(Photo: Human beings have always had a special connection with nature)
Every day, she showers us with tonnes of love. She serenades us with birdsong in the morning, wakes us up with a dazzling sunrise, and sends us to bed with stunning sunsets.
Her gifts are thoughtful and impactful. We breathe clean air and drink fresh water. We feed on the bounty she provides; fresh fruit and vegetables, grains and spices. We build our houses with her trees. She provides medicine that cures our ills. We adorn and impress with her diamonds, gold, and other precious minerals.
She spends her days regulating our climate by absorbing and storing carbon, moderating temperatures, and mitigating extreme weather events. She provides us with numerous ecological benefits; bees pollinate our crops and earthworms break down organic matter and turn the soil.
We gaze upon her abundant wildlife and awe-inspiring landscapes. And charge others to do so too.
We turn to her for relaxation, inspiration, and spiritual nourishment. She helps us to reduce stress and improve our well-being.
She gives us opportunities to explore and discover new things, helping to broaden our knowledge and understanding of the world around us.
No doubt there are plenty of benefits to having a relationship with nature. It is difficult to put a price tag on all the benefits, but we can all agree that her love is priceless.
Humans have always had a special connection with nature, from the days of primitive hunter-gatherers to today’s modern societies.
We have polluted both land and sea
But all is not well in this relationship. And it’s definitely us. We have degraded the gifts of air, water, and soil. We have destroyed natural habitats and sent mammals, fish, birds, reptiles, and amphibians to extinction. Our overconsumption has polluted both land and sea. We are in the middle of a climate crisis, as a result of our continued emissions of greenhouse gases.
The signs are everywhere. Extreme weather events have become more frequent and natural disasters occur in areas previously unaffected.
Our children’s future is at stake if we fail to evaluate this relationship’s status.
Our problem is that we take nature for granted, taking from her without giving back. We think we can continue to exploit nature without any cost to us.
It is time to start giving back to nature. We need to develop a nature-friendly consciousness to properly take care of her.
We can support efforts to end the poaching of endangered species such as turtles
We can start by becoming aware of the problems and begin to take small steps to repair the damage. We can stop littering our local beaches, join a clean-up campaign, recycle and cut down on what we throw away, or support efforts to end the poaching of endangered turtles. We can also educate ourselves on the bigger environmental issues facing the planet like climate change and make our voices heard at the local and global levels. By taking such steps, we can ensure that our relationship remains a strong and happy one for generations to come.
Ultimately, we must double our efforts to maintain a healthy relationship with Mother Nature. We are in this together.