"The natural environment or natural world encompasses all living and non-living things occurring naturally, meaning in this case not artificial."
Covers topics such as the physical environment, ecosystems, biodiversity, climate change, natural hazards, and their interactions.
Ecosystems: Study of living and non-living components within a natural environment, and their interactions.
Biodiversity: Study of the variety of living organisms in a given ecosystem or region.
Climate Change: Study of the shifts in weather patterns and temperature variations that have been observed in recent years.
Water Resources: Study of water systems and their distribution, usage, and conservation.
Land Use: Study of how humans utilize land resources and how this affects natural environments.
Environmental Policy: Study of the laws, regulations, and guidelines for managing the natural environment.
Environmental Ethics: Study of ethical principles that guide interactions with the natural environment.
Sustainable Development: Study of economic and social development practices that seek to balance environmental and economic concerns.
Air Quality: Study of the effects of air pollution on human health and the environment.
Natural Hazards: Study of natural events that pose a threat to human life and property, such as earthquakes, hurricanes, and wildfires.
Wildlife Conservation: Study of the protection and preservation of endangered species and their habitats.
Environmental Impact Assessment: Study of the effects of new development projects on the natural environment and how to mitigate them.
Renewable Energy: Study of energy sources that can be replenished, such as solar, wind, hydro, and geothermal power.
Waste Management: Study of methods for handling and disposing of waste materials in an environmentally responsible manner.
Sustainable Agriculture: Study of agricultural practices that balance economic, social, and environmental concerns.
Forests: Large areas covered with trees, including both deciduous and coniferous forests, are known for their rich biodiversity, and provide habitats for numerous animal and plant species.
Grasslands: Areas covered with grass instead of forest, known for their tall grasses and low shrubs, which are critical habitats for grazing mammals and bird species.
Mountains: Elevated areas with steep slopes, rocky terrain, and often snow at the tops, are typically sparsely populated, and home to unique fauna and flora species.
Deserts: Regions characterized by dry weather, extreme temperatures, low humidity, and minimal precipitation, with vast stretches of sandy or rocky terrain and sporadic vegetation.
Wetlands: Lowland areas that are periodically flooded or saturated with water, such as marshes and swamps, are home to a special ecosystem that provides a habitat for many distinct plant and animal species.
Oceans: The largest bodies of water on Earth, covering over 70% of the planet's surface area, and characterized by vast expanses of water, complex currents, and unique marine life.
Rivers: Channels of water that flow through land, originating from springs or mountains, and often form the basis for settlement patterns and the source of life for many species.
Tundra: Vast expanses of treeless Arctic or alpine regions, characterized by a short growing season, permafrost, and harsh weather conditions, which provides habitats for unique cold-adapted plant and animal species.
Coastal areas: Regions that are adjacent to oceans or seas and are characterized by specific flora and fauna, varying coastlines, significant erosion, and the presence of wetlands, estuaries, and coral reefs.
Polar regions: The icy regions in the Arctic and Antarctic, characterized by extreme cold, polar ice caps, and frozen terrain, which provide habitats for cold-adapted animals like walruses, penguins, and polar bears.
"This environment encompasses the interaction of all living species, climate, weather, and natural resources that affect human survival and economic activity."
"Built environments are where humans have fundamentally transformed landscapes such as urban settings and agricultural land conversion, the natural environment is greatly changed into a simplified human environment."
"Universal natural resources and physical phenomena that lack clear-cut boundaries, such as air, water, and climate, as well as energy, radiation, electric charge, and magnetism, not originating from civilized human actions."
"The massive environmental changes of humanity in the Anthropocene have fundamentally affected all natural environments: including from climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution from plastic and other chemicals in the air and water."
"People cannot find absolutely natural environments on Earth, and naturalness usually varies in a continuum, from 100% natural in one extreme to 0% natural in the other."
"If, for instance, in an agricultural field, the mineralogic composition and the structure of its soil are similar to those of an undisturbed forest soil, but the structure is quite different."
"All vegetation, microorganisms, soil, rocks, the atmosphere, and natural phenomena that occur within their boundaries and their nature."
"Physical phenomena that lack clear-cut boundaries, such as air, water, and climate."
"The natural environment encompasses the interaction of all living species, climate, weather, and natural resources that affect human survival and economic activity."
"The natural environment is greatly changed into a simplified human environment through landscapes transformed by urban settings and agricultural land conversion."
"Though many animals build things to provide a better environment for themselves, they are not human, hence beaver dams, and the works of mound-building termites, are thought of as natural."
"Massive civilized human intervention includes climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution from plastic and other chemicals in the air and water."
"All vegetation, microorganisms, soil, rocks, the atmosphere, and natural phenomena that occur within their boundaries and their nature."
"Though many animals build things to provide a better environment for themselves, they are not human, hence beaver dams, and the works of mound-building termites, are thought of as natural."
"Universal natural resources and physical phenomena that lack clear-cut boundaries, such as air, water, and climate, as well as energy, radiation, electric charge, and magnetism."
"The massive environmental changes of humanity in the Anthropocene have fundamentally affected all natural environments: including from climate change, biodiversity loss, and pollution from plastic and other chemicals in the air and water."
"The mineralogic composition and the structure of its soil" can influence the degree of naturalness in an environment.
"Their degree of naturalness is not uniform."
"Even acts which seem less extreme, such as building a mud hut or a photovoltaic system in the desert, the modified environment becomes an artificial one."