An evolutionary perspective on creativity
This morning I attended an online kick-off call organized by a group of individuals who are organizing a year-long collaboration to establish a Collective Imagination Practice Community. This blog is inspired by listening to the ideas exchanged between about 126 people from around the world during this call. I would like to treat it as a raw provocation that will lead to more conversations aimed at forming and nurturing a a Collective Imagination Practice Community.
To understand creativity one must understand Natural Selection. It is a process through which species adapt to their environments. It is the engine that drives evolution. In the flow of life curiosity, consciousness and imagination fuel creativity, which in turn helps us find alignment with our surroundings and a flow for living a purposeful and rewarding life.
To frame my thinking on this topic I will draw upon the analogy of a tree as a part of nature’s ecosystem. At one scale a tree is a part of a forest and a forest a part of a wider ecology. As we consider evolution of the planet (for the purpose of this article I will limit the scale of the discussion at the planet level), a tree has a distinct lifecycle- birth, growth, decay and regeneration- as a part of the evolution of nature’s ecosystem. At micro scale I compare leaves to a community of living species, each living between birth and death to make a regenerative contribution to the survival and evolution of ecology. In this context I share one of my poems:
regenerative design
life is not just
the time spent
between
birth and death
end of life
is not
like a leaf
clinging on
to a branch
till it’s time
to fall.
there is more to life
than the life of a leaf
life is like a tree-
a community of
organisms
that cycle through
life and death
to keep a forest standing
the life on earth
relies on
the regenerative power
of the forests
sustainable design
is an ecosystem
of organisms
working together
in a cycle of
renewal
restoration and
growth.
a leaf has
a purpose
larger than
its life
on the branch
to blend
with the dirt
and give life
to the tree
sustainable design
is regenerative design
I propose that creativity is the core capacity of all species. It helps us live life through an ongoing process of self discovery and self making. It leads us to enhanced consciousness, clarity and a sense of purpose. Each of us is endowed with this creative capacity and we can become a harmonious part of nature’s ecology by forming communities that encourage creativity of each member and give them a space to go through the cycle of evolution.
The visual representation I have created of this cycle of evolution is left to your interpretation.
the four quadrants of this diagram represent four phases of evolution of consciousness. It is a part of my own process of clarification and repurposing that I find myself in at this moment.
The jobs we do to earn a living must not obscure our process of self making. I hope that my post will help create a dialogue and shape a collective imagination of our shared journey into the future.
