One woman’s opinion, by Amy Lenzo
On reading an article by George Monbiot in the UK Guardian called If Children Lose Contact With Nature They Won’t Fight For It … I agree wholeheartedly with Monbiot’s title, but my hackles rise at the (to me) lazy & inaccurate argument that follows, “blaming” the entire problem at the door of youth’s on-screen engagement.
The truth is that while large-scale social conditions have indeed changed our children’s freedoms and access to the natural world (there’s a lot more happening here than the rise of the internet, folks), I believe that those little screens also hold some part of the way back for many of us (and our children).
I grew up as an introvert in the Arizona desert, where nature was a bit prickly to say the least, and my own passion for the natural world was born in books. Today’s “books” have multi-media to draw children in to the mystery and magic of the natural world, and are even more effective.
Of course we want to encourage children to get out on the land and have direct engagement with the natural world.
Of course a personal relationship with nature is a hugely powerful motivational source for conservation and environmental activism (we protect what we know and love), and a source of balance and wholeness for all of us.
We are all of the land, and belong to it, whether we know it or not. From my perspective, it’s far more effective to convey this message creatively in the many ways we now have to connect and communicate with each other – and imbue our own online engagement with nature-connection (e.g. don’t disconnect from our bodies when we’re online, remember we are talking with actual human beings with their feet on the ground within a specific environment, use sense-based language and photography to stay connected to the natural world, etc.) – than it is to bemoan reality.
Thanks for the thought provoking post. We cannot avoid the on screen world because it is the way of the future. What we can do is use every opportunity to connect our children with nature, even it is a trip to the park or a picnic in the back yard on a blanket. Sitting on the ground is a great way to feel the energy of the earth. Bare toes being tickled with grass is delightful and something all children should experience.
On screen? Nature shows that teach about the animal and plant world are invaluable tools which allow a child to embark on an outing to places they may never visit otherwise. The amazing world of plants and animals opens little eyes and minds to wonders that cannot be enjoyed in the concrete jungles of today’s society.
Allow me to state, I taught my children the amazing properties of herbal remedies and how the planet provides for all our physical needs. In this, they will never lose their appreciation for the need to respect the planet’s provision.
Warm Regards,
Lana J Thomas
Yes! Thank you for reading, and for responding, Lana.
Your children are very fortunate – the kind of aware guidance you’re offering them makes all the difference in the world to impressionable young minds who were actually born to love the earth and will do so naturally with only the slightest encouragement.