Reciprocal Restoration is a term I am using to describe a phenomena that I have personally experienced and observed in diverse settings.
When we start to restore an ecosystem (through gardening, ecosystem restoration, ocean cleanups, composting, volunteering in our communities, etc) in turn, our relationship with that particular ecosystem improves- we become aware of our interconnectedness to this “outer” ecosystem, and through playing a positive role, we gain confidence and, in many cases, a process of reconciliation with the natural world occurs. During this reconciliation with the outer world, a deeper, inner restoration begins to ocurr. It can seem like as we restore nature, nature is restoring us. Through acting on behalf of nature, we recover a sense of belonging, purpose and place.
I believe that this reciprocity can happen the other way around too. For those who enter into self study process´, Nature Connection, Deep Ecology, Ecopsychology, Sytems Theory, Dreamwork etc. a better understanding of who we truly are is reached, and as we come to the realisation that we are part of an intricate, intelligent, interconnected system, often referred to as The Web of Life, we realise our intrinsic belonging to nature, and we begin to act from this new worldview. Our actions appear to be guided by the desire for balance in the greater whole and the willingness to restore, reform, maintain and care for our natural ecosystems increases. I can be seen that as we restore ourselves, our natural environments begin to be respected, regenerated, and restored simultaneously.
