Matter and Desire: An Erotic Ecology

Nautilus Award Gold Medal Winner, Ecology & Environment  

In Matter and Desire, internationally renowned biologist and philosopher Andreas Weber rewrites ecology as a tender practice of forging relationships, of yearning for connections, and of expressing these desires through our bodies. Being alive is an erotic processconstantly transforming the self through contact with others, desiring ever more life.

In clever and surprising ways, Weber recognizes that lovethe impulse to establish connections, to intermingle, to weave our existence poetically together with that of other beingsis a foundational principle of reality. The fact that we disregard this principle lies at the core of a global crisis of meaning that plays out in the avalanche of species loss and in our belief that the world is a dead mechanism controlled through economic efficiency.

Although rooted in scientific observation, Matter and Desire becomes a tender philosophy for the Anthropocene, a poetic materialism, that closes the gap between mind and matter. Ultimately, Weber discovers, in order to save life on Earthand our own meaningful existence as human beingswe must learn to love.