Humanity’s relationship with the natural world is deep and tangled. How we treat Mother Nature is reflected in how we treat each other, and vice versa. These patterns feed on each other. Even when the damage isn’t immediate, it eventually shows up.

​

For centuries, people have objectified and exploited nature for profit. Many have ignored the delicate order that keeps chaos in check, acting as if they could do whatever they want with the Earth.

​

Some cling to a harsh idea of “survival of the fittest.” They use up resources — and even people — then throw them away and move on. Toxic waste often ends up dumped in poor communities, especially communities of color.

​

Technologies shape how we experience the world and challenge our moral choices. The short-term pursuit of profit when tied to powerful technologies can be deeply destructive.

 

In 2015, nearly every nation on Earth signed the Paris Agreement, pledging to keep global warming to well below 2°C (3.6°F) above pre-industrial levels, with 1.5°C (2.7°F) as the safer target. Scientists warned that passing those thresholds would mean:

• More extreme weather

• Irreversible ecosystem damage

• Greater risks to human health and survival

• Melting ice sheets and thawing permafrost, causing faster warming

• Widening inequality

• Huge economic and social costs

​

In 2023, the world’s average temperature was about already 1.45°C (2.6°F) higher than pre-industrial levels — the hottest year ever recorded. 2024 was also extremely hot, likely continuing this alarming trend. These numbers approach the Paris Agreement threshold of extreme danger.

​

Back in 2021, Ezra Klein noted how decades of climate activism had raised awareness but failed to cut emissions. Nearly half of today’s fossil fuel infrastructure was built after 2004. Add in planned projects, and the world is still on track to warm to the 2°C (3.6°F) Paris Agreement target — a future most governments swore to avoid. COVID-19 briefly slowed energy demand, but oil consumption has since bounced back, and coal use has risen again.

​

Looking ahead, 2025 is projected to see the lowest growth in global oil demand since 2009 (not counting the pandemic). Slower demand comes from more electric cars, better efficiency, and a weaker global economy. But that doesn’t mean fossil fuels are going away. As Marty Mulvihill, Gretta Goldenman, and Arlene Blum warned, the petrochemical industry plans to expand plastics and chemical production to keep profiting from oil and gas.

​

Plastics and toxic chemicals damage the environment in multiple ways:

• Extracting fossil fuels for plastics emits greenhouse gases.

• Transporting raw materials adds more emissions.

• Converting fuels into petrochemicals is highly polluting. (Plastic production alone causes about 3.4% of global emissions.)

• Burning plastics during disposal releases yet more gases.

• Plastics break down into microplastics, which also emit greenhouse gases.

• Microplastics in oceans may harm organisms that help store carbon.

• Rising demand for petrochemicals makes it harder to meet climate goals

​

Meanwhile, human-driven mass extinction of species is accelerating. Species are disappearing 100 to 1,000 times faster than they would without human interference — possibly dozens per day. A 2019 UN study estimated that one million species are at risk of extinction unless major conservation efforts succeed.

​

As noted in Chapter One, a holistic, bottom-up reform movement could shift us toward balance — strengthening community, holding powerful institutions accountable, and restoring respect for Life itself. Such respect is the foundation for a healthier relationship with the environment. A win-win relationship with Nature benefits everyone.

​

The life force running through Nature is awe-inspiring and mysterious. The backpacker’s rule of “leave no trace” is a wise guide. Subsidies for solar and wind power, and support for electric cars, help speed the move away from fossil fuels. Green energy projects in rural areas strengthen local economies. Farm-to-market efforts encourage organic agriculture that protects both people and planet.

​

The bottom line is this: respect Life. Keep searching for ways to live in harmony with one another and with the Earth. When we work with Nature instead of against it, it shows an incredible power to heal the wounds we’ve inflicted.