Summary In search for our nature – perspectives for wilderness Bram van de Klundert InnovationNetwork Report No. 13.2.310, Utrecht, The Netherlands, January 2013. Our relationship with, and perceptions of, nature are changing at a rapid pace. The majority of the world’s population now lives in cities, our agricultural history is rapidly receding into the background, many young people rarely visit nature. Nature is increasingly viewed as a ‘commodity’, something that is useful and functional for mankind, and has economic significance. We know that nature is finite and dependent on us, but we also long for nature to be infinite and autonomous. Moreover, we increasingly see ourselves as biological beings, and seek the explanation for our behaviour, our intelligence, our abnormalities, our conscience and even our consciousness in biology. This book explores what these trends mean for our relationship with nature and how we can develop new perspectives for a meaningful relationship with nature. The first part focuses on the question how our notions of truth, beauty and goodness are influenced by the biologization of our view of human nature. 302 The second part examines which idols impede our search for a new meaningful relationship with nature. Idols (used here in the meaning of Francis Bacon, one of the godfathers of the scientific revolution in the sixteenth century) refers to those stubborn obstacles in our theory and practice that stand in the way of new insights and applications. The debate about man’s relationship with nature is teeming with idols. This book examines the meaning and usefulness of often carelessly used terms such as alienation, disenchantment and stewardship. A critical glance is cast at historically evolved practices surrounding nature management and landscape maintenance, and assumptions regarding social acceptance and resistance, our love for animals and health claims are closely analyzed. This discussion does not have the ambition or aspiration to say the last word on these issues, but serves as a first step towards the exploration of new perspectives in the final part of the book. The new perspective in this book is designated as a naturalistic perspective alongside and opposed to the dominant biological perspective. After all, our capacity as human beings to experience nature in terms of enchantment, beauty, kinship and emotion cannot be explained in purely biological terms. New options are explored for new rituals, alternative ways of dealing with food production and animals, and new forms of landscape and nature development. 303 Pagina 152
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