- Be able to define and give the characteristics of Aldo Leopold's concept of "The Land Ethic"
- Determine the strengths and limitations of the Land Ethic
- Understand the Gaia hypothesis and be able to connect it to the land ethic
Starter 2.13: Answer one of Discussion Questions 1-8.
Leopold's "Land Ethic"
Important Quotes: React to each quote on the mini-whiteboard. Sketch? Hashtags? Verse? Connection?
- "A land ethic changes the role of Homo sapiens from conqueror of the land-community to plain member and citizen of it."
- "A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability, and beauty of the biotic community. It is wrong when it tends otherwise."
- "A land ethic of course cannot prevent the alteration, management, and use of these 'resource,' but it does affirm their right to continued existence, and, at lease in spots, their continued existence in a natural state."
- "We have no land ethic yet, but we have drawn nearer the point of admitting that birds should continue as a matter of biotic right, regardless of the presence or absence of economic advantage to us."
- "A land ethic, then, reflects the existence of an ecological conscience, and this in turn reflects a conviction of individual responsibility for the health of the land. Health is the capacity of the land for self-renewal. Conservation is our effort to understand and preserve this capacity."
- "Perhaps the most serious obstacle impeding the evolution of a land ethic is the fact that our educational and economic system is headed away from, rather than toward, an intense consciousness of land."
Discussion: "The Land Ethic" by Aldo Leopold
1. Share starter answers
2. What struck us?
3. What are the strengths and limitations of the land ethic?
Helpful resource on "The Land Ethic" for your review.
What is The Gaia Hypothesis?
Everything is Connected: Listen to the first segment
Freewrite: (Everything is Connected)
What is your reaction to the ideas of this podcast? Can you connect this to the concept of the Gaia hypothesis? How does this connect to the land ethic? Use examples from both the podcast and "The Land Ethic" to support your answer.
Work Time Options:
1. PROJECT! You have a draft due on Tuesday!
2. Listen to the other segments of "Everything is Connected."
3. Explore some of the other Stations that your group didn't get to yesterday.
HOMEWORK: Draft for Critique due Tuesday!!