bi·o·phil·i·a (n): a love of life and the living world; the affinity of human beings for other life forms.
It's something I've known intuitively, in my soul, but also something that's been expounded upon by great thinkers like Edward O. Wilson, John Muir, Ralph Waldo Emerson and Richard Louv - that human beings have a natural urge to connect with nature. My parents weren't nature buffs, and without being told, I've come to learn that I do need it. Nature calms, re-energizes and inspires in a way most things cannot.
Wilson is known as the father of sociobiology. He proposed the possibility that the deep affiliations humans have with nature are rooted in our biology. Unlike phobias, which are the aversions and fears that people have of things in the natural world, philias
are the attractions and positive feelings that people have toward
certain habitats, activities, and objects in their natural surroundings. Emerson was a 19th century essayist and poet, and a champion of individualism. He suggested that God does not have to reveal the truth but that the truth could be intuitively experienced directly from nature. Louv is a journalist and coined the term "Nature Deficit Disorder" with the hypothesis that human beings, especially children, are spending less time outdoors resulting in a wide range of behavioral problems.
In my own life, I've developed an enormous appreciation of nature and my time spent in it - whether it be gardening in my yard, an urban hike through reclaimed land in San Francisco or backpacking in the Sierras - there's something magical, healing and inspiring about nature.
Are you suffering from a nature deficiency? The good news is that it’s an easy fix, with benefits that have
the power to change the course and quality of your life. Here are a few quick tips to
get started:
Whatever you do, and however you do it - Get outside and get reinvigorated!
It's something I've known intuitively, in my soul, but also something that's been expounded upon by great thinkers like Edward O. Wilson, John Muir, Ralph Waldo Emerson and Richard Louv - that human beings have a natural urge to connect with nature. My parents weren't nature buffs, and without being told, I've come to learn that I do need it. Nature calms, re-energizes and inspires in a way most things cannot.
Wilson is known as the father of sociobiology. He proposed the possibility that the deep affiliations humans have with nature are rooted in our biology. Unlike phobias, which are the aversions and fears that people have of things in the natural world, philias
are the attractions and positive feelings that people have toward
certain habitats, activities, and objects in their natural surroundings. Emerson was a 19th century essayist and poet, and a champion of individualism. He suggested that God does not have to reveal the truth but that the truth could be intuitively experienced directly from nature. Louv is a journalist and coined the term "Nature Deficit Disorder" with the hypothesis that human beings, especially children, are spending less time outdoors resulting in a wide range of behavioral problems.In my own life, I've developed an enormous appreciation of nature and my time spent in it - whether it be gardening in my yard, an urban hike through reclaimed land in San Francisco or backpacking in the Sierras - there's something magical, healing and inspiring about nature.
"Walk away quietly in any direction and taste the freedom of the mountaineer. Camp out among the grasses and gentians of glacial meadows, in craggy garden nooks full of nature's darlings. Climb the mountains and get their good tidings, Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you and the storms their energy, while cares will drop off like autumn leaves. As age comes on, one source of enjoyment after another is closed, but nature's sources never fail." - John Muir, Our National Parks , 1901
- Eat lunch outside or take a brisk walk a few times a week
- When possible, take off those headphones and listen to the sounds around you
- Take your eyes off the computer screen and look out the window
- Dig in the dirt - get a plot in a community garden or do it in your own backyard
- Enjoy a weekend getaway in the great outdoors
Whatever you do, and however you do it - Get outside and get reinvigorated!
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