Environment is the influencing circumstances, objects, and conditions of an area. Factors contributing to the environment are physical, chemical, biotic, social, and cultural. The term environment is derived from the middle French preposition 'environ' meaning 'around' or 'that which surrounds'. The primary uses of the word are used to refer to the physical environment or geographical environment, such as 'electric vehicle sales are increasing because people care about the environment' or 'Jane Goodall loves to observe chimpanzees in their natural environment', and to refer to the social/cultural environment or man-made environment , such as 'we are trying to create a better environment within the company' or 'the child was raised in a loving environment'.
The natural environment consist of all components found in nature, and can also be referred to as the geographical environment or physical environment. Everything in the natural environment is not dependent on humans and consists of both biological, physical, and chemical systems including ecosystems, habitats, natural resources, mountains, plains, land, water, deserts, weather systems, climate, oceans, and all other aspects of the universe not created by humans.
The man-made environment refers to all environmental conditions that require humans to create, monitor, and maintain. Man-made environments can refer to both internal (within humans), such as social and cultural phenomenon, and external (outside of humans), such as science and technology.
