Whole Earth Living: Reconnecting Earth, History, Body, and Mind

Whole Earth Living argues that human society needs a change of consciousness if we are going to ensure long-term human survival on Earth. It uses long-term history, evolutionary biology, neuroscience and philosophy to develop a new sustainability paradigm. The paradigm focuses on opportunities for optimal human and ecological welfare by reconnecting earth, history, body and mind. This book is a hopeful one. After establishing the losses, it suggests that there are fundamental re-orientations that humans as individuals and members of society can make that are more hopeful and more meaningful than some of the current formulations offered for a sustainable future. Instead of renouncing aspects of our lives, we can return to some forms of self-sufficiency (gardening, sewing, and woodworking, for example) individually, within households and communities in order to receive positive benefits, such as reducing disease and isolation. AUTHOR: Kathleen R. Smythe is a history professor and chair of the History Department at Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio. Dr. Smythe enjoys the challenge of addressing questions of contemporary relevance through historical investigation in the classroom and through writing and research. She incorporates community- and bodily-engaged learning in many of her classes in order to reconnect intellectual, social, and kinesthetic learning.