Voices of nature

Voices of Nature

Editorial

Photo by Bailey Zindel on Unsplash

As an only child growing up in the forest of Yuin Country (New South Wales) in Australia, I felt a genuine connection with other species and the living landscape. In First Nations languages of Australia, there are many words that capture the profound art of deep, silent listening. One such word is “Dadirri,” a Pitanjajara term from the Western Desert, which conveys an attentive, affectionate, and curious listening to the present moment. It’s about being fully present and open—qualities that form the foundation of how we connect with the world around us.

This newsletter explores non-verbal ways of communication, not just with each other but with all living beings. Often, we rely on words, but there exists a richer dialogue in the silence and subtle exchanges of energy that connect us all.

The Learning to Listen to Nature article shares the story of Chief Almir Surui of the Surui tribe from the Brazilian Amazon. He describes how his people believe the forest has a spirit that guides them to medicines and warns of dangers. To protect this wisdom and the rainforest, Almir partnered with Google to map their territory and monitor illegal logging. His daughter, Txai Surui, continues this work, reminding us that to live in harmony with the planet, we must listen to nature’s voice. This shows how ancient wisdom and modern technology can work together to protect our world.

My own experience with Blossom, a tawny frogmouth, shared in Living in Harmony with Other Species, taught me that the boundaries between human and animal life are not as rigid as they seem. Through moments of silent understanding, I realised that deep communication transcends words. We all have this ability, and by practising meditation, concentration, and reflection, we can enhance our sensitivity to the subtle forms of communication around us. These practices cultivate empathy and create a space where all beings are respected and understood.

Recent scientific advancements, such as the work from the Sainsbury Laboratory Cambridge University, show that humans can communicate with plants using light, confirming the interconnectedness between all forms of life. Projects like ‘The Great Green Wall’ also remind us that our thoughts, intentions, and actions can tangibly impact the environment.

A powerful example of this occurred with the young volunteers planting trees in the article: The Young People Who Brought the Rain. When faced with drought, they expressed gratitude and apologised to the earth. Miraculously, rain began to fall within their planting area, demonstrating how our intentions can influence nature.

As we reflect on these connections, let’s practise listening more deeply to nature and each other. By developing empathy and awareness, we can strengthen our relationships with all life forms and move toward a future where we live in harmony with the world around and within us.

Tamasin Ramsay has been deepening her connection with other species as a core spiritual practice for the past decade. She has a PhD in anthropology and lives in the forests of Gariwerd (Grampians) Western Victoria, Australia.

Learning to Listen to Nature

In June 2015, at the opening of the EU Green Week, one of the speakers, Almir Surui, stood out from the rest of the panel due to his unique feather headdress. Almir was the chief of the Surui, a tribe of the Amazonian Rainforest in Brazil. Since 1992 his people had been trying to find sustainable ways to live whilst remaining in harmony with their natural environment.

Almir described how, in his experience, the forest has a spirit and that it communicates with people, about where to find medicines, about dangers to be avoided. He said that nature wants to cooperate with us. However, people have lost the ability to connect with nature and learn from its wisdom, the result being the use and abuse of the natural world rather than a relationship of mutual respect in which both can benefit and thrive. Almir said he had wanted to find a way to share with others the ancient ways of the Surui people so that they too might learn to live in harmony with nature and put an end to the devastation of rainforests worldwide. Read more.

Living in Harmony with Other Species

I live in a remote forest area at the foothills of the Billawin Mountains (Victoria Range) in Gariwerd (Grampians), Western Victoria, Australia. It’s about four hours from Melbourne and six from Adelaide. Despite being far from the bustling cities, I feel more connected to life here than ever before.

Four years ago, I experienced a profound inner shift that began with an encounter with a small, fluffy bird with an oversized beak and an incredibly confident stare. Blossom, as I came to know her, is a tawny frogmouth, a native Australian owl. She wasn’t injured but had been orphaned and was in care until she could fly on her own. Read more.

New Invention Enables Humans to Talk to Plants Using Light

Image from article on earth.com

Researchers have ushered in a new era in plant science by creating a technology that brings the once-fictitious idea of human-plant communication to reality. This recently developed technology enables humans to ‘talk’ to plants and receive communication back from them, using light-based messaging. This incredible breakthrough was achieved by a team of scientists from the Sainsbury Laboratory Cambridge University (SLCU).

The experiments conducted by Alexander Jones’ research team at the university involved using light as a messenger to talk to plants. The light activates the natural defence mechanisms in tobacco plants (Nicotiana Benthamiana), showcasing that light can be a stimulus triggering plants’ immune responses.

This implies that light, a universal medium of communication for humans, can now serve as a bridge for interspecies interaction between humans and plants. Read more.

The Young People who Brought the Rain: The Power of our Thoughts

Image from fondationcoeurvert.org

We can clearly see how our actions have a profound impact on nature, ranging from nurturing a flourishing garden to creating desolate wastelands. What about on a less tangible level though? Do our thoughts, prayers and meditations also have an influence on nature?

At an event in January at Global Cooperation House, the International Coordinating Office of the Brahma Kumaris in London, called ‘Reconnecting with Mother Earth,’ Ody-Marc Duclos, the Vice-President of The Green Heart Foundation told a story about how a group of young volunteers became known as the young people who brought the rain. Every year the Green Heart Foundation takes a large group of young people to plant a new section of ‘The Great Green Wall’. This is a project to plant a 8,000km long band of trees across the widest width of Africa. Read more.