Gaia Living Systems Institute Home

Living Systems: open, self-organizing systems made up of living entities and elements that interact with their environment and are maintained by flows of information, energy and matter.

From ecosystems to government systems, from the nervous system to the transit system, from individual beings to communities, living systems are everywhere. Such a systems view makes connection and interdependence seem obvious, and yet often this critical aspect of life is forgotten when we set out to design and develop communities. Gaia Living Systems Institute is working to bridge that gap through education and outreach that demonstrate and teach how consciousness and culture studies, ecology and economics all come together to help us understand how living systems work. Community development approached in such a manner leads to prosperity and harmony for all.

There are living systems; there is no living "matter."
- Jacques Monod, Biochemist and 1965 Nobel Prize Winner

Current Projects

Supporting Sustainable Household Practices

More and more people are learning that a consumer-based lifestyle is both impractical and unhealthy. They're creating new systems in their homes and yards, based on time-tested principles and practices from around the world.

CLICK ON THE TITLE below to see the video:
I turned my front yard into a Food Forest
Welcome to my Food Paradise
Building a TINY Food Forest

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Explaining & Encouraging Regenerative Practices

All around the world people are discovering and applying combinations of ancient and modern technologies to restore land and create food supplies.
At Gaia Living Systems Institute we are collecting their experiences and sharing the principles, as exemplified in these videos:

Considering the Current U.S. and Global Political Scene
and Implications

Understanding Human Culture and Potential Futures

CLICK HERE to learn more...

Creating a Future for Humanity

Global industrial culture is not working, but there are other ways to live. The old myths no longer hold, but new explanations of reality are replacing them. The old technologies are destroying our biosphere, but new technologies are being developed, and new boundaries, based on ecology, are being encouraged to help us honor the planet’s natural processes instead of trying to control them. Even as the world we’re living in appears to be dying, the world we could be living in is waiting to be born.
This research explores the many ways the needed seeds are being planted and what resources are at hand so we can choose - create - our future.

CLICK HERE to learn more about the project and the book.

Plastic as a Community Resource

Working with volunteers in Kernville, Oregon we're exploring how small communities could create small businesses based on the use of waste plastic as a resource for making new, useful products.

CLICK HERE to learn more about the project

Research Opportunities

If you are interested in learning more about, or if you're part of an activity that is creating a social, economic, or technological system that is based in ecological consciousness, please let us know.