Article
Four Success Factors Ancient Romans Knew But We Seem To Have Forgotten
Nature was very important in the ancient Roman Empire (credit: CYRUM on Shutterstock)
In school, we all learn a lot about the past in history class. When I was a child, I always wondered why this was relevant; today, I know that the past still heavily influences today’s society and that learning about the past provides us with important lessons for today and our future.
For example, today’s society is — at least in large parts of the world — still heavily influenced by the ancient Roman Empire. The Roman Empire grew to power over several centuries before Christ, with two thriving centuries around Christ, and eventually the fall in 476 AD. A time lapse of the development of the empire is shown in this video:
https://youtu.be/WaxeyHAOTWA
The Roman Empire was characterized by an autocratic government, which means that different types of power (military, political, administrative, and religious) were all in the hands of one emperor. Also, society was well-organized, allowing them to excel in administration, organization, and engineering. Today, we still see this for instance in:
- remainders of old buildings
- the Gregorian calendar (from January to December)
- market squares in city centers, which goes back to the Roman fora as a place for people to gather for many different purposes
- roads: many former Roman routes still exist in today’s roads
Many ancient roads still exist either in ancient or modern form, such as the Appian Way (credit: Martina Birnbaum on Shutterstock)
At the same time, ancient Romans were very appreciative of and deeply connected with nature. They did not see nature as something to be conquered or a resource to be exploited, which is a view that comes from perceiving something as beautiful when it is pleasurable. Instead, they enjoyed nature independent of its usefulness, which comes from the opposite perspective: perceiving something as pleasurable when it is beautiful. As a consequence, they were eager to integrate natural landscapes into their urban design and made sure that beauty and functionality existed at the same time. For example, gardens were designed not only for growing food and leisure but also as a place to think and enjoy beauty.
By combining different purposes in urban environments, Romans were able to make the interaction with nature not only practical and efficient but also allowed it to promote mental and physical well-being. And they took it even one step further: they saw nature as a source of wisdom, for example using it as inspiration to reflect on social values, emotions, and philosophical ideas, as inspiration for various forms of art, and as a guide to understanding themselves and the universe. As a result, they were very aware that nature is worth nurturing and respecting.
While usual cultural remains such as ruins remind us of the Romans’ prosperity, their nature-related values impacted their world a lot and should not be overlooked. Also, their values can provide valuable insights into how we can address current environmental issues and shape our future, making nature a more important part of daily life again to promote well-being. This is what we can learn from their ancient culture to improve our health and re-find ecological balance:
Balancing land use
The first lesson we can learn from the ancient Roman culture to improve our health and re-find ecological balance is that it is critical to balance land use. As the Roman Empire grew, land use changed, as they for example cut trees, built more villages, and needed more farming lands. While this changed and sometimes destroyed landscapes, they also transformed areas in managed landscapes to give many different plants and animals a new home. Looking at how Romans found this healthy balance can help us today in conservation efforts, which focus on taking action to protect and preserve the natural environment and biodiversity. Biodiversity means the number of plant and animal species growing and living in a certain area.
Also, many green spaces, such as parks and gardens were built in cities and towns. These areas provided space for recreational activities and supported Roman citizens to feel part of their community through interaction, entertainment, and relaxation. Together, they contributed to the well-being of the population.
Learning the lesson of balancing land use is important in today’s world because recent developments put a lot of pressure on the environment and cause environmental degradation. By recognizing the intrinsic value of our environment, we can make sure that our surroundings are vibrant and provide a healthy place to live, for today’s and future generations.
An ancient Roman bath with ornamental garden (credit: “Hints on ornamental gardening” by Internet Archive Book Images is published in the public domain)
Making agriculture sustainable
The second lesson we can learn from the ancient Roman culture to improve our health and re-find ecological balance is that it is critical to make agricultural practices sustainable. As the Roman Empire grew, agriculture became more and more important for the growing population. That is why ancient Romans developed farming techniques that allowed them to increase yield while keeping the soil fertile. They for example used:
- crop rotation, which involves growing different crops in subsequent years on the same field
- terracing, which involves creating flat areas on steep slopes to reduce soil erosion and use water more efficiently
- irrigation, which involves watering plants
Looking at how Romans made their farming sustainable can help us today in making agriculture more sustainable again.
Learning the lesson of making agriculture sustainable is important in today’s world because traditional methods were often developed over generations with a deep understanding of local ecosystems. By combining these methods that respect the environment with modern insights and technologies, we can make agriculture more efficient, sustainable, and resilient.
