Natural environment and human culture: Defining terms and understanding worldviews

The terms nature and natural each have several different meanings which can lead to confusion in communications about environmental issues. One approa ch to clarifying discussion, frequently used in the sciences, is to develop precise, operational definitions of terminology. We argue that this approa ch can be ineffective when applied to multifaceted conceptual terms such as nature, natural, and culture. We think the range of legitimate meanings fo r these terms may be better communicated by historical accounts of use that describe the assumptions, contexts, and worldviews associated with differe nt interpretations. These accounts do not resolve disagreement but can help clarify the basis for it, and open up new avenues of inquiry. In this pape r, we examine the terms nature, natural environment, environmental change, and environmental degradation. A recent article in this journal offered pre cise definitions of the last three of these terms that were based on the id ea that natural is that which is relatively uninfluenced by human culture. Although this is a commonly accepted meaning of natural, we contend that th is meaning needs to be carefully scrutinized. We identify specific problems with this usage and offer an account of use of the term nature, which we t hink provides a more thorough understanding of how nature and natural have been used and understood in different contexts. Since the term natural can be understood several different ways, communication of any particular meani ng requires careful articulation of the intended meaning in light of severa l alternative interpretations.