Nature's Gifts: How the Natural World Nourishes Our Bodies, Minds, and Souls

We simply cannot survive without nature; it gives us everything from food to materials to water. Nature also improves our health and enriches our lives. Being in nature can have a calming effect on us and even improve our mood.

Nature improves our health

“Exploring and interacting with nature and even just looking out of a window at natural scenery, calms us and reduces the effects of high blood pressure, and breathing and heart illnesses. Being in nature with its huge diversity of life improves energy and mood, lowers anxiety and helps us to think more clearly. Nature promotes health and a sense of happiness and wellbeing.” Envirokids, WESSA Vol 38 (2), Winter 2017

Nature enriches our lives

It inspires creative art and music and is important in cultural ceremonies worldwide. For example, water is used in many religious ceremonies for its cleansing and purifying properties. Nature’s different ecosystems also offer us places to relax and to enjoy activities like picnicking, swimming and hiking. Nature is also the best classroom, and our learning is never done!

Nature provides food and water

Much of our food comes from plants and trees that are pollinated by insects, small animals or the wind. We also fish in our planet’s oceans and freshwater lakes and use grasslands to grow crops and to graze livestock for meat. Nature provides our fresh water through the water cycle – we all know that every living organism needs water to survive.

Nature gives us stuff

We use trees for fuel, paper, furniture, houses, boats and other products. We also thatch roofs with grasses and make bricks from clay and clothing from some animal skins and cotton. Some plants and sea creatures are harvested for medicines, and even the glass containers are made from nature’s sand!”