Restoration or representation? How culture shapes our vision of nature

Abstract

This essay examines how cultural narratives shape our perception of nature and sustainability, using artificial intelligence (AI) as both a mirror and metaphor for collective environmental imagination. When asked to depict “Environment, Biodiversity, and Ecosystems,” AI generated images rich in color and symbolism but distorted in ecological terms: dominated by animals and devoid of humans. When humans were added, they appeared isolated and disconnected, suspended between the fractal fluidity of nature and the rigid geometries of technological civilization. The author argues that our fascination with “untouched” nature and the ideal of “sustainable development” derives from a nostalgic vision of a pre-industrial paradise that never truly existed. Modern conservation, though morally driven, risks reinforcing the dualism between “pure” nature and the human world. European initiatives such as the Green Deal, Natura 2000, and the Nature Restoration Law represent vital progress toward reintegrating ecological, social, and technological dimensions. Yet a paradox persists: while restoration is celebrated rhetorically, the scientific disciplines essential to it - botany, ecology, taxonomy - are increasingly neglected. True ecological transition demands more than symbolic acts or technological fixes. It requires restoring respect for natural sciences, long-term ecological understanding, and a cultural reconciliation between representation and reality. Only by aligning imagination with ecology can humanity hope to sustain the living systems that support civilization.