I would to say a few words here on the subject of beauty. Though not the superficial human kind.Rather, I think it prudent to reconsider our standards on what we consider beautiful in the natural world.
This subject holds particular relevance for me not only because I recently read Plato's Symposium and dealt with the concept of Platonic forms, but because this year I've encountered a tremendous variety of new ecosystems. From the oak woodlands of northern California through to the state's agricultural heart. Then to high deserts of Arizona and finally back up to the Blue Mountains of Walla Walla County. My travels have taken me all the way up and down the west coast; each location carrying its own personality and characteristics. My issue, simply put, is how are we to value them? Our answers, even casually considered, can have immense ecological implications.
The fact of the matter is that forests are the poster boys of the natural realm. They get the most love, protection and consideration. It is generally agreed upon that the destruction of woodlands, except out of necessity for timber, is a deplorable act. And while the timber industry certainly has its issues, I'm not so concerned with them here. Trees have status. What I'm more concerned with currently are ecosystems like prairies, deserts and tundras. Places that don't garner much fanfare. They are often seen as barren and unattractive, devoid of any real worth. While these are blatant misconceptions, they leave our less aesthetically pleasing locales open to exploitation. The public isn't moved to preserve a plot of what they see as dead grass. Yet these attitudes are a result of poor ecological education. And they were the bane of Aldo Leopold's existence.
Simply because the complexities of these systems are hidden, doesn't preclude their existence. When I first came to Walla Walla, I thought the area outside of the Whitman campus to be one of the most unattractive places I had ever been. Besides Bakersville, CA of course. But now that I'm settled in here, and enrolled in a natural history course, I'm beginning to perceive the fine balance that exists in this valley. It's beautiful in its own right and certainly worth preserving. Its this diversity of life that keeps our world healthy. Even those unsightly weeds have a place in evolution. As insignificant as they seem, displaced native grasses and weeds can have extremely adverse effects. Their absence invites in non-native species which can disrupt well-established ecological cycles.
I could go on like this for quite some time, but the moral I wish to convey is simple enough and need not be lost in specifics. Essentially, evolution has established delicate ecological relationships within each of these environments. Some are less aesthetically pleasing to human beings, and thus suffer our erroneous wrath. Mankind needs to take greater care to recognize the true value of generally unremarkable things like prairie grasses or ocean bottomfeeders. Seen through an ecological lens, each of these places are equally beautiful. So don't simply dismiss a place for its lack of greenery. This diversity is essential after all. Nature has its ugly ducklings, so to speak, but we should learn to see through our aesthetic judgments.
And I'm not advocating we leave every track of land untouched, but rather that we engage it with knowledge of the aforementioned cycles. We human beings are a part of nature after all, and we need to better execute our role as participants in the natural world.
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