Before man, with his technical ingenuity, increasingly interfered with nature, climate and natural erosion shaped the landscape. With the establishment of the first settlements, man changed nature permanently. He uses his environment, hunts the animal kingdom, specifically collects plant food, and shapes his living space.
Improved living conditions and a secure food supply lead to an increase in population. More and more people need more and more space. Therefore, man is forced to use unfavourable areas of land for himself and to develop new models of living together. The first villages emerge.
Man's influence on nature now goes so far that he reshapes entire landscapes and even changes the climate. Today, attempts are being made to reverse the greatest encroachments on nature - rubbish dumps are being converted into local recreation areas; river courses are being straightened, or "nature reserves" are being created like the Lüneburger Heide, which is actually an artificial landscape.