I am Borbala Gorog, born and raised in the beautiful city of Budapest, the capitol of Hungary. I was lucky to grow up close to nature in a so called “green-belt”. During my childhood, I have spent a lot of time observing animals, I was fond of nature films and I went to various nature protective camps. I always felt safe and balanced in the wild and this affection for animals and plants stayed in my life. Whenever I meet animals or spend some time in the green I feel this connection is getting stronger. By now I have realized I would like to take an active part in environment conservation. I do believe that it is not only about me, it is about us, people. If we let nature have its positive effect on us we will live a prosperous life. Just like we care for our sources of happiness and we feel responsible for our friends, family, society, or ourselves, we should do the same with nature.
Not long ago I saw a movie called Into the Wild. The main character decides to leave his comfortable teenager life and tries to find his inner peace and strength in the wilderness. The story doesn’t have a happy ending as he never returns, but still he finds what he was looking for: himself. I do want to find my roots and create myself, and I know all people have the same desire. Nature gives a chance for me and for all of us to return to our roots and I have decided to dedicate my life to make more and more people understand the connection between ourselves and Mother Nature. Parallel with this, recently I have heard this very simple saying: Nature does not need people. People need nature. It is shockingly true and now I believe I got one step closer to understand life. The question is not if humans plan to change their habits and become eco-friendly once and for all. It is about a bigger power which surrounds us and which will exist even if we fail to adapt. So why don’t we try to understand how to cooperate with this phenomenon, called nature, and make our life precious, delighted, sustainable, flourishing and prosperous? All living organizations are similar to us: they have a central engine which keeps them alive, they have observations, feelings, aims and power. We all have our place in the circulation of the earthly life. At first we need to respect all the actors and understand their roles. Then we will see the whole picture, find our position and start acting our part.
We have moved to New York at the end of February. From a relatively big city to a huge metropolis. This brought about lots of changes in my life, but luckily green is still within reach. There is a nice ‘common’ garden behind the house with tall trees and ever-chit-chatting birds. I used to watch them from the kitchen window and by now I know their daily schedules. The incomparable and astonishing Central Park is just a short walk away. More than 830 animal and 174 tree species live in the almost 160 year-old, 843 acres park. Just like most of the New York citizens, we also love to spend time there. As the fine weather arrived here there is always something happening in the fancy life of Central Park. How amazing it is to have such a jewel in the heart of the city - that never sleeps!
I have joined PDFoundation because their mission and vision combines the essential ideas about understanding and conserving the environment. They are engaged to share their knowledge with as many people as they can reach worldwide, creating a live community network. They are all dedicated to call for attention and have certain professional background. I feel that my attention and efforts are valued here and that PDF knows how to connect people with nature. I am truly honored to be a part of their work.
“What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.” /F. Nietzsche/