Ecopsychology

"To preserve nature is to preserve the matrix through which we can experience our souls and the soul of the planet Earth"*

Ecopsychology is a synthesis of the psychological and the ecological. It is concerned with human behaviour but assumes the psyche to be bonded to the Earth. Humans' interactions with the natural environment, therefore, take on special significance in that they both reveal and influence states of mental health.

The bond to planet Earth may first be read as a deep emotional one or biophilia. Biophilia is the innate attraction felt by human beings towards other living things that generates a sense of shared identity with all life. To love the landscape and feel compassion for all its creatures is a totally natural and healthy state of mind for a human being. The environment is not that which surrounds us, it is that of which we are a part. We are not separate from Nature. It is utterly reasonable in this respect to want to become closer to the natural world, to care for it and learn from it. It follows that to be disconnected from Nature, cut off from it physically, intellectually and emotionally, represents a dangerous state of affairs for we humans, one that leads to personal difficulties and wider social problems (not to mention devastating ecological disasters as well).

Theodore Roszak* goes further in his contribution to the field of ecopsychology by proposing the notion of an ecological unconscious, an ecological dimension to the human personality that is natural and universal. For him, there is an ecological intelligence deeply rooted in the human psyche. Or rather, the human psyche is located inside a greater intelligence, the psyche of mother Earth herself. The human mind (or spirit), just like the human body, is an integral strand of the web of life. If the human unconscious is at least partly ecologically motivated, then, once again, disconnexion from Nature is injurious to human beings' mental and emotional health.

Given the above, one of the prime goals of ecopsychology is to study and promote reconnecting with Nature as a therapeutic process. Michael Cohen* believes that modern society's separation from Nature's nurturing presence is dangerous as it stifles our appreciation of and respect for the natural world as well as cutting us off from a vital source of intelligence, beauty and peace. Ecopsychology takes a broad view, it looks outwards and dissolves the artificial boundary between the human self and the rest of Nature. By living in greater harmony with Nature, it notes, we not only help to save the planet but also improve our own mental health in the process. Caring for the deep psychological needs of human beings and caring for the pressing environmental needs of planet Earth are, therefore, not in conflict. On the contrary, the two projects are inextricably linked.

*Walter Christie cited by Roszak (1995), Roszak (1995) and Cohen (1997) respectively. See the resources page for full details of all sources.

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