Plant a Seed, Change the World

In my role as an ecology professor for the past twenty years, I’ve thought a lot about climate change and ecosystem collapse, which naturally makes me a fun person to be around. I’ve also voted in every election since I turned eighteen. My experience and education give me faith in the power of small acts. At this moment, that faith is badly needed. 

Let me explain by giving the example of an acorn. With the proper nurturing, an acorn can sprout, grow and, in time, become an oak tree. A single small oak keeps a location cool in the summer and warm in the winter. It improves the air and water by absorbing pollutants and reduces atmospheric carbon by approximately 400 pounds a year. 

An oak tree is also the base of the food chain and a keystone species. The tree provides food to our native insects, which in turn provide nutrition for birds. Planting native oak trees feeds at least 100 vertebrate species and 500 insect species. Caring for a tree is a simple, concrete act that helps make the world a little better.

Voting and writing letters to one’s fellow citizens are also simple, concrete acts. This year, as part of an effort by a group called Vote Forward, I wrote non-partisan letters urging other Americans to vote. Each letter contained a sentence or two on why I vote. I mentioned my children, their rights, and the world I want for them. 

In some letters, I talked about how women have not had the right to vote for long—best not to squander it. In others, I talked about democracy and how leaders should be chosen by the people. In some, I talked about kindness and empathy, and how I wanted leaders who had these characteristics. 

Waking up the morning of November 6, I felt like nothing would ever matter again. But as an ecologist, I know that systems that seem dead may simply be in a season of dormancy. I know that fires can leave a landscape blackened but are necessary for certain critical habitats to flourish. 

In North Carolina, Kate Barr ran for state senate in the district where she lives. Her campaign website states, “District 37 is so gerrymandered I don’t stand a chance. But we deserve to have two names on the ballot.” Amen. Her campaign was a small act of defiance. Its uniqueness, grace, and humor attracted national media attention to the issue of gerrymandering. 

We all need to practice small acts of defiance and hope—now more than ever.

One thing I know as an ecologist is that indirect effects and ripple effects are very real in nature. If one tree matters, perhaps one good politician matters, or one act of kindness. Kate Barr, Kamala Harris, Hillary Clinton—they all have influenced this big complex experiment we call America in indirect ways.

To be sure, we face a challenge that is new in our nation’s history. A storm is coming, and we should prepare. But part of how we stay strong is through these small acts. 

One tree can’t withstand a hurricane, but a grove of trees may. Storms require us to come together as a community to rethink, restore, and reinvent. We should embrace the spirit of the writer Wendell Berry, who in one of his most famous poems advises, “Be joyful though you have considered all the facts.” 

As we stagger forward in this bewildering time, we need to keep the faith. There are good, kind people in our country. As Thoreau wrote, “Convince me that you have a seed there and I am prepared to expect wonders.” Keep planting seeds.

This column was produced for Progressive Perspectives, a project of The Progressive magazine, and distributed by Tribune News Service.