What do we mean by "Natural"?

About this episode

The episode explores the concept of 'natural' and its implications in our understanding of nature and human influence.

One of us thought we were going to talk about the nature of nature - what is it we’re thinking about when we think about nature ? The other thought we were going to talk about barefoot shoes for strength training. This is our synthesis. Barefoot shoes promise a return to a “natural” way of walking, to the way we evolved to walk. They’re made from “natural” materials. And “natural” is assumed to be a good thing, it contains a value judgement. The use of the categories “natural” and “unnatural” is fundamental to the way we see the world today, and it is interesting to interrogate where this categorisation came from, how valid it is, and what it means. Isn’t nature beautiful , we think as we look at the English countryside - but it’s not natural. Fields are not natural. Crops are not natural. Sheep can’t give birth without human assistance. Even the species of “wild” flora would not be there in that way without millennia of mankind shaping that landscape. If we say that “natural” means “untouched by human hand”… nothing in this world is natural. Perhaps the idea of “natural” involves a concept of equilibrium and harmony - without human involvement, everything would stay the same…

Topics covered

• nature
• philosophy
• human impact
• environment
• sustainability

Keywords

• natural
• barefoot shoes
• human impact
• environment
• sustainability
• philosophy
• nature

Mentioned in this episode

Places: English countryside

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