- this is the whole material world of the Universe, organic and inorganic. But in everyday life, another definition is more often used, in which nature means the natural habitat, i.e. anything that was created without human intervention. Throughout its existence, people have often become the perpetrators of change. environment. But the role of nature in people's lives is also colossal, and it should not be underestimated.

Habitat

Man is a part of nature, he "grows" out of it and exists in it. A certain atmospheric pressure, earth temperature, water with salts dissolved in it, oxygen - all this is the natural state of the planet, which is optimal for humans. It is enough to remove one of the elements of the "constructor", and the consequences will be disastrous. And any change in nature can cause dramatic changes in the life of all mankind. That is why the assertion that nature can exist without man, and man cannot exist without it, is especially relevant.

The main source of consumer goods

Luxury goods are created by people, but we satisfy our primary needs at the expense of nature. It is the world around us that gives us everything we need for existence: air, food, protection, resources. Natural resources are involved in many areas: construction, Agriculture, food industry.

We no longer live in caves, but prefer comfortable houses. Before we eat what grows on the ground, we process and cook it. We do not cover ourselves with animal skins, but we sew clothes from fabrics obtained by processing natural materials. Undoubtedly, a lot of what the planet gives, a person transforms and improves for a comfortable life. Despite all the power, humanity will not be able to develop outside of nature and without the base that it provides us with. Even in space, outside the Earth, people have to use recycled natural goods.

- This is a huge hospital that can heal from various ailments. Numerous medicines and cosmetics have been developed based on plants. Often, to improve health, resources are used almost in their original form, for example, in herbal medicine, hydrotherapy and mud therapy.

Human dependence on natural conditions

For many years, under the influence of climate, relief, resources, customs, features of activity, aesthetic views and the character of the population of a particular country were formed. We can safely say that the role of nature underlies many social processes. Even the appearance of a person depends on the region from which his ancestors originated.

The health of many people depends on weather conditions. Well-being and emotional condition may vary depending on the phases of the moon, solar activity, magnetic storms and other phenomena. The level of air pollution, its humidity, temperature, oxygen concentration - all this can also affect a person's well-being. For example, city dwellers after resting by the river notice an improvement in their physical and psychological state.

Million-plus cities, modern cars, the latest technologies - looking at all this, it seems that a person has learned to successfully exist outside of nature. In fact, humanity is still dependent on conditions that it cannot change. For example, its economy depends on the quantity and condition of natural resources on the territory of the state. Weather conditions determine the features of the buildings of the settlement and living conditions. Such diversity national cuisines arose as a result of the climatic features of the regions, as well as the flora and fauna.

Aesthetic and scientific value

Nature acts as a source of a wide variety of information that helps build relationships with the outside world. Thanks to the data that the planet stores, we can know who inhabited the Earth thousands and millions of years ago. Today we can, if not prevent natural disasters, then at least protect ourselves from them. And a person even learned to direct some phenomena in his favor. and human learning. The child is introduced to the world around him, taught to protect, preserve and ennoble him. Without this, no educational process is possible.

The importance of nature in cultural life cannot be ignored. We contemplate, admire, enjoy. It is a source of inspiration for writers, artists and musicians. This is what artists have sung and will sing in their creations. Many believe that the beauty and harmony of nature even has a healing effect on the body. Although the spiritual component is not the first necessity for the life of the population, it plays a crucial role in the life of society.

Voronin Sergey Alekseevich - Soviet prose writer. He dealt with important problems of mankind in his works. In this text, Voronin reflects on the serious environmental problem of the role of nature in human life.

This problem is always relevant, since a person is a part of nature and therefore it plays an important role in his life. The author considers the problem on the example of a birch.

He is convinced that this tree has its own life, its own feelings and experiences. As the seasons change, so the birch changes its appearance, its mood. The author thinks: “I look at her, and strange thoughts come to my mind. She, of course, must have her own life. Voronin regrets that he has only five senses and that he cannot truly know nature. We see how the narrator sympathizes with the birch tree, which has been driven into a groove in order to collect its sap. The author reflects: “How many capillaries did he (the neighbor) pierce if juice is pouring so abundantly? .. Maybe she was moaning? Maybe she was afraid for her life? With his experiences, Sergei Alekseevich showed the deep connection of man with nature, how the processes occurring in nature are reflected in the thoughts of his contemplator.

Thus, reflecting on the problem, the author comes to the following conclusion that nature plays a truly important role in human life. He, being alone with her, begins to feel every cell of her, tries to comprehend that nature can open a wonderful world to him, as well as heal spiritual wounds.

Confirmation of my thoughts and thoughts of the author can be found in the epic novel by Leo Tolstoy "War and Peace". Natasha Rostova is so delighted with the beauty of the night in Otradnoye that she cannot sit still. She cannot fall asleep and shares her impressions with Sonya. Feelings overwhelm her so that even Andrei Bolkonsky, accidentally overhearing Natasha's conversation with Sonya, is reborn to life. On the example of Natasha Rostova, we see what kind of euphoria the contemplator of nature experiences.

A similar thought sounds in Ivan Sergeevich Turgenev's novel Fathers and Sons. The hero of the novel, Arkady Kirsanov, admires the beauty of nature, its healing power. Communicating with her helps Kirsanov heal his spiritual wounds, gain peace and inner balance, reassess his attitude towards nihilism.

