Rē : The Regenerative School

The RēMind, No. 001 – Intro to the Regenerative Paradigm

By Leave a Comment

In this, the inaugural edition of The RēMind newsletter from the Regenerative School, we’ll start off with exploring several essential frameworks, designs and people in sustainability, economy and culture that are shaping the regenerative paradigm.

These have been a few key points that have excited and inspired me through my discovery and understanding of the regenerative movement. There has been a lot of groundwork already laid, in theory and in action, for those new to this field. Most of my learning of regenerative approaches has been through passionate conversations and experiences with incredibly inspiring humans who are actively contributing to improving the quality of life on Earth. Yes, they are out there!

If you’ve come across this collection of words in this newsletter, chances are you share these same interests and passions!

As this is a constantly evolving and transforming body of knowledge, the topics presented today are partial pieces to unlocking further answers. This excitingly keeps me at the edge of my seat, curiously anticipating the discovery of new elements to this regenerative knowledge base.

Please subscribe to The RēMind to become part of our ongoing journey at Rē to better understand and practice regeneration in our lives and cultures!

— Ruth Sevigny, Curator and Editor

A Regenerative Paradigm

Re: again, anew, once more, back to the original place, also with a sense of undoing

Generate: create, produce, give girth

In biology, regeneration is the ability to recreate lost or damaged tissues and organs, reestablishing their natural morphology and function. – Science Direct

As regenerative becomes more mainstream, adopting this vocabulary as a species means more of us are finally ready to see and acknowledge the depletion, loss and damage that is present within the individual, collective, planetary, historical and systemic structures. With this recognition comes the awareness and responsibility (ability to respond) that we all have the innate ability to regenerate and heal what is showing up in our inner and outer worlds. This rite of passage for humanity that is presenting itself through the regenerative movement is a remembrance and activation of our own inherent medicine for the world. Just like each cell knows its innate function to regenerate the health of the whole; humans too have the answers and ability to regenerate our personal and planetary ecosystems when there are conditions that allow this process to occur.

A regenerative paradigm is about healing the damage that has occurred, at these many levels, by acquiring the knowledge, tools and skills to create a more beautiful world our hearts know is possible.

A few key points to the regenerative paradigm:

  • find the root cause of the dysfunction – not a band-aid fix to the problem
  • to approach solutions with an open mind & multifaceted perspective
  • biomimicry: looking for examples found in Nature to design innovation
  • dissolving the story of separation between humans & Nature: we are Nature and a part of this planetary ecosystem
  • living systems thinking & understanding

More on this understanding of the emerging regenerative paradigm at Futures Centre.

Beyond Sustainability

The concept of sustainability has become unclear and misused over the past few decades. It came into awareness with the realization that human activity was (and still is) degenerating planetary ecosystem renewal, largely due to the extraction, exploitation and management of natural resources to meet the demands of consumerism and the growing population.

Here’s a brief history of sustainability:

“So for something to be sustainable by today’s most common definition, it must balance how it meets human needs without degrading the natural environment. Sustainable development has three goals, set forth by the 2005 World Summit on Social Development, and they are: economic development, social development, and environmental protection. This would ensure that we don’t take more than we need, so that something of our resources remains for our descendants.”

What is missing in sustainability is the critical element of repairing the damage that has been done to the planet already! This is where regeneration shines by taking on this giant, at times seemingly hopeless, yet deeply rewarding task.

Regeneration acknowledges the extractive, degenerative nature, dysfunctions and injustices of our current systems while working to repair and adapt to create more resilient and harmonious outcomes.

Also check out an inspiring message of Beyond Sustainability: A Call for Regenerationfrom Sierra Robinson who was 17 years old at the time of this TED talk.

Regenerative Economies

If this model above excites you, learn more about the 8 Principles of a Regenerative Economy from Capital Institute.

This is a refreshing model that looks beyond a GDP-driven economy. Capital Institute offers many other insightful thoughts about their experience architecting a regenerative economy:

“The Capital Institute has pioneered a new space for holistic economic thought that draws on the latest science of living systems, global wisdom traditions, and 20 years of real world experience at the pillar of global finance on Wall Street.

The Capital Institute encourages a transformation of our economic system to achieve social and ecological regeneration. We believe our finance-driven economic system is in urgent need of a regenerative model that must be aligned with the laws — not theories — of natural systems and our current scientific understanding of how the world works, which is remarkably aligned with the compassion embodied in all global wisdom traditions.

We redefine wealth and reimagine finance in service to the emergence of an ecologically and socially regenerative economy. By addressing the root causes of climate change, economic injustice, and even pandemics, we promote the emergence of thriving communities and a flourishing planet.

The Regenerative Economy we foresee is a powerful one, unleashing presently unseen potential, which is the source of Regenerative Age prosperity, and replacing no longer feasible extractive growth. This potential derives from the essence of our individual genius, the deep purpose of regenerative enterprise large and small, and must extend to the macro socio-economic system as a whole.”

Designing Regenerative Cultures by Daniel Christian Wahl

This is a captivating book that invites the reader into deeper questioning and listening to the world in which they find themselves. The author explores many regenerative design frameworks covering topics like community, society, economy, agriculture, technology, business, innovation, adaptive cycles, nature and worldviews that can shift human consciousness into a regenerative culture. This book is beautifully woven with complexity and examples of how we can all be a part of the solution by having a regenerative presence and impact on Earth rather than a destructive one that contributes to the problem.

The following Regenerative Design Framework shows the levels of awareness that humanity has had in relationship to the natural world. This shows that sustainability is a stepping stone into greater awareness and practices that dissolves the story of separation to allow us to remember that we are nature.

Read this excerpt from the opening chapter if this model piques your curiosity to explore this knowledge base.

“What matters urgently is that we do come together to have conversations about what future we want for humanity. We need to reflect on how we will have to change individually and collectively to create this future. By asking such questions together we may come to understand that we will have to collaborate as one species and learn to transcend and include our differences if we want a thriving future for all of humanity. We need to ask important questions about why and what if. We need to rediscover the common ground of human community. This will enable us to co-create a future worth living in. We need a collective narrative about who we are and why we are worth sustaining, a shared story powerful enough to keep us all innovative, creative and collaborative as we question into the what, how, when and where.” – Daniel Christian Wahl

A question for you, the reader… as an interconnected part of this planetary ecosystem: how do you have a regenerative presence on Earth?

Add your voice to the discussion, we’d love to hear from you…

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *