Symbiotic/Motivation - cues from 🍃 Nature | "The Hidden Life of Trees" | Teamwork || TGI Monday

Nature organizes into ecosystems where even the smallest organism plays a vital role. Transfer this mentality to some of your work colleagues and teammates and often we forget and how quickly we deny the lazy have loyalty. Nature teaches us so much more. Let's call it symbiotic motivation. 

 

1. Mutualism

In a mutualistic relationship, both species benefit from the interaction. This type of symbiosis is essential for many ecosystems because it enables different species to access resources or services that they might not be able to obtain on their own. Examples include:

Pollinators and Flowers: Bees, birds, and other pollinators feed on the nectar of flowers, while the flowers benefit from the pollination process that helps them reproduce.

Gut Flora and Humans: Humans provide a habitat and nutrition for certain bacteria in their gut, and in return, these bacteria help digest food, produce vitamins, and protect against harmful pathogens.

2. Commensalism

In commensalistic relationships, one species benefits while the other is neither helped nor harmed. These relationships often involve one organism using another for transportation or housing. Examples include:

Remoras and Sharks: Remoras attach to sharks and feed on the leftovers from the shark's meals. The shark is not affected by this arrangement.

Epiphytic Plants and Trees: Epiphytic plants, such as certain orchids and ferns, grow on the branches or trunks of trees to access sunlight and air without harming the host tree.

3. Parasitism

Parasitism is a relationship where one organism, the parasite, benefits at the expense of the other, the host. Parasites may cause disease or even death in the host organism, but they often evolve to coexist without killing the host. Examples include:

Ticks on Mammals: Ticks feed on the blood of mammals, which can lead to irritation, allergic reactions, and the transmission of diseases like Lyme disease to the host.

Tapeworms in Intestines: Tapeworms live in the intestines of larger animals, including humans, absorbing nutrients directly from the host's diet.

The Hidden Life of Trees" by Peter Wohlleben and "Braiding Sweetgrass" by Robin Wall Kimmerer

Theme 1: The Community over the Individual

Theme 2: Reciprocity with Nature

Theme 3: Learning from the Least