Can Moments of Awe and Gratitude Improve the Environment

Wednesday, November 25, 2020 - 12:00pm

Jacqueline Comito | Program Director, Iowa Learning Farms and Water Rocks!

“I used to think that top environmental problems were biodiversity loss, ecosystem collapse and climate change. I thought that thirty years of good science could address these problems. I was wrong. The top environmental problems are selfishness, greed and apathy, and to deal with these we need a cultural and spiritual transformation. And we scientists don’t know how to do that.”

Gus Speth, Feb 13, 2015
Co-founder, Natural Resources Defense Council

When this quote first started circulating around environmental circles in 2015, most people seemed in firm agreement with the sentiment. Yes, of course! We all exclaimed. I even shared this quote in a national lecture I gave a few years ago. Again, everyone seemed to agree with it.

And yet, we continue to try to solve our environmental problems through science and real change seems elusive. So if it is a spiritual crisis, as Speth suggested, what does that mean?

Continue reading on Iowa Learning Farms' blog and plan to join the November 25th webinar exploring this question further.