It was heartbreaking to see how we have limited the existence of nature in order to live comfortable, fast-paced lives. Seeing the animals being forced to live nocturnal lives and navigate our infrastructure and way of living for their survival seems unfair. Humans even make it difficult for their own microbiome to survive by consuming gross amounts of unhealthy foods, living sedentary lifestyles and washing with harsh, antibacterial soaps and products. Even after death, our negative and polluting impacts don't seize.
I envision a world where more land and species are protected by law to avoid human-caused species extinction by means of over-hunting. Not just the animals that are already at risk of extinction/endangerment.
I envision a world where we live (and die) in a more ecologically conscientious way, thinking both about the best way to honor our deceased loves ones but also the planet their descendants will remember them on (compositing human remains in a respectful way, donating cadavers to science etc). I also have visions for a city that is more friendly for animals to thrive in (remembering the wonderful ways that nature returned when covid-19 first hit us hard with the initial lockdown). This could look like wilder lawns/gardens or less light pollution (especially at night).
Like many issues of ecology, laws and enforcement of law are critical for the protection of land and species but education has a major role to play too. If more people knew how our actions directly impact animals, we might change the way we live to be more sustainable for the sake of the animals. If we knew about other respectful and ecologically less harmful ways to die or if other methods were the default, we might die in a more ecologically safe way. We need law makers and leaders in our society to lead the way sometimes, so getting them involved is key for these idea to work.
Hey Amy! I agree! I think humans need to better evaluate our relationship with planning in cities to incorporate nature with human existence, or we need to create better conservation efforts.