Ecologist and writer Carl Safina discusses the disconnect between Western thought and nature, rooted in Plato's philosophy. The podcast explores cultural beliefs, environmental crises, financial valuations of nature, and the negative impacts of pursuing power. It highlights the importance of empathy towards animals and reevaluating societal structures based on philosophical beliefs.
53:17
forum Ask episode
web_stories AI Snips
view_agenda Chapters
auto_awesome Transcript
info_circle Episode notes
insights INSIGHT
Root of the Crisis
The world faces multiple crises, like climate change, pollution, and extinctions, driven by overpopulation and material desires.
Fundamentally, humans operate disconnected from the living world and its life-supporting systems.
insights INSIGHT
Cultural Views of Nature
Indigenous cultures view the world as interconnected, seeing creatures as soulmates with agency, reflecting a shared ancestry.
Eastern religions emphasize interconnectedness and the human role in maintaining balance, unlike Western views.
insights INSIGHT
Western Dualism
Western culture, influenced by Plato, views humans as superior, the world as a resource, and prioritizes the afterlife over Earth's well-being.
This dualistic view separates humans from nature, influencing religious traditions and shaping our relationship with the environment.
Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode
I like to think of intellectual discourse as the entangled root network of an ancient tree: everything is connected to everything else. Not so much a linear march of progress but a gnarled and entangled mess from which fruits bear. This is why, despite thousands of years, some ideas don’t travel very far, but double back and loop themselves around other roots, creating something that feels solid, but may be rotten at its core.
This week I’m joined by ecologist and writer Carl Safina who has spent the past few years researching that root network of cultural beliefs from all over the world, discovering profound similarities and critical differences. He explains that the main difference between Western thought and most other cultures is the disconnectedness of humankind from nature, and he traces this back to Plato’s philosophy of absolute ideals.
This is my second episode with Carl. We first spoke over two years ago when he was deep in the process of researching his latest book, Alfie and Me: What Owls Know, What Humans Believe. That conversation was truly fundamental to my own thinking, so it was a real joy to have Carl back on the show now that the book is out. This conversation goes begins with Plato, takes us through the delightful common threads that weave together most human cultures, and ends with Carl explaining how this rift between humans and nature results in the perverse incentives in our psychotic system today.
Planet: Critical is 100% independent and community-powered. If you value it, and have the means, become a paid subscriber today!
Planet: Critical