Four Ways I Live Earth Day Every Day

Keeping the spirit of Earth Day in our hearts, we can find our own ways to care for the earth.

Today is Earth Day. First celebrated in the United States in 1970, each year it has become a bigger part of global consciousness and culture. But those who care about Earth Day would agree that the world does not yet embody the ideals and goals that give this day meaning. We all have a lot more to do.

Each of us has our own capabilities and interests. By keeping the spirit of Earth Day in our hearts and minds, we can each use them to find our own authentic and innovative ways to celebrate the day and to live throughout the year as Earth Citizens—stewards of the earth who live in harmony with all life.

In my own way, I’ve been working for the ideals and goals of Earth Day throughout my career. So today, I’d like to share a few of the things that I do as an Earth Citizen. By sharing our stories, I hope we can encourage each other, for our brains love good news. Positive and helpful information expands our imagination, confidence, and self-efficacy so that we can be and do more. I hope you will also share your stories with me.

What I’ve Been Doing

1. Raising consciousness.
   The framework through which we interpret the world and move in it determines our health, happiness, and peace and that of the people around us. Through the ripples of our actions and energy, it can even influence that of the planet. So my primary work is helping people elevate their consciousness through Brain Education. The mind-body exercises in this system of self-development help us connect with ourselves—from our body to our heart and soul to the divinity in our brain. When we do that, we experience our true nature and take on the awareness of all that is natural, for we are part of nature. In this way, we adopt the consciousness of nature, that is, of the earth itself.
2. Respecting life.
   With the consciousness of nature, I feel a part of all life. I sense the energy of the trees, the rocks, the birds, the butterflies. Observing them closely, I feel as if they are also observing me. Connecting with nature even more, I feel as if I am the trees, the rocks, the birds, and the butterflies, and even the stars and the moon above. That’s why when I go to a natural area, I respectfully greet it and ask its permission to enter. When I see a sick animal on the farm we created in New Zealand, I do everything I can to heal it. When I saw a goose rejecting its egg, I put it under a brooding hen to hatch. Whenever I meet a person, I do whatever I can to empower them to heal their body and to discover their deepest, most authentic selves.
3. Building Earth Citizen communities.
   By coming together as Earth Citizens, we can do more than we are capable of alone. I’ve been starting organizations, websites, media companies, educational institutions, yoga centers, and meditation centers, both for-profit and non-profit, that bring people together to study and spread Brain Education and the Earth Citizen spirit. The actions of all of these individuals who have proclaimed themselves Earth Citizens carry forward the Earth Citizen Movement. Learn how you can be a part of it here >>
4. Living sustainably.
   This is an area of ongoing development and improvement in which we try to balance the ideal with the practical. At the meditation/Brain Education training centers I’ve built in the United States, New Zealand, and elsewhere, we’ve increasingly implemented green systems and construction practices. For example, the Sedona Mago Center for Well-being and Retreat in Sedona, Arizona, USA is a certified sustainable business that has implemented gray water and composting practices and has plans to erect solar panels. The Earth Village being developed in Kerikeri, New Zealand grows the medicinal herb Dendropanax morbifera (also called Korean dendropanax or commonly hwangchil in Korean) in greenhouses that also collect rainwater and use solar power.

While I feel like I’ve made some progress over the years, I’m pressed by the urgency to do more every day. I hope many more people will find their own ways of loving themselves, loving each other, and loving the earth in the spirit of Earth Day.

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