The natural environment encompasses all living and non-living things occurring naturally on Earth or some region thereof. It is an environment that encompasses the interaction of all living species. Climate, weather, and natural resources that affect human survival and economic activity. The concept of the natural environment can be distinguished by components: Complete ecological units that function as natural systems without massive civilized human intervention, including all vegetation, microorganisms, soil, rocks, atmosphere, and natural phenomena that occur within their boundaries Universal natural resources and physical phenomena that lack clear-cut boundaries, such as air, water, and climate, as well as energy, radiation, electric charge, and magnetism, not originating from civilized human activity In contrast to the natural environment is the built environment. In such areas where man has fundamentally transformed landscapes such as urban settings and agricultural land conversion, the natural environment is greatly modified and diminished, with a much more simplified human environment largely replacing it. Even events which seem less extreme such as hydroelectric dam construction, or solar array construction in the desert, the natural environment is substantially altered. It is difficult to find absolutely natural environments, and it is common that the naturalness varies in a continuum, from ideally 100% natural in one extreme to 0% natural in the other. More precisely, we can consider the different aspects or components of an environment, and see that their degree of naturalness is not uniform. If, for instance, we take an agricultural field, and consider the mineralogic composition and the structure of its soil, we will find that whereas the first is quite similar to that of an undisturbed forest soil, the structure is quite different. Natural environment is often used as a synonym for habitat. For instance, when we say that the natural environment of giraffes is the savanna.
History
The environment is the natural world that humanity lives in, and its condition affects every living creature on Earth. Throughout history, humans have played an integral role in the shaping of their environment, whether it be through the development of cities and infrastructure or through more direct interventions such as deforestation or industrial pollution.
In ancient times, people’s relationship to their environment was largely based on subsistence activities. As communities grew in size and technology developed, so too did human use of the environment. This included land clearance for cultivated crops and animals, as well as hunting and fishing. In some cases this usage was sustainable, with communities managing resources carefully so that they were not depleted over time. In other cases it was unsustainable, leading to depletion of resources over time or destruction of habitats by overhunting or overexploitation.
As civilizations flourished during classical antiquity, architecture and engineering projects had major impacts on environments. Ancient Egypt built a large network of irrigation systems to support agricultural production along the Nile River Valley; Rome constructed aqueducts used to transport water from outside sources into the city; and China constructed large dams for flood control purposes along its rivers. These technological developments allowed civilizations to better exploit their local environments for economic gain — often at the expense of long-term environmental sustainability.
Industrialization began in Europe during the 18th century after advances in metallurgy made mass production possible. With new technologies came new ways to exploit natural resources — coal was used for fuel to power factories; cotton became an important crop for industrial milling; steel was needed to build railways; and large ships were powered by steam engines fed with coal mined from around the world. Although these technologies provided economic benefits they also had serious environmental consequences — air pollution caused by burning coal blanketed cities across Europe while rivers were polluted with toxic chemicals released into them during manufacturing processes.
Since then, governments have taken steps to reduce human impacts on the environment through various regulations designed to limit pollution levels while encouraging cleaner energy sources such as solar and wind power. International efforts have been made too — most notably through international agreements such as The Kyoto Protocol (1997) which set mandatory emission reductions targets for countries who signed up for them — but emissions are still high compared to pre-industrial levels due to continued fossil fuel use worldwide.
Today’s societies face a number of environmental challenges due largely to past activities and practices that have caused lasting damage, especially climate change resulting from emissions produced since industrialization began centuries ago. Human populations continue to increase putting pressure on resources such as arable land and freshwater supplies while species extinction rates are higher than ever before due partly to habitat destruction caused by farming activities and urban expansion. To find solutions we must look both at our own behaviour – reducing emissions where possible through renewable energy sources – but also at more systemic changes such as economic incentives that encourage sustainable practices like conservation agriculture or reforestation projects which can help restore damaged ecosystems over time.
Geography
Geography is the study of the physical features of the Earth and its environment, as well as how humans interact with these features. It encompasses the study of landforms and terrain, climate, natural resources, population dynamics and migration patterns, political systems, economics, and cultures. Geographers use a variety of data collection methods to understand the Earth’s conditions and changes over time.
The environment plays a major role in geography and is an important factor in understanding various geographical phenomena. Different types of environments can be studied including terrestrial or land-based environments such as forests, grasslands, deserts, coasts; aquatic or water environments like rivers, lakes, wetlands; as well as atmospheric or air-based environments such as air pollution or global climate change. All of these different environmental components are interconnected and have a direct impact on human activities around the world.
Geography also helps us understand how people interact with their environment. For example, geographers are researching how human behavior on land contributes to soil erosion or how changing climate patterns influence agricultural production. By understanding these connections between people and their environment geographers can provide important information for resource management decisions that will help protect our planet into the future.
In addition to studying physical aspects of the Earth’s surface, geographers also explore social topics such as economic development and population growth in different global regions. This research helps us better understand global disparities in wealth distribution across countries and continents. Geographers use this knowledge to identify areas where development initiatives such as infrastructure projects would be most beneficial for promoting sustainable economic growth around the world.
Finally, cultural geography explores how people construct meanings about their lives through rituals, beliefs, language use, material culture artifacts such as buildings or monuments – any aspect of culture that has geographic meaning – from local communities to entire nations. This research provides insight into how groups express themselves within their geographic context – from large-scale nation-building efforts to localized identities rooted in a shared sense of place – which can often shape resource management decisions at regional scales beyond just environmental factors alone.
Geography is thus essential for understanding our planet’s current conditions and potential future trajectories – both environmental and societal – so that we can make informed decisions about how to best protect it for future generations.