This statement points to an important transformation from outer awareness to inner awareness. The Anthropocene is not only an environmental or scientific condition; it is also an inner condition — a reflection of who we are, how we think, and how we relate to the world. Litfin invites us to see that the crisis of the Earth is inseparable from the crisis of human identity and consciousness. The ecological transformations we witness externally mirror the transformations that must occur within us.

Litfin’s words mark an ethical and existential turn. The Anthropocene challenges us to rethink what it means to be human. Rather than positioning ourselves as masters of nature, we are called to recognize ourselves as participants within a vast, interconnected planetary system. This shift in self-understanding is essential if we are to live sustainably and compassionately on Earth.

By asking “What are we?” instead of only “What are we doing?”, Litfin highlights that technical or policy.

• Dawning

• Compels

• Ask ourselves

• What on Earth

• Doing

• Being

• Fundamentally

• Planetary era

«A quiet revolution is unfolding throughout higher education in the form of contemplative pedagogical practices. The mind’s ability to adopt a metaposition relative to its own contents, thereby consciously integrating somatic, emotional, and mental experience, has profound implications for learning.”