Technology and nature

How often do you look up from your phone and notice what is around you?

We can spend a lot of time looking at things through a screen. Photos, videos, messages, maps, news and everything else that is there waiting for our attention. Meanwhile, the world around us is still happening.

I’m curious about what we notice when we put the screen down and look at what is actually around us.

When nature is right there

We might walk past a tree without really seeing it, hear a bird without looking up, or sit outside while our attention is somewhere on our phone.

Nature doesn't usually ask us to look. There is no notification telling us that the light has changed or that a bird has landed nearby.

We have to notice for ourselves.

When we photograph instead of looking

Our phones have made it easy to capture beautiful things.

We see a sunset and take a photo. Notice a bird and reach for the camera. See something unusual and want to share it. Sometimes taking the photo helps us notice something we might otherwise have missed.

Yet sometimes we can become more focused on capturing the moment than actually being in it.

We have the picture. But did we really see it?

When our attention is somewhere else

We can be outside and still be somewhere else in our minds.

Thinking about a message. Checking what has happened since we last looked at our phone. Wondering what we need to do next.

The trees are still there. The birds are still there. The wind is still moving through the leaves.

We may simply not notice.

Looking up

There is something different about looking at the world around us without a screen between us and it.

We might notice a bird calling from somewhere nearby. See the way the light falls across the ground. Notice clouds moving across the sky or something growing that we hadn't seen before. Nothing needs to happen.

We are simply looking.

What do we notice?

Technology is part of our everyday lives, and it can help us notice nature too. We can learn the name of a bird, find a walking track, take a photograph or share something beautiful with someone else.

Sometimes we can also let the technology wait. Look up. See what is there.

Our attention will naturally drift, as it always does. We might notice something on our phone, then notice the world around us again.

Next time you're outside, I wonder what might be there when you look up.