Episode 2: Individuals and Communities

Are we islands? What responsibility do we have to participate in our communities? During the COVID social distancing period, how do we define ‘essential’? Is there a continuum of behaviors that are acceptable? What do we ‘owe’ ourselves and our communities and how does that affect our behavior? I consider myself very independent and unique, but I will follow the rules when they seem critical. When is a rule critical? What are your thoughts about the importance of nurturing our individuality and our membership to the human community?

In some weird yin-yang, convoluted, and even ironic conundrum, humans have responsibilities to both ourselves as individuals and to our communities as members of the human species.

How’s that for a long sentence?

You’ll see that I’m verbose if you watch the video or listen to the podcast. It’s a blessing and a curse.

In this second episode, I discuss the confusion we face between meeting our selfish needs and contributing to society writ large.

“Yo soy yo y mi circunstancia” said Jose Ortega Y Gasset. I heard this in my Intro to Philosophy course in college and it stuck with me.

We are ourselves and our circumstances.

During my career as an ecologist, I became surrounded by these dual identities. Ecology is the science of organisms and their interactions with other organisms and their abiotic environment.

We have to simultaneously meet our individual AND societal needs.

Our human responsibilities, inasmuch as there exist such things, are BOTH to ourselves and our brothers and sisters. And our Earth.

It’s a tall order, but someone (all of the someones) has to do it.

The problems we face, human suffering, the ‘human condition, wars, anxiety, hunger famine . . . they all stem from an imbalance in these roles.

Many of us are too selfish or self-centered. Some of this is our own doing. Some of this is because we struggle to meet even our basic needs.

Episode 2 Audio:

https://www.buzzsprout.com/530563/3300991

Episode 2 Video: