Joanna Macy and the philosophy of universal responsibility and wholeness
July 10, 2022
In a world that is increasingly interconnected, it is more important than ever to think in terms of global responsibility. What does that mean? Perhaps it begins with mindset: realizing that we are all citizens of the world with a responsibility to care for the planet, our common home, and its inhabitants. Recognizing that our actions have an impact on people and the environment beyond our own borders. And working together to find solutions to the challenges we face.
Joanna Macy has been looking at these issues for a lifetime. At 93 years old, Macy is a scholar of Buddhism, systems thinking and deep ecology whose decades of writing, teaching and activism have inspired people around the world. Born in 1930, Macy grew up in a Quaker family with a deep commitment to social justice. In the 1960s, she became involved in the anti-nuclear movement, and began studying Buddhism. In the 1970s, Macy began to develop her own system of thought known as “systems thinking.” This framework helped her to see the interconnections between all life on Earth, and she began to apply it to issues like nuclear weapons and climate change.
In the 1980s, Macy turned her attention to deep ecology, which is the study of humanity's place in the natural world. She has written several books on this topic, including The Ecology of Awakening and Coming Back to Life. Macy's work has been deeply influential, and she continues to be an important voice in conversations about our relationship with the planet.
In some ways, Macy’s work begins with mindset shift. In much of her writing, she evokes a concept of universal responsibility: “[i]t is no longer appropriate to think only in terms of even my nation or my country, let alone my village. If we are to overcome the problems we face, we need what I have called a sense of universal responsibility rooted in love and kindness for our human brothers and sisters. In our present state of affairs, the very survival of humankind depends on people developing concern for the whole of humanity, not just their own community or nation. The reality of our situation impels us to act and think more clearly. Narrow-mindedness and self-centered thinking may have served us well in the past, but today will only lead to disaster. We can overcome such attitudes through the combination of education and training.”
Macy underscores that the choices we make today will shape the future for generations to come. “The most telling choice of all may well be the story we live from and see ourselves participating in. It sets the context of our lives in a way that influences all our other decisions.” If we choose to see ourselves as powerless victims of circumstance, that is the story future generations will learn from us. If we see ourselves as agents of change, inspiring others to create a better future, that is the story they will learn from us. The choice is ours.
While we can never replace what has been removed from the planet, we can apply a philosophy of restoration and regeneration for the future. “Much of the oxygen we breathe comes from plants that died long ago. We can give thanks to these ancestors of our present-pay foliage, but we can't give back to them. We can, however, give forward. When we are unable to return the favor, we can pay it forward to someone or something else. Using this approach, we can see ourselves as part of a larger flow of giving and receiving throughout time. Receiving from the past, we can give to the future. When tackling issues such as climate change, the stance of gratitude is a refreshing alternative to guilt or fear as a source of motivation.”
And part of this is recognizing the universality of our relationship with each other and the planet. “The world is not a problem to be solved; it is a living being to which we belong. The world is part of our own self and we are a part of its suffering wholeness. Until we go to the root of our image of separateness, there can be no healing.”
CPM
