There are many ways of being an activist, and the world undeniably, inexorably, needs them all. 

Here I refer to activism in the broadest sense possible, as acts of care toward others, and embodied compassion for our world, in ways large and small. From engaging in frontline socio-political and environmental battles, to the few hours we find a month to support a campaign we believe in- every single instance and bit of our collective effort matters.

In this critical work, we can’t succeed by just embracing the visionary, ‘positive’ aspects of the world we want to see and build, we must also together combat the destructive forces responsible for damage and oppression. We must fight a culture within our human culture, a colonizing, profiteering and corporate culture that bulldozes over equity, beauty, loving relationships, and the sacred; we must fight other humans who think like machines and cannot see the larger picture. We are also tasked with fighting the presence of this culture within our own minds, as we would any other infection or pathogen. There is no clear or obvious way to do this, no agreed-upon set of instructions, but it is the work we have always had to do, and it is work that will never be ‘done’ for us; it comes with being human.

In the imbalanced and sporadic way we have known it culturally, activism can be difficult and often very depleting work. Many dive in and get burned out quickly; some get physically ill when exposed to the stresses that activism entails. 

It is often the people who care the most about the world who dedicate the least amount of time and attention to taking care of themselves. Far too easily, self-care begins to seem a luxury, and we no longer recognize it as a basic survival skill. Activism is frequently manifested in fits and bursts of unfocused energy, manageable only for short amounts of time, until we are inevitably too ill, depressed, and/or exhausted to continue with it. It may have been ‘worth it’ to go at the issue furiously until we have nothing left to give, but often it’s not. This continued dynamic is a serious problem if we want- and the world needs- more activism, and more sustainable forms of activism. In order to facilitate more people being engaged in activism, more efficiently and over longer periods of time, such as over the course of a human lifetime, we are compelled to take stock of our situation. How can we be better allies to ourselves and our world? Are we building the bridges needed at this moment to sustain greater levels of activism?

I will offer that we can seriously empower ourselves- and directly support our collective resilience as activists- by cultivating deeper relationships with plants. We can welcome plants into our lives- not just as food, medicine, or useful objects, though certainly they are all these things and more to us- but as beings with unfathomable adaptive intelligence and remarkable skills of survival, and ultimately, as partners in the dismantling of oppressive hierarchies and rebuilding of worlds. We can welcome plants as activist allies.

Humans, unfortunately, have a prejudicial idea of intelligence; we are biased in our concepts of intelligence toward those life forms that, like us, are equipped with a central brain and neural pathways. We assign degrees of intelligence to animals and insects based around perceived brain capacity, and we also build computers around this model, and judge their (artificial) intelligence similarly. 

But if intelligence is characterized not by the possession of a brain, and rather, by the ability to solve problems and capacity to adapt and evolve, then plants are clearly geniuses. Plants operate with a de-centralized intelligence that we are only beginning to understand, and may never really completely understand. It is often compared to the swarming activity of bees or the flight patterns of birds, and sometimes to the internet- a collection of modules or nodes of ‘knowingness’ that would not be destroyed if portions were removed. A centralized brain, for instance, would be a handicap for plants, who cannot move very far or quickly from predators. Instead, they have evolved to be eaten, and in many cases, to benefit in the process and proliferate further. Their success in propagating and flourishing is staggering. By volume, plants are 90% of all the biomass of life on earth, which allows them to produce the amount of oxygen that we need to live. Oh, and they can fucking eat light.

We may not fully comprehend the ways in which plants ‘know’ the world, though plants do certainly carry vast amounts of knowledge; we can, however, be receptive to their support and wisdom. Through forging greater alliances with plants, those called to activism can help protect and heal themselves, as well as adapt, grow, and- as a result of that enhanced intelligence, health, and strength- better defend community and environment.

Not all plants are as helpful to us as others, but certainly the same could be said for humans; not all humans are activists. That’s part of why it’s important to choose our allies with care and specificity, respecting the traits and skills that are unique to each of them.

All medicinal herbs transfer to humans their naturally-occurring antioxidants, anti-inflammatory and antimicrobial agents, and constituents that support immune function and promote healing. Plants have adapted by developing sophisticated solutions to stresses that are very similar to those encountered by humans. When we consume their biochemistry, we, too, are defended. In this case, their intelligence is literally our medicine.

Certain ailments are particularly common to activists, and it would be a considerable advantage to have on hand the knowledge and resources to treat those conditions that are non-critical, without great expense. Periods of grief, anxiety, and depression are threats to the emotional and mental health of activists, and related conditions of insomnia, digestive issues, fatigue, and muscle tension/ache are common ‘physical’ ailments (though certainly emotional, mental and physical health are all interdependent). All of these symptoms can be addressed through an informed herbalism self-care practice (seek medical care, however, if the situation is critical!). 

Grief, for instance, can be eased by members of the Rose family, which are used not only for emotional heartache, but also physically tone the cardiovascular system. Anxiety, often overlapping with insomnia, can be tamed with a number of calming, safe, and non-addictive herbs, like Passionflower. Fatigue is improved by consuming highly nutritive plants, like mineral-packed Dandelion, which helps our cells create energy on the mitochondrial level.

At times, however, we benefit by simply observing and educating ourselves about the ways in which plants survive challenges to their existence- their adaptations can be literal or figurative models for our own. Roses protect their fruit with strategically-placed and mathematically- angled thorns. Passionflower entrances pollinating insects, seducing them into staying longer. Dandelion taproots dive deep to absorb more minerals, and can regenerate from bits of root that remain when a dandelion is pulled. How can we, as activists, strive to be as resilient? 

Clearly, plants support human mental, emotional, and physical health. And it’s apparent that awareness of their properties, actions in the body, and survival skills within their ecosystems empowers us directly and improves our capacity in the world. But furthermore, plants, going far back in human history as we understand it, have always, also, been a part of our spiritual lives. In all of our human rituals and ceremonies, plants were there with us. We have burned them for spiritual purification and offering, we have smoked and consumed them to induce visions and dreams, and to understand our place in the universe. Plants have helped us to perceive and connect to forces larger than ourselves; they have helped us to know the sacred. Are we so anthropocentric that we believe that plants don’t know- in their particular way of knowing- that they are capable of doing this for us, and with us? We would be better served by fully acknowledging the significant and inherent wisdom of plants.

And what do the plants receive in return for our many asks? An uptick in people ready to protect them, allies in a crisis we both face. The more we truly respect plants, and acknowledge our absolute dependence on them for our survival, the more we will go to bat for them. Plants need us, too. It’s increasingly clear that we have added responsibility to fight the pathogenic aspect of human culture not only for ourselves, but for all other living beings as well. It falls on us humans to become activists, in much the same way that white blood cells develop when there is an invasion in the body. Plants communicate messages of defense and resilience, whispering strategies in our ears, and fortifying us for the unavoidable battles ahead. We’d be wise to stay open, and listen- shit, they have been advocating and fighting for survival a lot longer than we have.

We can directly learn, grow, and heal from these abilities of our plant allies- in our hearts, minds, souls, and bodies- as we work to protect our shared planet-home and one another. As always, we are better and stronger with our allies.

In Solidarity,

Asha Canalos  Albuquerque, New Mexico, August 2019

Resource Note: In summarizing and synthesizing these concepts, I have relied heavily on the research and writings of scientists Robin Wall Kimmerer, Peter Wohlleben, Stefano Mancuso and Monica Gagliano; herbalists Rosemary Gladstar and David Hoffman; and writers Michael Pollan and Stephen Harrod Buhner, all of whose numerous books, articles and recorded/transcribed talks can provide further information on these topics.