This presentation will look at the many benefits that a love for nature and the outdoors can have in one’s life. It will focus on the importance of a simpler, less materialistic life and it will define some ways to accomplish this.

1. BACK TO SIMPLICITY: A STUDY OF THE GREAT OUTDOORS AND ITS BENEFITS The human spirit needs places where nature has not been rearranged by the hand of man. ~Unknown *1

2. What happened to Simplicity ? In our world today there is so much chaos and commotion. We live in a consumerist and materialistic society where all that matters is buy, buy, buy, sell, sell, sell. Our only forms of entertainment are the newest IPods, Game Consoles and the latest pictures on Facebook... But what happened to the good old days when all we needed was what we could get from the earth? In a simpler time, people were less stressed, aggravated, and greedy. Playing a neighbourhood game of road hockey or going camping with friends used to be priority... How can retreating to a simpler, more nature bound life benefit us? *2

3. SURVEY: 25 University Students were asked if they have partaken in these outdoor activities. They were then asked if they owned an IPOD... Not surprisingly, there were 15 students who had never been on a canoe trip, 6 who had not seen the mountains, and only 3 who did not have IPods. Yet, the ones who did not, had some other form of MP3. It is results like these which make one question what is truly important to individuals nowadays...

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7. Ecological Footprints Around the World

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9. One has to be alone, under the sky, Before everything falls into place and one finds his or her own place in the midst of it all. We have to have the humility to realize ourselves as part of nature. - Mertonultimgoo Wilderness is a spiritual necessity, an antidote to the high pressure of modern life, a means of regaining serenity and equilibrium. - Sigurd Olson TAKE THE EARTH IN YOUR HANDS AND MAKE THE CHANGE! ENJOY THE BENEFITS OF THE OUTDOORS. *9

10. References Web and Print Material: www.journeyofhearts.org/healing/nature.html en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ecological_footprint www.royalsaskmuseum.ca/gallery/life_sciences/footprint_mx_2005.swf www.essortment.com/all/campinglowimpa_rhah.htm www.quotegarden.com/nature.html An Answer to the Question: What is Enlightenment?, Kant, I. Image Citations: *1 PowerPoint Clip Art Image *2 PowerPoint Clip Art Image *3 www.libcom.org *4 www.farm2.static.flickr.com/1374/1442751344_9e14e0995d.jpg?v=0 *5 www.mdjunction.com *6 www.mrhartansscienceclass.files.wordpress.com/2007/10/footprint.gif *7 www.imageenvision.com *8 www.imageenvision.com *9 www.shutterstock.com