On Islands of Coherence
Another thoughtful prompt on horticulture & ecology from Viburnum Gardens...
Here’s something I heard the other day that stopped me in my tracks:
”When a complex system is far from equilibrium, small islands of coherence in a sea of chaos have the capacity to shift the entire system to a higher order”
Said by a Nobel-Prize winning chemist, where coherence, a word with wide-ranging meanings anyhow, has a different meaning than we are used to. But it turns out social scientists, politicians, ecologists and others see the principle as being applicable to many systems.
You might guess where my mind goes! To gardens. It actually goes to practices like @refugiadesign, where they are mapping ‘islands of coherence’ within the Pennsylvanian suburbs. By ‘coherence’ which the dictionary has at ‘the quality of forming a unified whole’ I mean ecological coherence, which focuses on the ‘whole’ part, where the system keeps all parts of the food chain intact. So a typical lawn, for example, while definitely hanging together as a unified whole, doesn’t qualify as ecologically coherent.
To be clear, I don’t mean coherence in design, either, where we strive to create believable relationships amongst individual pieces, the sense of all the parts belonging. I mean coherence in the sense that a system, any system, can bring itself back to balance.
Re-read that top quote one more time. Ok, now imagine, in our chaotic world, creating an island of coherence- I’m thinking your beautiful, abundant, whole and wild backyard of course, but you choose your method, inner to outer, large or small.
Anything that shifts the focus, according to the Garrison Institute, from “hyper-individual to relational and reciprocal” counts!
Now think of how these islands, these tiny little pockets of coherence- can join to form ‘tipping points’ back to a higher order. Personally, gosh, I like that thought.
What comes to mind for you about ‘islands of coherence’?
Jump in the comments and let us know your feelings….
Liza Kiesler, at Viburnum Gardens
Viburnum Gardens offers design, sourcing and planting for sustainable gardens and landscapes. Located in Vermont’s Northeast Kingdom (plus paintings @highlanderstudio_vt_)
Also, if you're interested in more eco-based horticulture and/or offsetting your carbon footprint, consider donating to help us build a willow farm. Checkout our crowdfunder on chuffed.org, the Hedgecraft Willow site or social media for more information. It's a great cause and a great way to make a positive and tangible difference in the world.
Sara-Jane at Virens Studio & now Hedgecraft Willow
Great article SJ