Aldo Leopold - Land as Commodity or Community?

From the forward of Aldo Leopold's 1948 book, Sand County Almanac:

“Conservation is getting nowhere because it is incompatible with our Abrahamic concept of land. We abuse land because we regard it as a commodity belonging to us. When we see land as a community to which we belong, we may begin to use it with love and respect. There is no other way for land to survive the impact of mechanized man, nor for us to reap from it the esthetic harvest it is capable, under science, of contributing to culture.

That land is a community is the basic concept of ecology, but that land is to be loved and respected is an extension of ethics. That land yields a cultural harvest is a fact long known, but latterly often forgotten. ”

Mr. Leopold's writings have not lost relevance because they can be applied to the dire situation of the natural world more than ever. His five children work with the Aldo Leopold Foundation in Wisconsin. Visit their website to find out about current projects at aldoleopold.org.

Please view the trailer below for a documentary film about Aldo Leopold entitled Green Fire: