Last year, a Yale climate change research program found that on average 70 percent of Americans believe that global warming is happening. However, only 40 percent believe that it will harm them personally. The way we talk about climate change versus the way we actually think about its effect on us are disconnected. This discrepancy points to a narcissistic trend in our country as well as correlating to our lack of time spent outdoors. I would also argue that we believe climate change is too far out of our control for us to personally make a difference.

According to a study done in the Journal of Environmental Psychology, the more time we spend in nature, the more likely we are to making sustainable choices that affect our environment. It makes sense that the more time we spend with nature the more we’re open to protecting it. However, with the never ending advancement of technology and technology keeping us mostly inside, the outdoors hasn’t been able to compete. There’s a clear disconnect between humans and nature and it’s having a detrimental effect on our environment.

I believe we should all try to be more environmentally friendly; however, I tend to forget about those beliefs when I want to take a long shower or when I just want to buy a plastic water bottle instead of filling water from the tap. These habits are hard to let go of, especially when we are so disconnected from our environment to even remember that they are bad habits. Without a strong connection to nature, it’s hard to think of climate change as a personal problem, something that could very much affect you.

The National Wildlife Federation notes that the direct route to caring about the environment as an adult is participating in “wild nature activities” before the age of 11. Similarly, the Nature Conservancy states that children are more than twice as likely to strongly agree that protecting the environment is cool if they’ve had personal experiences with nature. However, if younger generations continue to spend less time outside, our environment could suffer greatly.

There is a clear correlation between spending time outdoors and caring about the environment, and without that time spent outdoors, we tend to distance ourselves from the actual effects of climate change. In order to make our beliefs about climate change match up with our actions, we need to make time for nature.

Sam Miner can be reached at mine0034@stthomas.edu