ErinEarth aims to bring forth a sustainable society founded on respect for the Earth, universal human rights, economic justice and a culture of peace.
ErinEarth cares for our common home, Planet Earth. In taking up a responsibility to care for the planet, we are in turn caring for ourselves. Caring for the Earth is not only about engaging in certain environmental practices, it requires us to understand how we can positively impact both people and our planet.
With the degradation of our planet and the resulting poverty of many peoples, human beings are now realising that “social justice” between people is no longer enough. Therefore “ecological justice”, a right relationship between people, plants, animals, soil, water and air, is at the heart of our beliefs. At the centre of this philosophy is an understanding of the interrelationships that exist between humans, all other life forms and Planet Earth itself. A healthy or whole mind, body and soul require a healthy or whole planet.
ErinEarth is located on Wiradjuri land. ErinEarth respects elders past, present and emerging and all First Nations people. We recognise and respect the sacred connection that Wiradjuri culture has to our natural environment and the drastic impacts that colonisation has created.
For a healthy Australia a deeper understanding of the way that First Peoples relate to the land is crucial. Our Indigenous people speak of ‘connecting to Country’, of the land as their mother. Their unique spirituality has emerged from their respect, knowledge and love of the ways of this land of Australia.
For many of the people who have settled in this land over the last two hundred years, the land has been seen as alien, “a land of drought and flooding rains”, a land to be conquered. People have introduced plants and animals from their own lands, farming techniques and land clearing practices that have not respected the unique nature of the ancient Australian landscape. The consequences have often been disastrous.
However there now is a growing awareness that as well as reconciliation with our Indigenous peoples, there is need for reconciliation with the land itself. Part of reconciliation is coming to know the plants and animals of our own local region more intimately. If we begin to know and become more in touch with our own local environment, that spiritual consciousness of “connecting with Country” will begin to lead us to imagine our place as humans, in the context of Australia and Planet Earth and the universe, differently. This is the challenge, be it in a beginning way, of ErinEarth, to change our perceptions and to encourage us to live on this planet in harmony with our natural environment.