Bioregional Congress Definition
Reproduced from a discussion group on bioregionalism.
Re: a definition of bioregionalism, I have found the North American Bioregional Congress' 1985 statement "Welcome Home!" a very fine short primer on what bioregionalism is all about. I reproduce it here:
"Welcome Home!
"A growing number of people are recognizing that in order to secure the clean air, water and food that we need to healthfully survive, we have to become guardians of the places where we live. People sense the loss in not knowing our neighbors and natural surroundings, and are discovering that the best way to take care of ourselves, and to get to know our neighbors, is to protect and restore our region.
"Bioregionalism recognizes, nurtures, sustains and celebrates our local connections with:
- Land
- Plants and Animals
- Springs, Rivers, Lakes, Groundwater & Oceans
- Air
- Families, Friends, Neighbors
- Community
- Native Traditions
- Indigenous Systems of Production & Trade
"It is taking the time to learn the possibilities of place. It is a mindfulness of local environment, history, and community aspirations that leads to a sustainable future. It relies on safe and renewable sources of food and energy. It ensures employment by supplying a rich diversity of services within the community, by recycling our resources, and by exchanging prudent surpluses with other regions. Bioregionalism is working to satisfy basic needs locally, such as education, health care and self-government.
"The bioregional perspective recreates a widely-shared sense of regional identity founded upon a renewed critical awareness of and respect for the integrity of our ecological communities.
"People are joining with neighbors to discuss ways we can work together to:
1. Learn what our special local resources are;
2. Plan how to best protect and use those natural and cultural resources;
3. Exchange our time and energy to best meet our daily and long-term needs;
4. Enrich our children's local and planetary knowledge.
Security begins by acting responsibly at home."
The above was reprinted in an essay anthology entitled HOME! A BIOGREGIONAL READER, ed. Van Andruss, published by New Society. I recommend it highly. Another good anthology is ROOTED IN THE LAND: ESSAYS ON PLACE AND COMMUNITY, ed. WIlliam Vitek and Wes Jackson, Yale Univ. Press. Anything by Wendell Berry will also give you a good sense of bioregional sensibilities, as well as Wes Jackson's BECOMING NATIVE TO THIS PLACE (U. Nebraska Pr.) and Paul Gruchow's GRASS ROOTS: THE UNIVERSE OF HOME (Milkweed Press).
The technical idea at the heart of a "bioregion" is the watershed as a natural boundary system. The idea is that within these boundaries, as much as possible, a community should provide for as many of its needs (material, cultural, social) as possible. Generally, bioregions are defined by the river system of which it is a part.
Great discussion! I'd love to hear from more folks who think bioregionally.
Tom Dean