The overhanging vines that dance around the wooden beams, the vegetable raised beds, the small pond with bass even every nail was thoughtfully chosen and placed. These details are part of an effort to go beyond sustainability to achieve regenerative design at the visitor’s center at Bernheim Arboretum and Research Forest. As we toured around, the words of Claude Stevens, our speaker for the afternoon on Friday echoed in my head and left a deep impression on me. Earlier on he had described how although humans typically think in a linear way, as an ecologist it is important to think cyclically. I find myself reflecting on the way I often see so many elements of my life, in a linear fashion, with a beginning and an end. Claude mentioned the flaws to this linear way of thinking as it allows for missed opportunities to reuse and regenerate especially when trying to problem solve. I love hearing Claude describe nature as a template and a reoccurring example to build off of, replicate and learn from. He believes that humans should think in cycles and look to nature for examples will a humble appreciation for its brilliance. He described to us how nature has proven for millions of years that cycles work best. This way of thinking was applied to designing the building, as every aspect of the structure was chosen meticulously to reflect examples in nature that have proven to work. In addition, the building was designed in anticipation of someday needing to be deconstructed, in order for the materials to be reused to continue the cycle of their natural life. Claude and the other designers and architects know that the life of the wood and other materials do not end when the building is no longer is use.

As I read Michael Pollan’s article “In Defense of Food” I realize that this cyclical thinking that Claude kept alluding to should not only be a way of thinking that ecologist use but also should be the way all humans approach and understand food systems. The life of the food we eat is not linear, as most of us imagine. The life of the food that nourished us does not begin in the grocery store and end in our mouths. Many Americans are very naive in regard to how, where and by who their food was grown and in what conditions. Pollan suggests that, “only when we participate in short food chains are we reminded every week that we are indeed part of a food chain and dependent for our health on its peoples and soils and integrity- on its health” (Pollan, 161).

The deeper understanding that is being called for by both Pollan and Claude cannot typically be achieved in a grocery store. The produce on the shelf of the grocery store does not tell its story, does include information about its life cycle or even often doesn’t specifically where it was grown. It appears as though grocery stores want to keep us consumers in the dark about the food chains we engage in daily. Large agricultural and industrial food companies favor this linear mindset, as it hides the truth about the food that we eat. As Claude suggests nature is the design we must try to replicate. Thus, buying from farmers markets as Pollan suggests is a perfect way to engage with healthy food chains that work with nature instead of trying to manipulate it, as many genetically modified or processed foods do. Our understanding must go further than the grocery store. We must understand the earth, air, water and people that worked together to create this food specifically for the purpose of nourishing our own bodies. The foods that we should be eating are active members in natural cycles on the Earth, not from an industrial factory. Pollan suggests that buying food directly from a farmer, not only “nourishes a food chain organized around values- values like quality and health” (Pollan, 161), but it also assures that the food has taken part in these natural cycles.

I realize that buying locally supports a cyclical farming process that has healthy, positive intentions. Pollan and Claude are ultimately suggesting that we cannot be “just passive consumers of food but cocreators of the system that feeds us” (Pollan, 161). This understanding and engagement can be achieved if we open our eyes and ask questions by holding our food to high, healthy standards. Engaging in the local food movement encourages healthy living, supports agricultural practices that reflect nature and forces us to become aware and a part of the food chains.