Humanity, A Kestyone Species?

written by Wayra A. Klocker Gregori @cristalina starr

Humanity isn’t a keystone species, we destroy and wound the earth Slowly killing off our chance to survive as a species, and doing harm to everything and all creatures around us We saw it ourselves during the pandemic As more people stayed home, we saw entire bodies of water once filled to the brim with pollution and gunk clear out, as animals filled the streets and streams In other words, we saw nature creep back in, and start reclaiming itself

The earth would be better off without us This is the belief that most of us hold tightly to our hearts and minds, and it’s hard for us to imagine that it’s wrong But what if I told you that we are, indeed, a keystone species? What’s killing our planet and all life around us isn’t us ourselves, it’s our systems We hold a lot of power in the way we live and do things We are literally shaping, changing, and bending our planet's ecosystems depending on our choices, how we live, and how our technology works in relation to the planet’s environment Which, of course, could backfire on us in the long run if it isn’t done right

What if I told you that there have been entire civilizations and Indiginous tribes living and working in harmony with nature, growing food in regenerative ways, and easily feeding the dense populations of people they had with those methods? They have brought back biodiversity; made dry, uninhabitable lands rich in nutrients and soil that they could easily grow food on and brought back plants, animals, and vegetation

Lyla June, a member of the Diné people, (otherwise and incorrectly known as the Navajo people) spoke on a Tedx Talk

September 29th, 2022 She described a few methods of life that were very important to indigenous ways of life in the past. Such as Intentional Habitat Expansion, which is to care for the land and environment in such a way that the animals will come to you, instead of the other way around. One specific example she used to explain this, was how gentle fires were brought to burn the plains and create nutrient dense ash that would help grow everything back bigger and stronger, and generate topsoil Which in turn, will make the bison follow the best grass and go exactly where you want it to. She also talked about decentralizing humans. By this she means that we must start taking care of everything and everyone around us The environment, the animals, the fish, etc. By taking care of the hand that feeds you and working with mother earth instead of fighting her, you get abundance One last, very important thing she talked about was to plan for the future, not just the immediate future To always try and make good, healthy systems that last as long as possible, instead of just worrying about our immediate self.

Many people would look around and listen to the news, which is constantly feeding us negative things happening in the world, and think that very little good is happening I’d like to debunk this idea and show you that many people are and have worked very hard to help protect and augment our environment and home

There are so many people that care, and are d their absolute best to make sure that one way o another, we succeed. People who have cried bl sweat, and tears for our world In our own Hum County, there have been many activists and suc working hard for much of their lives towards a beautiful sustainable and regenerative future I to start by talking about those in my own famil Specifically my grandparents, and what they ha done to contribute towards augmenting our community and way of life

When Gilbert Gregori, my grandfather, moved to Ettersburg, 45 minutes away from Redway a Garberville, the watershed above it had been lo and was full of gunk When it rained, the water would fall on The Mattole Canyon Creek Delta, alluvial flat Sometimes this would cause land-s and the dirt and gunk being carried by the wat would fill up the creek

This meant that the water didn’t really have anywhere to go It would take the easiest route water does, and move across the Delta. This cre a wide expanse of rock and gravel. What Gilber over the course of 30 years, was plant willow tre alongside the bank of where the water would b running that year. The willow tree’s roots helpe strengthen the soil, and the rushing water wou through the willows and lose strength, droppin on the side and eventually creating a channel was later recognised for his efforts, and won an award for his work in its restoration I am happy say that today it is a beautiful outdoor grassy ar and one of my favorite places to host my birthd parties every year. It’s quite a serene and peace place to be

