Humans and the Natural World Article 2

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What is critical with regard to the climate crisis is the question of the economy. It is clear that necessary change cannot be accomplished without a positive transformation of the current global economic system supported by the worlds’ political regimes. The increase of monetizing the world’s natural resources and the instrumentation view of the living world further alienates humans from reality, and the Living Earth that sustains us.

There is a kind of magical thinking that puts a monetary value on Earth’s natural resources, and through the trading of such values, the planet’s assets will somehow be protected. Such thinking leads to arrogance and thus to believe that people in general can do no wrong. Such pride is often considered a flaw in character in relation to developing techniques—including markets—to harvest and manage the Earth has simply succeeded in pushing the natural world into a perilous state.

The objectification of nature as something outside of humanity, and unrelated, has enabled humans to exploit resources, people, and places with complete disregard for short and long-term impacts and consequences regarding the sustainability of humanity and the Living Earth.

It could be said that the current era of the Anthropocene, of which we are so concerned, is a co-produced era that we must learn to inhabit. It could be said that there is no return to earlier eras, there is just living on a rapidly changing planet as a part of the Earth’s community. Such learning is necessary for future human survival and well-being. However, we must treat the Living Earth with knowledge and respect, and a sense of empathy for the lives of others, as well as the life processes that both support us and which we co-create.

For humanity to survive will require us to perceive ourselves as inextricably interconnected with the natural world that surrounds us, This means a more profound understanding of our place within the Living Earth, and working with nature for mutual survival and well-being.

In a recent ‘State of Nature Report’, the loss in relation to animals, plants, and marine life shows no sign of slowing down. The Report was produced by a coalition of more than 70 wildlife organisations and government conservation agencies. The causes of the losses are the intensification of farming, pollution from fertiliser and plastic, the climate crisis, etc. The report shows no significant improvement since the last one in 2016, which said the UK was “among one of the most nature depleted countries in the world.”

In today’s increasingly urbanized world maybe we ought to seek a path that reconnects, in a spiritual and material sense, humans with nature, and no longer see nature as an external entity to humans, but rather that humans must work in harmony with Earth's natural systems. Nature is not something that exists out there. Rather we live in a natural world that is actively engaged with human activities and whose comportment creates conditions for it’s, and our daily life and possible future.

Another trend is the increasing global movement of people from rural areas to cities, and of the rise of polluted and congested megacities, often resulting in the loss of human connection with the rest of nature. Yet another trend is the exponential growth of technology where we find ourselves at the crest of a wave where technological change is having a huge impact across the world.

The idea that humans could change the climate by emitting large quantities of carbon dioxide is not new. In the late 18th century Swedish chemist Svante Arrhenius calculated that doubling the levels of carbon dioxide would warm Earth’s surface temperature by several degrees.

As humans and nature are inextricably linked, and human sustainability depends on plants, animals, and micro life, it is very important to find ways to reach the minds and hearts of all people and to create a better understanding of nature and what loss of biodiversity means. What is promising is the innovative processes that influence policy through internet and social media. It has a power that is stronger than ever facilitating analysis of data, interactions and flows of information on a global scale.

For Professor Peter Kahn, and many others it is obvious that interaction with nature nurtures us. It might be a woodland walk, gardening, or even tracking a bird in flight overhead. The stress seems to ease. We are more alive. For years the idea that nature benefits people both physically and psychologically was viewed with caution by the scientific community. Today, following numerous empirical studies, scientists generally agree that the benefits are real.

The benefits of our connection to nature have never been more apparent. Yet our kinship to the natural world continues to be radically restructured by human actions. In a rapidly changing world rediscovering our connection to the Living Earth is vital. Indeed, Interaction with nature has been shown to reduce stress, depression, aggression, and improve our immune function, mental health, and increase people’s understanding and interconnectedness with the natural world. No wonder that many exercise physiologists say that if we can only do one exercise, make it walking. We have walked the land ever since we have been a species. We co-evolved with nature, and that helps explain why today we derive so many health benefits from interacting with it.

