Natural Humanists believe that all human beings should share the planet fairly, with every other living thing on Earth. They believe that, whenever possible, all past damage to the planet, and to all its natural habitats, and all its natural species, whether still alive or now extinct, should be repaired and made-good, and they believe that all future land-use, should never reduce, and should ideally increase, the planet’s natural biodiversity and ecosystems.
In 2023 alone, the number of human beings on Earth increased by a massive 74 million, in just one year[i] and this human population is expected to increase by another 2,200 million by 2084 [ii], from 8,200 million today[iii], to around 10,300 million.
Natural Humanists believe that we have an absolute responsibility, to all living species on Earth, to ensure that this massive increase in the human population does not further pollute the planet, or result in yet more of the Earth’s biodiverse land being stolen to house these new human beings, or to provide parking spaces for their cars, or provide for all of their other numerous wants, and needs.
Ethical Housing
Natural Humanists believe that all housing on Earth, but at the very least, any new housing for this future increased population, should be provided only in the most highly land-efficient way possible, such as by creating the large multi-storey Natural Humanist housing mentioned later in this book, particularly as all of the predicted population growth, until 2050, is expected to come from less developed countries[iv], meaning that such new, hugely land-efficient housing, funded by rich western nations, could be an effective way of helping to reduce the wealth, health and longevity gap between rich and poorer countries.
Natural Humanists believe that each human being should take up as little space on the planet as possible, and that any land which humans do need to use, should be shared in the most responsible way possible, with every other species which has a need and right to use it.
For example, they believe that single homes, particularly detached homes and bungalows, are an unforgivably extravagant and wasteful use of land, and that all human beings should live in multi-storey buildings. For example, replacing ten 100 square metre bungalows with one 10-storey block of 100 square metre flats, would allow 900 square metres of land to be permanently rewilded.
If a ‘wild meadow roof’ was then installed on top of this high-rise building, then even the small amount of land taken up by the building itself, would still be shared fairly with other species.
Natural Humanists believe that, as long as it doesn’t result in environmental damage, such buildings should always be as tall, and therefore as land-efficient as possible.
Furthermore, Natural Humanists believe that our homes should only be of a size that’s absolutely necessary, because the bigger they are, the more land they ‘steal’ from other species, the more of the world’s land and natural resources have to be used to build, furnish and maintain them, and the more pollution this all creates, both now, and when these buildings are eventually demolished, at the end of their useful life.
Just because we were all born into a ‘built world’, doesn’t mean that this ‘built world’, is in any way morally acceptable, it’s merely the legacy of immoral choices in the past. Natural Humanism, however, is all about the future, and making sure that our future planet is a much better, fairer, happier and more moral place to live, for human beings, and for all of the planet’s other natural inhabitants.
Natural Humanists believe that, wherever possible, all spaces within a building should be multi-functional, so that two different spaces aren’t required for different activities. They also believe that as many spaces as possible within a building or property should be communal, to avoid unnecessary and wasteful duplication.
For example, all residents of a multi-storey building could cook and dine communally, possibly in an on-site, pleasant and stylish ‘not-for-profit’ Bistro, rather than each flat having its own full kitchen, and its own full range of kitchen equipment, and its own dining room and dining furniture.
All bathrooms could be very hygienic and luxurious, but could be communal, instead of each flat, building or resident unnecessarily having private bathrooms or ensuites, or possibly each flat could have its own concealed shower or bath within the main living area of each flat, which is not visible at all when not in use, particularly if residents are naturists, with a screen available for complete privacy if required, and with an extremely efficient air extraction and dehumidification system, which, whether the shower is in use or not, always maintains the ideal 30% to 50% humidity[v] that’s considered to be the best for the building and its furniture[vi],[vii], and which is also the most comfortable and healthy for the property’s residents[viii].
Natural Humanists acknowledge that all buildings have a limited lifespan, with the lifespan of many new homes estimated to be just 60 years, or 100-150 years in some cases, if they’re well maintained[ix] and that, in the UK, 2/3 of all of the nation’s houses were built in the last 69 years and 80% of homes in England were built since 1919.[x]
Consequently, Natural Humanists believe that we, as a global society, have a strong moral duty to plan for the gradual permanent replacement of all the world’s existing buildings, roads, car-parks and all other constructions, when their lifespan has come to an end, with extremely well-designed, high-quality, green-rooved, multi-storey buildings, all of which are built to the very latest ‘True Net Zero Carbon Building’[xi] standards, are highly insulated, and are made from the most sustainable, long-lasting and most environmentally-responsible materials possible, the production of which requires the least possible use of potentially wild biodiverse land.