So, nature really influences a person very strongly. She helps him cope with mental pain, allows him not to lose touch with the world. Nature and man are inseparable, they need each other...

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The role of nature in the life of human society

For man, as well as for any other biological species, nature is the environment of life and the source of existence. As a biological species, a person needs a certain composition and pressure of atmospheric air, pure natural water with salts dissolved in it, plants and animals, and the earth's temperature. The optimal environment for a person is that natural state of nature, which is maintained by normally occurring processes of the circulation of substances and energy flows.

As a biological species, a person with his life activity affects the natural environment no more than other living organisms. However, this influence is incomparable with the enormous impact that humanity has on nature through its work. The transforming influence of human society on nature is inevitable, it intensifies as society develops, the number and mass of substances involved in economic circulation increase. The changes introduced by man have now acquired such a large scale that they have become a threat to disrupt the balance existing in nature and an obstacle to further development productive forces. For a long time, people looked at nature as an inexhaustible source of the material goods they needed. However, faced with the negative consequences of their impact on nature, they gradually came to believe in the need for its rational use and protection.

Nature conservation is a system of scientifically based international, state and public measures aimed at the rational use, reproduction and protection of natural resources, at protecting the natural environment from pollution and destruction in the interests of existing and future generations of people.

The main goal of nature conservation is to support the dynamic balance of natural processes, the conservation of the biological diversity of plants, animals, microorganisms, providing favorable conditions for the life of present and future generations of people, the development of production, science and culture of all peoples inhabiting our planet. The progressive sustainable development of human society is impossible without environmental management, which is called the totality of all forms of exploitation of natural resources and effective measures for their conservation and restoration.

Exhaustible and inexhaustible natural resources

Naturally, in connection with different historical stages in the development of human society, the problems of using natural resources and protecting nature also change. Man is a relatively young inhabitant of the Earth; he joined its ecological systems about 3.5 million years ago. Then the impact of people on the environment was insignificant due to their small number. About 1.5 million years ago, the number of people did not exceed 500 thousand individuals. People wandered in small groups, collecting edible plants, hunting animals, catching fish. The traces of their influence were quickly smoothed out by nature, as soon as the gatherers, hunters and fishermen left their camps. The wolf was the first to be tamed, helping people to hunt animals, later cattle were domesticated, then horses. Approximately 10-12 thousand years ago, in favorable conditions, people switched to a settled way of life and began to engage in agriculture. The initial phase of the transformation of the natural environment is associated with the development of animal husbandry and agriculture. The growth of the transformative activity of human society, associated with the development of industry, continues at the present time. So, in the first half of the XX century. of particular concern was the very rapid depletion of natural resources and the possible death of mankind due to the complete exhaustion of ore deposits and oil. Now threatening environmental pollution, violation of natural biocenoses, deforestation, soil erosion, and the disappearance of rare species of animals and plants are coming to the fore. Natural objects and phenomena that a person uses in the labor process are called natural resources. These include atmospheric air, water, soil, minerals, solar radiation, climate, vegetation, animal world. According to the degree of their depletion, they are divided into exhaustible and inexhaustible.

Exhaustible resources, in turn, are divided into renewable and non-renewable. Non-renewable resources include those resources that are not revived or are renewed hundreds of times slower than they are spent. These include oil, coal, metal ores and most other minerals. The reserves of these resources are limited, their protection is reduced to careful spending.

Renewable natural resources - soil, vegetation, wildlife, as well as mineral salts such as Glauber's and table salts, which are deposited in lakes and sea lagoons. These resources are constantly being restored if the necessary conditions for this are maintained, and the rate of use does not exceed the rate of natural revival. Resources are restored at different rates: animals - in a few years, forests - 60-80 years, and soils that have lost fertility - over several millennia. Exceeding the rate of expenditure over the rate of reproduction leads to the depletion and complete disappearance of the resource.

Inexhaustible resources include water, climate and space. The total water supply on the planet is inexhaustible. They are based on the salty waters of the oceans, but they are still little used. In separate areas, the waters of the seas and oceans are polluted with oil, waste from household and industrial enterprises, and the removal of fertilizers and pesticides from the fields, which worsens the living conditions of marine plants and animals. Fresh water, necessary for humans, is an exhaustible natural resource. The problem of fresh water is exacerbated every year due to the shallowing of rivers and lakes, an increase in water consumption for irrigation and industrial needs, water pollution by industrial and household waste.

Requires careful use and strict protection water resources.

Climatic resources - atmospheric air and wind energy - are inexhaustible, but with the development of industry and transport, the air has become heavily polluted with smoke, dust, exhaust gases. IN major cities and industrial centers, air pollution becomes dangerous to human health. The struggle for the purity of the atmosphere has become an important environmental task.

Space resources include solar radiation, the energy of sea tides and tides. They are inexhaustible. However, in cities and industrial centers, solar radiation is greatly reduced due to smoke and dust in the air. This negatively affects people's health.

Principles and rules of nature protection

Economic activity causes numerous changes in nature, the consequences of which must be able to predict. In the process of long-term use of natural resources, general principles and rules for the rational use and protection of nature were developed.

