January 2024 IPWA Reading Group Update by Cynthia Girand
"When we see land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect.”
– Aldo Leopold (A Sand County Almanac, 1949)
On January 25th 2024, the IPWA reading group met for the first time in Boulder, Colorado and shared our thoughts and insights on Aldo Leopold’s book "A Sand County Almanac".
We could relate to Leopold’s desire for a direct experience of the land—carefully observing the plants and animals, their relationships with each other through the seasons, and having a sense of the intrinsic value of the land. We shared stories of our own wilderness experiences, both near (our backyards) and far (Indian Peaks Wilderness and beyond), and reflected on what the wilderness of past generations may have been like.
Leopold poetically describes interdependence among life forms, mourns the loss of species, and reflects on the impact of humans on the land.
Ultimately, he calls us to ponder our place in the wilderness and adopt a land ethic that goes beyond economics, achievement, and self-interest. This ethic reflects an intertwining of care for humanity as well as all other parts of the Earth.
To learn more about Aldo Leopold and his work, visit: https://www.aldoleopold.org/about/aldo-leopold
Discussion questions:
Below are a handful of questions selected from a reading guide provided by the Aldo Leopold Foundation:
FORWARD: COMMUNITY
Leopold encouraged people to expand their vision of the world around them to include the natural world in their community as they would their neighbors. When people begin to look at plants, animals, soils, and waters in that context, they may consider them in a different way.
Compare your values with Leopold’s: Is the ability to see geese more important to you than television? Are you one who can live without wild things or one who cannot? How do various groups in American society currently determine the value of wild things? How is this demonstrated? How do disagreements about values play out?
Who is part of your community? Your family, friends, neighbors? Does it include the trees in your yard or the birds at your feeder? How about the soil in your garden? How have attitudes toward the natural world changed since Leopold’s time? Since the first settlers arrived in America? In all human history?
THE GOOD OAK: CONNECTIONS
We are connected to the world around us through the food we eat and the resources we use. Work can connect us to the pieces of the natural world that support us and to the history they embody.
Leopold worries people no longer truly know where heat or food comes from. Think about what you had for breakfast. Do you know where it actually came from? Have you ever been to a farm? Do you heat your home with coal, natural gas, wood, corn, electricity? How is the electricity generated? Do you agree that there could actually be a “spiritual danger” in not knowing the source of your food and energy? Why or why not?
The oak tree acts as a history book telling the history of conservation in Wisconsin. Imagine using a tree in your yard to tell a history of your town, neighborhood, and family. What would your story be?
AXE IN HAND: DECISIONS
Leopold asserted that each piece of land looks the way it does today because of past decisions. He suggests that any decision reflects our personal and collective values and biases. Each person will formulate their decisions differently, but by thinking about the ultimate effect of your actions, you can choose the evidence you will leave behind for others.
Leopold states that pines are his favorite trees. Do you have a favorite kind of tree? What is it about that particular species that you like? Does liking it make you want to think of ways that you could favor its growth?
Leopold writes, “Signatures of course differ...and this is how it should be.” Can you think of examples where people have made very different decisions, both wanting to do what is right for the health of the land?
THINKING LIKE A MOUNTAIN: HUMILITY
Leopold’s own misdeeds led him to be very concerned about the impacts of those with good intentions, but incomplete information. According to Leopold, blind pursuit of “success” or as he describes it “paradise” needs to be viewed cautiously.
Politicians are often criticized, called “flip floppers,” for changing their minds or positions on issues. However, it is critical for scientists to be able to do just this, sometimes referred to as a “paradigm shift.” Can you think about a time when you learned more about a subject and that your earlier assumptions were incorrect you were able to consciously change your mind about something?
This essay identifies many different perspectives, that of the wolf, the hunter, the rancher, and ultimately the mountain. Leopold is challenging the reader to read landscape from the mountain’s perspective. What does that mean to you?
THE OUTLOOK: ETHICS
Ethics provide context for our individual actions relative to larger social values. Leopold understood that ultimately the health of land, and in turn human health, would be determined by people’s values. A Sand County Almanac ends with Leopold’s challenge to individuals and communities to join in the “intellectual and emotional” evolution of a land ethic.
Leopold suggests that a land ethic can never really be written, rather it evolves over time through society’s thinking and actions. Has your thinking about right and wrong ever changed?
The “Land Ethic” essay challenges not only individuals but also communities to develop a land ethic. Can you think of examples from history where our society has changed the way it thinks about the natural world? Do you think American society has the kind of land ethic like Leopold describes? Why or why not?
The land ethic described by Leopold advances through both an “intellectual and emotional process.” Do you rely more heavily on information or intuition when you make decisions?
You're invited to participate in the IPWA Reading Group! We'll delve into the topics of wilderness, preservation, and conservation through reading, contemplation, and discussion.
This group meets in-person in Boulder, Colorado every other month. The group is open to all (IPWA volunteers, supporters, and the public). We'll gain a deeper understanding of wilderness through fiction and non-fiction selections, including works by renowned authors such as Aldo Leopold, Wallace Stegner, Terry Tempest Williams, Timothy Egan, Edward Abbey, E.O. Wilson, and others.
Please consider joining us for an upcoming Reading Group gathering in Boulder, CO!
March 21, 2024 - The Big Burn by Timothy Egan, 3:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. at the Rayback Collective - RSVP here
May 16, 2024 - Gathering Moss by Robin Wall Kimmerer, 3:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. at the Rayback Collective - RSVP here
July 18, 2024 - On Trails: An Exploration by Robert Moor, 3:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. at the Rayback Collective - RSVP here
These books are widely available at local libraries, bookstores (such as our local favorite, Boulder Bookstore), and online retailers.
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