Introduction

It has become increasingly apparent that humanity’s complex social, political, and economic systems are incompatible with the finite capacity of the Earth to replenish resources and absorb wastes. If the planet is to continue to be habitable for us, our descendants, and for the myriad web of other creatures that make life possible, we must transform human systems so that they are aligned with natural systems. One thing is sure—it will not be Nature’s laws, the delicate interdependence that characterizes Earth’s ecosystems, that changes. The change we seek must begin within each of us, and from there permeate throughout our social, political, and economic structures.