Against the Conquest of Nature
A Land Ethic® expands the definition of “community” to include not only humans, but all of the other parts of the Earth, as well: soils, waters, plants, and animals – “the land”. In a Land Ethic®, the relationships between people and land are intertwined; care for people cannot be separated from care for the land. Thus, a Land Ethic® is a moral code of conduct that stems from these interconnected caring relationships.1
I’ve always felt an affinity for wild places. Life in myriad forms, existing only briefly in a web of interdependence. Dappled sunlight and the sound of rustling leaves. Flashes of color as birds flit among the branches. And the smells! Herbs crushed underfoot, rotting wood, and musky earth. I love it.
Back in the day, I was briefly a docent at the Edith L. Moore Nature Sanctuary on the west side of Houston. I was living nearby at the time, and it was such a wonderful respite from the concrete hellscape that I eventually felt compelled to give back. Work soon moved us out of the area and sucked up all my free time. I realized today that doing stuff like that made me very happy and I should look for ways to get involved again.
I think being back in nature and getting your hands dirty with some proper, meaningful work is incredibly therapeutic. I wonder if some of the depression and anxiety experienced by so many (myself included) is the result of being disconnected from what’s real and natural.
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Given my predilections, conservation was an obvious avenue to explore. In college, I dabbled in some of the more extreme ideologies (sink whaling ships!) and fringe organizations, but I could never give what was asked of me. It wasn’t until discovering The Aldo Leopold Foundation that I found words for what I had always felt about our environment. Their stated mission is to foster the Land Ethic® through the legacy of Aldo Leopold, awakening an ecological conscience in people throughout the world.2
One of our many mistakes as a species is failing to recognize our place in the ecosystem. We step out of our sterile little homes as conquerors. Squinting in the sunlight, armed with bladed implements, we raze, chop, shred, poison, and kill. We subjugate the Earth, make it work for us. Everything must bend to our will.
But I always wondered: what if there was another way? What if everything from agriculture to architecture looked at nature with a conciliatory eye. Sustainable practices to keep the land healthy and structures designed to blend in. From individuals to larger communities, I think it’s possible to cultivate a relationship with the natural world that is cooperative and respectful rather than antagonistic.
I can’t help but think that so many of the ecological problems we face today are the result of an ethical deficiency. I also worry that we’re too far gone to fix it.