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         The history of civilizations is the complex of human stories about the advancements and setbacks of humanity’s aspirations and hopes to build social structures and political institutions with the purpose of elevating the economic and cultural environment of societies. Along the entire human history every civilization has also attempted to raise ethical norms to improve the social functionality of societies, norms demanding to be in as much in resonance with the laws of the natural world. Our natural world has evolved on planet Earth by ecological systems and biodiversity. The resilience of ecological systems has developed due to the balance of successful cohabitation of the continuously evolving new species. After 3 billion years of evolutionary progress from simple to extreme complex organisms, biodiversity entrenched in the Tree of Life has reached its peak in our times. [1],[2]The genus Homo Sapiens evolved in the latest stage of evolution -from 2 million to 100 thousand years ago-with the occurrence of the Human Mind as a singularity event in the evolutionary process of life.[3]

            The Human Mind driven by curiosity and ingeniousness within its reach for social cohabitation systems so as for individual happiness, has raised cultures and civilizations being recently in unfortunate contradiction with the natural world, the species belonging like us, human beings, to the Tree of Life.

            The beginning of the Third Millennium is considered to be the time of global economic and political progress, due to the meteoric rise of science and of new technologies. Humanity is expecting that sciences should prevent, give answers and solve any problem confronting contemporary societies. Meantime like never before in our globalized world, humanity’s challenges and problems have also global dimensions: the Holocene sixth mass extinction of our eco-systems[4], a deep rooted political and cultural conflict dividing all societies of our global world and a “life and death” crisis generated by the Corona Virus. The Corona Virus forced the globalized way of life on our planet to a stand-still, to a time of silence for billions of human beings. This silence, this stand-still, hand in hand with social distancing are revitalizing a nearly lost habit of our Human Mind: self-reflection.[5] Self-reflection is a metaphysical attitude which at ultima ratio is directing our thoughts toward the understanding of the purpose and meaning of Life. Along the entire human history going back to the earliest writings of human societies, the metaphysical concept of Tree of Life belongs universally to every civilization which raised and disappeared in known human history.

            The phylogenetic Tree of Life originated in the early 19th century as a research tool used by scientists to explore biodiversity and the evolution of Life[6], while religions, mythological and philosophical traditions have associated the Tree of Life with knowledge and wisdom related to the miracle of interdependence of all forms of Creation. There is no deeper congruency between sciences and metaphysics than the idea of Tree of Life.

              Associated with knowledge and wisdom within philosophy and religion and meantime enabling the understanding of biodiversity and evolution in sciences, the Tree of Life’s purpose is to enable us as human beings to understand that we are belonging to biodiversity and because we have been gifted with the Human Mind, we have to take responsibility for the survival and well being of all forms of life on Earth.     

              Self-Reflection about these multiple aspects of our responsibility should be a mandatory exercise for our wellbeing. Self-Reflection could help us to understand where the boundaries of our civilization are, and the imperative that we have to participate in the process of stopping and reversing the Holocene biotic crisis – the sixth mass extinction.[7] Human societies are dependent on the survival of eco-systems and biodiversity. Our civilization will survive or disappear depending on our free will to help the natural world - the Tree of Life - to regain its balance and to reverse the sixth mass extinction. The purpose of the Tree of Life is to give human societies the understanding that our responsibility is cohabitation and selective domination of the natural world, as defined and practiced by Conservationism.[8] The recently initiated worldwide project to plant 1 billion trees is one manifestation of our well understood responsibility.

            The meaning of the Tree of Life as concept has evolved from its cornerstone role in understanding the interconnection of all forms of Life, of their interdependence and of the imperative necessity of conservation of the natural world, as the condition sine qua non to preserve our Western civilization. The purpose, the ultima ratio of our civilization has been and continues to be - considering Jefferson’s sacred words of inalienable Rights to Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness - the enabling of opportunities for a meaningful life to every human being living on planet Earth.

