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America’s hiking culture is built on ego
(www.theguardian.com)
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Is this really an issue though? Whatever gets people a bit closer to nature seems good to me
Yes, yes it is. Just look at how the top of Everest is trashed by climbers insisting on conquering it and it is a perfect symbol of the broader outdoor movement in many ways.
When people relate to nature as something to be tested against and conquered/overcome they begin to lose the capacity to understand how they can have a meaningfully negative impact on nature from their actions because this entire perspective frames nature as an obstacle far bigger than us, hopelessly more powerful than us and so encompassing we are tiny in comparison. There is a rotting false, dangerous comfort and naivety embedded in the core of that belief. It reminds me of this catastrophically off base speculation in Moby Dick about how since Whales are so much more powerful than humans and the ocean is so big that we could never diminish their numbers in hunting.
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How awfully wrong that quote was about the future of whales...
I agree that its not a great attitude; but exposure to nature seems like a good way to correct it. I've known people who didn't care about climate change; until they realized it would effect the trail they like to go running on.
The trash left on hiking trails isn't great; but its nothing compared to the damage corporations have done. If just a few more people discovered a love of nature, that could inspire tighter regulations on corporations
Sure, but my argument is that it isn't just about being physically in nature, that doesn't magically make it impact you, it can end up just hurting nature and driving you further into an internal quest that diminishes your capacity to witness the world around you.
I am glad when people decide to care about climate change because their personal exercise facility is impacted but it is a shallow reason to care and it is fragile too. It is far better to invite people into nature in a way that actually deepens and radicalizes them.