Presence and earth
We are present on Earth, nourished by it, yet we exploit it without coherence. Our so-called ecological awareness is accompanied by a blindness to the real impacts of our technological lifestyles.
Three definitions of Earth
Earth refers simultaneously to the planet we live on, the soil in which plants grow, and a geographical space—a land, lands. We are present on Earth. We live because the Earth nourishes us. We dwell on it and move across lands. There are, of course, other meanings of the word “earth,” but I will limit myself to these three here. If we are present on Earth, it is because we are nourished by it. It offers us the gift of its hospitality, as well as the gift of our food and our space to live.
The consideration of respecting the Earth seems like a recent discovery. But in general, human beings remain more inclined to exploit the Earth for their benefit rather than to live in harmony with it. There are expectations, if not demands, from some to respect the Earth. But in what way? What does it mean to respect the Earth? What is ecology?
Who do we think we are?
Are we separate from the Earth itself? No, because we are its product. So how have we gained so much power, and how have we been able to harm the Earth so profoundly? Isn’t this very idea of humans having a destructive power over the Earth a representation of an exaggerated, perhaps even delusional, sense of human dominance—a fantasy of omnipotence over an Earth that predates us and will outlive us? What is this arrogance that makes us believe, as mere animals, that we could cause so much harm to our environment?
Of course, one might immediately object that all we have to do is look around to see the terrible degradation of natural spaces, ecosystems, the climate, the plastic in the oceans, those immense quarries, the destruction of seabeds, respiratory illnesses in cities, vanished insects, etc. Indeed, humans are great destroyers of the Earth, undoubtedly far more than any other species in the animal kingdom—a kingdom we must never forget we belong to.
Becoming aware of our incoherent animality
We are strange animals, but we are animals—mammals that reproduce like all other mammals. We have a system of communication and storytelling that is very unique compared to other animals, and we interact to organize life on Earth through political, hierarchical, geographical, geopolitical, and other systems. We observe, we reflect, we struggle. We represent ourselves on this Earth.
Some take positive actions for the Earth—they advocate for the climate, implement recycling, and so on. They do this for their conscience. It is a mode of existence on Earth. It is a meaning they give to their lives through the belief that they are protecting the Earth. That’s very good. But perhaps, while doing this, they exchange images via smartphones, send emails, and use generative AI tools to write their ecological manifestos—making them more impactful to better persuade their audience.
Are these actions coherent with what they defend? Are we aware of the level of destruction we contribute to through the use of these objects and services? When browsing the internet, do we grasp the hierarchy of ecological impact between sorting waste and shopping plastic-free at organic stores, compared to buying our smartphones and the networks that allow us to spread our ideas? Have we questioned this? Often, no—and information about the environmental impacts of our various human activities is carefully obscured by capitalist powers that profit financially from them—that is, through imaginary profits, since money is merely an illusion.
I invite a broader approach to the ecological issue, to better recognize our inconsistencies. May our actions not be mere good conscience but represent a commitment paired with critical thinking—that is, with singular thought.
Presence as the fundamental grounding of our being in the world
Presence constitutes this fundamental grounding that connects us to ourselves and to the world, this quality of attention that transforms lived experience into inhabited consciousness. To be present is to resist the centrifugal forces that disperse us - the imminence that projects us into urgency, the denial that cuts us off from reality, the social injunctions that distance us from our interiority. Presence is neither withdrawal into oneself nor fusion with the exterior, but this creative tension between inner grounding and openness to the world. It is cultivated through paradoxical adaptation that requires sometimes absenting oneself to better find oneself again, through the complex geography of our inner states that vary according to contexts, through resonance with the waves that pass through us. Faced with drama that fractures, submission that empties existence, old age that isolates, presence becomes resistance and reconstruction. It is what allows us to transform the unexpected into opportunity, to maintain our integrity in turmoil, to create connection where solitude reigns. Cultivating one’s presence ultimately means offering oneself the present of the present moment, the source of all authentic transformation.
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Vocal presence
A typology of voices at a distance and the kinds of presence they shape.
Making a phone call, leaving a voice message, joining a video call, listening to a podcast, watching a live stream, talking with a voice AI: six (…) -
What is Philosophy Today?
Crafting concepts from presence and lived life.
Every person carries a philosophy without knowing it, inherited from their culture. I try here to say what it is, for me, to do philosophy today, (…) -
Presence and memorisation
When silence becomes the founding act of knowledge.
A recent discovery in cognitive science reveals that ten seconds of silence after learning triples memory retention. This is not a mnemonic tip. (…) -
Presence and Comparison
Or how the quest for superiority diverts us from the essential.
