“As long as we are in the grip of the illusion that the Earth is other than our very self (alter = “the other”), it seems fantastic to suppose that we can make the very difficult changes in our lives and societies that would be needed to live contentedly within the constraints of the ecological systems. However, if we can identify with the Earth, we don't need altruism. If we have the experience of ourselves not as isolated, separate, skin encapsulated egos but as part of the larger body of the Earth, then the defense of nature becomes merely self-defense and this does not require highly elevated moral stature. Self-interest comes "naturally," and it seems more hopeful to expand the sense of self to include the air (my breath) and water (my blood) and soil (my body), than to suddenly imagine most humans becoming "selfless," acting against their perceived self-interest to protect these things....I am not talking about anything particularly mystical, it is very straightforward. We can call it "the atmosphere" and we can say "oh what a good person that is sacrificing their self interest by working to protect the atmosphere instead of making lots of money" as though the atmosphere was "out there". But it is not "out there". None of it is "out there". It is all constantly migrating and cycling through us, whether it's the atmosphere, the water, or the soil. There is no "out there", it is all "in here", but most modern people don't feel that.”
Seed, J. (1994) Paper delivered to the ecopsychology symposium at the Australian Psychology Society’s 28th annual conference, Gold Coast,Queensland.