July 13th 2026

Losing connection to the natural world

As technology use continues to rise, there has been a noticeable decline in the sense of environmental responsibility many people feel. Younger generations are growing up surrounded by screens, often with fewer opportunities to form meaningful relationships with the outdoors. Similarly, society seems increasingly focused on constant advancement without pausing to appreciate the natural world that sustains us. As a result, nature can begin to feel distant and abstract rather than immediate and personal.

This disconnection is not limited to those who lack knowledge. Even individuals with strong scientific understanding of ecosystems and climate systems can feel emotionally detached. Without a sense of curiosity, kinship, or wonder, knowledge alone does not necessarily inspire care.

When emotional connection fades, responsibility weakens. Crucially, this detachment does not stop at the personal level; it seeps into wider cultural and corporate systems.

The issue of greed

Bellow hollow sustainability pledges and performative environmental concern lies a deeper force: greed. When profit becomes the dominant measure of success and nature is reduced to a resource rather than recognised as a living system, exploitation becomes easier to justify. Emotional distance allows environmental harm to feel less immediate and therefore less urgent.

In the race to maximise profits and reduce costs, companies may exploit natural resources at unsustainable rates through deforestation, overfishing, excessive water consumption, and mineral extraction (sustainability dictionary). These practices disrupt ecosystems, accelerate biodiversity loss, and deplete resources needed by future generations.

Why do companies feel they don’t need to be responsible?

When disconnection and greed take over, corporate responsibility becomes superficial. Environmental goals risk becoming little more than targets to tick off.

The plastics industry provides a clear example. Publicly, recycling was promoted as the solution to plastic waste. Privately, however, some executives doubted its effectiveness. As reported by Atmos, an Exxon Chemical vice president admitted in 1994, “We are committed to the activities, but not committed to the results” (atmos).  

However, public outrage can disrupt this detachment. For years, much of America’s plastic waste was exported overseas, keeping the issues out of sight and out of mind. When China restricted imports of foreign plastic waste in 2018, communities in the United States were forced to confront mounting waste themselves (atmos). Suddenly, the consequences were visible. When distance disappears, accountability becomes harder to avoid.

The issue of greenwashing

One of the clearest symptoms of corporate detachment is greenwashing. As awareness of environmental damage has grown, so has the desire to appear sustainable without making meaningful change.

A mentor once told me a story about a company that shipped bricks around the world to be carved, rather than sourcing them from those places and shipping them only once, just so they could claim the finished product used “British stone.” On the surface, it sounded sustainable. But when you looked closer, the extra transportation caused far more environmental harm. By trying to appear greener, they made things worse.

Greenwashing undermines genuine climate action and hard work from those wanting to make a real change. When image consistently outweighs impact, meaningful progress stalls.

A call for change

At its heart, the environmental crisis is not just a technological, political, or economic issue it is an emotional and cultural one. When people feel disconnected from nature, responsibility fades. When companies prioritise image over impact, trust erodes. And when greed outweighs balance, both people and the planet suffer.

But awareness has always been the first step toward change. When individuals see the waste they create, when consumers question greenwashed claims, and when society begins to value wellbeing and sustainability over endless growth, responsibility can return. Rebuilding our connection with the natural world (through curiosity, care, and respect) may be one of the most powerful tools we have.

The Earth is not an abstract concept or a distant system keeping us alive; it is our home. And protecting it is not just an environmental duty, but a human one.

Written by Lia Moffat

Glossary

• Green washing –  Misleading the public to believe that a company or other entity is doing more to protect the environment than it is. (UN, 2022)