Colonialism Disguised as Protection

Chapter 7 investigates the popular concept of environmental protection. The authors of this book timidly challenge the notion that nature needs human protection, since nature mainly needs protection from the human species. It seems more apparent that existing power structures use any vulnerable group to argue for the need to protect them, when what those disregarded groups want most is self-worth and unconditional affection, not to be kept guarded under lock and key. Often, the vulnerable species or immature stage of development said to be in dire jeopardy is not a stage at all, but tragically viewed as a stage along a ladder of conceptual merit from dependent to sovereign, and inedible seed to valuable fruit. This seems in evidence by a colonial worldview that sees juvenility as a waste of resources, rather than that brief liberty called childhood inherent to every species.

How Taxonomy Steals Reverence

Chapter 3 is about classification and the paradox of losing one's positive regard for a thing by being able to describe it well. The philosophy behind the need to recognize what matters constantly versus the curiosity to discover what matters even once has a long and anxious history in many cultures, several predating Western thought. This chapter posits that the human habit of looking at many unique individuals as more similar than different allows them to remember what they cannot bear to forget—at the expense of ignoring the essential differences they will never remember.

The Theory of Biophilia

This first chapter introduces the Theory of Biophilia, which argues that a crucial relationship exists among all species, both human and non-human. This theory is unique in that it emphasizes an almost reverent collaboration of all life on the planet Earth toward a common need to survive, rather than their apparent hostility and competitiveness. The Theory of Biophilia expands the human definition of sentient life and examines how important this love of life is to the essential need for regard within both the observer and the observed.

National Park Theory

Chapter 6 delves into the topic of regard. In order to begin the process of reconciliation with the planet, mankind must first ask what is wrong with his broken relationship with the Earth. If man's first date with nature was one of wonder and awe, could it be that man now takes his beloved nature for granted? Perhaps his silent partner would like a say in how she is regarded, and especially in how she is treated. If so, what can man do to get back to that first love and shower the weeping Earth with affection? It turns out that the national park system may point the way back to conjugal bliss.

First Love

The science of conflict resolution is a good candidate for a new science dedicated to resolving the age-old feud between mankind and nature, an unwarranted feud initiated and perseverated against nature without provocation or retaliation by its domestic partner. Although representative conflict resolution models exist such as ad litem, nature presents a unique problem when it comes to conflict resolution, because (unlike a human child) nature is not meant to “grow up” and become a career-focused, tax-paying citizen. Marriage counseling might work, but the genuine needs of nature cannot be reconciled with the imaginary rights of man, nor his demand to dominate and abuse his partner. A reverence-based biophilic model is needed, wherein true love matters more than the husband's prosperity.

Reverence for Childhood and Old Age

Chapter 4 draws from one of the authors' dissertations to highlight an injustice some call ageism. The epoch known as childhood is going extinct as the need for more and more education reaches into infancy for the earlier brain growth needed to compete with the velocity of science. The epoch known as old age is undergoing a metamorphosis from something to look forward to, to something to fear. Only the productive middle of an otherwise unproductive lifespan seems to be of value to society. This chapter compares the withholding of regard from children until it's earned, to the withholding of reverence for nature until it perishes. The authors issue a call to honor the very young and the very old, because those are the precious sunrises and sunsets of the human lifespan.

Beyond First Love

The theme of this final chapter (no greater love) is the simple concept that, if the human species really cherishes this beautiful world, it will gladly give anything to save it. Instead, this species puts itself first, and holds that the “commercial prosperity” of just one vain and merciless species is more important than the biological survival of every other species. But imagine a people who sacrificed their kind to save life itself from perishing. Isn't that a purpose worth setting aside global differences? Imagine perhaps the idea of no greater love is about to find a place in an imprescriptible history that illiterate kinds will benefit from forever. This species, more than any other species, may join together as one humble and reverent kind and make every effort toward saving this beautiful planet from its longitudinal yet incidental myopia.

How Reverence for a Flower Can Save a Planet

It remains a major problem that only certain things seem to matter enough to be worth saving. Many are not even on the list of endangered species, much like humans missing from the organ transplant waiting lists. If humans do not see their commercial value (profitable species), humans do not seem to appreciate them much at all (nuisance species). Psychologically, the human species tends to forget how much it loves what matters, and accidentally lets them perish (living things). Meanwhile, it falls in love with things that don't matter and can't die (writing, ideas, and cities). But if this species could only learn to have a deep and abiding reverence for a little thing (like a flower), perhaps it could learn to have as much or more reverence for its human neighbors. This chapter will go into intimate detail on how this may be practically applied. This practical application of reverence for life that stems from work with children and animals is shown to be effective in reducing intergroup prejudice. Reverence for all life can be a core and crucial learning concept for early childhood education.

At the Crossroads

The theme of Chapter 8 encompasses the current crisis and the theory that human dominion is killing the planet and humans with it rather than protecting it. Denial of climate change and the belief that nature needs human intervention to survive instead of the reverse suggest the species is not fit to be the steward of its world. Human beings seem to view the conquest and extirpation of nature as a sort of progressive and inevitable victory over their savage past . . . even though the human species was once in awe of the natural world. These days, the species hominin seems more savagely eager to transform that awe into salable goods and global power. Perhaps the answer to saving the planet is not more sovereignty, but more faith.

The Healing and Grounding Potential of Biophilia

Love of nature involves going out into nature and building a beneficial relationship with other living things. Often this results in a person suddenly feeling grounded, centered, focused, and assured. Forest therapy is one way to find this sense of belonging and solace, but isolation and loneliness can still pervade even the most sacred of spaces. The authors posit that what all living things need is to feel important to one another. Sadly, the civilized world does not often grant that regard. Still, a silent companion calls from the wild to come home; this chapter is about several ways to answer that call and get back both one's regard for nature and one's own self-regard. Biophilia is a proven way through the pathless woods of depression, a trail unmarked by the signposts of civilization—where wildflowers with high hopes of loveliness still grow.