We are in an environmental health crisis. In 1995, it is foremost a crisis in perception: our planetary human life support system has been grievously injured, yet, as in our personal bodily health crisis, we can be deep in life-threatening pathological distress before we feel any pain. Life in the U.S. is still, for many, relatively painless.

Now is the time for a timely decision, with the sharp reality that to not decide is itself a decision. Any proposed solution, whether it entails legislation, education, or recourse to advanced technology, clearly requires cooperation, including radical changes in philosophy regarding the relationship between man and Nature; the value of life-supporting stuff over war- making stuff, and extended advantage (survival) emphasized in term of short-term gain.

In contemplating a change in national purpose, it may be useful to reflect upon the causes of some great socio-economic changes in 20th century U. S. The Great Depression, the New Deal, mobilization during W.W.II, and the Cold War, were all events brought about, not by natural forces, but by human decision. Each event was accompanied by a significant change of consciousness. In 1995 we are faced with an emergency brought about by our decisions which have shown a misunderstanding of natural forces, and which will require a general change of consciousness to correct. What is required is nothing short of a planetary New Deal.

One way to bring a change of consciousness closer to home would be to change our ideal of "home." Home and family constitute the immediate environment, the life-center for most humans, yet the typical homeowner must commit to a life of house maintenance, relying on expensive but inefficient mechanical systems and appliances, following household practices which result in even 'ecology-minded' homes becoming virtual "factories of environmental waste and destruction."(Wendell Berry) All this to be supported, if possible, by a 40-hour work week. With our comfortable houses and cars, we have become an indoor species, oblivious to our natural surroundings.

But what if we defined "home" as "life-support?" Our habitat- dwelling, as a living system, would engage our human family in balance and mutual support with our larger, natural family. Orienting our life-support architecture in recognition of our local earth geology / topography, watershed, living organisms and energies, includes human energy as well as solar, electrical, and meteorological. For as a participant in a working ecosystem, one offers his human energy in the form of attention and personal skills, in exchange for food, heat, and shelter provided by the habitat. This in lieu of the standard 40-hour wage-gathering ritual.

In oriental mythology, the Magic Tortoise is a creature which sustains itself on sunlight and air. Just as space-age technology has permitted seeing planet Earth in a new perspective, it has also provided the realistic possibility of humans thriving in balance with the rest of creation upon the Earth. Our space-age MAGIC TORTOISE is a design habitat which replicates in microcosm the natural life cycles of the planet. It is powered by the sun and driven by photosynthesis. Under the guidance of thoughtful human beings, it lives in harmony with its natural surroundings and provides shelter, food, and energy for all its participants.

The structure of the MAGIC TORTOISE makes use of advanced structural designs and materials and is sensitive to the local environment. It is solar-oriented and super-insulated or earth- sheltered to minimize heat loss. Heating, air-handling, electrical service, and mechanical systems operations are based on the cycles of solar absorption, plant growth, and organic digestion. Symbiosis is the main working principle of the MAGIC TORTOISE. The plant, animal, and human interactions are organized so that every part produces food or energy for the other parts. Heat producers are arranged back-to-back with heat users. Nothing is wasted.

The MAGIC TORTOISE is far more than just a "New Age" collection of hardware, the MAGIC TORTOISE incorporates long-held knowledge and established techniques, made more efficient and accessible through today's improved materials and technology. Leading-edge solar collection, hydroponic and organic growing techniques, digester, heat exchangers, and water purification make it now possible to establish a free-standing self-contained life-support system for a small community of families. As in nature, such communities benefit greatly by their own diversity. Free- standing communities in turn benefit the local ecosystem by helping to reduce the demand on centralized power production.

All of this is now possible with the current off-the-shelf technology and materials.

Further evolution of the MAGIC TORTOISE to make it still more efficient and user-friendly could see the utilization of D.C. (direct current) electrical power in place of conventional A.C. This could stimulate a market for a new generation of high- efficiency tools and appliances based on local generation and consumption of electricity.

In terms of consciousness-raising, the MAGIC TORTOISE as an environmental teaching machine can promote earth-oriented changes in concepts such as:

• Seeing differences, not as opposites, but as complementaries; Look for the mediating principle.
• Overcoming alienation: even referring to "the environment" in some way separates us from our life-support. We are the same as our environment.
• Everything is alive. There is no 'dead' stuff, just like there is no 'empty'. The world of matter and energy may be seen as an erector set, but all the parts are living and it is the purpose of everything to improve.