Today, June 5, is the celebration of the World Environment Day. The date was instituted by the United Nations (UN) to pay attention to the need for conservation of the Environment, with the subject this year being Biodiversity.
The Fraternity – International Humanitarian Federation (FIHF), since its conception, carries out its humanitarian actions based on the integration of the Human, Animal, Plant, and Mineral Kingdoms – a means and an end for fulfilling its purpose of working for a more sustainable and fraternal world.
To celebrate this day, we chose to show that our commitment to the Environment goes beyond a celebratory date, but is rather a constant premise in our editorial guidelines. For this, we selected some material as examples of the care and the integration with all the Kingdoms of Nature that has been carried out for more than 30 years in the Light-Communities, Light-Nuclei, and the rest of the affiliates of the Fraternity (FIHF).
The spiritual teacher and one of the founders of the Fraternity (FIHF), José Trigueirinho Netto, created the Light-Community of Figueira in 1987, governed by patterns of behavior that includes reverence for all the Kingdoms.
We live in an era classified by some scientists as the Anthropocene, which designates the human being as responsible for irreversible changes on all of Planet Earth, mainly in the last one hundred years. During this period, the established production system has led to serious environmental and social costs.
In 2020, the pandemic of the new coronavirus (COVID-19) triggered serious thoughts in the debate about public policies and behavioral changes, which generally reflect a unanimous question: “which world do we want to live in?” There is one fraternal answer to this question: in a regenerated world.
The challenges of humanitarian activities in the face of the current planetary scene are many, but they confirm the need to nurture respect and reverence in our relationship with the Environment.
Keeping the forest standing and guaranteeing the survival of thousands of riverbank inhabitants, indigenous people and other traditional populations is indispensable for the maintenance of balanced ecosystems, and means putting into practice ways of food production such as regenerative agriculture and agroforestry systems, thus rethinking the relationship of the human being with the soil and foods.
The agroforestry system, which is being implemented in all the Light-Communities as an ecologically sustainable system, is based on the integration of agriculture and forestry, allowing the soil to be renewed naturally through amending it with trees, water retention, and nutrient renewal by the release of organic matter.
Non-Conventional Food Plants (NCFPs), adapted to different environments, seek a natural reintegration and thus contribute to the recovery of the processes of living systems, contributing to the formation of biodiverse cultures. They are fundamental in planning aimed at food and ecological sovereignty – which symbolize the guarantee of a diverse, healthy and accessible diet.
Although the importance of bees as producers of honey and suppliers of pollen, propolis, royal jelly, and wax is undeniable, their greatest contribution is in pollination. Through this sublime process of transportation, which they do so naturally and with such mastery, they become essential for maintaining the balance of most ecosystems.
At this stage of humanity and the planet Earth, it should not be necessary to reaffirm that the human being completely depends on the integrity of the Animal, Plant, and Mineral Kingdoms and should be in service to them.
