"Natural resources are resources that are drawn from nature and used with few modifications."
Any material or resource that occurs naturally and can be used for economic gain, such as timber, water, and minerals.
Ecological degradation: The process of natural resources being depleted or destroyed through human activities.
Environmental policy: Laws, regulations, and guidelines that dictate the way natural resources are managed and conserved.
Ecosystem services: The benefits that we obtain from natural resources, such as clean water and air, and food production.
Sustainable development: The concept of meeting the needs of the present generation without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.
Biodiversity: The variety of life on Earth and the importance of conserving it.
Conservation biology: The study of the preservation and management of natural resources, including flora and fauna.
Climate change: The impact of human activities on the Earth's climate, including rising temperatures and changes in weather patterns.
Natural resource utilization: The ways in which natural resources are harvested and utilized for human needs, such as mining, fishing, and forestry.
Renewable energy: Energy sources that are naturally replenished, such as wind and solar power, which are alternatives to fossil fuels.
Land use management: The planning and regulation of the use of natural resources on land to maximize their productivity and protect the environment.
Minerals: These are naturally occurring substances found in the earth's crust that has economic value, including metals, precious stones, and industrial minerals.
Fossil Fuels: These are organic matter buried beneath the Earth's surface, including coal, oil, and natural gas, which are burned to create energy.
Water Resources: This refers to surface and groundwater, including oceans, rivers, lakes, and aquifers, which are used for drinking, agriculture, and industrial purposes.
Timber: Wood obtained from trees such as pine, oak, and maple, which are used for construction, furniture, and paper manufacturing.
Soil: The earth's surface layer used for agricultural and horticultural purposes.
Wildlife: Fauna found in natural habitats such as forests, oceans, and grasslands, including mammals, birds, reptiles, and insects.
Air Quality: The composition of air that we breathe consisting of oxygen, nitrogen, and carbon dioxide, which are used in numerous industries.
Fisheries: Marine life that is caught or farmed, including fish, shellfish, and seaweed, which are used for food and other products.
Renewable Energy: Energy generated from resources such as sunlight, wind, and geothermal heat, which are sustainable and do not release carbon dioxide.
Genetic resources: Biological resources that have genetic diversity, including plant species and animal stocks that can be used for medicines and research purposes.
Geothermal resources: The energy source that comes from hot water and steam beneath the earth's surface, which can be used for heating, cooling, and electricity generation.
Land: The Earth's surface and the soil, air, and water on or near it, which is used for agricultural, residential, and industrial purposes and is also home to various species of plants and animals.
Sunlight: The energy provided by the sun that can be harnessed for numerous applications such as photovoltaic cells.
Mineral fuels: This includes coal, oil, and natural gas, which are burned to create power and used in numerous industrial processes.
Forests: Woodlands that provide timber, wildlife, and recreational zones along with essential ecological services such as carbon sequestration, soil stabilization, and water regulation.
"On Earth, it includes sunlight, atmosphere, water, land, all minerals along with all vegetation, and wildlife."
"Valued characteristics such as commercial and industrial use, aesthetic value, scientific interest, and cultural value."
"Natural resources are part of humanity's natural heritage or protected in nature reserves."
"Natural resources are materials and components (something that can be used) that can be found within the environment."
"Every man-made product is composed of natural resources (at its fundamental level)."
"A natural resource may exist as a separate entity such as fresh water, air, or any living organism such as a fish, or it may be transformed by extractivist industries into an economically useful form."
"Metal ores, rare-earth elements, petroleum, timber, and most forms of energy."
"Some resources are renewable, which means that they can be used at a certain rate and natural processes will restore them."
"Extractive industries rely heavily on non-renewable resources that can only be extracted once."
"Natural-resource allocations can be at the center of many economic and political confrontations both within and between countries."
"This is particularly true during periods of increasing scarcity and shortages (depletion and overconsumption of resources)."
"Resource extraction is also a major source of human rights violations and environmental damage."
"The Sustainable Development Goals and other international development agendas frequently focus on creating more sustainable resource extraction."
"Some scholars and researchers focus on creating economic models, such as circular economy, that rely less on resource extraction and more on reuse, recycling, and renewable resources that can be sustainably managed."
"Particular areas often feature biodiversity and geodiversity in their ecosystems."
"Natural resources may be classified in different ways."
"Transformed by extractivist industries into an economically useful form that must be processed to obtain the resource."
"Valued characteristics such as commercial and industrial use."
"Sustainable resource extraction, with some scholars and researchers focused on creating economic models, such as circular economy, that rely less on resource extraction and more on reuse, recycling, and renewable resources that can be sustainably managed."