The first principle boils down to the fact that all natural phenomena have multiple meanings for man and must be evaluated from different points of view. Each phenomenon must be approached taking into account the interests of various branches of production and the preservation of the restorative power of nature itself.

Thus, the forest is considered primarily as a source of wood and chemical raw materials, but forests have a water-regulating, soil-protective, climate-forming value. The forest is important as a place of rest for people. In these cases, the industrial value of the forest is relegated to the background.

The river cannot serve only as a transport highway or a place for the construction of hydroelectric power stations. It is impossible to use the river as a place for the drain of waste industrial waters. Rivers deliver nutrients to the seas necessary for living organisms. Therefore, to use the river only in the interests of one industry, as is often the case, is irrational. It is necessary to use it comprehensively in the interests of various industries, health care, and tourism, taking into account the preservation of the purity of the reservoir and the restoration of water supplies in it.

The second principle is the need for strict consideration of local conditions in the use and protection of natural resources. It is called the rule of regionality. This is especially true for the use of water and forest resources.

There are many places on Earth where there is now a shortage of fresh water. Excess water elsewhere does not improve the water predicament in dry areas.

Where there are many forests and they are not developed, intensive logging is permissible, but in the forest-steppe regions, in the central industrialized and densely populated regions of Russia, where there are few forests, forest resources must be spent very carefully, with constant concern for their renewal.

The rule of regionality also applies to the animal world. One and the same species of commercial animal in some areas needs strict protection, in others, with a high number, intensive hunting is possible.

There is nothing more pernicious than the intensive use of a resource where it is in short supply, on the basis that in other places this resource is in abundance. According to the rule of regionality, the treatment of the same natural resource in different areas should be different and depend on how this resource is currently represented in the area.

The third principle, arising from the mutual connection of objects and phenomena in nature, is that the protection of one object means at the same time the protection of other objects closely related to it.

The protection of a reservoir from pollution is the simultaneous protection of the fish that live in it. The preservation of the normal hydrological regime of the area with the help of forest vegetation is also the prevention of soil erosion. The protection of insectivorous birds and red forest ants is the simultaneous protection of the forest from pests.

Often in nature, relations of an opposite nature develop, when the protection of one object harms another. For example, the protection of an elk in some places leads to its overpopulation, and this causes significant damage to the forest due to damage to the undergrowth. Significant damage to the vegetation of some African national parks is caused by elephants, which inhabit these territories in abundance. Therefore, the protection of each natural object must be correlated with the protection of others.

Therefore, nature protection must be comprehensive. It is not the sum of individual natural resources that should be protected, but a natural complex (ecosystem), which includes various components connected by natural links that have developed in the process of long historical development.

The protection and use of nature are, at first glance, two oppositely directed actions of man. However, there is no antagonistic contradiction between these actions. These are two sides of the same phenomenon - the relationship of man to nature. Therefore, the question that is sometimes asked - to protect nature or use it ~ does not make sense. Nature must be used and protected. Without this, the progress of human society is impossible. Nature must be protected in the process of its rational use. What is important is a reasonable ratio of its use and protection, which is determined by the amount and distribution of resources, the economic conditions of the country, region, social traditions and culture of the population. The basic principle of nature conservation is protection in the process of its use.

Legal basis for nature protection

The legal basis for nature protection is the Constitution of the Russian Federation, international treaties, laws on the protection of nature and the main components of the natural environment, and resolutions of legislative institutions of various levels. Supreme legal force direct action and application throughout Russia has the Constitution of the Russian Federation. It enshrined the human right to a healthy environment. Naturally, in order to effectively use it, it is necessary to use the right to reliable information about the state of the environment (Article 42). The rules and principles of nature protection are carried out by people when they are of a legislative nature. The law is currently in effect Russian Federation"On Environmental Protection" (December 19, 1991). Its basis is the recognition of nature and its riches as "the national heritage of the peoples of Russia, the natural basis of their socio-economic development and human well-being."

In accordance with the law of 1991, the assessment of the state of the natural environment, including in emergency environmental situations, should be assessed both from the standpoint of public health and the state of natural ecological systems, genetic funds of plants and animals.

The main objectives of the environmental legislation of the Russian Federation are "regulation of relations in the field of interaction between society and nature in order to preserve natural resources and the natural human environment, prevent the environmentally harmful impact of economic and other activities, improve and improve the quality of the natural environment, strengthen law and order in the interests of present and future generations of people."

The law formulates environmental requirements for all economic structures. These requirements are addressed to enterprises, organizations, institutions, regardless of the form of ownership and subordination, and to individual citizens.

"In accordance with the legislation of the Russian Federation, international treaties take precedence over domestic state laws. However, in order for an international treaty to have legal force in Russia, it must not only be signed by authorized persons, but also ratified (approved) by the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation.

However, the norms of the law do not operate automatically, they are implemented and verified by state bodies of management and control, the prosecutor's office and the court, the arbitration court, public organizations and associations. The law should create a moral basis for the behavior of citizens.

Scientific problems of nature conservation

Until recently, nature conservation was a matter for individuals and societies, and ecology initially had nothing to do with nature conservation. With this name Ernst Haeckel in 1866 in the monograph "General Morphology" dubbed the science of the relationship of animals and plants living in a certain area, their relationship to each other and to living conditions.