           

                                                     

 

[1]David Bond. Grasby, Stephen E. 2017, "On the causes of mass extinctions". Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. Mass Extinction Causality: Records of Anoxia, Acidification, and Global Warming during Earth's Greatest Crises, 478: 3–29, Last Accessed 12.09.2019, doi: 10.1016/j.palaeo.2016.11.00.

[2] Plait 2014

[3] Wilson 1992, 186

[4]W.J.Ripple.;Wolf.C.;NewsomeT.M.;GalettiM.;AlamgirM.;CristE.;MahmoudMI.;LauranceW.F,2017,"WorldScientists'WarningtoHumanity:ASecondNotice", BioScience. 67,No.2:1026–1028, Last Accessed 12.09.2019, doi:10.1093/biosci/bix125. 

[5] Cara Rosaen. Benn, Rita. 2006, “The Experience of Transcendnetal Mediation in Middle SchoolStudents: A Qualitative Report,” Explore. 2, No.5: 422-425, Last Accessed 12.09.2019, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.explore.2006.06.01

[6] Darwin 1859, 129

[7] McCallum, Malcolm L. 2015, "Vertebrate biodiversity losses point to a sixth mass extinction", Biodiversity and Conservation. 24, No.10 (Early Summer/May): 2497–2519. 10.1007/s10531-015-0940-6 ; S.L Pimm,.; Jenkins, C.N.; Abell, R.; Brooks, T.M.; Gittleman, J. L.; Joppa, L.N.; Raven, P.H.; Roberts, C.M.; Sexton, J.O.2014, "The biodiversity of species and their rates of extinction, distribution, and protection", Science. 344, no. 6187: 1246-1752. 10.1126/science.1246752

[8] Fred Van Dyke, 2008, Conservation Biology Foundations, 2nd.ed (New York, USA: Springer Verlag), https://www.10.1007/978-1-4020-6891-1;  MichaelE.Soule,1986,“WhatisConservationBiolog,.”BioScience35,No.11:727-734,Lastaccessed01.13.2020, https://www/doi.org/10/2307/1310054

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                                                        Work Cited

 

1. Bond, David P.G.; Grasby, Stephen E. 2017. "On the causes of mass extinctions". Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology. Mass Extinction Causality: Records of Anoxia, Acidification, and Global Warming during Earth's Greatest Crises. 478: 3–29. Last Accessed 12.09.2019. doi: 10.1016/j.palaeo.2016.11.00

2. Darwin, Charles.1859. On the origin of Species by means of natural selection, or, The preservation of favored races in the struggle for life. First thousand Edition. ( London, united Kingdom: John Murray).

3. McCallum, Malcolm L. 2015. "Vertebrate biodiversity losses point to a sixth mass extinction". Biodiversity and Conservation. 24, no.10 (Early Summer/May): 2497–2519. Last Accessed 12.09.2019. 10.1007/s10531-015-0940-6

4. Plait, Phil.2014. "Poisoned Planet." Slate. July 28, 2014. Last Accessed 12.09.2019. https://slate.com/technology/2014/07/the-great-oxygenation-event-the-earths-first-mass-extinction.html

5. Ripple, W.J.; Wolf C.; Newsome T.M.; Galetti M.; Alamgir M.; Crist E.; Mahmoud MI.; LauranceW.F.;.2017."WorldScientists’WarningtoHumanity: A Second Notice". BioScience. 67, No.2:1026–1028. Last Accessed 12.09.2019. doi:10.1093/biosci/bix125.

6. Rosaen, Cara and Benn, Rita. 2006. “The Experience of Transcendental Meditation in Middle School Students: A Qualitative Report.” Explore. 2, No.5: 422-425. Last Accessed 12.09.2019. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.explore.2006.06.01

7. Soule, Michael E. 1986. “What is Conservation Biolog.” BioScience 35, No.11:727-734, Last accessed 01.13.2020. https://www/doi.org/10/2307/1310054

8. Van Dyke, Fred.2008. Conservation Biology Foundations. 2nd.ed. (New York, USA: Springer Verlag).  https://www.10.1007/978-1-4020-6891-1.

9. Wilson Edward O.1992.The Diversity of Life. (Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press).