A Community Approach to Conservation

Seeing as the end of April is quickly approaching, I felt it was pertinent to get out another blog entry.

To begin, I want to thank all of my dive buddies who participated in the mid-March Mystic River scuba clean-up that I organized last month. Divers from the Southeastern Connecticut (SECONN) SCUBA Club....you all rock my neoprene socks! We had a blast and could not have done it without the enthusiastic divers and surface support.

Check out some photos from the fabulous day of mucky river treasure diving (photos courtesy of Eric and Mark):

Getting suited up!

Bringing in some old goodies

One of my favorite couples ;)

Drysuit picnic

The merry clean-up crew of Mystic, CT

Now on to more of the specifics of community conservation...

The word "community" is loosely used to describe a group of humans living in the same neighborhood, or who share a common interest or connection. Though if one asks an ecologist, the inquirer may be informed that a scientific community is defined as an 'assemblage of populations of different species who inhabit the same area.'

Humans are but a single species.

Musing upon potential topics for a blog entry, I had originally aimed to write about ways in which small environmental organizations can become unified to more effectively transform the conventional indifference of nature. The general disregard for the environment among the majority of humans will continue to plague all efforts made towards conservation. We face a societal problem with a 'mindset' answer.

Here's the punch line... The true community approach to conservation should begin with the ecological definition. Humans must learn to embrace the fact that we are only one species within a complicated web of interacting organisms. The answer is that humans need to dissolve the social idea that we are somehow separate from all other forms of life on Earth.

Yes, our big heads do have an evolutionary dominance over many other species. However, our self-awareness should allow us to consciously transcend primal instincts and to recognize our solitary position on the taxonomic tree. Human empathy can foster responsibility for our impacts on the environment, while human ingenuity will make way for a synergistic future!

(More to come about organized conservation efforts on a local scale...)