Cohabiting: Ethics from the Small and Invisible | Ricardo Rozzi | TEDxFrutillar

Key Concepts

• Beyond Limits: The necessity of pushing boundaries to address complex social and environmental challenges and seize opportunities.
• Cape Horn Island (Isla Ornos): The southernmost landmass with forests in the Southern Hemisphere, home to the southernmost tree and forest, and a vulnerable ecosystem due to climate change.
• Climate Change Vulnerability: Mountainous regions and high-latitude ecosystems are particularly susceptible to rising temperatures, leading to species migration and potential extinction.
• Biodiversity Conservation: The importance of valuing and protecting both large-scale (whales, pumas) and small-scale (mosses, lichens, invertebrates) biodiversity.
• Changing Lenses: A metaphorical shift in perspective to appreciate overlooked aspects of nature, culture, and knowledge.
• Biocultural Conservation: An integrated approach to conservation that considers biological diversity, cultural heritage, economy, and institutional frameworks.
• Ecoturismo con Lupa (Ecotourism with a Magnifying Glass): A specialized form of ecotourism focused on appreciating micro-ecosystems and small-scale biodiversity.
• Biocultural Ethics: A framework that emphasizes cohabitation and shared responsibility for the planet, integrating biological and cultural aspects.
• Subantarctic Center for Biocultural Conservation: A research institution in Puerto Williams dedicated to biocultural conservation through science, philosophy, art, education, and ethics.
• Planetary Ecological Limits: The boundaries that must not be transgressed to ensure the sustainability of the biosphere.

Expedition to Cape Horn and the Discovery of Micro-Biodiversity

The speaker recounts an expedition to Isla Ornos, near Cape Horn, in March 2000. This region is significant as it hosts the southernmost forests and trees in the world. The speaker highlights the vulnerability of these high-latitude ecosystems to climate change, where rising temperatures force organisms to higher altitudes, risking extinction or displacement into the sea, potentially impacting Antarctica.

The expedition faced immediate challenges, being caught in a severe storm for a week on a small fishing boat. This delay compressed their planned week-long activities into a single day upon reaching the island. Driven by urgency, the speaker attempted to cut across a swamp to reach a specific type of moss believed to thrive in the oceanic climate and winds. This led to a perilous situation where the speaker became stuck, sinking into the swamp.

After three hours of struggling, with no immediate rescue, the speaker began to observe small invertebrates and crustaceans. This moment of near-death prompted a profound shift in perspective. Instead of despair, the speaker felt a sense of reconnection with the earth and began to appreciate the intricate beauty of the micro-ecosystem, including mosses with sporophytes and lichens, and even insects and snails. This experience led to a realization that conservation efforts often overlook the immense diversity and resilience of small organisms, focusing instead on larger, more charismatic species.

Re-evaluating Conservation and the Influence of Historical Thinkers

The speaker's near-death experience in the swamp catalyzed a critical re-evaluation of conservation practices. The speaker realized that small-scale biodiversity had been largely excluded not only from scientific conservation but also from the history of philosophy. This led to the discovery of David Hume, a philosopher who, towards the end of his life, proposed that the natural world operates under the same laws as humans and that the dynamic world might self-generate through biological evolution.

Hume's ideas, particularly his essay "Of the Immortality of the Soul," were read by Charles Darwin's grandfather, Erasmus Darwin. This inspired Charles Darwin to seek empirical data. Darwin's voyage on the HMS Beagle to Cape Horn exposed him to the miniature forests of lichens, mosses, and algae, and also to the indigenous cultures of the region. While Darwin initially underestimated the cultural value of the Fuegian people, the speaker notes that later in his life, through rigorous critical thinking, Darwin recognized their intelligence and placed their thought on par with figures like Isaac Newton, dedicating a central part of "The Descent of Man" to their intellectual contributions.

The "Changing Lenses" Framework and Biocultural Conservation

This historical context informs the speaker's central argument: the need to "change lenses" not only to appreciate small biodiversity but also to recognize the multitude of knowledge systems, including scientific, artistic, and cultural. The speaker illustrates this with examples of appreciating a "len barba de viejo" (old man's beard lichen) from the perspective of indigenous Fuegian and Mapuche cultures, alongside scientific understanding from Darwin and contemporary colleagues.

This "changing lenses" approach led to a significant publication in a leading ecology journal, highlighting Cape Horn's world-leading diversity of moss plants, surpassing even Brazil. This discovery was instrumental in advocating for the protection of Cape Horn as a UNESCO World Heritage site, leading to the establishment of the Cape Horn Biosphere Reserve. Notably, this reserve was the first in the world to be established based on the importance of small organisms and the first in Chile to protect both marine and terrestrial environments.

The speaker emphasizes that protecting Cape Horn requires a holistic approach, integrating biological diversity, culture, economy, and institutional frameworks. This led to the development of "ecoturismo con lupa" (ecotourism with a magnifying glass), an innovation in special interest tourism. This approach aims to reconnect people with nature and their evolutionary kinship with all living beings, fostering an ethical dimension for cohabitation on the planet.

Establishing the Subantarctic Center for Biocultural Conservation

The evolution of this thinking culminated in the establishment of the Subantarctic Center for Biocultural Conservation in Puerto Williams, the southernmost city in the world. For 25 years, the speaker and colleagues worked to create this institution, which now serves as a hub for science, philosophy, art, education, and ethics in biocultural conservation.

The speaker reflects on overcoming geographical, disciplinary, and ethical boundaries, moving beyond anthropocentrism to appreciate the full spectrum of life. The journey highlights the importance of innovation through "changing lenses" that foster wonder and discovery.

Conclusion: Embracing Cohabitation and Respecting Limits

The summary concludes by drawing a parallel between Chile's astronomical observatories in the Atacama Desert, which explore the cosmos and reveal our connection to stardust, and the Subantarctic Center, which acts as a "biocultural magnifying glass" to explore the microcosm and rediscover our terrestrial origins.

The most crucial takeaway is the recognition of necessary limits, specifically planetary ecological limits that must not be transgressed and ethical limits that should not be crossed to ensure cohabitation within the biosphere. The speaker ends with a message of shared humanity, emphasizing the gift of consciousness and the capacity to be cohabitants, fostering understanding, feeling, and acceptance of our interconnectedness with all life, including the humble mosses.