Innovating the Green Way: Natural Considerations for Sustainable Consumption

Abstract

Learn everything you can, anytime you can, from anyone you can – there will always come a time when you will be grateful for what you did… Sarah Caldwell The five natural elements (Earth, Water, Fire, Air and Sky), the Sun and the Moon, plants, trees, birds and animals, came into existence much ahead of human beings. In fact, man – as a part of Nature – was the last creation in the Universe. Though, we (human beings) have been created with the superlative degree of intellect, there is so much that can be learnt from Nature; the traditions of wisdom from the world teach us that a divine essence flows through all creations. But we will be able to learn from Nature only if we are open and receptive. Together with Nature, man can co-create ground-breaking ideas that could help him create wealth and well-being at the same time. It leads to ‘Win more – Win more’ scenarios. Bio-mimicry, a recently popular field of science, contemplates Nature's best ideas and imitates its designs and processes to offer innovative and sustainable solutions for life on Earth. The inspirations from Nature can be great teachings for inclusive growth and sustainable development. Natural farming is another upcoming stream which exemplifies the idea of working with Nature to maintain a balance between the species (food chain), thereby making the struggle for survival on the planet more affordable and sustainable. Encompassing these, this paper attempts to understand and appreciate Nature from a holistic perspective – to design precepts that would guide us to create a more sustainable and cooperative world. We also seek to explicate how Nature (plants, birds and animals) can be a ‘guru’ to guide us through the path of wisdom by paying attention to and by observing, understanding and reflecting on how and why Nature behaves the way it behaves.