The Nature Principle

“Illuminated by ideas and stories from good people I have met, this book asks: What would our lives be like if our days and nights were as immersed in nature as they are in technology? How can each of us help create that life-enhancing world, not only in a hypothetical future, but right now, for our families and for ourselves?” 

Louv introduces the central thesis of his book here. These questions are the basis of the book and help to structure the chapters. The second question states that Louv will be recommending ways that the reader can be involved in the here and now, suggesting the book is not simply an academic read. 

“Beyond proprioception, that awareness of our body’s position through movement and balance, nature also offers us the opportunity to realize an even larger sense—the position of our body and spirit in the universe and in time.” 

Louv likes to take ideas that he views as limited and extend them to create a wider definition of the term. Here, he introduces nature into proprioception making nature vital in our understanding of how we fit into the universe. This is one example of ideas that may seem difficult to understand by the average reader depending on your personal viewpoints. 

“Here is a third possibility: We may be developing a hybrid mind. The ultimate multitasking will be to live simultaneously in both the digital and physical world, using computers to maximize our powers to process intellectual data and natural environments to ignite all of our senses and accelerate our ability to learn and to feel; in this way, we could combine the “primitive” powers of our ancestors with the digital speed of our teenagers.” 

While many people feel that technology and nature are at odds with one another, Louv envisions a world in which the two worlds work together. He states ways that technology can enhance our experience in nature and to encourage new generations to be nature involved, such as gadgets that inform the user of the type of bird they see. He believes connecting nature and technology is the only way to adapt to our new technological age without letting the natural world slip away.