| Rinda West
Myth, Ritual, and Ecopsychology
In A Sand County Almanac, Aldo Leopold wrote, An ethic to supplement and guide the economic relation to land presupposes the existence of some mental image of land as a biotic mechanism. We can be ethical only in
capitalism estranges us from nature, and the identity constructed by capitalism allows us access only to a small portion of our own 'natural' possibilities. Not many people today have an opportunity to see, feel, understand
resources to be groomed, pruned, and harvested in the interests of competitive advancement. Still, there are rich seams in western culture and in traditional cultures that celebrate the intimacy of humans and the rest of n
fosters love and connection. This talk will explore the ways that myths and rituals celebrate and enact the connection of humans with the living earth and foster compassion, exuberance, and Michael McCoy
Understanding and Resolving the Psychoneurophysiology of Environmental Destruction
Since the dawn of modern man we have manipulated the environment in our favor. Technology, resource demands and population have become a force competing against the stability of planetary ecosystems. We fail to
environmental concerns. We must address these issues with changes in attitude, awareness, beliefs and values through thought and action. Change is difficult to incorporate into daily life. Transformational change require
technologies in neurophysiology make it possible to understand the interrelationship between the brain and body or the mind body connection. We are beginning to understand integrative physiology or the physiology of c
social, biological and ecological level. The gulf between cognitive understanding and experience can be closed by using techniques like meditation, mindfulness and other modalities permitting integration and transcenden
society will require scientific legitimacy. Conflict resolution will result as object and observer become integrated. The way we treat the earth is an indicator of the way we treat ourselves.
Michael McCoy graduated from Colorado University BS in Zoology Graduated from the College of Veterinary Medicine Colorado State University Worked for the United States Fish and Wildlife Service in Alaska Zoo Vete
establish two national wildlife refuges, a national estuarine research reserve, and a wetland of international importance Received two national awards for this work Incorporated meditation as a daily practice for over 30 ye
level. Established a rescue and rehabilitation center for injured wildlife.greater access to non-rationa
Rinda West is the author of Out of the Shadow: Ecopsychology, Story, and Encounters with the Land (forthcoming from University of Virginia Press). She earned her Ph.D at the University of Leeds, England, has taught a
Canterbury, and has served on the board of the Jung Institute, Chicago. She has taught literature about nature in tandem with environmental science and has worked in natural areas restoration. Currently she is a landsca |