I postulate that our obsession with comparison distances us from the only authentic way of existing: presence to oneself. This presence is not a (…) -
Presence and anxiety
A Dialectic of transformation.
For years, I have observed within myself the movements of anxiety, this tenacious companion that seemed to structure my relationship with the (…) -
Absence at the Blockage Point
Why our frozen identities prevent us from liberating ourselves.
We all carry impossibilities that define us. Every existence is traversed by aspirations that remain perpetually out of reach. And what if the (…) -
Presence and Isolation
On essential solitude as a condition of authentic thought.
Presence to oneself is born paradoxically from isolation. This fundamental solitude, far from being a withdrawal, constitutes the breeding ground (…) -
Presence and Drama
From absence as a stage to transformed presence.
How do we inhabit the drama that fractures us? Between salvific denial and transformative presence, I bear witness here to my path of identity (…) -
Presence and Tolerance
The art of accompanying without imposing, toward mutual emancipation.
How do we accompany those who seem frozen in their certainties? Authentic tolerance, allied with respectful presence, builds a space of trust (…) -
Social Presence and Physiological Health
What is the true elixir of youth?
Beyond diets, miracle remedies and “scientific progress,” the key to longevity lies in the depth of our connection to community. Lessons from the (…) -
Presence in the Unexpected
The art of grafting the unexpected.
Faced with the unexpected that thwarts the best-laid plans, should we resist or open ourselves? Perhaps the issue is not so much in this question. (…) -
Presence and adaptation
For an ethics of transformation.
Between active presence and constrained adaptation, cultivating an “adaptive presence”: an ethics of creative resistance in the face of (…) -
Leaving the house in the presence
Reflections on collective presence after lockdowns.
The lockdowns of 2020 and 2021 ultimately revealed our vital need to go out and share collective moments. This experience questions the meaning of (…) -
Presence and totality
When antagonisms reveal their synergy.
Presence, openness to the unexpected, seemingly opposes organized totality. Yet, an authentic presence to oneself and others can generate a living (…) -
Presence and value
To multiply human capacities.
Our presence in the world is guided by values whose roots are contingent and anecdotal. Becoming aware of this makes us more flexible in exploring (…) -
Adapting to presence
To be present is paradoxically to transform oneself, through absence from oneself.
To be more present, to oneself and to the world, one must adapt their presence—it is an act of will. And this leads to a paradox: being fully (…) -
Presence and sound waves
Our power to act on the waves that make us.
We exist in a vibrational universe. Our presence in the world is of a wave-like nature, and we can influence the quality of our presence through (…) -
Geography of presence
Life as a layered journey.
Our presence to ourselves varies depending on context. The concept of a “geography of presence” explains how our inner states transform, (…) -
Presence and earth
A short introduction to critical thinking on the eco-capitalist doxa.
We are present on Earth, nourished by it, yet we exploit it without coherence. Our so-called ecological awareness is accompanied by a blindness to (…) -
Presence and power of the spirit
For a politics of non-conformism.
The mind defines humanity and the uniqueness of each person, beyond the physiological. This singular essence allows us to enrich others while (…) -
Presence and suicide
Typology of presence before/after the radical choice of absence.
Suicide paradoxically transforms absence into an overwhelming presence. Grief involves symbolically constructing this absence to rediscover one’s (…) -
Presence and old age
For a neuro-social therapy.
The loneliness of old age could be combated by the creation of objects, allowing the elderly to preserve their presence for themselves and others, (…) -
Presence and submission
Temporal hypothesis of self-failure.
To be present to oneself is to offer oneself the present time, the source of integrity. Submission denies this presence, stealing our vital (…) -
Presence and time
Practical hypothesis of power over time.
We each have extremely varied experiences of time, depending on our general modality of presence in time, and our specific intentionalities at (…)
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The paradox of digital criticism When intellectual posturing masks our own contradictions.
Critics of digital technology abound: Airbnb is destroying city centers, instant access to everything is destroying our relationship with time, (…) -
Presence and value To multiply human capacities.
Our presence in the world is guided by values whose roots are contingent and anecdotal. Becoming aware of this makes us more flexible in exploring (…) -
The work of art in the age of digital mediation Conceptual update of Walter Benjamin’s “The Work of Art in the Age of Mechanical Reproduction” (1935).
During an experiment in artistic mediation integrating digital techniques, it became clear to me that the typologies of status and function of (…) -
I have chosen A film by Benoît Labourdette (2’12s, silent, 2018).
We’re actors in our absurd world. -
Cease, anxious world Calligrams
