Once teeming with diverse plant and animal species, the Earth was a vibrant ecosystem. However, as we navigate the year 2024, we find ourselves grappling to safeguard the remaining creatures from extinction, often unaware of the harm inflicted upon our planet. By listening to Leah Rampy, the author of Earth & Soul: Reconnecting Amid Climate Chaos, individuals can gain insights into the necessary steps to reestablish a meaningful connection with the Earth. Through compelling narratives, Rampy deeply resonates with readers, urging them to embrace the Earth and appreciate its magnificence. To read on and learn more about Leah Rampy, continue reading.

What motivated you to delve into writing about environmental issues?
I’ve been concerned about climate change and other environmental issues for quite some time. I’ve been an activist, advocate, and caregiver for the land around me. For decades I’ve led retreats that encourage participants to get more deeply in touch with the living world. I started writing Earth and Soul because I felt drawn to look at our relationship to the environment from a more holistic and, at the same time, personal point of view.

Congratulations on your book Earth & Soul: Reconnecting Amid Climate Chaos. Can you tell us more about the book?
Thank you. I’m sure that most books are a rich journey for the author. Putting my thoughts on the page has been mind- and heart - expanding.

We live amid increasing climate chaos, biodiversity loss, and ecosystem destruction. In Earth and Soul, I invite readers to summon the courage to live in these challenging, beautiful, heart-breaking times. This includes bearing witness to the loss and grief around us, tuning our senses to the wonder of the living world, and opening ourselves to deeper connections with Earth.

Reconnecting to this beloved, beautiful, hurting world requires a deep dive into the well of our soul, a personal pilgrimage to understand our unique call for this time and place. We live in a very difficult period, poised on a threshold. The world as we once knew it is gone forever. A new story has not yet unfolded.

We are likely to catch only a small glimpse of what’s being asked of us. Our responsibilities may include hospicing what is dying or midwifing what is waiting to be born. This work will require a new way of leading that engages each of us at the point of our gifts and enables us to access collective wisdom beyond what can be summoned from rational thinking and personal experience alone. We will need to call on the wisdom of all beings and Earth herself to make our way amid the chaos toward a more vibrant future of mutual thriving.

What are some misconceptions about the Earth you would like to address?
Firstly, we have forgotten that we live on a planet where everything is deeply and inextricably interconnected. The 13.8-billion-year evolution of the cosmos is our family history and a reminder that life exists only in relationships. We live because of Earth and the array of beings who also make their homes here.

Secondly, Earth has wisdom and agency. We have an opportunity to learn from and work with the beings and systems of Earth, most of whom who have existed far longer than humans. It’s important that we move from hubris to humility so that we can listen and learn. Good intentions alone are woefully insufficient to inform our actions; we must take care lest we cause great harm.

How do you approach the daunting task of addressing such a complex and urgent issue like climate change in your writing?
Good question. I have chosen to weave stories throughout the book that I hope are illustrative of and help to clarify the key points I want to make. I share stories of sandhill cranes, beavers, sparrows, whales, fossils, soil, seeds, and trees. I’ve also included personal stories from childhood as well as from pilgrimages and retreats I’ve led. In some of the personal stories I elaborate on mistakes I’ve made in my interaction with the living world. I want to encourage readers to reflect on their actions to see where learning is possible.

In your opinion, what are the most pressing challenges humanity faces in addressing climate change and protecting the Earth?
Unless and until we reclaim our relationship to all living beings and embrace a sense of oneness, we will continue to live into the myth of separation that haunts our dominate culture. Our illusion of separation leads to scarcity, competition, domination, power struggles, distancing, loneliness, and human-centric and egocentric views and decisions. If we can challenge this current worldview – as Indigenous and other land -- based cultures have done and continue to do – then we might move toward deeper connections and concern for mutual well-being.

Can you share any personal experiences or encounters that have influenced your perspective on climate change and the Earth's future?
Old growth forests speak to my heart. And I am heart-broken when these ancient giants who have survived thousands of years are taken down by fire. We’ve created a hotter, dryer climate that has already weakened them. I feel an obligation to work for their well-being.

