Global Connectivity Rethinking the relationship between humans and nature in a post-pandemic reality By Dominique Keizer Lockdown. A keyword that for many has come to be associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. Closed public spaces, lack of social interactions and rapidly changing economies. The images of empty streets became a discursive tool that confronted us with new imaginations of what space means and especially how it is situated within an ecosystem. During the initial months of lockdown, news outlets in many European cities discussed the return of nature due to decreased human mobility and the resulting drop in CO2 emissions. But then, one might ask, where did nature go?
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This position itself poses a serious question of what is being lost in the quest of economic growth. The need to construct an exclusively human world is according to Dr Sharon Blackie a paradox that has led to insanity. To quote her words: “[…] when we lose our relationship with the land and the other creatures around us, then in the deepest sense, we lose ourselves […].” In a way, the current tendency to put humans as agents above nature distorts the natural cycles of an ecosystem which otherwise is capable of self-preservation. We humans are part of this bionetwork. Therefore, perhaps instead of questioning the return of nature we should listen to what nature is trying to tell us. Rising sea levels, extreme weather shifts, and contaminated waters are only a few examples of the ecological consequences that the world is facing. The extensive use of sanitization chemicals and disposable face masks, among other single use plastics, has only added toxic material to the environment. These protective tools, while playing an important role in limiting the spread of the virus, have also exacerbated the already visible
