Aldo Leopold has been dead for over 60 years, but his ideas have continued to live on in the hearts and minds of countless people. In fact, some of his most well known work was not published until the year after his death.
Aldo Leopold is most widely known for writing A Sand County Almanac, a collection of essays in which he told stories from his life and introduced the world to his concept of a land ethic. As he put it “the land ethic simply enlarges the boundaries of the community to include soils, waters, plants, and animals, or collectively: the land.” The land ethic promotes thinking beyond the economics of our choices and respecting all parts of the land.
In light of the recent popularity of concepts like local food and protecting native species from invasive threats, it may seem that we are moving toward Leopold’s land ethic at a great pace. But, as author Cynthia Barnett has put it, “somehow, America’s green craze has missed the blue.” How has the United States, and particularly Florida, dropped the ball on this key piece of the environmental puzzle? What would it look like to forge a water ethic and can we make it work in the face of climate change?
Cynthia Barnett is an environmental journalist who has worked extensively in water issues, publishing three books on the matter and touring the world to speak on it. Join us on October 20th at Brooker Creek Preserve or USF St. Pete to hear from Barnett and contribute to our community discussion on these vital topics.
Additional Resources:
The Land Ethic by Aldo Leopold
Blue Revolution at Brooker Creek Preserve
Blue Revolution at USF St. Petersburg
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