I’ve been so lucky to be on a boat surrounded by whales, to walk on fossils older than the dinosaurs, to have been to sites from Scotland to the southwestern U.S., from Peru to Australia, that are considered sacred by people of that land. Those places are so honored, respected, and prayed over that they hold a special invitation to move beyond one’s small self. I share some of these stories in the book. I’m writing for all of these beings.

For those seeking to reestablish a connection with the Earth and appreciate its beauty, what actions do you recommend they take?
You’ll find a practice in the book for sitting in extended silence and gazing at a tree, plant, or small area of earth in your own back yard; I’d encourage you to try that. Or open to this world of wonder everywhere you walk. Slow down, get out of your busy mind. Look. Listen. Smell. Touch. Tune your senses to the living world and within five minutes you will find something of immense beauty: a bird call, the smell of pines or cedars, the miniature world within mosses, the flash of an insect in flight, wind playing with leaves, shifting shadows, sunset. It's all there. It’s waiting for us to notice.

What role do you see literature and storytelling playing in raising awareness and inspiring action on climate change?
A big “yes” to storytelling. And you’ll see in the bibliography that I draw on wonderful creative non-fiction writers from Robin Wall Kimmerer - whom I rank among the giants - to Suzanne Simard, Trebbe Johnson, Sharon Blackie, Carl Safina, Ben Rawlence, Amitav Ghosh, David George Haskell.… I could go on and on. I think that good fiction also can captivate and lead us to imagine new possibilities and actions. So many excellent books!

What measures should society undertake to confront the challenges we have imposed on the Earth?
Imagine that everyone paid attention to a small space in their backyard, local park, or nearby waterway. Noticed what lived there – insects, birds, plants, amphibians, reptiles. Observed until it became clear what was needed for life. Wondered with human and more-than-human kin what action might be invited. Made a few small offerings. Observed. Learned. Adjusted and tried again. Noticed the neighbors next to this tiny space. Expanded the circle of care just a bit further. Involved other people. Got curious about where the water was coming from and where it was going. Tried to understand the purity of the air and how it was providing for life – or not. Kept going.

I know this will seem way too small for the challenges we face. In desperate times, we may need to slow down to learn before we act. To learn we need to get up close and personal. If you are capable of grander, bigger action, and if you have established kinship and understanding with those you are hoping to help, please proceed apace. Your gifts are much needed, and we are grateful for what you do.

What message or call to action would you like to convey to policymakers, the public, and future generations regarding the urgent need to address climate change and protect the Earth?
Make your decisions for the sake of Earth herself. We must save as much as we can while we can. Forests, oceans, soil, mountaintops, ecosystems, species. Once it is lost, it will take millions of years for Earth to recreate anything like it. It’s about climate change, yes. But if we address CO2 levels and disregard our ecosystems, we will still be lost. Biodiversity is critical to the health and well- being of everyone, every being, on this planet and requisite for the functioning of Earth systems.

Are there any upcoming projects you would like to share?
I am offering retreats and speaking on this topic in various places throughout the year as well as leading the local Church of the Wild Two Rivers. Details are on my website.

My colleague Beth Norcross, founder of the Center for Spirituality in Nature, and I are writing a book on The Spiritual Wisdom of Trees to be published by Broadleaf Books in early 2025. We lead classes and retreats on this topic as well. The topic is near and dear to our hearts, and we are excited to share more about it through the book as well as the classes.

It's been a crazy past few years. How have you been staying positive?
Writing this book was a part of staying sane. Writing gave me the sense that I was in conversation with others, some who were offering advice to me and others who were listening and asking questions. Of course, the living world is always sharing beauty and healing. I’m very lucky to live in a cohousing community so, in addition to my family, there is always someone available to encourage me when I need it - or to collaborate in good mischief.

What is your motto in life? Any final words of wisdom?
We cannot do everything, but we can do something. May we lay stepping stones toward a diverse and vibrant future of mutual flourishing.

To learn more about Leah Rampy, please check out her website below:
www.leahmoranrampy.com
IG: leahrampy

Leah Rampy - Writing for the Future of our Planet