Reprinted from The Common Good, No 13, Spring 1999
New Cosmology and Ecological Engineering
Two significant events for me this year have been the visit of Miriam MacGillis to Christchurch in February and my attendance at the International Ecological Engineering Society (IEES) Conference in Norway in June. Each had in common their deep concern for the serious ecological harm of modern human development, its link with social and institutional dysfunctionalism and its detrimental impacts on both human and non-human communities.
Miriam MacGillis was much more focused in the deeper spiritual issues that may underpin the human attitudes that lead to the violence and desecration we are doing to GodÕs creation while the Norwegian conference was more concerned about sharing practical and innovative ideas about how we can take responsibility for doing something about it. Both strongly advocated that there was a need for a radical change in the fundamental nature of our relationship with the created world. Traditional religious interpretations are failing us as is the technological-fix approach Ð both in fact, could be argued as contributing to the cause.
For anybody who is doubtful about the seriousness of the ecological and consequent social crises we face, a few hard facts were presented to us at the conference in Norway. For example it was starkly pointed out that the quantity of faecal material (the subject of the conference wastewater management) produced by the world during the generation 1950 to 2030 will be greater than the quantity produced during the whole history of humankind. Similarly, during that period we will consume more of the earthÕs resources than in the whole of human history, we will destroy more species, lose more topsoil and by 2030 we will have about 3 billion more mouths to feed. And by 2030 we will have over 100 mega-cities, (cities with more than 5 million people) most of which will be sited on a coastline. Imagine the hundreds of tonnes per week of essential food growing nutrients that flow from the soils of the farms and gardens through the supermarkets of the mega-cities, flushed down the toilet, mixed with persistent pollutants from industry, ÔtreatedÓ at the sewage farm before being dumped into the sea. The fertiliser industry predict that the world will run out of phosphate fertiliser (mined from phosphate rock) in about 100 years. Additionally we are already putting considerable pressure on potable water supplies throughout the world. It is not clear how the worldÕs vastly increased population will be fed and watered in the near future.
There is hope though and it lies with those who have a deep and rich sense of connectedness with the land and nature Ð with GodÕs creation. This connectedness is not new to many cultures, particularly most indigenous cultures. But it is certainly something the modern industrial technological cultures have lost. David Orr from Oberlin University, USA, was at the conference in Norway. He has pointed out Òthat it was no accident that connectedness is central to the meaning of both the Greek root word for ecology, oikos, and the Latin root word for religion, religio.Ó Orr puts connectedness at the hub of our responsibility and relationship to the earth weÕve inherited and the earth we will bequeath. As we shared in the liturgical ÒCosmic WalkÓ, Miriam MacGillis went a step further and gave us powerful impression of the timelessness of our connectedness with GodÕs creation, from the time the Universe was born, to the present time. With this connectedness goes a deep sense of responsibility to that with which we are connected. The stronger we are connected the closer we must be to God. How can we be true stewards of GodÕs creation if we are disconnected from all that is created by God? A technologically driven society is disconnecting us from nature. Think of the flush toilet: flush-forget-disconnect!
One thing I learnt from Miriam MacGillis was that the evolving and living story of the universe, GodÕs awesome creation, is a story that has been unfolding for about 15 billion years. This story is written in the ecosystems within which we live, in the mountains and rivers, in the rain forests, in the rocks, in the genetic codes of all living organisms. Surely we must be so careful that, out of our love for our God, our ancestors and future generations, we donÕt distort or destroy this continuing story through our arrogance, ignorance, greed and technology.
For me the Miriam MacGillis presentations on the New Cosmology were affirming, challenging, inspiring, deeply spiritual and hope giving. My frustration is that the day-to-day demands of my chosen lifestyle stand in the way of my taking up all the challenges and insights that stirred deep within.
Johannes Heeb from Switzerland, is president of IEES and recently visited Christchurch. He believes that technology will not solve our problems but that we must imbed our actions and designs in nature. Before we can do this though maybe we need to heed the advice of Kevin OÕConnor (Tui Motu. May 1999) who said that there is a need of a revised and reapplied theology of natureÉ.we must be reconciled to Earth in order to be reconciled to God and one another.
ÐAndrew Dakers