Human beings have an innate need to connect with nature and other life forms. Our fundamental programming has been handed down from our ancestors, who lived a hunter-gatherer lifestyle before the domestication of animals and agriculture. However, the advent of agriculture set us on a dysbiotic path, where we became creators ourselves, moving us away from nature and Darwinian evolutionary systems. Despite our advances, the basic need for nature still thrives.
As the global population continues to rise, traditional methods of agriculture are becoming increasingly unsustainable. Climate change, soil degradation, and water scarcity are placing tremendous pressure on our planet’s ability to sustain us. Industrial and manufacturing processes have resulted in toxins floating through the ecosystem, ultimately infiltrating our bodies through the air we breathe and the food we eat. Access to freshwater sources, which were once innate to our survival, is being contaminated and eroded with increased salinity; no amount of plastic bottled water can erase this survival programming.
The advent of agriculture set us on the dysbiotic path we are on today, but we’re at an impasse as many of the most pressing global challenges are complex and transcend disciplinary and institutional boundaries. The meeting of minds on trade policy, standards of human health, environmental goals, education, transportation, and infrastructure – essentially, the UN Sustainable Development Goals set forth more than a decade ago – need to be reevaluated together from a biophilic perspective, especially as it relates to the food that nourishes humanity.
The concept of biophilia, as it relates to regenerative agriculture, offers a potential solution to these problems by bringing together modern technological advances and new scientific understandings with our basic instinctual need to connect with nature. Biophilic agriculture recognises nature’s essential role in our lives and seeks to create farming practices that mimic the natural ecosystems and metabolic processes found in virtually all plant and animal life in our ecosystem.
Microbes can reintroduce beneficial bacteria into the soil, improve plant function by enhancing plant nutrient uptake processes, or recycle organic matter by addressing nitrogen cycles in aquatic ecosystems. These microorganisms can also control pests and disease, reducing the need for chemical pesticides and herbicides. By utilising microbes, farmers can reduce the environmental impact of their agricultural activities and make their operations more efficient, yielding more profitable. Beyond the land and seas, specific natural metabolic processes in bacteria and algae can reduce greenhouse gas emissions through carbon sequestration.
To achieve transformative change, however, we need a meeting of minds across different industries and sectors that are willing to work together as catalysts for healing our planet. The biophilic approach to agriculture provides a paradigm shift towards a symbiotic relationship with our environment and a more sustainable future, starting with tiny microorganisms that are able to address challenges at a global scale across industries and sectors, including agriculture, human health, industrial manufacturing, and energy, and on land, in water, and in the air.
Discover Microbiotix’s repertory of micro-technology delivers a regenerative approach to food, pharmaceuticals, energy, manufacturing and chemical industries. Explore the industries we serve.
