The Nature of Nature: Why We Need the Wild

In this inspiring manifesto, an internationally renownedecologist makes a clear case for why protecting nature is our besthealth insurance, and why it makes economic sense.Enric Sala wants to change the world--and in this compellingbook, he shows us how. Once we appreciate how nature works, heasserts, we will understand why conservation is economically wiseand essential to our survival.Here Sala, director of National Geographic's Pristine Seasproject (which has succeeded in protecting more than 5 million sqkm of ocean), tells the story of his scientific awakening and histransition from academia to activism--as he puts it, he was tiredof writing the obituary of the ocean. His revelations aresurprising, sometimes counterintuitive: More sharks signal ahealthier ocean; crop diversity, not intensive monoculture farming,is the key to feeding the planet.Using fascinating examples from his expeditions and those ofother scientists, Sala shows the economic wisdom of making room fornature, even as the population becomes more urbanized. In a soberepilogue, he shows how saving nature can save us all, by reversingconditions that led to the coronavirus pandemic and preventingother global catastrophes.With a foreword from Prince Charles and an introduction from E.O. Wilson, this powerful book will change the way you think aboutour world--and our future.