348
L. An
from wind and hold sand in place. Forests also help reduce dust, pollution, and
noise, and purify the air. They play a positive role in mitigating climate change
and conserving biodiversity, and help prevent land degradation and desertification.
Forests also reduce floods, landslides, droughts, dust storms and other natural disasters. Forests are cradles of the human civilization. They are a green gift from nature
which has helped mankind survive and thrive.
Human civilization develops through interactions with nature. Primitive people
respected, feared, and worship nature. Agricultural civilizations are dependent on
nature and follow its laws. Industrial civilizations strive to conquer and transform
nature. Now we are in transition to an ecological civilization characterized by
harmony between human and nature. The relationship between mankind and forests
is an important aspect and a key indicator of the relationship between humans and
nature.
In primitive societies, early humans lived in forests. They fed on fruits and animals
in the forests, used leaves and animal hides to make clothes, built shelters in trees and
used wildfires they collected from forests. Forests form the basis for the development
of human civilization in every aspect, and provide basic tools that have facilitated
human evolution. Some researchers believe that humans used wood tools for a very
long time before the stone age. Instead of submitting to nature, humans have acquired
a good understanding of nature, followed its laws and made good use of nature with
our intelligence superior to that of other animals. From this perspective, forestry is
an important part, and a distinctive feature, of primitive civilization. It is the product
of mankind making proper use of natural resources, or to be specific, forests, and
reflects the interdependence of humans and nature.
As man developed better life skills, the human society transitioned from hunting
and gathering to food cultivation, and entered the era of agricultural civilization. In
this stage, forests served as the material foundation for agriculture: In addition to
providing the necessities of life and production, forests could also be turned into
farmland, which was the foundation of an agricultural civilization. Then, as the
population grew, more forests became farmland and tree logs were used as building
materials and firewood, resulting in changes in the relationship between mankind
and forests. While human activities caused decrease of forest areas, human beings
realized the significance of forests and forestry to development. As ancient Chinese
politician and philosopher Guan Zhong suggested in his writings Li Zheng (On
Overseeing the Government), water conservation and afforestation are crucial to
the prosperity of a nation. In Qing Zhong I (Economic Policies I), Guan Zhong
claimed that it was the responsibility of state leaders to conserve forests, marshes
and grasslands. He also emphasized in Ba Guan (Eight Observations) the importance
of regulating the use of forests and grasslands, which was elaborated later by Mencius
and Xunzi. In Liang Hui Wang I of Mengzi, Mencius claimed that forests would thrive
if people only fell trees at a proper time. Xunzi also said in Wangzhi of Xunzi that
axes must not enter the forest when the plants and trees are flourishing, lest their
lives be cut short. China established a special warden system at a very early time to
oversee the mountains, forests, rivers and marshes and ensuring proper use of forests.
L. An
from wind and hold sand in place. Forests also help reduce dust, pollution, and
noise, and purify the air. They play a positive role in mitigating climate change
and conserving biodiversity, and help prevent land degradation and desertification.
Forests also reduce floods, landslides, droughts, dust storms and other natural disasters. Forests are cradles of the human civilization. They are a green gift from nature
which has helped mankind survive and thrive.
Human civilization develops through interactions with nature. Primitive people
respected, feared, and worship nature. Agricultural civilizations are dependent on
nature and follow its laws. Industrial civilizations strive to conquer and transform
nature. Now we are in transition to an ecological civilization characterized by
harmony between human and nature. The relationship between mankind and forests
is an important aspect and a key indicator of the relationship between humans and
nature.
In primitive societies, early humans lived in forests. They fed on fruits and animals
in the forests, used leaves and animal hides to make clothes, built shelters in trees and
used wildfires they collected from forests. Forests form the basis for the development
of human civilization in every aspect, and provide basic tools that have facilitated
human evolution. Some researchers believe that humans used wood tools for a very
long time before the stone age. Instead of submitting to nature, humans have acquired
a good understanding of nature, followed its laws and made good use of nature with
our intelligence superior to that of other animals. From this perspective, forestry is
an important part, and a distinctive feature, of primitive civilization. It is the product
of mankind making proper use of natural resources, or to be specific, forests, and
reflects the interdependence of humans and nature.
As man developed better life skills, the human society transitioned from hunting
and gathering to food cultivation, and entered the era of agricultural civilization. In
this stage, forests served as the material foundation for agriculture: In addition to
providing the necessities of life and production, forests could also be turned into
farmland, which was the foundation of an agricultural civilization. Then, as the
population grew, more forests became farmland and tree logs were used as building
materials and firewood, resulting in changes in the relationship between mankind
and forests. While human activities caused decrease of forest areas, human beings
realized the significance of forests and forestry to development. As ancient Chinese
politician and philosopher Guan Zhong suggested in his writings Li Zheng (On
Overseeing the Government), water conservation and afforestation are crucial to
the prosperity of a nation. In Qing Zhong I (Economic Policies I), Guan Zhong
claimed that it was the responsibility of state leaders to conserve forests, marshes
and grasslands. He also emphasized in Ba Guan (Eight Observations) the importance
of regulating the use of forests and grasslands, which was elaborated later by Mencius
and Xunzi. In Liang Hui Wang I of Mengzi, Mencius claimed that forests would thrive
if people only fell trees at a proper time. Xunzi also said in Wangzhi of Xunzi that
axes must not enter the forest when the plants and trees are flourishing, lest their
lives be cut short. China established a special warden system at a very early time to
oversee the mountains, forests, rivers and marshes and ensuring proper use of forests.