If present trends continue, the probable future for life on Earth will be defined by periods of substantial social, environmental, and economic disruption, if not complete collapse. Protecting the Living Earth is an enormous task, almost beyond words. The first step is to bring planetary reverence into our everyday lives, acknowledging the concept of a living planet from simply being some kind of abstract idea. If nothing else, such a step questions the arrogance of thinking that somehow humans are separate from and rulers of the Earth that sustains us.

Three-quarters of all Earth’s ice-free land has been directly altered by humans. Every eight days, we build the equivalent of a medium sized city. We simplify landscapes to ensure they provide maximum economic benefits that erode the biosphere’s resilience. We are destroying rainforests that absorb carbon dioxide and are driving countless species towards extinction.

We need a way to awaken people both to the enormity of what is looming and the fact that we can still do something about it. We need a new philosophy for this near-terminal moment in the history of humanity. Now is a time when we ought to dedicate ourselves to bringing about the greatest shift in human consciousness and in the way we live. No longer can we afford to be wasteful, thoughtless, selfish and destructive.

We need to rediscover a more realistic understanding of our place in the natural world in order to address the apathy and the denial that are preventing us making the changes that are inevitable if humanity is to survive. It is becoming increasingly clear that endless material growth and the accumulation of wealth are helping to destroy the Living Earth.

It could be said that people have good reason to be anxious about the state of the natural world. The question is: Now can we use our voices to encourage positive action at every level of human activity? It is not simply about saving the planet. The planet will be orbiting the sun long after we’re gone. It is about saving humanity and the other living things that we share the Earth with. The majority of people are worried that they don’t really know what to do about the climate crisis, a fear that may paralyze them. Whereas, providing people with a sense of efficacy of how we can make a positive difference by using our voices in our communities and beyond.

The future habitability of Earth for human societies depends on the collective actions humanity takes now. There is growing evidence that the next few years will prove to be a decisive decade. Loss of the natural world must end and serious inequality addressed.

It could be said that today there are three radically restructuring trends. One is the destruction of nature. The second is the movement of people from rural areas to cities, resulting in polluted and congested megacities. The third is the exponential growth of technology.

Research indicates that while technological nature is better than no nature it is not as good as actual nature with regards to human wellbeing. (See: ’Technological Nature - Adaptation and the Future of Human Life’ by Peter Kahn) Given the exponential growth of technology, we are in danger of mentally disconnecting from the natural world to our detriment. We must rediscover the affiliation for actual nature that lies deep within the architecture of the natural world.

If we employed technological nature only as a bonus in addition to our interactions with actual nature, then we would be in good shape. Unfortunately, we keep degrading and destroying actual nature and are becoming increasingly impoverished because of it.

If you try to explain to others what we, as humans, are missing in terms of wellbeing and human connectedness with nature, many might look at you blankly and respond: "But I don't think we're missing much." Sorry, we are missing an awful lot. Why is it that so many people in today’s world know so little about the natural world that sustains us? It is a form of amnesia. With each generation the amount of environmental degradation increases, but each generation tends to take that degraded condition as the normal condition. It is difficult enough to solve environmental problems when we are aware of them; it is all the more difficult when we are not.

It could be said that the Living Earth’s fate hangs in the balance thanks to human arrogance. Our own uncertain future was highlighted recently by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report which effectively announced “a code red” warning for humanity. The report was endorsed by scientists across the world. The report makes clear that humans have added around 2,400bn tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere since 1850, creating concentrations of the gas that have not been seen on Earth in the last 2 million years. If emissions are allowed to continue at their present rate they could become utterly catastrophic with the occurrence of world-changing events. The IPCC report gives a comprehensive update on the knowns of climate change, and it makes for grim reading.

The task of protecting the Living Earth is a daunting one. Today humanity’s dominion over nature has reached startling levels. There is practically no place on Earth that is untouched by the actions of humans. We simplify landscapes to ensure they provide economic benefits and so erode biosphere’s resilience. The cool years that make up the Holocene epoch, have now been replaced by the Anthropocene, an epoch in which humanity seems to be the main driver of ecological events.

What is it to be human? We are often told that we are somehow a separate species, separate from the natural world and indeed from the Universe itself. Does this make sense? Is it a rational observation? Sadly, many of us want to have power and control these arbitrary forces of nature. This story is becoming obsolete and is actually generating crisis after crisis. We need a new and realistic story of self and our connection to the natural world.