Exploring wisdom as a source of sustainable relationships
Dermot Carroll
1. Introduction
“The last thought we wish to offer is that man must explore himself-his goals and values-as much as the world he seeks to change. The dedication to both tasks must be unending”. Limits of Growth Report (1973)
In the book Radical Transformational Leadership Monica Sharma (2017) sets out how “three levels of approach” are needed to address complex problems. The first is at the “level of the problem” where we develop solutions to deal with the problem’s effects. Secondly, we work at the “level of the system” where the problem is being incubated. The third approach is to tackle problems at the “level of the consciousness” - the underlying thinking from where the problem stems. In order to effectively solve any problem we must address it on all three levels simultaneously (Sharma,cited in Fullerton, 2022). The focus of this paper is to look at the problem of climate change through the lens of relationships and show how we can learn to address. environmental problems at the “level of the consciousness”.
There are many differing definitions and interpretations of what we mean by consciousness and its study gives rise to startlingly different interpretations in western philosophy compared to that of the east. A very simple definition that captures a lot of these perspectives is given by the Oxford dictionary, which states that “consciousness is a person’s awareness or perception of something”. To address problems stemming from consciousness we must therefore understand the levels of awareness and perceptions that are giving rise to the behaviour underlying the problem, and we must provide a basis for a new awareness and perception that can lead to the resolution of the problem. In the case of climate change most of the solutions being put forward are at the level of the problem or at the level of the system. But, as one of the main drivers of climate change is our desire for more material goods, coupled with a perception that the earth’s resources are unlimited (which in turn is leading to increasing economic growth, resulting in more pollution, and loss of bio-diversity etc.) the problem of climate change can be linked back to consciousness (Orr,2004, Daly 1973)
In Small is Beautiful E.F. Schumacher (1973) challenges the wisdom of continuing with ever expanding economic growth on a planet with finite resources. Sharma (2007) raises this point again and calls on us to source our action from wisdom. This is one of the great challenges facing education in the decades ahead. Schumacher (1973, P68) warns that “more education can help us only if it produces more wisdom”. As more students are now using online resources and artificial intelligence to acquire knowledge, the role of the educator is changing. Perhaps there is now an opportunity for teachers to become conscious of their role as purveyors of wisdom as well as knowledge.
Tobin Hart points out that “wisdom is the ability to use knowledge wisely” (Hart 2001,p1). He writes of a need to cultivate wise relationships – what we might call heartful relationships - which allow a suspension of our “distant self-separateness” and a “recognition of interconnectedness” (Hart 2001, P25). We can also expand our understanding to one that sees relationships in a much broader sense, cultivate more wise relationships with the other kingdoms of nature, and bring wisdom to our economic relationships and to our relationships with each other. We explore this idea in the following pages.
2. Ecological relationships
“There can be no prescription no set of rules for living within Gaia. For each of our different actions there are only consequences”. James Lovelock
The disconnection between human society and the ecosystem has become possible mainly because of various forms of technology. These have insulated us from the natural environment and made it appear that we have transcended nature (Orr,2004). Deep in the heart of a city it is possible to believe that human society lives independently of the environment. This was one of the motivations for developing the Eden Project in the United Kingdom. By creating the largest indoor rainforest in the world, Eden’s creators wanted to show us how dependent on and interlinked we are with the natural world. To do this they turned a disused clay mine into an awe-inspiring eco-system, with beautiful gardens and two gigantic geodesic domes which mimic the climatic conditions of a rainforest and of the Mediterranean region. Signage and stories remind visitors of our dependence on plants for our survival and show how every day we use products from the rainforest without even knowing it. The venue, which is now one of the UK’s main tourist draws is a subtle education project masquerading as a visitor attraction.
One of the innovators who developed the Eden Project, horticulturist Dr Tony Kendle, writes in the beautiful book ‘A Wonder in the Garden’ about the web of connections that exist on our doorstep. He shows us how the simple landscapes surrounding us, from the manicured gardens to the wild scrub, are composed of a vast network of intelligent creatures. He presents the inhabitants of our gardens, the fungi, the grasses, the flowers, the trees, and the birds as our relatives with whom we are deeply intertwined and encourages us to foster a loving relationship with them. Looking at the world through his eyes we see not an inanimate world that humans live on, but a living world that humans participate in. Our consciousness, our education system, or our business model has not quite caught up to this idea yet.
