My Relationship with the Environment

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The phrase "deep ecology" was coined by Arne Naess, which puts nature into focus instead of the norm where humans were at the center, greatly influencing the kind of relationship I hope to establish with the environment. Deep ecology emphasizes the need for individuals to recognize the interdependent values between humans and non-humans. It also emphasizes the significance of ecosystems and natural processes. As a result, in the same way humans are accorded the right to live, the living environment also has the right to live and flourish (Kopnina 364). Through deep ecology, my mindset has been transformed from seeing the need to conserve the environment from exploitation to serve humans in the future to understanding the role that various parts of the ecosystem play in ensuring that non-human lives live and flourish.
In the past, I would have placed human beings at the top of the food chain in any ecosystem. I would assume it was okay for individuals to cut trees as long as they did not do it in excess. The judgment on whether animals had external souls would push most people I know and me to act as they please since humans were ranked according to their relative value. Additionally, the main reason I would opt to conserve the environment in the past was purely based on sustainability. My goal in the past was to ensure that, despite how I use the available resources today, what I do does not adversely affect the future generation. I did not stop thinking that living things in any environment had the right to live as much as any human did. However, after reading Christian Jack's work on deep ecology, my mindset was transformed. I now believe in the need to advocate for the environment, which, in the long run, guides human activity against self-destruction and preservation of the environment.
Furthermore, my relationship with the environment is mainly based on my concern that the current human rate of meddling with the non-human world is immoderate. If no changes are made, the situation will continue to worsen. According to Christian (112), most aspects of daily human activity hurt the non-human world. The growing population globally has led to people overusing available resources. Also, due to overpopulation, air pollution has increased due to the means of transport used by this group of individuals globally. Water and soil pollution from various chemicals on plants also adversely affects the environment. Hence, because of my concern that the non-living world is affected by daily human activities, I aim to educate people on the importance of treating the non-human world with its dignity.
Additionally, I subscribe to what Bill Devall promotes: humans should live as if nature mattered. I believe that I am responsible for treating the environment with dignity, knowing that life has a value independent of the perspective of human and human needs and wants; hence, it is not to be tampered with unless used for survival. I have learned the importance of ensuring that I do not tamper with the non-human world unless it's the only means of survival. Humans have become so self-centered that individuals have, for the longest time, interfered with the natural environment for the sake of...