Naturalist (Civ6)

Naturalist
Civilian unit of the Modern Era
Introduced in Civilization VI
Unlocked by	Conservation
Cost
Faith	800
Faith	800
Maint.	0
Maint.	0
Stats
Movement	4
Movement	4
Sight	2
Sight	2
Notes
A late-game civilian who can create a single National Park to attract tourists.

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The Naturalist is a Modern Era civilian unit in Civilization VI. It can only be purchased with Faith in a city that has a Holy Site (regardless of religion).

• Attributes:
  • Can designate a site for a National Park. This is a one-time use Ability, after which the Naturalist is destroyed.

Strategy

The Naturalist is a special unit which scours the countryside to look for places of preserved natural beauty. (Valid locations will be outlined in white when she is selected.) She can then create a single National Park to attract tourists, after which she is consumed.

The Naturalist provides empires striving towards a Cultural Victory with an alternative way to attract tourists. These empires tend to have large territory anyway (being strong in Culture production helps your cities' borders expand), and usually end up adding remote locations with Mountains, virgin Forests and such to their territory. These are ideal places for National Parks! You should attempt to create these as soon as you discover Conservation, because the additional source of Tourism will help you immensely.

Historical Context

The conservation movement can be traced back to the Royal Society’s John Evelyn and his study 'Sylva,' published in 1662, advocating conservation of England’s forests. Although sometimes linked to environmentalism, it differs significantly in that conservation aims to preserve resources expressly for continued sustainable use by humans. Conservationists have focused primarily on the setting aside of natural areas for recreation and education, and the active protection of wildlife and plants for their inherent value. Near the end of the 19th Century, politicians took a hand in this valiant effort; American president Theodore Roosevelt became a leading (and powerful) conservationist, using his office to establish the U.S. Forest Service and to create five national parks, four game preserves, 51 bird sanctuaries, and 150 national forests – some 230 thousand acres in all.