Abstract
Human and non-human beings have an equal right to life. The meaning of life is grounded in the interdependent relationship between all things. There are benefits from promoting earth-centred governance where relationships are inclusive of non-human beings. Mother Earth is our collective commons, and co-existence is the embodiment of life itself. This balance and harmony with our living cultural landscapes grounds the philosophical framework of values, ethics, virtues, and belief that the Law is in the Land, not in Man. Importantly we need to govern and manage the commons for the greater common good of humanity, our biosphere, and planetary well-being. We consider humanity’s need to invest into strengthening individual and collective resilience by revisiting our deep natural love for our commons. Earth-centred governance approach promotes a greater appreciation for the value of life, particularly regarding multispecies justice, co-existence, balance, and peace. It is time to draw on the ancient wisdom, traditional knowledge from antiquity, for modernity. A philosophical framework enshrined in the First Laws to underwrite a new Dream. We can Dream together so we can better understand how we, as human beings, can once again start to live in harmony with each other and with our non-human families. We need to enjoy and defend our amazing planet, Mother Earth, and life itself from climate chaos and destruction. Otherwise, Mother Earth will be lonely without the vibrations of human beings!
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Notes
- 1.
Graham, M. (Unpublished, 2009). Indigenous Community Centred Planning (ICCP) Strategy: Scoping Paper.
- 2.
Mr Wise has since passed away (died).
- 3.
See Bookarrarra (Perdrisat, 2020a). Available at https://vimeo.com/451420394.
- 4.
See Warloongarriy (Perdrisat, 2020b). Available at https://vimeo.com/459588320.
- 5.
In Australia, the term “Traditional Owners” refers to people with inherited Aboriginal cultural and traditional connections to their own lands and living waters.
- 6.
Fitzroy River Declaration. Available at http://www.majala.com.au/news/protecting-the-fitzroy-river-catchment.
- 7.
See the article in The Guardian (2021). Available at https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2021/jun/05/a-journey-down-was-mighty-martuwarra-raging-river-and-sacred-ancestor.
- 8.
See “Welcome to Martuwarra”, in Mardoowarra River of Life (Madjulla Inc & McDuffie, 2016). Available at https://vimeo.com/187590078/7afbbc772d.
- 9.
A significant example is the impact on volume and quality of water in the Murray Darling Basin, which the Australian government has recently tried to repress from a UN Report 2021, Valuing Water (Programme Mondial de L’UNESCO pour l’évaluation des ressources en eau, 2021).
- 10.
See An Interview with Michelle Lim (Poelina, Madjulla Inc, & McDuffie, 2020). Available at https://vimeo.com/433343821/0023e84b48.
- 11.
See Joe Brown, in Joe Brown: Martuwarra (Martuwarra Fitzroy River Council, Madjulla Inc, McDuffie, & King, 2021). Available at https://vimeo.com/546836156/8b3eb7f6e7.
- 12.
See United Nations Report, Valuing Water (2021). Available at https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000375724
- 13.
See Yoongoorrookoo Creator of the Law (Poelina & McDuffie, 2020). Available at https://vimeo.com/395472554/e52c6ee7d0.
- 14.
See Australian Conservation Foundation: https://stories.acf.org.au/forging-the-forever-industries.
- 15.
See Martuwarra Fitzroy River of Life (Martuwarra Fitzroy River Council, Madjulla Inc, McDuffie & King, 2021). Available at https://vimeo.com/533047074/87705efc9e.
- 16.
Anthropocene means this geological age of human dominance of nature, place and planet, including climate.
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RiverOfLife, M., Poelina, A., Perdrisat, M. (2024). Ancient Wisdom Dreaming a Climate Chance. In: Penteado, A., Chakrabarty, S.P., Shaikh, O.H. (eds) Traditional Knowledge and Climate Change. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-99-8830-3_1
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