This repository contains my presentation slides for the 2018 Integrative Conservation Conference held September 20-23 at the University of Georgia.
"We are in between stories": teaching conservation within its deep cultural contexts
Conservation biology is often described as a value-laden discipline, having as its foundation a commitment to the preservation of biodiversity. In order to justify this disciplinary commitment, instructors sometimes explicitly highlight different types of value associated with biodiversity, yet rarely do they give significant attention to the broader historical and cultural contexts, the overarching human stories, within which these value claims are situated. Here, I outline my attempts to fill this gap in awareness via a discussion course that addressed modern conservation practice in light of early American environmental attitudes, which reflect our particular cultural imagination. I then provide some suggestions for further refinement of this teaching model, drawing on the work of Thomas Berry. First, we can do more to communicate the timescale of the abiotic and biotic processes that have generated biodiversity. Focusing on these processes strengthens the case for nature conservation by highlighting contemporary ecosystems as the products of a deep historical legacy. The process-oriented perspective also aligns well with recent trends away from single-species management towards more holistic conservation strategies. Second, we can properly situate the entire modern conservation movement as operating within an increasingly global worldview that emphasizes scientific and technological insights in the service of industrial development. Indeed, from this dominant motivating story of contemporary human societies stem the many tensions, conflicts, and impediments faced by the conservation practitioner. There is much to be gained from giving ourselves, and then our students, a more comprehensive perspective on the timeframe over which conservation issues have arisen, the magnitude and drivers of our current problems, and, in turn, the sorts of stories and solutions that might provide appropriate, long-lasting remedies.