Who eats what or whom, how it adapts to seasonal climate changes - the main questions of the original ecology. This discipline was studied at the biological faculties of universities, but with the exception of a narrow circle of specialists, no one knew anything about it. Leaf through the newspapers and popular science magazines that came out with us before 1970, and you will not find the word "ecology" anywhere.

And now it's on everyone's lips. Ecology is taught in almost all higher educational institutions countries, special environmental newspapers and magazines are published, numerous dissertations are defended on ecology.

Such a dramatic change over the course of 30 years occurred due to two interrelated circumstances characteristic of the second half of the century: the growth of the world's population and the scientific and technological revolution.

The rapid growth of the world's population is called the population explosion. It is difficult to judge this phenomenon in Russia, where the population began to decrease starting from 1993, and even Western Europe, where it grows very slowly, but it is well illustrated by the demographic statistics of China, African countries, Latin America, and southern Asia, where the population is growing at a gigantic pace.

At the beginning of the century, 1.5 billion people lived on Earth. In 1950, despite the losses in the two world wars, the population increased to 2.5 billion, and then began to increase annually by 70-100 million people. In 1993, the population of the Earth reached 5.5 billion people, i.e. doubled compared to 1950, and in 2000 will exceed 6 billion.

Without dwelling on the causes of the population explosion, we note that it was accompanied by the seizure of vast territories from nature for residential buildings and public institutions, automobile and railways, airports and marinas, crops and pastures. Hundreds of square kilometers were cut down rainforests. Under the hooves of numerous herds, the steppes and prairies turned into deserts.

Simultaneously with the population explosion, there was also a scientific and technological revolution. Man mastered nuclear energy, rocket technology and went into space. He invented the computer, created electronic technology and the industry of synthetic materials.

The population explosion and the scientific and technological revolution have led to a colossal increase in the consumption of natural resources. Thus, at present, 3.5 billion tons of oil and 4.5 billion tons of hard and brown coal are produced annually in the world. At such rates of consumption, it became obvious that many natural resources will be depleted in the near future. At the same time, the waste of giant industries began to pollute the environment more and more, destroying the health of the population. In all industrialized countries, cancerous, chronic pulmonary and cardiovascular diseases are widespread.

Scientists were the first to sound the alarm. Beginning in 1968, the Italian economist Aurelio Peccei began to gather in Rome every year major experts from different countries to discuss questions about the future of civilization. These meetings were called the Club of Rome. In the spring of 1972, the first book prepared by the Club of Rome was published, with the characteristic title "Limits to Growth". And in June of the same year, the UN held the First International Conference on Environment and Development in Stockholm, which summarized materials on pollution and its harmful effects on the health of the population of many countries. The participants of the conference came to the conclusion that a person from a subject who studied the ecology of animals and plants, in the new conditions, must himself turn into an object of multilateral environmental research. They appealed to the governments of all countries of the world with an appeal to create special state institutions for this purpose.

After the conference in Stockholm, ecology merged with nature conservation and began to acquire the present great importance. IN different countries ministries, departments and committees on ecology began to be created, and their main goal was to monitor the natural environment and combat its pollution in order to preserve public health. In the USSR, in 1973, a Commission for the Protection of Nature and the Rational Use of Natural Resources was established under the Presidium of the Council of Ministers. On its basis, in 1987, the State Committee was formed. It entered the first government of independent Russia under the name of the Ministry of Ecology, but then it was again renamed the Committee, and the word "ecology" remained only in its abbreviated name (Goskomekologiya).

To conduct research on human ecology, it was required theoretical basis. First, Russian and then foreign researchers recognized the teachings of V.I. Vernadsky about the biosphere and the inevitability of its evolutionary transformation into the sphere of the human mind - the noosphere.

The environmental problems of our time can be conditionally divided into local, regional and global in terms of their scale and require different means and scientific developments of different nature for their solution.

An example of a local environmental problem is a plant that dumps its industrial waste into the river without treatment, which is harmful to human health. This is a violation of the law. The nature conservation authorities or even the public should fine such a plant through the courts and, under threat of closure, force it to be built. treatment facilities. It does not require any special science.

An example of regional environmental problems is the Kuzbass - a basin almost closed in the mountains, filled with gases from coke ovens and fumes from a metallurgical giant, which no one thought about capturing during construction, or the drying Aral Sea with a sharp deterioration in the environmental situation along its entire periphery, or high radioactivity of soils in areas adjacent to Chernobyl.

To solve such problems, scientific research is already needed. In the first case, the development of rational methods for absorbing smoke and gas aerosols, in the second, accurate hydrological studies to develop recommendations for increasing the flow into the Aral Sea, in the third, elucidation of the impact on public health of long-term exposure to low doses of radiation and the development of soil decontamination methods.

However, the anthropogenic impact on nature has reached such proportions that global problems have arisen, about which at the beginning of the 20th century. no one could even suspect. If we leave aside the economic and social aspects, and talk only about nature, then we can name the following global environmental problems that are in the field of view of mankind at the end of the 20th century: global warming, depletion of the ozone layer, destruction of the forest cover of the Earth, desertification of vast territories , pollution of the oceans, reduction of species diversity of fauna and flora. Scientific research is needed not only to solve or mitigate these problems, but also to find out the causes of their occurrence, because without this it is simply impossible to solve them.

Let us use an example to explain how questions that require special research are drawn into a chain.

