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Exploring How Humans Can Become a Keystone Species on Planet Earth

The Institute for Ecosystem Based Living explores the natural world through art, science, food and social practice.

Earth shows us how to do it through biomimicry, but our unique humanness can craft a new future as well. Art engages our creativity, science ignites our sense of wonder, food is pleasure and a visceral connection with nature, and community provides us safety, sociability and the increased capability for impact.

As frightening as change can be, it’s the only reasonable choice; it can be a process filled with beauty, awe, pleasure and wonder.

We are fractals of planet earth, part and parcel of this spinning orb and we can contribute to the health and well-being of all life on earth. We just need to adjust our systems to create their own self-generating, healthy habitats.

Past Events

Underwater Economics of the San Francisco Bay

This was an intersection of human and ecological design along the San Francisco Bay. We explored this liminal shoreline through the lenses of science, architecture, economics, and food.

Notes from the Underground

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Mushrooms feed us, heal us, and sometimes poison us — yet we are only beginning to understand their vast capacities and what they may mean for our future.

Daylighting & Upwelling

Daylighting & Upwelling explored how rivers, wetlands, and estuaries can become living systems again—supporting ecological health and community prosperity based on the Napa River Restoration.

Love, Grief & Octopuses

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How do we hold climate grief and our love for extraordinary coastal places at the same time? This immersive evening explored the depths of the Monterey Bay Canyon through science, art, music, psychedelics and food.

Voyages: AI and The Ocean

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This event explored how rapidly advancing AI can deepen our understanding of ocean life, from phytoplankton to whales, and reshape our relationship with the sea through science, storytelling, and art.

A Responsibility to Awe: Dark Matter and Uncertainty

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The great galactic mystery of dark matter is the “invisible glue of the cosmos”. This, along with Dark Energy, which is expanding our universe, make up at least 95% of our universe, and yet we know very little about what they are.