In tune with the prominent discourse around logging off, there’s a burgeoning interest in tools that demonstrate how we can use our devices differently: amplifiers of our senses and surroundings, rather than black holes that draw us away from them. 

We’re seeing this refreshed connection with nature across culture more broadly, whether that be podcasts like ‘Digging With Flo’, hosted by NTS Radio's Flo Dill, who invites different artists to her allotment for a patch of gardening, or Kamryn Renae, the viral long-distance hiker, who’s trekking the 2,650-mile Pacific Crest Trail solo, and adorned exclusively in pink gear. 

The common thread to this new generation of brands and technologies is how they lean into playfulness: Modem's Terra cultivates a sense of mystery and adventure; Merlin is the Pokémon Go of birdwatching; BIRD toys with the secret knowledge hidden in nature; and Glitch gamifies growing for a greater good. It would be remiss not to pay an honourable mention to Touch Grass, which locks certain apps until you literally go outside, touch grass, and submit a photo of you doing so. 

Terra: Destination Unknown 

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Terra by Modem

Developed by innovation studio Modem, in collaboration with Panter&Tourron, Terra is a lodestar that ‘translates your intentions, available time, and precise location into a tailored trail of GPS coordinates.’ The stone-like device fits perfectly into the human palm, its surface reminiscent of a sea-smoothed pebble. With a minimal interface that features only a compass needle and haptic feedback, users’ focus is centred on their environment and ‘reclaims the walk as a restorative act’. 

GPS apps rely on the user inputting an end location to devise a route, but with Terra the final destination remains unknown to the user until they arrive, guided by the location, desired duration and feelings they pre-programmed the device with. What is promised, however, is a return to the starting point and a more mindful journey. 

'Not all those who wonder are lost', Terra by Modem

Inspired by DIY culture, the Terra project is open source and requires users to build the device for themselves, with the software and hardware components, and 3D-printable shell files, available from GitHub.

Strategic consideration: How can you support people’s intentions and emotions in experiences that are often distracting and disembodied? 

Merlin: Heightened Senses 

Merlin Bird ID by Cornell Lab

The Merlin Bird ID app demonstrates how machine learning doesn’t have to decay our knowledge; it can in fact grow our understanding of the natural world. Hatched in the Cornell Lab of Ornithology in New York, Merlin identifies birdsong and the species singing, allowing users to track all the different birds they’ve heard in a Life List. Downloaded more than 40 million times in 240 countries, the Shazam of birdsong shows there’s a deep desire to better understand our environment and its inhabitants.