ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Holism in ecological anthropology

Holism in ecological anthropology is like looking at the whole picture of how different things in nature are connected to each other. Just like how we see our body as one big system, ecological anthropologists see the earth's environment as one big system too. They study how living things like animals and plants, non-living things like rocks, and different parts of the environment like the air and water, all work together in a big, interconnected web.

They also look at the ways humans interact with the environment and how that affects everything else in the system. It's kind of like when we eat healthy food and exercise, our body feels good and works well. But if we eat too much junk food or don't move enough, our body might not work as well and we might get sick. Similarly, if humans do things that harm the environment like polluting or cutting down too many trees, it can affect the whole system and cause problems for other living things like animals or plants.

So, ecological anthropologists study how all these different things in nature work together and how humans can live with the environment in a way that keeps everything healthy and balanced. Holism in ecological anthropology is just a fancy way of saying that they look at the big picture and understand how everything is connected.