Started in the second half of the 20th century. a sharp warming of the climate is a reliable fact. We feel it in milder than before winters. The average temperature of the surface layer of air, compared with 1956-1957, when the First International Geophysical Year was held, increased by 0.7°C. There is no warming at the equator, but the closer to the poles, the more noticeable it is. Beyond the Arctic Circle it reaches 2°C.

At the North Pole, under-ice water warmed by 1°C and the ice cover began to melt from below.

What is the reason for this phenomenon? Some scientists believe that this is the result of burning a huge mass of organic fuel and releasing large amounts of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, which is a greenhouse gas, i.e. hinders the transfer of heat from the Earth's surface. Others, referring to climate change in historical time, consider the anthropogenic factor of climate warming negligible and attribute this phenomenon to increased solar activity.

A warming climate raises a number of related issues. What are the prospects for its further development? How will warming affect the increase in evaporation from the surface of the oceans and how will this affect the amount of precipitation? How will this precipitation be distributed over the area? And a number of more specific questions concerning the territory of Russia: in connection with the warming and general humidification of the climate, is it possible to expect mitigation of droughts in the Lower Volga region and the North Caucasus; should we expect an increase in the flow of the Volga and a further rise in the level of the Caspian; whether the retreat of permafrost will begin in Yakutia and the Magadan region; Will navigation along the northern shores of Siberia become easier?

All these questions can be answered accurately. However, for this, various scientific studies must be carried out.

The ecological problem of the ozone layer is no less complex in scientific terms. It arose in 1982, when a probe launched from a British station in Antarctica detected a sharp decrease in ozone at an altitude of 25-30 km.

Since then, an ozone "hole" of varying shapes and sizes has been recorded over Antarctica all the time. Later, the same "hole" was discovered over the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, over Svalbard, and then in different places of Eurasia, in particular over Voronezh.

The depletion of the ozone layer is a much more dangerous reality for all life on Earth than the fall of some super-large meteorite, because ozone (triatomic oxygen formed in the stratosphere from ordinary oxygen due to the energy of ultraviolet and even shorter wavelength cosmic rays) does not allow dangerous radiation up to the surface of the earth. If not for ozone, these rays would destroy all life.

The depletion of the ozone layer has excited not only scientists, but also the governments of many countries. The search for reasons began. At first, suspicion fell on chlorine and fluorocarbons used in refrigeration, the so-called freons. They are really easily oxidized by ozone, thereby destroying it. Were singled out large sums looking for their replacements. However, refrigeration units are mainly used in countries with warm and hot climates, and for some reason ozone holes are most pronounced in the polar regions. This caused bewilderment. Then it was found that a lot of ozone is destroyed by the rocket engines of modern aircraft flying at high altitudes, as well as during launches. spaceships and satellites.

Detailed scientific studies are needed to finally resolve the issue of the causes of ozone depletion. Another cycle of research is needed to develop the most rational ways to artificially restore the previous ozone content in the stratosphere. Work in this direction has already begun.

But has the idea of the transformation of nature been abandoned? Are environmental practices improving? In what direction is the relationship of man to the natural environment changing?

Several examples can serve as answers.

First example. Fishing has long been one of the main occupations of Norwegians. To fish they went across the ocean to the shallows off the coast of Iceland and New Foundland. They caught mainly herring, but in a small amount also salmon, or European salmon, which enters the mountain rivers of Norway through the fjords to spawn.

About 20 years ago, the Norwegians guessed to change the technique of salmon fishing. After the fish enter to spawn, they block the exit from several fjords into the sea with a fine mesh net. After the eggs have matured, salmon fry slide down the rivers into the fjord, but cannot leave it. They are fed first minced fish, and then small "weedy" fish, which are caught off the coast of Norway. Young salmon grow rapidly, after 3-4 years they reach a weight of 9-10 kg, after which they are easily caught with seines.

A new way of breeding and fishing allowed Norway to increase the annual production of salmon from several tens of thousands of tons to 500 thousand tons, i.e. more than an order of magnitude. In any European restaurant, you can now get a relatively cheap Norwegian salmon. And Norwegian fishermen began to live much richer.

Another example of the purposeful change of natural ecosystems is the farming of marine mollusks in Japan, China and Vietnam. In these countries, some species of benthic marine mollusks have long been eaten. However, in the last two decades, their artificial breeding has begun. Vast areas of coastal shallow water in these countries were previously cleared of other benthic fauna, and then populated with those species of edible mollusks that grow most rapidly.

No one knows how many edible marine mollusks were caught before, but in recent years their total production has amounted to 5 million tons, and this has become a significant help in the food balance of the population of Southeast Asia.

An example of rational nature management can also be the forestry of Germany, where they adopted a law (and it is strictly observed) that the area occupied by forests should not be less than 27% of the entire territory of the country. There are no fallen rotting tree trunks or stumps in the forests. The forests of Germany are all secondary and homogeneous. For planting selected tree species with good, strong wood and relatively fast growth. Up to a height of approximately 600 m, the forests consist of beech, and in the mountainous regions of southern Germany - of a special type of spruce. Beech grows wood relatively quickly - in 45 years, spruce - in 60 years. Upon reaching this age, the forest is cut down, and the vacated areas are planted with young trees. This way of forest management provides Germany with the necessary wood and does not disturb the ecological balance. Red deer, roe deer, wild boars and hares are found in the forests of Germany, black grouse and songbirds nest.

