You say unnatural as if it's a bad thing, to be avoided.
And yet mosquito netting, penicillin and the internet are also all unnatural.
We are not merely animals. We should not be trying to be 'natural'.
Are you telling me humans are exempt from the effects of polluting the air and water, you know these indispensable commodities for life itself. In spite of these unnatural remedies you mentioned above, disease is on the increase from our unnatural contributions to the ecology.
Ecology has practical applications in conservation biology, wetland management, natural resource management (agroecology, agriculture, forestry, agroforestry, fisheries), city planning (urban ecology), community health, economics, basic and applied science, and human social interaction (human ecology).
For example, the
Circles of Sustainability approach treats ecology as more than the environment 'out there'. It is not treated as separate from humans. Organisms (including humans) and
resources compose
ecosystems which, in turn, mantain biophysical feedback mechanisms that moderate processes acting on living (
biotic) and non-living (
abiotic) components of the planet.
Ecosystems sustain life-supporting functions and produce natural capital like biomass production (food, fuel, fiber, and medicine), the regulation of climate, global biogeochemical cycles, water filtration, soil formation, erosion control, flood protection, and many other natural features of scientific, historical, economic, or intrinsic value.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecology
Interestingly, cicle cell anemia is a natural defense against malaria (spread by mosquitos) and is a natural advantage in the tropics. Many animals use the natural healing properties of plants and fungi.
p.s. about 70 % of all medicine is or was derived from naturally occurring resources.
Being "natural" is being part of and preserving the natural cycle, the natural balance established over millions of years. IMO, ignorance and destruction of the earth's natural processes is tantamount to sacrilege.
And before we casually dismiss Natural processes, may I remind that insects had conquered flight, long distance communication, agriculture, husbandry, and air conditioning, hundreds of millions of years before man even appeared on the scene.
What exactly have human endeavors contributed to the natural cycle and the health of the Earth and it's inhabitants? Cancer and trillions of tons of previously sequestered CO2?
It seems our purpose is to destroy life, not to promote it. Actually, is that not described by the scriptural metaphor of Man eating the fruit from the tree of knowledge and thereby leaving the natural cycle of life? I always thought that the ability for abstract thought without the wisdom to contain it's potential detrimental effects is one of man's greatest shortcomings.