My grandmother, Cecelia Lanman, head of the Environmental Protection Information Center (EPIC) for 15 years, along with the help of many, many others, including my grandfather Gilbert Gregori, actively fought against gigantic logging companies such as Georgia Pacific and Maxxam, who were trying to clear cut entire old growth redwood forests in and around our county, and won Through these battles, they helped establish what we know to be the Sinkyone Wilderness, which is on the border of Northern Mendocino County. Headwaters Forest Reserve was an old growth forest privately owned that was going to be clear cut as well. With the help of EPIC and many others, they managed to pressure the government into turning it into a forest reserve

Throughout the long and arduous fights to protect the old growth, many people protested and put pressure on the authorities to do something Robie Tenorio, my grandmother, a lifelong activist for peace and justice as well as a local volunteer in projects such as building the Garberville Town Square, helped organize the non-violent resistance and protests such as protecting the old growth redwood forests Many, many people were arrested for trespassing on private property

My grandfather, Hal Hale, as well as many others of his time, originally came to Humboldt County because they were sick of living in the city. Humbodt was attractive to them because it was a nice rural area that wasn’t too far away from town, the air was fresh, and the climate was friendly These people are often referred to as “back-to-the-landers” He met and became friends with Rick Klein Together, they wanted to organize a group of people to pool their money together and buy 500 acres of land from Bob Mckee. Eventually, 8 people got together to pitch in They wrote an owner ’ s agreement, which took several years The rules included things like no logging, no doing anything that could hurt the land, no guns, etc Together, they built roads, and made their own homesteads. They each lived separately, but were equally as responsible for protecting and preserving the land. This is the area of Seely Creek, right outside of Redway, California It was an important project, because that land is now out of the market, and is still being inhabited and protected by a newer younger generation, as people move there, and pass on.

I think it’s important to highlight that my grandparents were not the only people working hard to protect the land, and community Richard Gienger, a long time activist, went and talked to about 13 different indigenous tribes and successfully encouraged them to become involved in land stewardship and join EPIC in the fight to transform timberland into a state protected tribal park, thus forming the Intertribal Sinkyone Wilderness Council This is still happening to this day. They are able to protect the land, and have their tribal events and rituals.

In a world where it is becoming more and more crucial that we do something about the problems we are facing and becoming disconnected from nature, many people have asked “Does it matter for the physical and psychological well-being of the human species that actual nature is being replaced with technological nature?” (The Human Relation) The answer is yes While better than nothing, technological nature will never be able to replace actual nature Additionally, there is a phenomenon called the “Shifting Baseline Syndrome” What this means is that each generation will take the newly worsened condition of the world as the baseline normal, without knowing that their condition is not good. For example, a child that has lived and grown up in a polluted city would know that there are polluted environments, but not necessarily know or recognize that they themselves are living in one, or that just a few years ago, it wasn’t nearly as bad

Technology is constantly changing and evolving, growing stronger, smarter, and ever more prevalent in our world and society We must learn to work together, and use it to the advantage and well being of all those involved- to protect our planet. We do not need another one, Earth is more than enough Technology has the potential to help us quite a bit, but it means nothing if we don’t learn to value nature

Citations

–Kahn, Peter H , Jr , et al "The Human Relation With Nature and Technological Nature." Association for Psychological Science, 2009. Accessed 12 Dec. 2022.

–June, Lyla, performer “3000-year-old solutions to modern problems ” YouTube, uploaded by Tedx Talks, October 2022, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eH5zJxQETl4.

–Gregori, Gilbert, and Robie Tenorio Telephone interview with the author 12 Dec 2022

–Lanman, Cecelia, and Hal Hale. Telephone interview with the author. 13 Dec. 2022.

–"Technology can help us save the planet But more than anything, we must learn to value nature " World Economic Forum, 23 Aug 2018, www.weforum.org/agenda/2018/08/here-s-how-technology-can-help-us-save-the-planet/ ?fbclid=IwAR0kNh6V34ywYoePlQGDM xZGgMxW6FlVvl1kALP1 Vw9247wiiH2P14W0I

Accessed 12 Dec 2022

–EPIC. www.wildcalifornia.org/. Accessed 14 Dec. 2022.