Ancient Romans working in the fields (credit: Massimo Todaro on Shutterstock)
Water management
The third lesson we can learn from the ancient Roman culture to improve our health and re-find ecological balance is how to manage water effectively. Water management was critical back then to ensure that enough freshwater was available in cities and areas used for agriculture.
To bring water over long distances, the ancient Romans built ingenious water management systems. These systems started in a place where groundwater could be obtained, which was then transported through tunnels and over aqueducts to cities. Once the water arrived in a city, it was distributed, and at its final destination often trickled from the wall into a basin so that solid particles in the water could settle and were automatically removed from the water.
Pont du Gard, an ancient Roman aqueduct crossing the Gardon River near Nimes in France (credit: jeafish Ping on Shutterstock)
At the same time, structures were built to manage floodwater in cities. This was for example important in Rome, as the area was originally 6 m (20 ft) below sea level and was flooded every year by the Tiber River. Initially, a main canal was built, which was extended many times over time with smaller canals as the city grew. At some point, these canals were covered, creating a sewer system that still exists today.
Learning the lesson of water management is important in today’s world because traditional water management methods can inform modern cities how to adapt to changing climatic circumstances. These changing climatic circumstances can cause higher water levels and an increased flood risk. Combining traditional methods with recent scientific insights can make cities more resilient.
Waste management
The fourth lesson we can learn from the ancient Roman culture to improve our health and re-find ecological balance is how to manage and reuse waste effectively. Waste management was implemented to improve sanitation and hygiene in urban areas for example by building sewers. Also, they recycled materials such as glass, metal, and pottery, which are today principles of a circular economy. A circular economy is an economy in which products are used as long as possible by sharing, reusing, repairing, and refurbishing them, and at the end of their life use their materials for new products. This is different from today’s linear economy, in which materials are used and eventually discarded.
Ancient Roman toilets called latrines (credit: Stefan Lambauer on Shutterstock)
Learning the lesson of waste management is important in today’s world because the growing world population and inappropriate waste management, cause excessive use of earthly resources — some resources even getting close to being depleted. By finding a balance between using and conserving resources, they continue to be available for today’s and future generations.
How we can take action
So, the ancient Romans were good at implementing strategies related to balancing land use, making agriculture sustainable, water and waste management, and effective legislation and regulations. While science and modern technologies have provide us with new possibilities, many of the principles that were applied by ancient Romans are still valuable today. These principles can inspire us to take care of our planet and ensure that not only today’s but also future generations have a healthy and beautiful place to live.
Here are practical ideas of what you and I can do to balance land use, make agriculture sustainable, and contribute to water and waste management:
Balancing land use:
- Supporting local and organic farmers by buying their products
- Practicing urban gardening on your balcony or roof to grow food
- Protecting green spaces such as parks in your city
Making agriculture sustainable:
- Using home-created (vermi-)compost to improve soil fertility instead of buying chemical fertilizer
- Choosing a plant-based diet more often
- Buying organic products, which are grown using environmentally friendly practices
Water management:
- Installing a rain barrel to capture water from the roof and use it for watering plants, flushing the toilet, etc
- Saving water by fixing leaks as soon as possible
- Reducing water use when showering by installing a water-saving shower head, turning off the shower when applying soap, and showering shorter
Waste management:
- Disposing of waste properly to allow recycling and environmentally friendly handling
- Preventing littering
- Doing a cleanup by picking up littered waste
Which one of these can you implement in your daily life? And do you have further ideas of what you and I could do? Thank you in advance for putting them into practice and sharing them in a comment to this question to inspire all of us.
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Did you enjoy this article? Then I’m sure you’ll love my book “A Guide to A Healthier Planet” as well:
A Guide to a Healthier Planet
This book focuses on closing the gap between scientific insights on pressing environmental issues that do not often reach the general public.
https://www.sustainabledecisions.eu/guide-to-a-healthier-planet
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About the author
Dr. Erlijn van Genuchten is a an internationally recognized environmental sustainability expert. She is a science communicator, helping scientists in the fields of nature and sustainability increase the outreach of their results and allowing us all to put scientific insights into practice and contribute to a sustainable future. Erlijn has inspired thousands of people around the world — for example — by supporting the United Nations with her expertise, her book “A Guide to A Healthier Planet” published by Springer Nature, her YouTube channel Xplore Nature, and her posts on social media.
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7 w
Thank you Erlijn our great climate advocate for sharing with us this article. The article beautifully highlights how ancient Roman practices can guide us toward sustainability today. By embracing their wisdom in land use, agriculture, water management, and waste recycling, we can create a healthier planet for future generations. I wish we can all collectively take action!
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7 w
@patrick_kiash You‘re welcome! If they were capable to do it back then, we are capable of doing it today too