Bioregionalism revival
I’m encouraged because I’m hearing more and more about bioregionalism these days.
The movement had momentum during the 1980s and into the ’90s, but then … not so much … for a couple of decades.
From where things are at now it’s extremely visionary, but, on the other hand, it’s just the original way, like, forever, until just several hundred years ago . . .
Today’s bioregional mapping projects seek to recapture the sense of natural boundaries by re-centering in watersheds, where the network of water flowing through streams and rivers, from highlands to valleys and coasts, is reclaimed as the unifying principle. The long process of reclaiming a regional identity and culture through focusing on the bios, the living reality of the place, is an effort to reverse the damage done by the nation-state.
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Now we need a fundamental re-conception and re-centering of life where it really happens, in real places and regions, where we can begin to learn again the arts of living a balanced life in communities that have regained a sense of mutual obligation and support. Returning to the region as an organizing principle is basic to dealing with the interrelated crises coming upon us. Within the context of the region we can again learn how to live within the limits that we must, if we are to survive.
