If you’ve been paying attention at all, you've seen the headlines. Ocean acidification is killing coral reefs, wildfires are bulldozing through California forests, glaciers are melting at the poles. The list of environmental devastation goes on, and at this point, it’s irreversible. And it’s everywhere.

 

But you’ve heard it all before — the eventual environmental annihilation, economic turmoil, and health risks. You can find countless lists online detailing how and why the sea level is rising and what that means for the planet. With one Google search, you can learn about the thousands of key ecosystem species that will cease to exist in however many years. But what does that mean for me, or you? 

 

My intention for this project was to offer something a bit different from the usual climate content, one that centers the emotional losses we will experience through environmental destruction. In order to do this, I take you through my personal experiences at five locations throughout my home state of Michigan. The project encourages you to reframe your view of nature to one that’s deeply introspective. The environment is more than its picturesque landscapes and its profitable resources; it’s where we can learn crucial life lessons, like how to get over a break-up or how to finally appreciate our hometown. 

 

By a simple change in perspective, nature can be at the forefront of humanity’s emotional development. It can be a tracker for where we’ve been and where we can go, from before Earth’s first living organisms to twenty years down the line. If we alter our view of environmental protection to one of human emotion, we can understand how profoundly personal the impacts of the climate crisis will be. 

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How did this project change how you think about the environment? What moments in your emotional development can be tracked by nature? Let me know below.