Rewilding for Humans
How do you relate to nature? There are three core ways that humans relate to the natural world, based on threat, resource use, and recreation. All relationships are important but in the modern world, things have got a bit out of balance.
This test will show you which you relate to most and how you can rebalance all of them with fun online photo challenges to raise awareness for wildlife. Your task: to pretend you are a conservationist, challenged with the protection of a small bird species. How do you react to different scenarios? Take the test to find out!
Doing research, you are faced with negative statistics about your chosen species - a 70% decline over 20 years. How scared do you feel?
You are tasked with developing a new conservation programme for this bird species. How much do you investigate the surrounding environment vs the bird itself?
On the job, you're keen to keep a look out. How good do you feel you'll be at identifying this bird amongst all the others?
After seeing the damage humans have done, you realise what the issue really needs is kindness and compassion.
You feel personally sad about how humans have contributed to the decline of this species.
It would be great to see this bird more in zoos and centres so the public can learn more about it.
The decline of this bird really shows how much the planet is in danger...
It will be a great loss to society if this bird species is allowed to become extinct.
I would love it if this bird species was around for everyone to see, urban or rural.
Whilst gathering data, you begin to be acutely aware of a race against time. How much does this resonate?
As a conservationist, you would want a wider focus on suitable habitat and resources for this species.
This bird has been a part of history and culture for millennia - it would have a profound effect on culture if it was allowed to go extinct. How much does this reason motivate you to keep doing your job?
In the field, you have to capture and release the bird in order to track it - which they don't always like. Does this process stress you out?
You feel alarmed that so many species are suffering from the influence of human lifestyles.
You and your colleagues throw a big fundraising event for the bird, but opinions are mixed. How much do you end up feeling this kind of promotion can help causes like this?
Whilst doing fieldwork, you get lost and your GPS stops working. How easily do you panic?
You feel it would help the most if people knew how much this bird, and biodiversity in general, contribute to the ecosystem.
Your favourite part of your job is being out doing fieldwork, looking at the right habitat and reconnecting with the earth.
Although the decline is worrying, it's a good thing we have modern technology to help us fix things, so we're better off than ever before.
If we can save this bird, it's a good sign that we humans are doing well.
We really need artists and media to raise the profile of this extinction issue!
You feel that in the future, humans will pay heavily for our role in ecosystem design.
If this bird is still around, it's great to know that we did something to help...
We really need to expose our children to this species so they know the value of conservation...
Threat
The threat relationship is a crucial part of being human and stems from our awareness of apex predators. However, nowadays it has become slightly out of balance - especially in industrialised areas where we no longer come across threats from the natural world that frequently.
Healing this relationship can build psychological confidence and help us tackle the new threats that come from nature, from changing weather to problems with resource usage. Like the other two relationships, it is neither good nor bad but an essential part of who we are as humans. Remember, it's how we respond to it that counts.
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Resource
The 'resource' relationship is to do with how we can or can't benefit from the natural world and choose to use the resources we can obtain from it. Utilising nature is not an inherently bad thing, but overconsumption and inefficient ways of distributing resources have thrown this relationship out of balance in the industrialised age.
Healing this relationship involves managing resources differently and investing in more sustainable practices at a large scale - and understanding how we relate to resources at a more personal level.
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Recreation
Ever since humans discovered coloured pigments in the earth, we have made art - and nature has been a constant theme in this throughout. The 'recreation' relationship covers how we enjoy and mirror the emotional and spiritual side of nature - how we depict it, enjoy it, and the value and meaning we attribute to it.
When the other two relationships fall out of balance, this relationship also tends to suffer too, as we are unable to fully immerse ourselves in the natural world. Conversely, this relationship can sometimes become a distraction from the other two. Either way, it is as crucial as the others and a powerful emotional indicator of whether we are existing healthily as an interconnected part of the natural world. In fact, rebalancing this relationship can become a force to drive our healing of the other ones as well.
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