AFON
Movers and Shakers: Get Outside! – by Nadine Atchison-Balmond
Welcome to our series of blog posts in the run up (originally) to the general election (7th May 2015). Over this month AFON members will share their own Visions for Nature: what they want the natural world to look like by 2050 and how they want to get there. Despite the election being over, we have decided to continue the series as more posts keep arriving from our members! We have created a hashtag on Twitter so why not join the conversation? What’s your #VisionforNature?
My vision for nature is for the movers and shakers to appreciate the natural world for its inherent beauty rather than its monetary worth. Too often it seems that each patch of land is seen as there to make money- sold off to developers, for exploitation to the highest bidder. Our land should not just be seen as a commodity to be exploited.
The natural world provides so much for us- some monetary things yes, but mostly things that are too hard or too simplistic to put a price on. Enjoyment, well-being, happiness, inspiration, creativity as well as providing the air that we breathe, the water that we drink and the food that we eat. Can you put a price on what being in the natural world has provided for you? I certainly can’t and frankly don’t want to. It is not all about money (thankfully!).
Nature seems to be increasingly seen as an ‘added extra’ something that might be nice but is not necessary. It is necessary! For everyone. There are seemingly infinite benefits to being outside in a natural place. For one it’s free!
It is also good for your mental health- a few years ago I was feeling a bit sad at home in Central Bristol. I was in my room facing the window looking out to the garden as the evening was setting in. Feeling miserable and sorry for myself, I suddenly caught sight of something out of the corner of my eye. I focused properly and looked around for it… and then I saw a Bat! A wonderful, beautiful bat flying in circles above my garden looking for insects to eat. I came outside and watched the bat circle about 2 feet above my head for about 15 minutes. It was glorious- my mood changed entirely, completely flipped. That one unexpected encounter with the ‘wild’ was exactly what I needed. Even now if I ever feel a bit sad, thinking of that bat cheers me up.
I feel that if the movers and shakers can have little experiences like mine, their view of the natural world and its importance would catapult it up the agenda taking its rightful place at the top. So movers and shakers- get outside! Not just to move between one place and another- but too really look and the benefits will surely be felt by us all.