We have never had more tools and conveniences available to us, both in our everyday lives and in our professions. Technology and innovation help us save time while expending less energy. We welcome this convenience and are quick to adopt new solutions.
But somewhere along the way, we are losing something: our connection to nature—the place we come from and the environment we were designed to interact with.
We buy food without knowing where it comes from. We throw away food scraps without considering where they end up. We can purchase almost anything, almost whenever we want. Yet despite all this convenience, we live increasingly disconnected from the things that make us human.
Spending more time in front of screens does not make us more human or more aware of who we truly are. There is no personal growth to be found in technology and innovation themselves. They simply save us time and energy.
By relying too heavily on technology, we may actually be limiting what life could be. Expending more energy throughout the day strengthens the body, and doing things yourself instead of letting technology do them for you can lead to deeper understanding and knowledge.
Adults are affected by this, but for our children the situation is even more serious. A study conducted by Karlstad University (the SELMA Study) found that children who are not physically active have poorer motor skills, which can lead to both worse health outcomes and fewer opportunities later in life.
Our children have no memory of what life looks like without technological assistance. Technology is a natural part of their reality. I am convinced that, in the future, we will face the consequences of this. The next generation of adults may have a fundamentally different view of what life is—a less biologically human existence and a more technology-driven one, where both skills and work are increasingly delegated to machines.
Will new technological solutions help us reconnect with our biological nature?
I do not see any clear trend pointing in that direction. There is little evidence that we are willing to abandon technology in order to regain control, knowledge, and self-sufficiency in our daily lives. It could be argued that more people are becoming interested in gardening and spending time outdoors, but that alone is not enough when the rest of our lives are becoming increasingly dependent on technology.
I should emphasize that I do not view the future entirely pessimistically. Artificial intelligence gives us the opportunity to create a brighter future, where innovations emerge at an unprecedented pace and help elevate humanity to new heights. We may live longer, healthier, and wealthier lives. Yet somewhere in the back of my mind remains the feeling that we have lost something fundamentally human.
Who are we creating all of this for?
Ultimately, we will live within the sum of these innovations, and society will have to adapt to the behaviors and priorities they create.
This is, of course, my personal opinion. But perhaps it can encourage you to reflect on your own humanity in everyday life. Do you ever stop and consider which skills and abilities you are handing over to technology?
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