Ask Urban Scout #6

Dear Mr. Scout,How far do you intend to take your journey? Do you see yourself living full time in the wilderness or perhaps roaming the ‘wilderness’ of the burned out remains of industrial world?How many humans do you think the ecosystem can support? I think Jared Diamond reckons it’s around 10 million. That’s a huge die-off. Is it possible or desirable to compromise between completely wild living and maintaining a low impact village?

I grew up and live in the Sierra Nevada near Yosemite and know little about wild living but strive to learn more. I was pleased to run across your blog. It was inspiring to see a young person with courage and ingenuity.

Stay Wild

Darrin

Dear Darrin,

So many questions! Thanks for asking. Let me answer them one by one:

How far do you intend to take your journey?

To quote the wise lyrics of the Groovie Goulies, “Till death do us party!” I plan to take this journey to my death, which hopefully will not happen for at least another 50 years! But seriously, I have dedicated my life to walking away from civilization and rewilding. The worse civilization gets, the easier rewilding becomes and the more people join the movement.

Do you see yourself living full time in the wilderness or perhaps roaming the ‘wilderness’ of the burned out remains of industrial world?

In short, probably both. In length, I don’t really see a “wilderness” vs. “urban.” I see bioregions and micro-climates. Wilderness implies no management, but the peoples of the Northwest coast heavily managed the land here. So I no longer feel the idea of an “un-touched wilderness” reveals clarity around hunter-gatherers. So, wherever I roam I will do what I can to increase diversity.

How many humans do you think the ecosystem can support? I think Jared Diamond reckons it’s around 10 million.

I have no idea. I don’t really like Jared Diamond; I don’t trust anyone with a comb-over! If someone so poorly tries to hide their baldness with a wreched comb-over, how can I trust anything they write? I think if the people work with the land, they can have very large cultures that do not destroy it, but continue promoting biodiversity.

Is it possible or desirable to compromise between completely wild living and maintaining a low impact village?

Even wild people burned berry patches to encourage more berries the following year. I don’t believe in a low-impact or no-impact living. Make an impact. Make a huge impact. Just make sure that impact increases biodiversity rather than decreases it. Horticulture describes many techniques that “hunter-gatherers” used to encourage health of ecosystems. I think the more people practicing these techniques will probably have villages.

I grew up and live in the Sierra Nevada near Yosemite and know little about wild living but strive to learn more. I was pleased to run across your blog. It was inspiring to see a young person with courage and ingenuity.

Sierra Nevadas? Yosemite? You may find Tending the Wild; Native American Knowledge and the Management of California’s Natural Resources an important piece of writing. Thanks for the props! Glad I could inspire you.

Good Luck,

Scout

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