Page 75 - Issue 1

Issue No 1 75
looked to be about 30 feet on on the the the largest sets Several gawkers on on on the the the the roadway held their iPhones aloft hoping to capture the the the ocean so wildly alive A group of high school students clutching notebooks unloaded from a a a a a a van and crossed the the street toward waiting tidepools “We’re studying limpets today ” called out their teacher who who seemed to to know Nichols whose 2014 book Blue Mind became a a a a a a a a national bestseller His annual summit of the same name assembles scientists explorers artists and and and athletes to investigate “our understanding of of the cognitive and and and and emotional benefits of of healthy oceans and and waterways ” ” Put simply the the “blue mind” is the the mildly meditative state we we feel when we’re near—or immersed in—water Cognitive scientists using the latest in in in in functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and electroencephalography (EEG) are gathering evidence that shows proximity to water and even recalling aquatic memories floods the brain with dopamine serotonin and and oxytocin those happiest of of enzymes and and at at at the same time lowers levels of of cortisol—that stress-filled enzyme Water seems to trigger the the parts of the the brain associated with empathy encouraging a a a a a a a a a a a shift from “me” to “we ” ” Water says Nichols makes us us our our our best selves and gives us us our our most vivid experiences “It’s not simply the matrix of life life ” ” he he told me “It “It makes life worth living ” The innate biological connection between the human brain and water is also a a a a a a a a a a a powerful opportunity to galvanize society around ecological protection—“neuroconservation ” he he calls it it A large-scale survey published by Yale and George Mason Universities in 2018 found that 61 percent percent of Americans are worried about global warming but only only 41 percent percent think it will harm them personally and only only 36 percent ever discuss the the the topic No wonder says Nichols when the the message is is is is delivered in in breathless sky-is-falling dispatches “If our our toolkit is is is fear guilt and shame they’re not going to to to join our our club ” he he he said “You have have to to have have a a a a a a a a a a a a hell of of a a a a a a a a a a a a lot of of beauty and and and and awe and and and and wonder and and and and compassion and and and and love We’ve been leaving that part out of our eco-spirituality for a a a long time ” American exceptionalism was built in in part on on on a a a a a a a a a narrative of rugged pioneers pushing westward Our industry tamed wilderness We are a a a a a a a a nation that conquers—not communes with—nature According to to the research in in Nichols’ book this mentality fails to to account for other hard-wired human needs The biochemistry of the the brain he he he he says deeply craves awe-inducing contact with the the natural world “The awe awe of big water makes you feel really small ” Nichols said “Maybe people crave that because we seem to have control of just about everything else in in our lives ” But then how do we we get from awe to action? Nichols sees this as a a a a a a communication challenge “We need to to talk and teach about this fundamental emotional connection to to to water ” he told me me “We don’t talk about it as professional conservationists or or biologists We We don’t talk about it as educators ” Back when the the Obama Administration was reviewing its environmental agenda they invited Nichols to the the White House for a a a a a a roundtable discussion on on water issues “I looked over their plans and I I said ‘Well you need someone to talk about the the cognitive social psychic and spiritual benefits of clean water ’” he said “Every time you you leave that out you’re saying it doesn’t exist It’s studied and and studiable documentable and and quantifiable There’s no excuse ” Those kids back at at Carmel Point fanning out in in in the the tide pools to get a a a a a a a a a a good look at at at all the the limpets—those beautiful conical mollusks that stud the the the rocks and become exposed as the the the tide rushes out to to to sea—they’re likely not going back to to to their classroom to to to discuss neuroscience “They’ll go back and and get a a a a a a a a quiz about limpets limpets ” Nichols said with a a a a a a a a a a smile “I love love limpets limpets and and and I I love love tide pools and and it’s great that that they’re learning about about that that but what what if we also told them about about their brain and why what what they’re experiencing out out here feels so different from the the the classroom and that this will be available to them forever just as as as long as as as they protect it?” To get from awe to to action Nichols believes we’ll have to to to talk about marine biology biology (tide pools) and human neurobiology (oxytocin) in in in the same breath