Ecological wisdom

Ecological wisdom is a term used by Green Parties in their political statements - usually one of the Four Pillars, Six Principles or Ten Key Values that they promote. It implies (to them, at least) an understanding of the "connectedness" of all things. An awareness that some energy flows within a geographic community. Like many Green terms, it combines scientific and spiritual statement in a way that some find credible, and others find questionable.

Example:


 * In the Mississippi watershed, sunshine provides the energy that drives photosysthesis. Local animals that forage on these plants use the stored energy of the plants to maintain themselves and reproduce.  The unused nutrients are excreted upon the land.  Detrivores feed upon this manure and use it to maintain them selves and reproduce, and in the process, release additional unused nutrients to plants.  If local plants or animals are transported to a city, and consumed by an urban population, then the unused nutrients are flushed to the sea.

This is obviously a very small sample of how energy flows. The concept is difficult to reduce to a paragraph of writing.

Unless and until the public learns the scientific ecology terminology, it will probably be quite possible to abuse it for propaganda purposes - or simply to promote some questionable programs. The term ecological health is probably more neutral.

See Wikipedia: energy economics for an analysis of how the underlying energy mechanics of live ecologies may or may not relate to those of human economies.