These examples show the relationship of man to the natural environment, which should become dominant in the age of the noosphere. It is believed that a broad ecological education will contribute to the transformation of the biosphere into the sphere of the human mind - the noosphere, upon entering which all mankind will understand that it is a part of this noosphere, and will strive not to destroy, but to expand and increase natural wealth.

Global environmental problems and ways to solve them

natural resource protection environmental management

Today, the ecological situation in the world can be described as close to critical. Among the global environmental problems are the following:

Thousands of species of plants and animals have been destroyed and continue to be destroyed;

The forest cover has been largely destroyed;

The available stock of minerals is rapidly declining;

The world ocean is not only depleted as a result of the destruction of living organisms, but also ceases to be a regulator of natural processes;

The atmosphere in many places is polluted to the maximum permissible extent, and clean air is becoming scarce;

The ozone layer, which protects against destructive cosmic radiation for all living things, is partially broken;

Pollution of the surface and disfigurement of natural landscapes: it is impossible to find a single square meter of the surface on Earth, where there would be no elements artificially created by man.

The perniciousness of man's consumer attitude to nature only as an object of obtaining certain wealth and benefits has become quite obvious. For humanity, it becomes vital to change the very philosophy of attitude towards nature.

What measures are needed to solve global environmental problems! First of all, one should move from the consumer-technocratic approach to nature to the search for harmony with it. This, in particular, requires a number of targeted measures to green production: environmentally friendly technologies, mandatory environmental impact assessment of new projects, and the creation of non-waste closed-cycle technologies.

Another measure aimed at improving the relationship between man and nature is reasonable self-limitation in the use of natural resources, especially energy sources (oil, coal), which are of paramount importance for human life. Calculations by international experts show that if we proceed from the current level of consumption (the end of the 20th century), then coal reserves will last for another 430 years, oil - for 35 years, natural gas - for 50 years. The term, especially in terms of oil reserves, is not so long. In this regard, reasonable structural changes are needed in the world energy balance towards expanding the use of atomic energy, as well as the search for new, efficient, safe and environmentally friendly sources of energy, including space.

However, all the above and other measures can give a tangible effect only if the efforts of all countries are combined to save nature. The first attempt at such an international association was made at the beginning of the 20th century. Then, in November 1913, the first international conference on nature conservation was held in Switzerland with the participation of representatives of 18 largest states of the world.

Now interstate forms of cooperation are reaching a qualitative level. new level. International conventions on environmental protection are being signed (fishing quotas, a ban on whale hunting, etc.), and a variety of joint developments and programs are being carried out. Activity intensified public organizations for environmental protection - "green" ("Greenpeace"). Green Cross Green Crescent Environmental International is currently developing a program to address the problem of "ozone holes" in the Earth's atmosphere. However, it should be recognized that with a very different level of socio-political development of the states of the world the international cooperation in the environmental sphere is still very far from its perfection.

Another direction for solving the environmental problem, and perhaps in the future - the most important of all, is the formation of ecological consciousness in society, people's understanding of nature as another living being, over which one cannot rule without harming him and himself.

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What is an ecosystem?

An ecosystem (ecological system) is usually called a biosystem, which consists entirely of:

communities of living organisms;
their habitats;
their mutual exchange of matter and energy.

A typical example of an ecosystem is a pond. This is a natural community with fish, microorganisms, plants living in it. What is the role of nature in human life? Huge! Nature directly affects us in one area or another. We should be grateful to her, because without the ecosystem created by nature, there would be no life for us.

Human living conditions in nature

Our natural community is based on several conditions. For a normal existence, people need to maintain certain conditions in their ecosystem:

the air temperature should be within 20-25 degrees;
certain lighting of the living space is necessary;
necessary humidity is required, etc.

In addition, people need to drink, while the water may not be any, but only suitable for consumption. All these are factors without which we cannot live. Provides us with all this, of course, an artificial ecological system. But let's talk about natural nature, that is, about the natural ecosystem in which we, as living organisms, live.

The concept of nature

Its role in human life and society is limitless! Nature is the natural habitat of organisms, not artificially created by man. In a broader sense, nature is a living world that surrounds us everywhere. This world is endless and diverse. Nature is an objective reality that exists independently of human consciousness.

Mother nature also has its own laws, which absolutely everything in the Universe, including man, is forced to obey. By the way, that is why nature is called the material world of the universe. In essence, this is an object for the study of certain natural sciences (biology, physics, chemistry, medicine). As mentioned above, we are an integral part of nature and strictly obey all its laws. But what is its direct role in our life?

The role of nature in people's lives

material role. And it is nature that gives us clothes, housing, and food. If a person does not put his “investment” into it, then he will have nothing to reap. For example, if the field is not plowed and fertilized at the end of the year, next year's harvest will not have to wait. As the saying goes, what you sow, you will reap.
spiritual role. Only material values the role of nature in people's lives is not limited. Nature has a uniqueness that makes you pay attention to it, if not every person, then at least creative individuals. A creative attitude to nature arises in all peoples, instilling a sincere sense of their homeland (patriotism), a sense of their own significance in this world, etc. Unfortunately, over time, the spiritual role of nature in people's lives began to blur and be lost. This has happened since people began to pay more attention to their inner world, interpersonal relationships, as well as to pursue goals that adversely affect the nature of poaching). All this leads to the interruption of all relations of man with the outside world, with the natural community.

