'Nature is offering us crucial lessons today — we must heed them'

David Lindo is a well-known British nature conservationist, educator and urban birder. Lindo shared his perspective with Times Evoke on why people are turning to birds during the global pandemic, the lessons nature is offering us — and how many of us are noting these:
Born in London, I was drawn to urban birding — I was interested in birds from my childhood. But I had no one to take me on trips to see them and most people said birds could anyway only be seen in the countryside. I couldn’t really go to the countryside though, so I decided to just watch the birds around me — and I realised there were so many wonderful, astonishing birds right there, in the heart of the city.
: Lockdowns helped many to notice nature anew. This enthusiasm can inspire change. (Photo: Getty Images)
Over the last 15 years, I’ve seen a substantial rise in people’s interest in urban birding. Now, during the pandemic, people are simply fascinated. Many have been filming the most surprising birds, seen simply from their balconies. Being mostly at home, many people are noticing birds almost for the first time. In Europe, people have been contacting me in sheer wonder, saying, I can’t believe there are so many beautiful birds nesting and singing away where I live. People are thrilled to discover these birds today — it’s literally lifted their hearts. And once people make this connection, they want to learn more about these birds’ habits and habitats.

Watching birds is very good for your mental well-being. I was locked down in Spain, which had the toughest measures across Europe. We were at home for about 60 days. It was difficult — what saved me was sitting on the terrace and watching birds. Nothing gives you more joy than to see sparrows or an eagle fly by. So many people are just happy to open their windows and hear birdsong — it helps enormously.

Many of us are realising the value of this, which we overlooked before the pandemic. If we didn’t have nature around us now, this would have been a very tough time. When you are in touch with nature though, it makes you feel connected to something much bigger than yourself. People are appreciating that connection today.

But whether this will lead to people significantly re-evaluating their behaviour towards nature, my feelings are both yes and no — yes, because some people have really taken the pandemic’s lessons on board. Since the lockdowns began, they’ve thought deeply about why this has even happened. And they’ve tried to change their ways, by consuming more responsibly or turning vegan or vegetarian and making introspective, wiser decisions towards the environment. But many others haven’t done so. In England, for instance, when people were allowed to visit beaches, they left behind tons of rubbish. This act implies that they have not learnt anything.

Given this, it is even more important to reach out to the people who are learning. As a conservationist, I feel it’s vital to connect with these people in every manner possible. On my part, in the autumn, I will be launching a worldwide urban birders club, on my website: www.theurbanbirderworld.com We aim to unite birders globally — and to encourage introspection on what nature gives us, and how we can give back.
The fact is, we face much larger catastrophes than the pandemic. I feel frightened when I think about climate change. I feel apprehensive for our children’s future. And I feel amazed that we’re just carrying on heedlessly, despite the mass extinctions, the ecological destruction, the science showing us that this virus emerged due to humans disturbing the natural world. All this should be enough to inspire us to change our ways. But many of us don’t seem to want to try. So, those of us who are ready to change will have to do more, both by way of our own individual behaviour and inspiring others. It’s a very valuable endeavour because every bit of change matters now. Nature’s giving us joy — but we cannot afford to overlook the lessons it’s teaching us. In our urban lives and our constant consuming, we have forgotten that we are very much a part of nature. Recalling that is essential now — both for our lives and our souls.