It feels fitting that this piece arrives on Halloween—a day when we flirt with shadows and celebrate transformation…of sorts.
After all, Frankenstein was never just about monsters. It was about creation without conscience—knowledge without wisdom, invention without care.
In many ways, we’ve been living our own version of that story as Homo technologicus—powerful, brilliant, but disconnected from the living whole.
The time has come for a new creation story—not stitched together from parts, but born of reconnection.
This is our real experiment: Becoming Homo guardianis—the Eco-Guardian-in-Training.
So. let’s dig in.
As I sit here, reflecting on nearly a year of writing and recording One Cause—week after week, article after article—I find myself feeling both awe and humility. What began as an attempt to name “the one cause beneath the many crises” has turned into something much larger: a living invitation to evolve.
For eleven months now, I’ve been tracing the story of how humanity’s mistaken sense of separation from nature has led to the metacrisis we now face—ecological, spiritual, political, and cultural all at once. But somewhere along the way, the work began to shift. The question was no longer just How do we fix what’s broken?
It became:
Who must we become to live in harmony with the Earth again?
That question has stayed with me like a heartbeat.
The Old Story: Homo technologicus
We humans have been telling ourselves that intelligence is our crowning glory—that progress means mastering the natural world through innovation and control. And to be fair, this capacity has given us much: art, science, medicine, wonder.
But it has also given rise to what some have called Homo technologicus—humans defined not by wisdom, but by the tools we wield. A species so clever we can split atoms and code consciousness… yet so distracted we barely pause to feel the forest’s breath or hear the river’s song.
We have become brilliant—and dangerously unbalanced. Our inventions outpace our introspection. Our reach exceeds our roots.
The Evolutionary Invitation
But what if our next evolutionary step isn’t about better technology, but better relationship? What if the true frontier isn’t Mars, but the mycelial web beneath our feet—and the reawakening of our hearts to the Earth that made us?
That, I believe, is the threshold we now stand upon: the emergence of Homo guardianis—the Eco-Guardian-in-Training.
This isn’t a new biological species. It’s a new story of what it means to be human.
It’s a remembering that intelligence without empathy is incomplete, and progress without reciprocity is regression.
The Eco-Guardian-in-Training
An Eco-Guardian-in-Training is someone who knows they are part of the Earth’s living community, not separate from it.
They live simply and gratefully, finding joy in sufficiency rather than excess.
They practice reciprocity—giving back to the web of life that sustains them.
They see stewardship not as sacrifice, but as a sacred responsibility.
And most importantly, they recognize that this journey has no finish line—that we are always learning how to care more deeply, to listen more fully, to belong more completely.
In short: we are becoming Homo guardianis, the humans who remember how to live in right relationship with life itself.
The Work of a Lifetime
I often think about my grandchildren—and someday, perhaps, theirs.
If they ever ask, “What did you do while the world was changing?” I want to be able to answer with my head held high:
I chose to evolve. I chose to love the Earth back to life.
That’s what One Cause has been about all along—uncovering the deep root of our collective forgetting, and rediscovering the Great Truths that can guide us home: interconnection, sufficiency, reciprocity, and stewardship.
The Eco-Guardian Youth Project is one way to bring those truths alive—helping young people (and the adults who love them) experience themselves as part of the living Earth, and step consciously onto this path of becoming.
But the truth is, the youth aren’t the only ones in training. We all are.
Every time we plant a tree, tell a story that honors the more-than-human world, or choose sufficiency over consumption, we take another step in this great re-evolution of consciousness.
A Closing Reflection
If Homo technologicus was the human who asked, “How can I control?”
Then Homo guardianis is the human who asks, “How can I care?”
That shift—from control to care—is the hinge on which our future turns.
It’s the work of a lifetime, and perhaps many lifetimes.
But I believe it’s the most important work there is.
Reflection for You
What does becoming an Eco-Guardian-in-Training look like in your life—right here, right now? What small act of reciprocity or reverence might you offer to the web of life today?
With gratitude,
—Brad (Your fellow Homo guardinis and Grand-dude
P.S.
Now that the One Cause rough draft is complete, I’d love to hear from you:
What would you like to see from me here on Substack moving forward?
This project has been a labor of love, clarity, and commitment. And as we enter this next phase together, I want to shape what’s next in a way that supports you—your curiosity, your growth, your family’s journey, your desire to live in alignment with life.
A few ideas I’ve been exploring:
Eco-Guardian-in-Training Dispatches – Short, personal essays or podcast episodes on what it looks like to live the Four Great Truths in real time (compost fails, homestead wins, kids’ questions, all of it).
Behind-the-Scenes of the Eco-Guardian Youth Project – Updates, early access to new tools, stories from the Secret Library, and ways to get involved.
Tools for Inspired Action – WOOP guides, Flow Practices, Storymaker Prompts, and more.
Community Spotlights or Guest Conversations – Featuring fellow Eco-Guardians, teachers, parents, artists, and elders walking this path in their own way.
But more than anything, I want to know what you are hungry for.
What would nourish you?
What would make you feel accompanied on this path?
Please let me know in the comments or reply to this post.
Let’s co-create what comes next.
After all, we’re in this Fourth Quarter together.