Ethical Transport
Natural Humanists believe that, as soon as it’s both environmentally responsible and financially possible to do so, all cars and personal transport should be replaced with public transport. They believe that, as with housing, this change should occur gradually, when these existing vehicles, and all of the roads and rail-lines on which they travel, come to the end of their serviceable lives. The only exception to this being personal transport for those with conditions which impair their mobility, but only when public transport can’t be designed to accommodate their needs, which in many cases it could be.
Natural Humanists believe that only the least environmentally damaging public transport system possible should ever be used, worldwide, and that this should use artificial-intelligence to ensure that every single journey that every human being, and every business and piece of freight ever needs to take, can be completed in the most environmentally responsible way possible, without any unnecessary duplication at all. Public transport, and any roads or rail-lines it uses, should also allow as much biodiversity in the world as possible, for example, by sinking this transport into underground tunnels, or building ‘green rooves’ over these roads or rail-lines, to allow other species to make use of this same land, and also to reduce the death of the billions of animals and insects that fatally collide with cars, commercial vehicles and public transport every year, as well as the large number of fatal collisions with children and adults, which totally devastate whole families.[xii],[xiii],[xiv]
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References
[i] Wikipedia contributors. “United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs.” 13 May 2025. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 2 Jun. 2025. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations_Department_of_Economic_and_Social_Affairs
[ii] Ritchie, Hannah; Rodés-Guirao, Lucas; Roser, Max. “Peak global population and other key findings from the 2024 UN World Population Prospects”. 12 July 2024. Our World in Data. 28 May 2025. https://ourworldindata.org/un-population-2024-revision. Cited on: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_population_projections#cite_note-7
[iii] Worldometer. “World Population”. 9 June 2025. worldometers.info. 9 June 2025. https://www.worldometers.info/world-population/
[iv] United Nations.”Population”. Retrieved 1 May 2023. un.org. 30 May 2025. https://www.un.org/en/global-issues/population. Cited on: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_population_projections#cite_note-UN_Populations-9
[v] Allen, Nafeesah. “What’s the Recommended Humidity Level for a House?”. April 26 2024. bhg.com. 27 May 2025. https://www.bhg.com/humidity-level-in-house-8636682
[vi] Rene Langer. “Ideal Indoor Humidity 2024: Ultimate Guide”. 6 January 2025. pickhvac.com. 27 May 2025. https://www.pickhvac.com/humidifier/using/ideal-indoor-humidity/
[vii] Checkatrade. “What is the ideal humidity in a house?”. Updated 7 November 2024. checkatrade.com. 3 Ju e 2025. https://www.checkatrade.com/blog/expert-advice/what-is-the-ideal-humidity-in-a-house/
[viii] Allen, Nafeesah. “What’s the Recommended Humidity Level for a House?”. April 26 2024. bhg.com. 27 May 2025. https://www.bhg.com/humidity-level-in-house-8636682
[ix] Property Registry Team. “How Long Will A New House Last?”. 2025. propertyregistry.co.uk. 3 June 2025. https://propertyregistry.co.uk/how-long-will-a-new-house-last/
[x] Wikipedia contributors. “Housing in the United Kingdom.” 4 May 2025. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. 29 May 2025. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Housing_in_the_United_Kingdom
[xi] TreeHugger. “Landmark study shows how to change the building sector from a major carbon emitter to a major carbon sink”. 8 December 2019. treehugger.com. 6 June 2025. https://www.treehugger.com/study-shows-how-to-change-building-sector-to-cut-carbon-4854259. Cited on: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zero-energy_building#cite_note-:2-20
[xii] Lewis, Aidan. “The invisible killer threatening millions of migrating birds”. 21 May 2014. BBC News. 3 June 2025. Washington. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-27426866
[xiii] Pesce, Roberta. “Death in the 20th Century. The Infographic”. 2 April 2013. Archived 15 August 2020 from the original. MedCrunch. 28 May 2025. https://web.archive.org/web/20200815051930/http:/www.medcrunch.net/death-20th-century-infographic/. Cited on: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Societal_effects_of_cars#cite_note-46
[xiv] World Health Organization. “Number of road traffic deaths”. who.int. https://www.who.int/gho/road_safety/mortality/traffic_deaths_number/en/. Cited on: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Societal_effects_of_cars#cite_note-47