How to Deal with Excessive Exploitation of Nature

As a stubborn person who has made plenty of mistakes that ended in regret, I admit that this trait does not always bring blessings. People who stubbornly seek to justify actions that threaten, let alone take, the lives of many others are not exactly what you would call “nice.”

The flash flood in the Himalayas along the Nepal-Tibet border adds to the string of disasters that have struck throughout 2026. Thousands of local residents and tourists are still reported missing. Among them are thousands of workers involved in the construction of around 27 hydropower plants, all of which were affected by the disaster, although the extent of the damage may vary.

With a land area of less than 150,000 square kilometers and a population of 30 million, Nepal’s 27 hydropower plants, along with its other power-generation facilities, are capable of supplying more than enough electricity. It is therefore no surprise that Nepal is able to export the energy it produces to neighboring countries such as India, Bangladesh, and Tibet.

Details surrounding these 27 ill-fated hydropower plants remain unclear, including information about the investors and the nationalities of workers who are still trapped, missing, or dead. What is clear is that this disaster in late August 2026 has inevitably raised concerns among those who still care about the sustainability of the natural environment surrounding hydropower and geothermal power projects in various places.

Illustration: Mata Air Pakis Suceng, Singosari, Malang.

Building a “Fortress”

From the perspective of Indigenous believers in various parts of the world, conflict with nature in the form of major disasters can be prevented if people adopt a way of life based on taking and using only what they need.

Yet their beliefs are often dismissed as non-religious and stigmatized as cults. There is one reason for this: the values and rules within their belief systems stand in the way of those who seek to exploit their living spaces. Forests, rivers, seas, mountains … Almost no part of the natural environment where Indigenous communities live has been left untouched by exploitation.

The people who practice the Indigenous beliefs of Siberia have long been accustomed to facing an unforgiving natural environment. They have long accepted the reality that not everyone has good intentions. They are also accustomed to dealing with the consequences of someone else’s ill intentions.

One of their customary practices is to leave offerings in places where they are about to do something (in the forest before hunting, or in rivers and the sea before fishing). To some extent, this has helped them prepare for any possibility, including the worst.

Leaving offerings is an expression of respect for everything around them, an explicit acknowledgment, consciously made, that they know they are not alone.

In everyday life, this attitude can help keep us from falling into extreme panic, hysteria, or excessive anger when faced with something unexpected. Negative reactions to negative circumstances can sometimes be more dangerous than the event that triggered them in the first place.

There Is Always a Way Out 

Natural disasters caused by unmanaged exploitation of nature are not a new phenomenon. Similar events recur every year and can happen anywhere. All of this is beyond our control, because perhaps the people responsible are simply in desperate need of money.

With an understanding of this reality, we can build a shield against negative emotions when responding to the actions of people like them. Without negative emotions, and with minds that remain clear, dead ends will no longer find their way into our lives. (dswas)