Psychology and the Environment

We may ask what do the two have in common between our mental, emotional and physical well-being and the environment in which we live. For the purpose of this brief discussion I would like to define environment as the natural environment; the air we breathe, water we consume, the land and earth which offers us produce as well as the sunlight upon which we depend. In this definition I deliberately exclude the artificial and built environment, such as the houses and material objects that we have present around us.

Psychology and humanity at large tend to operate on crises and reactivity. We have a tendency to ignore or rationalize warning signs until the imposts become painful or cause intense distress. Even then we look for an immediate and easy solution.

I would like to postulate that our attitude to ourselves is reflected in our attitude to our environment. This is not new thinking, but rather thinking that gets lost in operational rationale- based on cost effective justification. As documented in body psychotherapies such as bioenergetics, Eastern yoga and Buddhism as well as indigenous perspectives, the mind and body are one and as such are interdependent on each other. Both are intelligent systems, that can only cooperate and functionally balance when both are considered and treated equally. However, we are often caught in the schism of the separatist mind, which takes on a dominant role and subjugates the body. Hence we become disconnected from our body, our emotions and from the ground. We then expend great effort to maintain the separation, leading to greater disharmony, albeit it internally or externally. We become disconnected from the environment and the environment too becomes a victim to our arrogance and ignorance.

The solution is to recognize our attitude and to consciously alter our approach. By paying attention to our minds, our bodies, we can move from impending crises to care and prevention. So commence with listening to your thoughts, to your emotions, to your body. As you do so let your senses make contact with the air you breathe, listen to sounds, taste and smell the many scents and feel the contact of the earth beneath your feet. As we tune into the cycle and intelligence of the environment, we tune into our own intelligence and health. The environment like our body is essentially part of us as we are part of the environment. If we function as one, we have the real possibility of a healthy, vibrant future.