Isn’t this worth standing up for? Photo: Paul Greene
It could be argued that the Indigenous Australians were the first conservationists, and arguably the world’s oldest living culture. In a recent genetic study (University of Western Australia), it was found that the ancestors of modern Aboriginal Australians left Africa on the long and treacherous journey and crossed a ‘land bridge’ towards Asia between 64,000-75,000 years ago. This kind of journey would have demanded exceptional survival skills, and the ability to live in harmony with the harsh Australian climate would have been key for the survival of the great living culture we see today.
Before European invasion and eventual settlement in Australia, the Indigenous people lived and flourished on the land. Their genius conservation techniques helped Australia’s unique biota survive for thousands of years before the first fleet arrived. ‘Fire stick farming’ utilized fire as a tool to achieve short-term outcomes, providing favorable habitats for herbivores, and increased the abundance of local food plants. Fire plays an important role in providing the habitats for many animal species. With many Australian fire adaptive flora only releasing valuable seeds and pollen producing flowers after firing, it is a key component to landscape ecology in Australia. Throughout history, conservationists and environmental movements that spark action and change throughout the world, at least for the short-term, have surfaced.
Aldo Leopold’s A Sand County Almanac (1949), restored an exotic romanticism toward the environment, and developed the ‘land ethic’ to preserve the integrity and beauty of the biotic community. Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring (1962) triggered wide-spread panic and dismay over the use of dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) in farming practices across America, and subsequently led to the biggest chemical reform in history. In the following ‘green’ movement of the 1970’s, the world stood up and admitted that we as humans are the biggest threat to this earth. The time has come for another movement. Who will be the next? With species loss and pollution off the charts, who will stand up and provide a platform for conservation on a global level?
