"Finally we are waking up to our
ecological imbalance, to the realities of global warming and its catastrophic
consequences. It is also beginning to dawn upon us that these environmental
changes are accelerating more quickly than we may realize. Behind our present
ecological crisis, caused by industrial pollution—the chemicals, toxins, and
particularly the carbon that our civilization emits—lies the demon of
consumerism that walks with heavy boots over the Earth. Materialism is the
driving force of our present self-destructive global culture, a myth that
places short-term constant economic growth above any long-term environmental
considerations.
This disregard for the environment is the
product of a consciousness that is disconnected from the natural world and its
interconnectedness. We appear frighteningly disconnected from real awareness of
the effects of our materialistic culture upon the very ecosystem that supports
us. And at the root of this disconnection is a forgetfulness of the sacred
nature of creation, in a way unthinkable to any indigenous person. We are not
only a part of a living Earth, but of a sacred Earth, an Earth that nourishes
our souls as well as our bodies."
