rewilding: get outside + eat wild
Lately I have gotten very into the concept of rewilding.
The stats are wild, no pun intended: we humans spend less than 2% of our lives outdoors, begging the question about both an emotional and clear physical disconnection to our natural world. Only 4% of the animals on the planet are wild and these numbers are steadily declining. More than 70% of wilderness has been overtaken, leaving approximately 23% of wild land on Earth. Just 13% of our oceans can be considered wild.
So, what is rewilding?
Rewilding has many definitions, and we resonate with this one: “Rewilding is the re-creation of dynamic yet stable self-regulating and self-sustaining ecosystems with near pre-human levels of species diversity. We see opportunities for rewilding both through a literal, external lens of species + biodiversity restoration - yet also believe there is an internal compass which is begging much the same; including how we nourish our bodies.
Internal rewilding begins with an understanding that we are the world we live in - literally. We are made up of the same atoms, molecules, matter in which all of nature are also made. Our environment very literally informs our health, as is referenced in countless studies relative to things like the negative affects of residential adjacency to fossil fuels. We are earth, earth is us - and humans depend on the successful wild nature of earth and supportive, healthful environments to coexist. What if our internal wild nature is just as important to our existence?
Rewilding, therefore, also means rethinking the false separation between us and nature; which frankly, is wild.
Microorganisms in our gut aid digestion, while others compose part of our skin. Pollinators such as bees and wasps help produce the food we eat, while photosynthetic organisms such as trees and phytoplankton provide the oxygen that we need in order to live, in turn taking up the carbon dioxide which leaves our bodies (and now, high volumes of our activities). Yet, our modern life creates perceived barriers between us and nature, as simple as all the conveniences which exist which keep us from having to seek - both existentially and physically.
The perceived separation from nature is not universal among the planet’s inhabitants, however. Indigenous Australian, Amerindian, and countless other indigenous belief systems often portray earth/animals/spirit as kin with intrinsic value to be respected, rather than external objects to be dominated or exploited.
Eastern philosophies and religions such as Buddhism also entangle humanity and nature, emphasizing that all things depend on others for their existence and well-being.
The country of Bhutan, strongly influenced by Mahayana Buddhism, mandates that at least 60% of the nation remain forested. They are just one of just two countries in the world to absorb more carbon than it emits. It measures progress not by GDP but against a “gross national happiness” index, which prioritizes human and ecological well-being over boundless economic growth.
Wild is not negative, it is not unpredictable - it’s the true nature which lies within, our own internal compass which knows inherently, always, the way. Rewilding is finding the path back to oneness both within yourself and in your relationship to and with nature.
Food, rewild
Our indigenous ancestors used to forage, grow and hunt for their food, which was as fresh and nutrient dense as food can likely be; especially considering the likely health of the soil, air and water in which these resources were living. As far back as 2009, there was research found that U.S. crops have shown decreases of up to 38% in protein, magnesium, calcium, vitamin C, phosphorus, iron, zinc and riboflavin when compared with produce from past decades. A lot of our food is being over processed and mono-agricultural practices are draining our food and land of critical nutrients.
Processed food wrapped in unrecyclable, earth-toxic material has become a replacement for straight from the dirt nutrient dense, farmed goodness. Our first method of internal rewilding? Start buying food from local farmers and hope that there is still some good dirt on it when it gets to you. Regenerative agriculture is the rewilding of our food systems. Another very wild idea? Don’t eat meat unless you hunted it yourself (or you’ve made friends with the regenerative farmer).
Our current food systems have an enormously destructive impact, accounting for nearly a quarter of the earth’s current greenhouse gas emissions (GHG’s). Rewilding our concept of food not only will improve individual human health and the health of our soil and biodiversity, but it also can foster a different level of closeness with, and relationship to, the wilderness that is truly us, including our bodies and minds.
