.
Four Understandings
The problem is not climate change, the problem is the dysregulation of all Natural systems. Climate change is just one of the many consequences.
Therefore, the goal is not simply climate adaptation, the goal is to reframe, restructure, and heal our relationship with Nature.
Nature is our partner; therefore, we must turn to them for guidance and leadership rather than imposing a top down approach.
Our health is tied to Planetary health.
A SYMBIOTIC RELATIONSHIP WITH NATURE
To address the four understandings we are proposing a symbiotic relationship with Nature. In everyday life, we tend to understand symbiosis as mutualism -- an interaction between two organisms, individuals, or groups where both organisms, individuals, or groups depend on and benefit from the interaction.
However, in biology, the term ‘symbiosis’ has a long history of debate about what it actually means and entails. In Greek, ‘symbiosis’ means ‘living together’. Although ‘living together’ does sound like a mutualistic relationship, there are, of course, non-mutualistic ways of living together, which are included in modern definitions of symbiosis. In biology, symbiosis refers to a long-term biological interaction between two organisms (or symbionts) from different species.
While this interaction can be mutualistic, two forms of non-mutualistic symbiosis are
commensalism symbiosis (where one symbiont benefits without harming the other), and
parasitic symbiosis (where one symbiont benefits while harming the other.
In biology, symbiosis, therefore, does not always refer to mutualism. Another distinction in the terminology is made when referring to so-called obligate and facultative symbiosis. Obligate symbiosis describes that the symbiosis is essential for the survival of at least one of the two symbionts, whereas facultative symbiosis describes that the symbiosis is not essential for either of the two symbionts.
In this report, we define symbiosis as;
a long-term biological and philosophical interaction between Humans and Nature that is mutualistic and obligate.
With three caveats: First, Nature, as it stands, does not need us to survive, but we need them to survive. Second, Nature already is in symbiosis with all their ecosystems, including us; it is us that needs to start reciprocating. Third, it is specifically those who participate in capitalistic values who need to reevaluate their relationship with Nature, as Indigenous Peoples all over the world have been living in symbiosis with Nature for millennia.
The pushback from the capitalist and many self-declared intellectuals is that destruction of Nature was ‘inevitable’ or the cost of “progress”. John Locke went further and proclaimed that the Land needed to be productive and create a capital gain (source). He was a key ‘scholar’ of the time and had a strong influence in how Land is viewed and valued to this day. Sadly, he did not understand that the Land was already productive; it was providing us with nourishment, medicine, shelter, and Life. It is John Locke’s line of thinking that has to be left behind, as, technically, it has never been valid.
As a society we must really ponder what we mean by progress. Is it to simply generate wealth at any cost, including to the detriment of our own health? Epidemiologists have long studied the links between the consequences of maintaining progress (profit) on Human life; life becoming increasingly fast paced, the presentation of various environmental pollutants, the experience of psychosocial stressors of sustaining an economic standing, and the erosion of life supportive practices such as sleep, good nourishment, clean air ect. (source). Simultaneously, ecologists have looked at how progress (profit) impacts non Human Nature (source).
Progress is defined as forward movement towards a destination - we should therefore ask what is our desired destination ?
PRINCIPLES OF MUTUALISTIC SYMBIOSIS
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Nature connectedness describes our emotional relationship, or sense of Kinship, with non-Human Nature. This is to say that our sense of kindredness
It is an important concept that complements contact with Nature and knowledge about Nature, and it seems to be crucial for benefiting from Nature and acting for Nature. In other words, it is not only important to visit Nature and to know about Nature; it is that sense of connectedness, that feeling of being part of Nature, that makes us feel that we live a worthwhile Life and that also makes us act for Nature (source). Another significant aspect is learning names, life cycles, likes and dislikes, and details of various lived experiences of Nature. For example, follow the day cycle of a bird: where do they perch, what do they eat, and what is the sound of their song? Taking the time to learn and notice will provide opportunities to bond and understand the Nature around us. In turn, symbiosis can develop more organically as a person begins to know and to connect with their non-Human Kin.
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There is a need for kinder and more Kind driven language to help set a more symbiotic cognitive framework.
Kin = a relationship, we are in a relationship with all Nature and Biodiversity, not just People.
Nature = all Biodiversity including People
They/them = pronouns to use, removing the “it” from our language when referring to Nature. “It needs watering” to “they need watering”. It also identifies the plurality of ecosystems, even in “one” plant there are various microbial communities.
We = when we speak about justice, “We all need clean Water” - the We meaning all Beings including non Human Beings. So when we advocate for environmental justice it is not just for Human health it is for all Biodiversity.
Capitalsing = capitalising words related to Nature to make the significance and Sacredness pronounced and acknowledged.
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Taking time to deeply observe Nature means spending quality time in Nature. It is when we spend time with our Kin that we begin to create a deep bond. The observation also opens up the opportunity to understand nuances that may have not been possible otherwise. The understanding of these nuances will make us better symbiotic partners. The scale of Nature is wide and the observations can be at various scales, from tending to a garden or spending time with indoor plants, or going for a long walk in a park. The objective is to spend time and take notice of the Nature around us. In any healthy relationship, the more time spent together, the more we bond, and the more we are able to understand each other. Empathy builds, as does reciprocity, fairness, and equity.
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We should move from seeing Nature as a commodity, which includes giving it value away from current economic models.
Nature is not of value because of the capital gain it can provide, it is valuable because of Nature itself.
Nature creates, sustains, and heals Life -- a value that can only be expressed or perceived in healing terms.
It is healing for all the various nourishment that Nature gives us to sustain our health.
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Professor Robin Kimmerer introduced the concept of reciprocity with Nature, we should be gifting back to Nature, rather than continually taking from Nature.
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Deep observation also requires deep listening, that is, once we are emerged in Nature and brought into our Life, then learning to listen closely and intently is the next step. Listening is not only an auditory exercise, it is our entire being. Listen to when Nature tells us that they are exhausted, listen to when they tell us that they are in danger, listen to when they tell us that they are sick, listen to when they tell us that they are joyful, listen to when they tell us that they are healthy, listen to all the daily moments in order to capture the nuances of change. This listening process is where we learn to be a better partner, supporter, and friend to Nature.
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To reciprocate properly, we must take a leaf from Indigenous communities and other beings such as the Beaver. Let us take the example of the Beaver first. Their dams work with the river systems and help mediate waterflow, in turn creating complex Wetlands. These Wetlands provide an ecosystem for rich biodiversity to flourish which play a key role in Planetary health (source). In this case the River and the Wetland need the Beavers to stay healthy and to flourish. Now, let us take a People example. In the Rainforests of Meghalaya live the Khasi Peoples who, for hundreds of years, have nurtured living bridges (source). These bridges help create a Sacred Kinship with Nature; the bridges provide connections for the community, and the community provides a micro ecosystem for the local environment. Further, the bridges take away burden on the water and soil, allowing for further nourishment. Over time, the bridges become stronger, unlike Western bridges which degrade over time (source). In this example, the Khasi people are an integral part of their habitat, their habitat needs them. From these examples we can conclude that it is possible for all of us to find our gift, to understand what it is that we can gift back to Nature.
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