Topic: "Nature, society, man, culture, as forms of being"

1. The role of nature in the life of society.

2. The doctrine of the noosphere.

3. Culture as "second nature".

The role of nature in society

Nature is the natural habitat of organisms, not artificially created by man. In a broader sense, nature is a living world that surrounds us everywhere. This world is endless and diverse. Nature is an objective reality that exists independently of human consciousness.

Human society is part of nature. And it doesn't need much proof. After all, natural chemical, biological and other processes take place in the body of each person. The human body acts as a natural basis for its social activities in the field of production, politics, science, culture, etc.

As a rule, natural processes occurring in society acquire a social form, and natural, primarily biological, patterns act as biosocial ones. This can be said about the satisfaction of people's natural needs for food, warmth, procreation, and others. All of them are satisfied in a social form with the help of properly prepared food (almost every nation has its own "kitchen"), a built dwelling, most often meeting certain aesthetic criteria, and also with the help of socially organized family communication. Biosocial laws express the mutual influence of biological and social principles in the development of society.

The role of nature in the life of society has always been significant, because it acts as a natural basis for its existence and development. People satisfy many of their needs at the expense of nature, primarily the external natural environment. There is a so-called exchange of substances between man and nature - a necessary condition for the existence of man and society. The development of any society, of all mankind is included in the process of development of nature, in constant interaction with it, and ultimately in the existence of the Universe.

The organic connection between man and nature makes it necessary to fully take into account natural factors in the development of society. That is why nature has always been an object of attention.

Coming out of the bosom of nature, as its highest and specific manifestation, society does not lose its ties with it, although it significantly changes their character. The connections of people with nature are carried out mainly on the basis of and within the framework of their social activities, primarily production, related to the field of material and spiritual production.

Nature has been and remains a natural environment and a prerequisite for the existence and development of society. Its natural environment includes primarily the earthly landscape, including mountains, plains, fields, forests, as well as rivers, lakes, seas, oceans, etc. All this constitutes the so-called geographical environment of human life. However, the natural environment is not limited to this. It also includes the bowels of the earth, atmosphere and space, ultimately all natural conditions people's lives and the development of society - from the microcosm to the macro- and mega-world.

The importance for society of both inanimate and animate nature is increasing. Live nature makes up the biosphere of the Earth: flora and fauna, the existence of which is objectively necessary for the existence of man and society.

Assessing the importance of nature in the life of society, some thinkers came to the conclusion that it completely determines its development. Pointing to the harmony and beauty of nature, one of the representatives of philosophical romanticism, J.J. Rousseau, argued that the separation of mankind from nature and its transition to civilization (which he characterized as vicious) is the source of all the troubles and misfortunes of people. The preservation of organic unity with nature is the key to the well-being of society, each person. The truth and value of judgments about the unity of society and nature are especially clear to us today.

The decisive role of nature in the development of society was pointed out by the ancient thinker Herodoti, the thinkers of the New Age, C. Montesquieu, A. Turgot, and others. The latter developed views that were called geographical determinism. Its essence lies in the assertion that nature, which is interpreted as the geographical environment of the life of society, acts as the main cause of the phenomena occurring in society. It determines not only the direction of the economic life of people, but also their mental make-up, temperament, character, customs and mores, aesthetic views, and even forms of government and legislation, in a word, their entire social and personal life. So, C. Montesquieu argued that the climate, soils "and the geographical position of the country are the reason for the existence of various forms state power and legislation, determine the psychology of people and the warehouse of their character. He wrote that "the peoples of hot climates are timid like old men, the peoples of cold climates are brave like young men." In his opinion, the climate and geographical environment determine the "character of the mind and passion of the heart", which inevitably affects the psychology of people, the nature of their art, customs and laws.

Therefore, the role of nature are as follows:

1. Nature is first of all the environment of life.

2. Nature is also of economic importance. It is from nature that a person draws all the necessary resources for the development of his economic activity; to increase wealth.

3. The scientific significance of nature follows from the fact that it is the source of all knowledge.

4. The educational value of nature lies in the fact that communication with it has a beneficial effect on a person at any age, diversifies the worldview.

5. The aesthetic value of nature is enormous. Nature has always been the inspirer of art, occupying, for example, a central place in the work of landscape and animal painters. The beauty of nature attracts people and has a beneficial effect on their mood.

The doctrine of the noosphere

The doctrine of the noosphere combines many paradigms from seemingly having little in common disciplines: philosophy, economics, geology. What is the uniqueness of this concept?

About what the noosphere is, the French mathematician Edouard Leroy first told the world in his publications in 1927. A few years earlier, he had listened to several lectures by the eminent Russian scientist Vladimir Ivanovich Vernadsky concerning problems in the field of geochemistry (as well as biogeochemistry).

