My viewpoint on the Future

My view on nature throughout my life has changed enormously. When I was younger, and didn’t even know about global warming and the issues with climate change, the view I had on nature was so different. The way I’d look at my environment was something that seemed never ending. Back then, nature appeared to be something that seemed too majestic to have a possible expiration date on it. Nature to me was benign. As described in the reading, “Nature… is predictable, bountiful, robust, stable, and forgiving of any insults that humankind might inflict upon it. However violently it might be shaken, the ball always comes to rest in the bottom of the basin…”
Now, as I learn more on climate change, I have realized that nature is in no way predictable and stable. As past events and tragedies show, our earth is going through a downfall. Everyone’s actions are now coming back as consequences. We can’t take our world for granted. Just the fact of the polar bears, which is just one example, is scary. These animals, which have never faced the risk of extinction, are now in danger of disappearing. Their environment is changing so quickly, and to think that in less than 70 years, animals that are being affected might not exist anymore. According to the chapter we read on the views of nature and the future, my view has gone from thinking nature is benign, to perverse/tolerant. Meaning, “ Within limits, nature can be relied upon to behave predictably. It is forgiving of modest shocks to the system but care must be taken not to knock the ball out of the cup. Regulation is required to prevent major excesses while leaving the system to look after itself in minor matters.”
Work Cited:
Professor John Adams. “Your Viewpoint Determines the Future.” Chapter 3.