Solution: Ecologically Integrated Paradigm
(contributed by Rakel Evenson)

The EIP presupposes that all life is intricately, intimately connected. Therefore it is of deep concern for all life’s health that we preserve life’s diversity and live out the knowledge of life’s intentional web.

Here are some examples of life’s connections:
http://www.kidsplanet.org/wol/index.html (great for young folks)

http://www.fieldmuseum.org/biodiversity/

http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/ecosystems/teacherguide6.html (has teaching resources)

The EIP Broken Down
--organic farming (no pesticides or chemicals are used when growing the food)
--energy and waste reduction (farming methods that conserve water and oil)
--people are citizens with rights and not only consumers (everyone deserves good food, not only people with purchasing power)
--the earth’s resources will not last forever (the world is running out of oil, soil and water reservoirs are being depleted faster than they can be replaced)
--local and regional supported agriculture benefits all societies, especially developing countries

To learn more about how to begin to think, move, and breathe the Ecologically Integrated Paradigm, here are some websites about EIP’s features and ideas for how to start living out this new way of thinking about earth-human health:
http://www.nal.usda.gov/afsic/pubs/ofp/ofp.shtml about organic farming

http://www.localharvest.org find organic farms near you

http://earth911.org/energy/ how to conserve energy and what it costs

http://www.cfra.org/policy/2007 about the 2007 Farm Bill

http://www.farmpolicyfacts.org/ current news about the 2007 Farm Bill

http://www.sierraclub.org/ an organization dedicated to preserving the environment

What you can do to make earth-human health a priority!
1. Read Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver. She writes about the year where her family decided to only eat food that was produced in their county. The book goes into detail about how eating local and organic looks like on the plate, what it means for the economy, and how it changes the world. http://www.animalvegetablemiracle.org/

2. Start buying only organic produce. It will be more expensive but it will be healthier for you and the earth. http://www.localharvest.org

3. Notice farms. What's being grown around you? Corn? Soybeans? Strawberries? If you know any farmers, ask them what is like growing food these days. http://farmertofarmer.org/ is a website about farmers helping farmers all over the world.

4. Review the food given and collected for food pantries. Is the food healthy? Is it locally grown? If all people deserve good food, what new ideas pop up for how your congregation can do ministry that connects earth health with human heath?

5. Check out these books, read them in groups, and learn more about the push to be earth and human healthy. (on www.amazon.com as of May 3, 2008.)

Food Wars: The Global Battle for Mouths, Minds and Markets by Tim Land and Michael Heasman.

Food Fight: The Citizen's Guide to a Food and Farm Bill by Daniel Imhoff and Michael Pollan