We say we “go out into nature” as if it were something outside of us, something we can visit when we have time. But the truth is that we have never left nature. We have only created bubbles of non-nature and called them cities.
We build houses, streets, and concrete structures, and then we consider them normal. Nature becomes something “other” – something we travel to on weekends, something we try to protect as if it were outside of ourselves. But in reality, our human constructions are in the middle of nature’s ecosystems, not the other way around.
When we are born, we say we “come into the world.” But really, we come from the world, we are born out of it. We are not separate from nature – we are part of it.
What happens when we change our perspective?
If we start to see ourselves as nature and our societies as embedded in ecosystems, rather than isolated from them, our way of thinking changes. It then becomes clear that every road we pave, every building we erect, and every innovation we create should interact with nature—not replace it.
Here are some key insights that follow from this approach:
1. Innovation should mimic ecosystems
Ecosystems function through collaboration, circular flows, and balance. Our innovations can learn from this. Biomimicry—imitating nature’s solutions—has already given us self-cleaning surfaces inspired by lotus leaves and energy-efficient buildings designed like termite mounds.
But we can go further. What if our cities functioned like forests, where energy, water, and resources circulate instead of being consumed? What if we built houses that gave more than they took?
2. We need to create ecology, not just preserve it
We have long thought that environmental protection is about preserving what is left. But what if we focused instead on restoring and rebuilding ecosystems?
Look at regenerative agriculture, where the land is not only cultivated but also improved, or projects that restore coral reefs and wetlands instead of just protecting what remains.
Nature is not static – it is constantly creating and changing. We need to be part of that creation, not just spectators.
3. Small actions are big in the right context
A single drop of water changes nothing. But when enough drops fall, a river is created.
We often think that small actions, like planting a tree or choosing more sustainable products, are insignificant in the grand scheme of things. But when we see ourselves and all of humanity as part of the ecosystem, it becomes clear that all small actions together create big effects.
It’s like a smile. A single smile can feel insignificant. But when more people start smiling, when it spreads throughout a room, the entire atmosphere changes. Small things are never small when they happen in a context.
We are not visitors to nature – we are nature
When we stop thinking of nature as something we go out into and instead realize that we are always in it, everything changes.
Then innovations that do not take into account ecosystems become as absurd as building a house without caring that it needs oxygen, light and water. Then the climate issue becomes not a separate “environmental issue” but an existential question about how we ourselves want to live.
And then we realize that we never really “come into the world”. We are the world.
