The Co-Arising of Community Development and Health of Natural Ecology
By Annarose Krug
The current societal paradigm and its foundational ‘every person for themselves’ ideology, which is driven by the goal to meet culturally determined capital gains, comes with a fair number of consequences. This individualistic sociocultural model isolates many individuals from having accessible opportunities to readily connect with social groups, and frequently leads to a lack in feeling social belonging. As feelings of isolation and loneliness are the dominant precursor to depression, it is not surprising that clinical depression in now the most frequently diagnosed mental illness. Currently 18% of the US adult population has been diagnosed clinically depressed and the World Health Organization recognizes a modern depression epidemic with 5% of the global population now currently suffering from severe depression.
This worldwide increase in depression corresponds with the global spreading of capitalistic, material values. Disturbingly, the heightened focus now put on the acquisition of material products has impose innumerable consequent stressors on the ecological environment. Thankfully though, there are many organizations working to heal disconnects between human communities and the larger ecological environment to promote the co-arising of ecological health and the health of individuals within a community structure. For instance one thriving programs in Bellingham that are utilizing this model of community building and ecological uplifting is Growing Veterans.
I am very much looking forward to volunteering with Growing Veterans, something that can be arranged by going to the Growing Veteran’s website homepage and scrolling down to the events list and then clicking on the event you would most like to work on. With all the good Growing Veterans is doing for individuals, community, and the ecological structure of the environment; I hope that this organization continues to thrive.
Explorations of Resilience 