James Lovelock’s Gaia theory (1973) postulates that all of the earth’s organisms combine and interact with inorganic material to create a self-regulating system. The idea of nature working together to regulate the planetary system so that the conditions for life are maintained, implies a form of collective intelligence that was initially unacceptable to mainstream science because it did not fully align with the theory of natural selection. Lovelock’s work became a sort of laughing stock to many of his fellow biologists. The early champions of Gaia were not scientists but artists, philosophers and environmentalists. They saw within it a powerful opportunity to inspire a paradigm shift in our relationship to each other and to our co-inhabitants on the earth. Czech writer Vaclav Havel saw in “Gaia theory a moral prescription for the welfare of the planet itself” (Lovelock, 2000, p279)
Gaia theory, which has since become more acceptable to scientists, provides a rationale for human society to re-calibrate its relationship within a world we once thought we had dominion over. Australian environmentalist Glenn Albrecht (cited in Kendle,2021) argues that the present era of the Anthropocene (the period where humans have had a significant impact on the workings of the natural system) should now give way to the Symbiocene. In symbiosis all parts of a system “live together for mutual benefit” and so the root philosophy of the Symbiocene would “affirm the interconnectedness of life and all living things” (Ibid, p202). Such a leap in consciousness would bring us closer to the wisdom of some first nations people, such as the indigenous of Australia who, instead of believing “this country belongs to us”, believe that “we belong to this country” (Kendle, 2021, p203). A transformation of consciousness that brings the bulk of humanity to think in this more logical way would profoundly change the way society works and it would surely lead to a transformation in our most damaging activity - economics.
3. Economic relationship
“It is now time that we transcend to an economics built upon wisdom”. John Fullerton
Central to the great crisis of climate change is the debate about our economic system. Ecological economists argue that the human economic system cannot be decoupled from the ecosystem. They say that the thrust of mainstream economics does not allow for the fact that our planet has limited resources. Our economic system is sustained by the view that human ingenuity and market driven technological innovation will overcome the limits of nature and that human society can expect continual and literally infinite economic growth.
This direction of thinking was challenged by the publication of the “Limits to Growth” report of The Club of Rome (1972) which stated;
“If the present growth trends… continue, unchanged, the limits to growth on this planet will be reached sometime within the next one hundred years”. (Meadows. et al p23).
Although this study was criticised as wildly exaggerated at the time of its publication a recent review by Harvard researcher Greta Herrington (2021) supports the accuracy of the report’s trajectory. And yet we remain firmly adhered to the current business as usual model, underpinned as it is by a blinkered anthropocentric world view.
John Fullerton the former managing director of JP Morgan is one of a growing number who have begun to question the wisdom of our economic model. In the late 1990s Fullerton began to wonder if the core principle of market capitalism the ‘invisible hand’ (i.e. that through individual self-interest and freedom of production and consumption, the best interest of society, as a whole, are fulfilled), could be reconciled with the principle of the ‘golden rule’ (i.e. treating others as you would like to be treated yourself). After studying this question for some time, he came to the conclusion that there was no aspect of market capitalism that could be reconciled with the golden rule. This realization led him to leave his job at the bank and work on a new economic philosophy which he called regenerative economics. (Fullerton, 2022)
Building on the work of ecological economics, system theory, Gaia theory and the permaculture movement, regenerative economics aims to create a resilient economy that respects the limits of the natural world, in the same way that a natural ecosystem evolves to a symbiotic relationship with the constituents of its surrounding environment. The first principle of Regenerative Economics is called In Right Relationship. Fullerton (2015) argues that a key element of an economic system “in right relationship” is the nature of its relationship with the earth. The trading relationships that have evolved into the modern economic system stem from a consciousness that is rooted in two outdated philosophies. First there is the anthropocentric philosophy which in spirit is not unlike the philosophy established by the Christian bible - be fruitful, multiply, fill the earth and conquer it. Secondly there is the regrettable misuse of Darwin’s theory of evolution, simplifying it to the silly survival of the fittest axiom (Fullerton, 2022). This, people have used to justify doggedly competitive, often unethical, business practices giving cart blanche to those who wish to amass vast financial wealth whilst knowingly undermining the well-being of others.
Our current understanding shows us that co-operation not competition is the bedrock of biology (Fullerton, 2022, Capra 2017). Natural systems are regenerative, collaborative and produce no waste unlike our economic system which is extractive, competitive and generates large amounts of waste and pollutants (Orr, 2004). Bringing our economies “in right relationship” with the natural world will take a step change in thinking that is perhaps beyond the grasp of our current political and business leadership. Fullerton (2015) reminds us that, for the most part, the world economy is run by well-meaning people, who happen to have an outdated and incorrect understanding about how the world actually works and are unwilling or simply don’t know enough to change their minds. The work of realigning our economic system will likely fall to a coming generation, who will build on the groundwork carried out by the ecological economists, system theorists, biologists, philosophers, and teachers who are helping to re-orient human consciousness. Today’s educators can help inspire them to do this.
4. Wise Relationships
“Acquisition of information, mastery of skills, and the power of the intellect give us tools to navigate, change, even destroy the world, but the capacity of wisdom is required if we are to grow the soul of world and our own soul along with it” (Hart,2009, p1.)
