Whether you live in a big city, or simply spend too much time at the office, it can often be difficult to make time for nature.
When it’s not available at your doorstep, you often have to plan ahead and make the time and preparations to better connect with the environment.
This, in turn, requires strong motivation and the energy to do it. Sometimes the working world can take this energy from you, which is why some inspiration can help reignite your passion.
Here are 10 powerful quotes about life, nature and the environment that will inspire you to act!
“What we are doing to the forests of the world is but a mirror reflection of what we are doing to ourselves and to one another.” – Chris Maser
It is always important to remember that we are connected with nature: if it suffers, so do we.
More than just saving the environment and ensuring a breathable air quality, we often feel better when we connect with nature and take in the natural landscapes.
As a result, destroying this precious wilderness, through the likes of deforestation, only serves to hinder our own happiness and capabilities.
“Keep close to Nature’s heart… and break clear away, once in a while, and climb a mountain or spend a week in the woods. Wash your spirit clean.” – John Muir
The best way to truly appreciate nature is to experience the landscapes and environments still untouched by our cities and towns.
As John Muir suggests, spend some time in the woods or climb a nearby mountain. This will help you appreciate nature, forget about modern life and clear your mind.
“Here is your country. Cherish these natural wonders, cherish the natural resources, cherish the history and romance as a sacred heritage, for your children and your children’s children. Do not let selfish men or greedy interests skin your country of its beauty, its riches or its romance.” – Theodore Roosevelt
It’s safe to say Theodore Roosevelt had a passion for nature.
As this quote suggests, it’s vital that we do our best to leave as much of the natural world as possible for our children.
We need the world’s resources to live, so protecting what we have now will only enable future generations to discover their own love for nature.
“If we do not permit the earth to produce beauty and joy, it will in the end not produce food, either.” – Joseph Wood Krutch
Short and to the point, Joseph Wood Krutch summarises what people often forget.
We need the natural world to survive. We breathe its air, grow food in its soil and live under its sun. The more we damage the environment, the more we damage our own means to survive.
“Those who contemplate the beauty of the Earth find reserves of strength that will endure as long as life lasts.” – Rachel Carson
There is strength in nature. The natural cycle has survived for millions of years and, despite human efforts to destroy it, it continues to thrive.
By working with nature, rather than against it, anyone can experience that natural strength and ability to survive.
“Wildness reminds us what it means to be human, what we are connected to rather than what we are separate from.” – Terry Tempest Williams
We need the wilderness, even if it isn’t on our own doorstep.
Conservation is always important, even when it doesn’t seem obvious. The world is connected in ways we may never fully understand, but this only strengthens the reasons to go out there and protect it.
“Our challenge isn’t so much to teach children about the natural world, but to find ways to nurture and sustain the instinctive connections they already carry.” – Terry Krautwurst
Humans are part of the natural world, which is something we often forget in modern life.
Our younger generations will come with this connection, so we should strive to encourage it, rather than cutting it away entirely.
Try teaching friends and family about the natural world, so they too can learn to appreciate what it has to offer.
“Sooner or later, we will have to recognise that the Earth has rights, too, to live without pollution. What mankind must know is that human beings cannot live without Mother Earth, but the planet can live without humans.” – Evo Morales
As Evo Morales clearly states, the earth’s rights are seldom respected.
Yet, ultimately, the earth does not need us. This message is clear, so any efforts to prevent further pollution should be done as soon as possible.
“People from a planet without flowers would think we must be mad with joy the whole time to have such things about us.” – Iris Murdoch
While Irish Murdoch talks of other planets, it’s not too hard to imagine the earth in a few hundred years.
How do you explain the simple joy and beauty of a flower to someone who has never seen one? This is the reality everyone should be fighting to avoid.
“Ten percent of the big fish still remain. There are still some blue whales. There are still some krill in Antarctica. There are a few oysters in Chesapeake Bay. Half the coral reefs are still in pretty good shape, a jeweled belt around the middle of the planet. There’s still time, but not a lot, to turn things around.” – Sylvia Earle
Finally, it’s still not too late. Much of the natural world still remains and conservation is always an option.
Whether it’s choosing sustainable developments, living a greener lifestyle or campaigning for eco-friendly causes, there is plenty that can be done.
Yet, as Sylvia Earle states, there is not a whole lot of time. It is much better to act today, rather than tomorrow.
In summary, these quotes prove there are many people out there who are truly inspired by the power and beauty of the natural world.
As their words show, it is a fading resource that needs intervention to save, so hopefully you are feeling inspired to go outside and act with at least an environmentally-friendly activity today!
