“What I stand for is what I stand on”—that is, the earth—is a saying that has been printed on many images. American philosopher, poet, essayist, farmer, novelist and social activist Wendell Berry (born August 5, 1934) wrote in the poem “Below” (1974):
   
“What I stand for
is what I stand on.”
   
“What we stand for is what we stand on” is a popular variation, and was said by Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley on June 19, 2013.
   
         
Wikiquote: Wendell Berry
Wendell Berry (born 5 August 1934) is an American philosopher, poet, essayist, farmer, novelist and social activist.
 
Poems
What I stand for
is what I stand on.
. “Below” in A Part (1980).
     
Google Books
Kayak
Volumes 34-40
1974
Pg. 12:
(The same poem as below.—ed.)
 
Google Books   
There Is Singing Around Me
By Wendell Berry
Austin, TX: Cold Mountain Press
1976
Pg. ?:
BELOW
Above trees and rooftops
is the range of symbols;
banner, cross, and star;
air war, the mode of those
who live by symbols; the pure
abstraction of travel by air.
Here a spire holds up
an angel with trump and wings;
he’s in his element.
Another lifts a hand
with forefinger pointing up
to admonish that all’s not here.
All’s not. But I aspire
downward. Flyers embrace
the air, and I’m a man
who needs something to hug:
wife or child or friend,
animals or trees. (These two last lines are often eliminated, perhaps because “tree hugger” has a stereotyped connotation.—ed.)
All my dawns cross the horizon
and rise, from underfoot.
What I stand for
is what I stand on.
 
19 November 1976, Lexington (KY) Herald, pg. A-19 photo caption:
Kentucky Poets
“I love sailing to Byzantium but times have changed,” read Lexington author, poet and University of Kentucky professor James B. Hall, left. “What I stand for is what I stand on,” read Henry County farmer, author and UK professor Wendell Berry. The two Kentucky writers were featured at a poetry reading yesterday on the Transylvania University campus.
 
28 September 1980, Los Angeles (CA) Times, “A juggling act with life’s gifts” reviewed by Holly Prado, The Book Review sec., pg. 9, col. 1:
A Part by Wendell Berry (North Point, $6)
Wendell Berry’s lack of greed and arrogance is a blessing. The constant theme in his poems is the human responsibility to stay in balance with the gifts of life—land, animals, plants, family. In his poem “Below,” he ends with the lines: “What I stand for/is what I stand on.” Berry’s inentions are clear; his poetry is clear.
     
Google Books
The Selected Poems of Wendell Berry
By Wendell Berry
Berkeley, CA: COunterpoint
1998
Pg. 140:
BELOW
(...)
What I stand for
is what I stand on.
 
OCLC WorldCat record
The long-legged house
Author: Wendell Berry
Publisher: Berkeley, CA : Counterpoint, ©2012.
Edition/Format:   eBook : Document : Essay : English
Summary:
First published in 1969 and out of print for more than twenty-five years, The Long-Legged House was Wendell Berry’s first collection of essays, the inaugural work introducing many of the central issues that have occupied him over the course of his career. Three essays at the heart of this volume-“The Rise,” “The Long-Legged House,” and “A Native Hill”—Are essays of homecoming and memoir, as the writer finds his home place, his native ground, his place on earth. As he later wrote, “What I stand for is what I stand on,” and here we see him beginning the acts of rediscovery and resettling.
           
19 June 2013, Targeted News Service (Washington, DC), “Waging Peace: 50th Anniversary of President Kennedy’s Visit to Ireland”:
Gov. Martin O’Malley, D-Md., has issued the text of the following speech:
(...)
A country like Ireland can become a leader in moving a larger world to care and to act. Together with a growing consensus in the United States and the will of other nations, we can focus our progress in science and technology.
 
Every positive change is needed. Renewable Energy. Solar power. Geothermal power. Wind power. Wave energy. Carbon capture. Green design. Net-zero energy homes. Smart grids.
 
What we stand for is what we stand on.
 
Twitter
Maryland LCV
@MDLCV
We have a planet to save and jobs to create. What we stand for is what we stand on @GovernorOMalley
10:51 AM - 25 Jul 2013
   
Twitter
Jeremy Solly
@jsolly
‘What we stand for is what we stand on’ - love that @marazepeda is quoting #wendelberry #TFNW
12:20 PM - 15 Aug 2014 from Portland, OR
 
Facebook
Holland & Barrett
March 22, 2018 ·
What we stand for is what we stand on - our planet. Therefore, in line with a recent Greenpeace UK report, we have decided to remove all krill-based products from sale. Please read more here: http://bit.ly/2pyq1JE
💚🌍
 
Facebook
Aziza & the Cure
March 1, 2019 ·
What we stand for is what we stand on 🌍
       
ABC News (Australia)
Tears outside PM’s office as students skip school to demand climate action again
By Paige Cockburn
Updated 3 May 2019, 1:25am
(...)
Students held signs with slogans such as “denial is not a policy” and “what we stand for is what we stand on” while chanting “time up’s Tony”.
 
Twitter
feel good threads ☾
@glowingthread15
🌎 ❝ what i stand for is what i stand on ❞ -Wendell Berry 🌎
3:16 PM - 6 May 2019