One of the early advocates for an ecological economics, Herman Daly highlighted how the lack of a spiritual foundation has meant that increasingly human societies lack a sense of purpose and this has contributed to rampant consumerism and it’s consequent destruction of resources (Daly, 1973). The gradual secularisation of societies, coupled with the increasing voice of radical religious beliefs over the recent decades has created a sort of vacuum where wisdom and genuine good heartedness seem unable to emerge. There is a famous saying from Blaise Pascal (1623-1662) that all of humanity’s problems arise from an inability to “sit quietly in a room alone”. In order to cultivate wisdom, we need to move beyond our thoughts and emotions and see things from a higher perspective (Meecham, 1990). Acting wisely involves the capacity to translate the power of the intellect and the sensitivity of the heart into an appropriate form of action or attitude (Hart, 2009).
In the paper “Teaching for Wisdom” Hart (2009) exhorts educators to learn how to cultivate wisdom in their students. He explains how the Chinese word hsin is often translated as mind but it actually refers to mind and heart. Similarly, the Chinese word for meditation contains the word for now and the word for mind/heart, the two words combining to say, bring your mind and heart to the now (Duffy,2011). This insight helps to unlock the nature of wisdom as the qualitative aspect of the mind and is the pathway to unlocking the latent wisdom within all of us.
This notion of the heart as a form of intelligence from which wisdom emerges is a challenge to our western mindset which associates intelligence with the brain. Yet in eastern literature such as those of Taoism and Buddhism we find that the mind and the brain are not the same thing. The mind is regarded as a field of experience of which the brain or the mental faculty is one aspect. In this understanding the qualities of the heart such as compassion and love are another aspect. When both are combined then the opportunity to make wise decisions is enhanced. The skill to achieve this is best acquired through a meditation practice.
The meditation technique of mindfulness (i.e. becoming mindful of the present moment) has seen extensive growth in western nations over the last twenty years, where it has become a scientifically accepted remedy for certain types of mental illness. Aside from well documented benefits of reducing stress and combating depression, a regular mindfulness practice can greatly increase our awareness of the present moment. It thus allows us to become more conscious of the thoughts and emotions that are driving our actions. Awareness helps us “to sense and interrupt automatic patterns of conditioned, thinking, sensation and behaviour” (Varela et.al , 1993, p122) and “to witness the content of our consciousness” (Hart,2001,p21) and gradually free us from compulsive behaviour patterns. This in turn can help the well-spring of heart intelligence to flow in our consciousness and wisdom to emerge, through a synthesis of heart and mind. Wisdom according to Hart (2001, p21) is the ability to “use the mind” rather than be “used by it”.
It is perhaps only through wisdom that humanity can develop the will to re-define our interpersonal and interspecies relationships. System theorist Fritjof Capra points out that from the emergence of the first bacteria on earth nature has sustained life “by creating and nurturing communities” (Capra.et al 2017). Natural selection therefore tends to favour individuals who are a part of communities that work together. A new ethics can spring from this knowledge, based on two fundamental values: those of human dignity and ecological sustainability. (Capra,2017). These two principles, can provide a framework upon which humanity can redefine its place within the environment and engage in more symbiotic relationships with ecology - relationships that are based on both knowledge and wisdom. If we can’t achieve this, then natural selection may eventually lead to a significant reduction in the numbers of our species. (Ibid,2017).
5. Conclusion
Climate change has thrown a spotlight on humanity’s relationship with the natural world. When we look deeper, we find that it has also unearthed the unhealthy relationships that our trade and economics are based upon. It presents humankind with enormous challenges and great efforts are being made to mitigate its effects and to prevent it from becoming catastrophic. Yet there is another level that we must address if we are to fully tackle the problem of climate change. The chaotic weather, the fires and the floods that are so much a feature of our lives now are demonstrating to us the need to come in to ‘right relationship’ with our planet. Educators and teachers can play a very significant role in this re-orientation. In a world where people are turning to artificial intelligence for knowledge, where will they find wisdom? There is now a great opportunity for teachers to be the purveyors of wisdom and lead us all in the quest for the deep reservoir of wisdom that exists in the heart of humanity.
The English word for education comes from a family of Latin words, one of which is educere, meaning to “draw out”. What if the role of the educator going forward through the coming decades was to help students draw on their inner resources and guide them to bring the heart and mind together – to bring wisdom to the knowledge they have gathered? Would it then be possible to create a sustainable world where each of the parts are in right relationship? At this point of crisis in our world are these not questions worth considering? There are two lines in the Gospel of St. Thomas which might encourage us to embark on this enquiry.
“If you bring forth what is inside you what you bring forth will save you. If you do not bring forth what is inside you what you do not bring forth will destroy you” (in Pagels, 1979)
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