Earth

The Living Earth

In the 1960s, scientist James Lovelock asked a radical question: How has this planet
remained habitable for billions of years?

His answer—that Earth is a living, self-regulating system he called Gaia—was revolutionary.

But Lovelock’s science only describes the mechanism. It explains how Earth maintains herself, not why.

Indigenous peoples have always known the answer to that question. They’ve known that behind the mechanism is consciousness—a loving, intentional Mother Earth who maintains these conditions for her children.

In this three-part series, we explore Lovelock’s discovery and then ask the deeper question:

What if we combined his science with the wisdom Indigenous peoples have held for thousands of years?

What if Gaia is animated by Mother Earth’s conscious love?

“Mother Earth intends to host life on this planet
and wants to create a hospitable home for all of her guests.”

The Living Earth, Part 1: “The Gaia Hypothesis”

Something shifted in me the day my 8th grade Earth Science teacher projected our blue marble planet floating in space on the big screen. I immediately and stunningly knew the Earth was a living presence—a she, not an it. Years later, in college, I majored in Environmental Science. When my professor introduced us to the Gaia hypothesis, I was completely fascinated. Here was science confirming what I had…
Read More The Living Earth, Part 1: “The Gaia Hypothesis”

The Living Earth, Part 2: “Earth’s Improbable Balance”

As Lovelock began his work, he asked a revolutionary question:  How has this planet remained hospitable to life for billions of years?  The data he gathered told him we shouldn’t be here, life shouldn’t be here, and yet—here we are. Not by luck, and not by accident. The Temperature Life began on this planet three billion years ago. Throughout those eons of ice ages and…
Read More The Living Earth, Part 2: “Earth’s Improbable Balance”

The Living Earth, Part 3: “Mother Earth”

In the first two parts of this series, we’ve explored Lovelock’s discovery: the Earth is alive and automatically sustaining the conditions that allow life to exist here. Within the bounds of science, this planet is a biophysical mechanism, a brilliant system of blind feedback loops that constantly adjusts to maintain an optimal environment.  Is that all this planet is though, a mechanism?  For thousands of…
Read More The Living Earth, Part 3: “Mother Earth”

* All images courtesy of NASA