An inspiring piece. Thanks for sharing it, especially the personal work you and your husband are engaged in. My wife and I have a mere 1/2 acre in the NC mountains and still we have reframed its purpose as the Loving Homestead Experiment - How does it look to live true to the four Great Truths of One Cause (a series I've been writing here on Substack since the last presidential election made it clear I had to do something to at least partially bring more balance to the world). https://wbradfordswift.substack.com/t/1-cause
Well said. What you’re speaking to is what’s been on my mind a lot lately too… How do we shift our fundamental paradigms from resource extraction towards relationship? Having moved to a new landscape, I’m often searching for information on local floral and fauna and am struck by how much of the information available online is framed as either “how is this species a resource for humans?” or “how is this species a threat to humans?” I was just looking up a native tree recently, and much of what was online was about whether it was a good source of wood or not.
Another excellent piece, Spencer! Deeply resonant for me. Being just 60 miles south of SPF, I’m often imagining how the Coast Miwok would have been living and stewarding the surrounding landscape. Luckily, because of how many parks and how much open space we have here, the big ambitions of rewilding feel possible here. I’m encouraged each time I find pockets that seem almost ecologically intact, like hillsides with all or most of the iconic native chaparral plants thriving side by side (including ceanothus). Still a ways to go for rewilding but feels like some key pieces may already be in place.
One thing I started thinking about as I read your piece, and I’ll probably go back to reread a few times, is whether the local level, relationship-based, cultural rewilding that you’re describing is best left to incubate and scale on its own in emergent ways that may not seem obvious at the moment, or whether to scale this practice there needs to be more deliberate rewiring of certain systems so that the movement that you’re describing has a trellis to grow on and scale into. You describe a mesh/web that can be rethreaded as it is disintegrating. Curious if that happens more naturally (ie emergence) or needs a reworked support (infra)structure (ie systems adaption). Perhaps both.
Incredible writing. Looking forward to going back to this one a few times.
Thank you for all that you do. I’m vibing on how hopeful this is, and it’s hope grounded in thoughtful, earth-aligned action. This insight really resonates: “what started out as a land regeneration project, slowly revealed itself to be about relationships.” Anything we can do to repair and celebrate our interdependence is worth the effort.
Thanks a lot for this paper. I am so happy to read other people believing in the idea we are part of Nature, not separated from it, and that by acknowledging the natural part of mankind we'll discover/design the best ways to co develop in a positive feedback with Nature.
Your expanded sense of what makes a community is promising in the town my wife and I moved to a year ago in south-central Tennessee. It's very community oriented, but the view of who's in the community isn't nearly as expansive as that of indigenous peoples of whom I'm aware.
This account of your mind wandering about your local flora and fauna while showering is both beautiful and compelling. If rewilding starts with relationships, we have all we need to start outside our front doors.
An inspiring piece. Thanks for sharing it, especially the personal work you and your husband are engaged in. My wife and I have a mere 1/2 acre in the NC mountains and still we have reframed its purpose as the Loving Homestead Experiment - How does it look to live true to the four Great Truths of One Cause (a series I've been writing here on Substack since the last presidential election made it clear I had to do something to at least partially bring more balance to the world). https://wbradfordswift.substack.com/t/1-cause
Well said. What you’re speaking to is what’s been on my mind a lot lately too… How do we shift our fundamental paradigms from resource extraction towards relationship? Having moved to a new landscape, I’m often searching for information on local floral and fauna and am struck by how much of the information available online is framed as either “how is this species a resource for humans?” or “how is this species a threat to humans?” I was just looking up a native tree recently, and much of what was online was about whether it was a good source of wood or not.
Another excellent piece, Spencer! Deeply resonant for me. Being just 60 miles south of SPF, I’m often imagining how the Coast Miwok would have been living and stewarding the surrounding landscape. Luckily, because of how many parks and how much open space we have here, the big ambitions of rewilding feel possible here. I’m encouraged each time I find pockets that seem almost ecologically intact, like hillsides with all or most of the iconic native chaparral plants thriving side by side (including ceanothus). Still a ways to go for rewilding but feels like some key pieces may already be in place.
One thing I started thinking about as I read your piece, and I’ll probably go back to reread a few times, is whether the local level, relationship-based, cultural rewilding that you’re describing is best left to incubate and scale on its own in emergent ways that may not seem obvious at the moment, or whether to scale this practice there needs to be more deliberate rewiring of certain systems so that the movement that you’re describing has a trellis to grow on and scale into. You describe a mesh/web that can be rethreaded as it is disintegrating. Curious if that happens more naturally (ie emergence) or needs a reworked support (infra)structure (ie systems adaption). Perhaps both.
Incredible writing. Looking forward to going back to this one a few times.
Nothing makes me happier than to see people talking about the land as our relative; about how we live in a social relationship. Thanks for this!
Thank you for all that you do. I’m vibing on how hopeful this is, and it’s hope grounded in thoughtful, earth-aligned action. This insight really resonates: “what started out as a land regeneration project, slowly revealed itself to be about relationships.” Anything we can do to repair and celebrate our interdependence is worth the effort.
Thanks a lot for this paper. I am so happy to read other people believing in the idea we are part of Nature, not separated from it, and that by acknowledging the natural part of mankind we'll discover/design the best ways to co develop in a positive feedback with Nature.
We can care for one another mutually.
Your expanded sense of what makes a community is promising in the town my wife and I moved to a year ago in south-central Tennessee. It's very community oriented, but the view of who's in the community isn't nearly as expansive as that of indigenous peoples of whom I'm aware.
This account of your mind wandering about your local flora and fauna while showering is both beautiful and compelling. If rewilding starts with relationships, we have all we need to start outside our front doors.
Beautifully said Spencer. Now we ALL need to get to work to make a difference.
Beautiful said Spencer. Now we ALL need to get to work to make a difference.
There lots of people doing good work for a long time: https://youtu.be/vpTHi7O66pI?si=aihYwIpz1Fa-sIGD