GEF

Unit 10  |  Toward a Sustainable Future 232 is possible given the multiple environmental, economic, and social crises we are facing. On the one hand, many sectors of society promote blind faith in the status quo or the power of unregulated markets to solve our problems. Some people may even be unwilling or unable to acknowledge the challenges and their root causes. On the other hand, those who do understand these threats often feel overwhelmed at their scale and find themselves feeling hopeless. Instead of these two extremes, the way forward will result from an honest understanding of our environmental and social challenges and a willingness to see all of our possibilities for positive change. There is a pressing need to reframe many of the traditional ideas about prosperity, economic growth, and humanity’s relationship to the natural world. Often, people see sustain- ability as a dry concept that has no room for beauty, emotion, or spirituality. However, these aspects of sustainability are rapidly becoming just as important as energy efficiency or environmental economics. Many scientists are championing approaches that encour- age people toward a new mindset. Biologist E.O. Wilson has researched and popularized the concept of biophilia , which proposes that human beings have an innate and powerful connection to the natural world due to our evolutionary past. Biophilia has proven its effectiveness in a range of practical applications. Even the simple introduction of indoor plants into office spaces has shown to have a positive impact on worker health and well-being. According to biophilia, harming the natural world profoundly damages humanity’s own mental health and well-being. In his books, Last Child in the Woods and The Nature Principle, Richard Louv makes the case that reversing “nature deficit disorder” and spending more time outdoors will make people much more proactive and successful at creating a sustain- able society. Psychologist Laura Sewall offers the compelling BIOPHILIA A hypothesis popularized by biologist E.O. Wilson that proposes that people have an innate and powerful con- nection to nature due to our evolutionary history.