Could psychedelics help us save the planet?

This is the first in a multi-part series in which we unpack our seven event categories and how they intersect with the use of psychedelics. First up, NATURE CONNECTION and how psychedelics may open up a door to a deeper relationship with the earth - and ourselves.

In the 1962 novel Island, Aldous Huxley describes a utopian society living in harmony with the natural world and one another. The island inhabitants ritualistically consume moksha, a powerful psychedelic medicine. As global psychedelic use continues to rise, could Huxley’s envisioned hope for a more interconnected world unfold?

Psychedelics have been named “nature connection catalysts,” with users frequently reporting an increased connection to nature, even when used in non-natural settings. In a 2019 investigation, over 600 participants reported having increased nature-relatedness following psychedelics, lasting up to two years from their experience. The authors highlighted their results as relevant “in the face of current ecological crisis and planetary health.”

The study found that nature-relatedness was associated with increased ego-dissolution during psychedelic experiences. Brain imaging shows how psychedelics can dampen activity in the default mode network (DMN), a set of connected brain structures associated with one’s sense of self. The authors explained this neurological effect could underlie psychedelics’ effect on nature connection. “It may be that the loss of perceived boundaries between the self and the other may, in turn, facilitate an expanded perception of self/nature continuity or overlap,” they wrote.

Greg Wrenn is a US-based professor and award-winning author who recently published his queer ayahuasca eco-memoir “Mothership: A Memoir of Wonder & Crisis.” The book describes his journey of healing complex PTSD through ayahuasca and the awakening of his ecological conscience “By clearing away trauma, psychedelics have enabled me to think about things other than myself, such as the environment,” he told the Psychedelic Society. “As that rumination has quieted down, I’ve experienced a lot of luminousness in my mind.”

Greg’s experience echoes the relationship between nature connection and personal healing, which may be enhanced through the use of psychedelics. He described transformative feelings of awe and love for the natural world during his ayahuasca ceremonies and a deep sense of support from the Earth that addressed his relational wounds. “I began to feel like the Amazon itself was my new mother,” he said. 

Likewise, in the mentioned study, increased nature-relatedness following psychedelics was correlated with increased psychological well-being. These experiences align with the evolutionary biologist E.O. Wilson’s biophilia hypothesis, which proposes that humans possess an innate tendency to seek connections with nature and that nature, therefore, positively affects human psychology. Experts, including Greg, have proposed combining psychedelics with nature, such as forest bathing, for a synergistic effect on mental health. 

Recognizing this combinatory potential, psychologist and psychedelic researcher Rosalind Watts recently founded the ACER psychedelic integration program. Using nature-inspired exercises, meditations, and visualizations, the ACER program aims to help people continue their journey of self-healing and growth in light of their psychedelic experiences. 

“My research has shown again and again how often psilocybin experiences initiate realizations that we are part of an interconnected web of life, that we belong, that we are nature, and we must start to live our lives as if that were the case,” Rosalind described in one article. 

Greg described how the personal healing associated with nature connection and psychedelics can translate into collective healing for the planet. “I wanted to give back because this medicine, which was made from the Amazon, saved my life. The medicine teaches us reciprocity, so of course, I would want to give back to the Earth,” he said. 

One 2017 study found that those who were experienced with classical psychedelics were more likely to report pro-environmental actions. These included more responsible energy and water use, increased recycling, choosing more sustainable transport options, and buying more environmentally friendly products. Critics of such findings say pro-environmental people may be more likely to use psychedelics, and so the association could be explained by personality traits rather than a pro-environmental effect of psychedelics. 

However, there have been clear instances in which psychedelics have been transformative for environmental action. For instance, Gail Badbrook, a co-founder of the climate organization Extinction Rebellion, helped establish the group based on an experience with the psychedelic tree bark Iboga.

Greg emphasized the importance of “set and setting” when considering the relationship between psychedelic use and environmental action. He explained psychedelics increase a state of ‘malleability’ in the brain, and so users are more susceptible to the influence of those guiding experiences and the surrounding environment. 

In his own experience, the compassion he experienced from his ayahuasca facilitators was instrumental in shaping his ecological and social consciousness. “When you take in that love, you naturally will radiate it back,” he said.

Going forward, as he suggests in Mothership, Greg hopes psychedelic therapies will soon become legally available so that people can have increased access to safe and responsible use, with support from trained facilitators. This may not pave the way for Huxley’s utopian vision, but as more people experience personal healing, psychedelics could contribute to a more ecologically aware and connected society.

“Are we going to restore the planet to what it was 30 years ago? No, we’re on a different planet now. But we can keep the Earth habitable; we can still have community, and we can save certain ecosystems if we work together. Human beings have always faced impossible situations, but we’ve always had the power of community. And the increased prosocial behavior induced by psychedelics can play a key role in that.”

At the Psychedelic Society we run a huge array of events across many subjects. In fact, we have seven categories: nature connection, intimacy & identity, Adventures in Awareness, ceremony & ritual, community & social change, embodiment & expression, and psychedelic science & culture. But what do these have to do with psychedelics? This blog series explores each in turn.