Biophilia

The term “biophilia” was popularised by the Harvard biologist Edward O. Wilson in 1984 as the title of a book, Biophilia: The Human Bond with Other Species

To him it seemed incontrovertible that we human beings have an innate sensitivity to and need for other living things, because we have coexisted in the closest relationship with the natural world for so many millennia.

He defined biophilia as:

“The connections that human beings subconsciously seek with the rest of life.”

and argued that they are determined by a biological need.

Scientists now studying biophilia feel that humans have a profound need to interact with and relate to nature and the living world around them.

They are finding the restorative value of the natural world to be very forceful in recovery from sickness and in the renewal of burned-out psyches.

It was like many Maui mornings, the sun rising over Haleakala as we greeted our divers for the day’s charter. As my captain and I explained the dive procedures, I noticed the wind line moving into Molokini, a small, crescent-shaped island that harbors a large reef. I slid through the briefing, then prompted my divers to gear up, careful to do everything right so the divers would feel confident with me, the dive leader.