As in native spiritualities, Wiccans and pagans consider themselves to be caretakers of the earth. With reverence we observe the waxing and waning of the moon. We honor the change of seasons with ceremony. We tend to plants and carefully, respectfully harvest their parts for medicine that heals the mind, body and spirit. We revere life in all its form and hold this bond to all living things at the core of our spiritual and daily lives.

And yet, pagans and native or aboriginal people are not the only ones to venerate life. Scientist and two-time winner of the Pulitzer Prize Edward O. Wilson coined the term “Biophilia” (bio meaning life and philia meaning love), which ascertains that all humans hold an innate affinity for the natural world. Based on DNA as hunter-gatherers, we feel most comforted and will thrive in mind, body and soul when we are closest to land, particularly an environment that resembles a savannah: open land with a smattering of trees, an abundance of animals and plants, a lake or river that not only provides water, but a natural perimeter of defense and topographical relief, i.e., hills or ridges for surveillance. In fact, habitat selection has long been considered the first step of survival for all species. When you choose the right place, you will find food, shelter and protection come easier. In this scenario you can easily see the rolling green hills covered with colorful plants that provide food and medicine. The sound of running water assures you that fish are swimming and ready for the catch. The sound of returning geese signals the change of season, with which you and all your neighbors are deeply attuned to understand and follow.

Biophilia is evident in our desire to keep plants or a garden, and to have household pets. We need that bit of wild nearer to us. In nature we find a refuge for the spirit. In nature we find wonder at the beauty and mystery that will not ever be fully understood or truly harnessed. For as we gain greater knowledge about flora, fauna, soil, water and air, we discover that the mystery runs unfathomably deep and we are drawn perpetually forward in search of a new answer, even though we know more knowledge will simply reveal yet another question in an unending cycle. We not only prefer, but need the symbiotic process that an evolving, expanding universe provides with its ample unpredictability if we are to remain engaged in life itself. As evidence, we balk when automated services walk us through every phone call because we react more effectively to live organisms than machines. We prefer to be outside on our own terms rather than cooped up in a dark office. When looking over a landscape we prefer diversity over uniformity.

Not only is diversity a preference it is also a necessity for the overall health of the entire planet. Scientists agree that our very well-being as a society depends upon bio-diversity itself. And yet, most of look aside as 70-140 species, the greatest in ecological history, disappear from the planet on a daily basis. Human destruction, since the onset of Age of Industry, has been matched to the devastation of giant meteorites smashing into the earth. And yet we have not stopped at destroying simply the flora and fauna to maintain our way of life. We have diminished the welfare of fellow humans across the globe. The sad fact is Americans take up five percent of the world’s population and yet consume 25 percent of the world’s resources. We are so comfort and convenient-oriented, we rely heavily on packaged goods and less on whole foods. The packaging alone accounts for 20 percent of our fuel consumption. While distant people we don’t know starve, we throw out 26 percent of our food. For these reasons, Americans are not liked throughout the world. So think about that next time you’re traveling outside the country or celebrating Fourth of July or pursuing for the American Dream (aka the world’s nightmare).

Perhaps to a certain degree, we come by this selfishness honestly. Due to natural selection we are programmed to think in physiologically time. In other words we focus on what will benefit us today, and in lesser degree how our actions will impact our grandchildren and far lesser our grandchildren’s grandchildren or someone on the other side of the world. Yet, the impact of our actions has been targeted at bringing a collapse of the world as we know it in our lifetimes.

We will be forced to return to an agricultural, local way of living. Great, some of you say, life has become too complicated any way. Okay, but what about the people, places, animals, and plants that will be eliminated in the meantime? What will be left after we all come to our senses? Some have predicted a scene reminiscent of a recently deserted battlefield with barren land of hardened clay, scattered burnt tree stumps and mounds of termite hills. In good consciousness (dare I say, good karma?) we cannot look aside for another minute.

My question is, as tree-hugging, dirt-worshippers who among us are on the city commission boards? How many of us are in the trenches fighting for obscure habitat or flora? How many of us are truly considering and lowering our ecological footprint? In 1979, Starhawk wrote in Spiral Dance that "Witchcraft can be seen as a religion of ecology." As those who celebrate the earth, we need to be leading the charge. The time has come when we need to go beyond the drum circle and visualization dance. Beyond switching our halogen light bulbs and taking cloth bags. The earth is our home, our spiritual core, and we must employ drastic methods of sustainability if we are to preserve her diverse beauty. We must reassess personal well-being and what it means to be truly wealthy by sharing resources and consuming less.

We must actively cultivate a new conservation ethic, or as Aldo Leopold phrased it in his book A Sand County Almanac, in his famous essay, “The Land Ethic,” the role of humans must change “from conqueror of the land-community to plain member and citizen of it.” We must rearrange our position from an egocentric point of view with only “chosen” humans at the helm of nature and place ourselves as a part of the entire ecosystem, on par in value with a single redwood tree or minuscule insect. We must learn to share the planet with everyone and everything.