Who is Nature: Ancient Traditions Meet Virtual Reality

Abstract

To investigate the nexus of humanity and nature, in 2019 I visited sacred sites introduced by community elders in Mexico, Cuba, and Australia. Their responses to my question, “what does nature mean to you?” revealed a holistic vision: nature is not a resource to be extracted but a living entity to engage in a relationship. At least as complex as any human being or sentient entity, nature is not a “what” but a “who.”