The noosphere is a special state of the biosphere, in which the key role belongs to the human mind. Man, using the intellect, creates a "second nature" along with the existing one. However, at the same time, it is itself a part of nature. Therefore, the noosphere is still the result of evolution occurring along the following chain: the development of the planet - the biosphere - the emergence of man - and, finally, the emergence of the noosphere. At the same time, in the concepts of V. I. Vernadsky, according to researchers, there is no clear answer to the question: "Does the noosphere already exist, or is it just to appear?" The scientist, however, suggested that at the time when his granddaughter becomes an adult, human mind, his creativity is likely to flourish and reveal itself to the fullest. And this can become an indirect sign of the emergence of the noosphere.

Vernadsky's doctrine of the noosphere, according to scientists, was connected precisely with that section of "evolution" when the biosphere turns into the noosphere. Vladimir Ivanovich in his book "Scientific Thought as a Planetary Phenomenon" writes that the transition from the biosphere to the noosphere is possible when this process is influenced by scientific thought.

In addition, the researchers note, Vernadsky singled out several conditions for the emergence of the noosphere. Among them, for example, the complete settlement of the planet by people (and in this case there will simply be no place for the biosphere). It is also the improvement of means of communication and information exchange between people from different parts of the planet (and this is already there thanks to the Internet). The noosphere may arise when the geology of the Earth will be more dependent on man than on nature. Concepts of scientists-followers various areas, knowing the teachings of Vernadsky and his like-minded people about what the noosphere is, they created several concepts that develop the initial postulates of the Russian researcher. According to A. D. Ursula, for example, the noosphere is a system where moral reason, values associated with intellect, humanism will manifest themselves in the first place. In the noosphere, according to Ursul, humanity lives in harmony with nature, in the mode of joint participation in evolutionary processes.

If Vernadsky's doctrine of the noosphere implies the predominant disappearance of the biosphere, then, as modern researchers note, the concepts of today's authors contain the theses that the noosphere and biosphere are likely to exist simultaneously. One of the possible criteria for the presence of the noosphere - according to modern scientists - may be the achievement of the limit of human development, maximum level improvement of socio-economic institutions. There is an imperative of higher moral and cultural values.

Man and the noosphere are connected in the most direct way. It is thanks to the actions of a person and the direction of his mind that the noosphere appears (Vernadsky's teaching speaks precisely about this). There is a special era in the development of the geology of the planet. Man, having created a specific environment for himself, takes part of the functions of the biosphere. People replace the natural, what is already in nature, with the artificial. There is an environment where technology plays a significant role.

There are landscapes created also with the help of various types of machines controlled by people. Is it true to say that the noosphere is the sphere of the human mind? A number of researchers believe that human activity does not always depend on their understanding of how the world works. People tend to act, experimenting, making mistakes. Reason, if one adheres to this concept, will rather be a factor in the improvement of technology as such, but not a condition for a rational impact on the biosphere in order to turn it into a noosphere.

Along with the concept of "noosphere" there is a term associated with a special type of thinking. It appeared relatively recently. We are talking about noospheric thinking. It, according to a number of researchers, is characterized by several specific features. The most important of them is the high degree of criticality. Next is the internal orientation of a person to improve the biosphere, to create material benefits that contribute to this. An important part of noospheric thinking is the priority of the public over the personal (especially in solving scientific problems). This is the desire to solve unusual and unsolved problems by anyone. Another component of noospheric thinking is the desire to understand the essence of the processes that occur in nature and society.

There is an opinion among scientists that not every person is naturally predisposed to noospheric thinking. Many people do not even know what the noosphere is. However, the researchers believe that a person can be taught the art of mastering this type of thinking. This should take place within the framework of the so-called noospheric formation. The main emphasis in training here is placed on the capabilities of the human brain.

According to the theorists of noospheric education, people should learn to stimulate the emergence of positive aspirations in themselves, a craving for harmony with the outside world, a desire to understand the objective essence of the processes taking place in society. If positive aspirations, as the creators of this concept believe, are brought into politics and the solution of economic problems, then humanity will take a huge step forward.

In the treatise "The Phenomenon of Man", the French scientist Pierre Teilhard de Chardin put forward several philosophical concepts that affect such a phenomenon as the noosphere. Briefly describe them as follows: man has become not just an object of evolution, but also its engine. According to the concepts of the scientist, the main source of reason is reflection, the ability of a person to know himself. The theory of Teilhard de Chardin and the concept of Vernadsky are united by the hypothesis of the appearance of man. Both scientists believe that people have become special and different from other living beings due to the awareness of themselves as individuals. The fundamental difference between the understanding of the noosphere according to Teilhard de Chardin is that he operates with such categories as "superman" and "cosmos".

Vernadsky's doctrine of the noosphere had a very serious impact on the understanding of civilizational processes among researchers of various profiles. Knowing what the noosphere is (or at least getting closer to understanding this phenomenon), modern scientists have at their disposal a valuable tool that allows them to construct models for the development of the planet in the future. Approximately the way Vernadsky succeeded, who actually predicted the emergence of the Internet and some socio-economic achievements. Concepts about the noosphere of the early 20th century give modern scientists the key to understanding evolution. The very first signs indicating the possible appearance of the noosphere were already on Earth during the Paleolithic and Mesolithic times. Since then, human activity associated with the impact on the biosphere has only increased. A powerful impetus for the transformation of the biosphere to the noosphere was the industrial revolution in the 19th century, today the Internet is no less influential factor. It is quite possible that even more advanced means of communication and technology await mankind.